Online only: Angela's angst

After more than a decade since its original airtime, the entire one-season series of "My So-Called Life" is out in its own boxed set. As a rule, TV shows about high school have nothing to do with the reality of adolescence. But this series poignantly depicts all the emotions a teenage girl goes through. It's about hating your parents and falling in love for the first time. It's about dying your hair and popping zits. It's all about hormones, heartache and hilarity. \nAnd no one can better capture all of this than Claire Danes, as the series' protagonist Angela Chase. Like another excellent coming-of-age series "The Wonder Years," the story is narrated through its protagonist. Angela, however, is more of a precocious introvert who tries to find some meaning in her life. Although she is intellectually and emotionally mature, she possesses a naive nature. The pilot kicks off with her decision to no longer blend in with the crowd. She dyes her hair red and changes her scene. And throughout the short-lived series, she is constantly trying to find herself. \nThe characters in her life are not snippets of stereotypical high schoolers but perfect examples of the people who change your life. A pre- "Requiem For A Dream"-and-30 Seconds to Mars Jared Leto plays the wounded object of Angela's affection Jordan Catalano. The show also presents the difficulty parents must face in raising a teenage daughter while dealing with their own lives. And Wilson Cruz is groundbreaking in depicting one of the first openly gay characters on television, the sympathetic Rickie Vasquez.\n"My So-Called Life" is also a rare cultural portrayal of growing up in the mid-'90s. The series is set in suburban Pittsburgh at a time when artists such as the Smashing Pumpkins and Nirvana were on top, while flannel was a fashion staple. And let's not forget it was during the Clinton era.\nLike most shows that have as much substance as "My So-Called Life," the show was cancelled after 19 episodes. The show itself was ahead of its time and, like its protagonist, too mature for the mainstream. This is a common occurrence for similar TV shows, such as "Freaks and Geeks" and "Undeclared." Even the plethora of in-depth special features is rare for a DVD box set. At least this important TV show is finally receiving the treatment it deserves.