The premise of Huge is: fat teenagers at fat camp. And at first I was a little apprehensive, but then I learned that it's created by the woman who did My So-Called Life and her daughter, so - ABC Family indeed (Huge airs at 9pm Mondays on that channel). Then I watched the pilot episode, and was blown away.
Like with many ensemble shows, There is a theoretical main character (TMC), but I've found that in many of these cases (How I Met Your Mother, Party Down, Community) the focus quickly equals out and the primary and secondary characters reach equal footing. Huge is like that. Ian (the Isaac lookalike played by Ari Stidham) is everything I could ask for in an awkward, shy, painfully un-confident leading man. Chloe (Ashley Holliday) is like any number of girls I know - and the relationship between Chloe and Amber is all-too-familiar for me. Alastair (Harvey Guillen) is so endearing it makes my insides crumple. Becca (Raven Goodwin) is quietly fierce. Trent (Stefan Van Ray) is hot and broken. Piznarski (which, excuse me, was Piz from VMars' name first) (Jacob Wysocki) is like any number of boys I know, using humor as a shield. And the two TMCs fit into this ensemble perfectly, leaving enough space for everyone to shine.
The first TMC is a girl named Will, played by Nikki Blonsky from the Hairspray remake I refused to see, and she is fat and angry and she's not gonna take it anymore. She's been shipped off to fat camp by her terrible-sounding absentee parents, but here's the kicker: she loves her body and doesn't want to lose weight. Which is awesome - but it doesn't mean that she doesn't have her own insecurities, or that her militant fat pride doesn't have negative consequences for herself and others. Also, she has blue streaks in her hair (that are clearly not clip-ons like Tina's on Glee) which let us know that she hates the system.
The second TMC is Amber, a blonde girl who could be described as curvy or chubby with a pretty bad case of societal pressure-induced body dysmorphic disorder. Amber is played by Hayley Hasselhoff, David's daughter, and all I could think when I realized that a few minutes ago is damn, that girl has already been through some shit. How many times has she had to call 911 for her dad? Too fucking many. Anyway, Amber is the skinniest one at camp, which makes her popular, hated, and envied. The boys all vie for her, but Amber is crushing hard on George, the cute teenage athletic leader, who clearly likes her back although she can't see it through all her self-loathing. In another scene a few episodes in, Amber runs into a group of kids from the neighboring tennis camp, and is able to pass for one of them.
The intersection of these two characters has brought up some very personal stuff for me, because I've been both of them. I have loved and been proud of my fat; I have hated my body and felt inferior to skinny girls. I have been the outspoken teenager who wants to believe her body is sexy but needs external validation, and I know what it's like to pass, and the surprise and relief that comes when you realize that people can think your body is normal and maybe even desirable.
I have also gone to camp. full disclosure: I love shows about camp. Camp (i went to Camp Celo, a very unique farm/hiking camp in the Black Mountains of North Carolina) was a huge part of my formative years, both as a camper and then as an assistant counselor during high school. I don't know if anyone remembers Bug Juice ("Bug juice, it doesn't come in a jar! Bug juice comes from who you are!" Anyone???), which was possibly the first reality show aimed at kids; it followed a group of pre-teens at a real camp, and I think it was on the Disney Channel. Anyway, I was obsessed. I also loved Salute Your Shorts, Camp Nowhere, Happy Campers (a movie that a guy I actually worked at camp with was in), Camp, The Parent Trap, Addams Family Values...I could go on. There is something about the concentrated relationships that occur when you're in a very intimate situation for a limited period of time that make for compelling stories and rich character studies. Plus, camp is just the best.
I was also a fat girl at camp - that's me on the right at age 16. I've always been the kind of fat that's in between being normal and being f-a-t fat, and eventually it got balanced out by my big boobs. I've got confidence, but like the kids on Huge, I was always afraid that to a guy, a skinny girl would be preferable to my curves. And sometimes she was, and that hurt, but I eventually found that there was always someone who wanted me, and that the douchebags who didn't weren't worth my time anyhow. Camp actually helped me learn to love my body, what with skinny dipping with guys & girls of all shapes & sizes and shirtless sessions and strip poker and inner tubing and playing "Jump, Shake Your Booty" in the rain and trading hookup partners like crazy. And sometimes - and by sometimes, I mean always - it was hard to go back to the real world, where everyone doesn't understand, accept, and love everyone else for who they are.
I miss camp.
So, after the first episode I basically fell head over heels for Huge. This is a show that speaks to me in a very strong way and, as i've found browsing the internet, has touched a lot of people. However, just by reading the YouTube comments on the preview shows how much fat phobia not only exists but is in many cases excused by society. Especially when it comes to hating on fat women. You know that scene in Juno when Steve Rendazzo makes fun of her and she talks about how it's because all jocks secretly want weird goth librarians? I think that's really at the heart of fat women phobia: because people have been conditioned to believe fat people aren't attractive, when they're attracted to them they feel ashamed. They blame that shame on the fat people for being attractive and socially subversive. Makes sense to me.
So I commend Huge for giving a pretty accurate portrayal of what it's like to be fat and confident; fat and self-loathing; fat and socially awkward; fat and athletic; fat and pretty; fat and poor; fat and weird; fat and sensitive....all in a world that celebrates thinness and is constantly telling fat people that there is something wrong with them and they need to change - in a location that basically tells them that to not lose weight equals failure. I also think Huge's characterizations of the complex camp director, Dr. Dorothy Rand (Gina Torres) and the Janice Dickenson-meets-Tracy Anderson athletic director (Tia Texada) provide accurate portrayals of the relationship that us fatties often have with the people (who may or may not care about them) who are trying to get them healthy (or skinny - they are not the same thing).
I think a lot of people won't watch this show because they believe that it's only for fat people. but it's far, far, more than that - it's about how difficult relationships, self-control, and honesty can be, at any size. it's about learning about who you really are so other people can't take it away if they try to bring you down. I think, in essence, it's about learning to be happy in a world where so much is out of our control. Plus, it's pretty fucking funny and completely entertaining.
So...ABC Family, who knew? Not what I would have expected. But seriously, go watch it - give it a chance and I know you'll love it...and I want to know my all-time favorite camp show is gonna be around next summer!
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