Miss Off Campus? There's a new sporty YA series on Netflix that everyone is watching now

I'm not really a sneaker fan myself, but with these golden shoes from Woden at Shoe-S, Carolien pulls it off just fine. A bag from Fabienne Chapot on her wrist and she's all set. Off Campus now that it's over, we are in desperate need of a new sporty YA series. After fervently watching the hockey matches of the Briar Hawks (in other words: staring at Garrett, Logan, and Dean), there is a hole in my series heart. It will take a while before The Summer I Turned Prettythe movie is out, so I was positively surprised that Netflix now has a sporty series with a delicious love triangle: Crew Girl. Now it’s not about hockey or soccer, but about rowing. Yes, seriously: rowing. And it’s really not boring, believe us. Or other Netflix viewers, because this series is in the top five for a reason.

What is Crew Girl about?

This YA series follows sixteen-year-old Teagan Tao (Miku Martineau). As a talented rower, she has already mapped out her entire future. She wants to go to Stanford and become the very best, but all her plans come to a halt when her father is accused of fraud. He disappears without a trace, with all his money. In one fell swoop, Teagan loses her luxurious life and easy path to success. To avoid the gossip, she moves with her mother Ella to Eagle’s Cove in Massachusetts. The place where her mother grew up is very different from what she is used to in California. The small artsy town with that big dark blue lake, surrounded by green forests, seems beautiful at first glance, until Teagan has to go to school. At ‘Easton Prep’, everything revolves around having the best possible reputation, being rich, and belonging to ‘the right group’. And as if it couldn’t get any worse, the school doesn’t even have a rowing team for girls. That’s the recipe for a whirlwind of disappointment for Teagan.

But okay. This rower is not going to give up her dreams just like that. She knows how to secure a spot as the coxswain of the boys' team with her talent (of course). Not that this was very difficult, because the team is not exactly a well-oiled machine. Luckily for her, she can leave the mean, spoiled girls behind to lead the team to victory.

Of course, Crew Girl has a love triangle

A YA series without a complicated love triangle is impossible. Also in Crew Girl we encounter the familiar ‘who-will-she-end-up-with’ game again. Teagan falls for two rowers: Cam Dillinger (Kyle Clark) and Josh Regis (Samuel Braun). Cam is the sweet underdog of the team who does everything to help. And he is the only one who doesn’t immediately judge her because of the scandal. Josh, on the other hand, is an arrogant, popular team captain who is used to giving orders. He comes from a wealthy family and feels, like every rich boy in these kinds of series, enormous pressure to perform. His parents are never home, and he is in a relationship with the most popular girl: Britney. He has a pretty heavy life. He’s the kind of guy you’d better stay away from, but secretly you end up falling for him.

Also in this hit, we get the bad boy versus the good guy again. One moment Teagan seems to be completely into Cam, only to look at Josh with love five minutes later. It’s definitely annoying, but it’s also exactly the reason why you want to know how it ends.

Is rowing not boring?

Rowing may not be the sexiest sport ever, but it looks surprisingly exciting. Those training sessions on the water, where you’re almost afraid that the boat could capsize at any moment. The competition between the teams, not only about who rows the fastest but also about who has the most discipline. Teagan has to see a group that performs really poorly to turn them into athletes who perform at her level. I never expected a sport on the water could be so interesting, but I’m really a fan.

Who is Miku Martineau?

The lead role in this series is played by Miku Martineau. You only need to take one look at her to know that she is going to be the next it-girl. The Canadian-Japanese actress is no stranger to the industry. She has previously appeared in major productions like the psychological teen drama Bet, Honor Society and Star Trek: Section 31. After an earlier career as a voice actress, she is finally shining on the big screen. Not in a supporting role, but as the lead. After seeing her red carpet looks and perfect casual Instagram, I’m sure of it: we need to keep an eye on her.

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And the other actors are also noteworthy. The handsome, dark-haired Clark is played by Kyle Clark. You might know him from Switched for Christmas and the young Forsythe Jones in Riverdale. And the role of Josh is taken on by Samuel Braun . This blond 23-year-old Canadian can be recognized from Voicemails for Isabelle, Time Cut or Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters. Furthermore, we also see Megan Draper as Teagan’s mother, Thomas Cadrot as coach Matt Hayden, and Sage Linder as Britney. Mad Men als Teagans moeder, Thomas Cadrot als coach Matt Hayden en Sage Linder als Britney.

Is Crew Girl really the new Off Campus?

Look, you can’t really compare it completely. Off Campus is about students and ice hockey, while the characters in Crew Girl are still in high school. The series feels a bit tamer. There are no comparable steamy locker room scenes, but there is definitely attraction. Crew Girl is certainly a sporty option that resembles Off Campus . It’s about handsome athletes, performance pressure, team spirit, and romance that secretly gets a bit more attention than the important matches.

So. Is Crew Girl Is it worth watching? Definitely. You shouldn’t expect life-changing, dramatic scenes from a YA series, but sometimes it’s nice to just turn on the TV and enjoy. You don’t have to think three times about what is being said or what a glance means. This is clear and juicy. What more do you want?

Image: Netflix