“All American” is a CW show that became popular on Netflix among teenagers and young adults after its premiere in October 2018. The show’s first two seasons did so well that the show continued on for a total of five seasons. However, the additional seasons didn’t do as well as the first two. The fifth season’s finale showed the main characters all heading off to college, and thus, Netflixmade a new show altogether to continue their journey. 

This leads to the release of “All American: Homecoming,” which had its first season air in February 2022. However, in contrast to the original show, this spin-off is mostly focused on Simone Hicks (Geffri Hightower), who attends an HBCU (Historically Black College and University) where she meets other people with similar interests and backgrounds. This complicates many of her relationships from Crenshaw, including her boyfriend Michael Evans Behling (Jordan Baker). They end up breaking up due to the fact that they found long distance relationships to be hard and not worth the stress. This was one of the factors that pushed Hicks to make new friends, which is addressed in the new show.

In the first season of “All American: Homecoming,” Hicks decided to go to this HBCU because of her goal of becoming a pro tennis player. Along this journey, she also wanted to meet people and make more friends, which led her to meet Damon Sims (Peyton Alex Smith), a freshman that rejects being put in the MLB draft. Another reason Hicks decided to attend this HBCU is because her aunt, Amara Patterson (Kelly Jenrette) works as a teacher there. This strengthens the connection between them.

The show grew popular after fans found out that there would be more people in the cast, drawing their interest and giving them a show less focused on Spencer James (Daniel Ezra). This is partially why the producers decided to make a second season, a decision which viewers supported. The producers of the show also added many other factors, including that Syvester Powell (JR) and Sims are brothers. Their dad had an affair and wanted to cover it up, so he left the other son. Plot twists such as this spiced the show up and brought emotion to it. The show also focused more on Hick’s anxiety, which her friends helped her with. With this came more screen time for her two best friends, Keisha McCalla (Netta Walker) and Nathaniel Harden (Rhoyle Ivy King), who help her through her anxiety attacks and brighten up her day.

The show threw many curve balls at the audience, such as three HBCUs receiving bomb threats due to the fact that they have a large black student population. This scared many of the students and had a huge effect on the audience. I personally, as a Black person, felt very emotional because of how deep this episode that showcased these threats was. This episode had a crazy impact on the audience because it made people reflect on racism. Junior TJ Desrosiers is also an avid “All American:  Homecoming” watcher, and he also felt strongly about this episode. “This hit deep inside me — the fact that people pick on HBCUs because they are a majority Black scares me so hard,” Desrosiers said. 

This show is one of the best shows I have ever seen for multiple reasons. It is extremely funny, and manages to be filled with drama, sports, and romance while also touching on more serious topics such as racism. The show is a must-watch for all teenagers and young adults because it reflects on everyday problems in the world such as racism and sexism. It has everything that makes a phenomenal show, making it completely binge-worthy as well. The second season of “All American: Homecoming” was even better than the first and did an amazing job at leaving the plotlines to linger in the  audience’s heads. 

“All American: Homecoming” is streaming on Netflix, Prime Video, and HBO Max.