Garrett Graham’s curls. Allie’s iconic J Lo dress. Justin’s cringe singing (sorry, we still love you Josh Heuston!). These are just a few of the viral fixtures young women are finding on their daily FYP scroll, and it reflects one thing: Off Campus has become an instant cultural phenomenon, with no chance of slowing down.
Earlier this week, Prime Video announced that the eight-part series had become the third most-watched debut series in the streamer’s history, reaching 36 million viewers in its first 12 days of streaming. According to Variety, “among female viewers age 18-34 alone, Off Campus is Prime Video’s No. 1 debut of all time” – exceeding the streaming platform’s recent fan favourite, The Summer I Turned Pretty.
As is the case with many young adult shows of late, Off Campus is also an onscreen adaptation of a book. Based on the best-selling novels by Elle Kennedy, the recently-released first season follows the budding romance between songwriter, Hannah (portrayed by Ella Bright), and Briar University’s all-star hockey athlete, Garrett (played by Belmont Cameli). Of course, it begs the question: Does the onscreen version do the original text justice?
In Sunny and Allie’s 10th episode hosting Missing Perspectives’ Booksmart podcast, they aim to answer just this. But unlike their prior discussions on book-to-screen adaptations, only Allie has read the books the adaptation is based on.
So, how does this adaptation stack up for a fan who has read the series back to front more times than she should admit, versus a book lover who hasn’t yet entered the world of Off Campus and is learning about its characters for the first time through the TV show?
Together, they attempt to answer the age-old question: Is it preferable to read the book before or after watching its screen adaptation?
From character and relationship dynamics, to representation and diversity, to the show’s handling of sensitive topics like consent, sexual assault, and domestic abuse… Sunny and Allie cover a lot of ground in this recording.
When it comes to the progression of romances between characters, Allie notes that we see a fast-tracked timeline on the screen, compared to how it plays out for some couples in the books. The growing relationship between Dean (played by Stephen Kalyn) and Allie (played by Mika Abdalla, and not to be confused with Booksmart host Allie Daisy King) is a clear example.
“I think they had to move up Allie and Dean’s relationship into this season,” Allie explains. “That’s book three, and I think they had to move them forward [on the show] because Garrett and Hannah can’t carry a season on their own with their drama, especially because they are the ones to start off.”
Allie refers to their undeniable chemistry as an obvious viewer drawcard, to which Sunny agrees, “I think we’ve spoken about that before, right? It’s not enough to just cast two hot people. They need to have chemistry.”
“And they do!” Allie responds.
In terms of how sex and gender is explored on the show, both Allie and Sunny commend the rather refreshingly healthy conversations between many of the young male characters.
“I liked… that the boys were actually quite open with one another. There wasn’t a lot of toxic masculinity. They were communicating,” says Sunny.
One of the most talked-about scenes amongst fans is when Garrett asks Dean for sex advice, and Dean emphasises the importance of asking for consent. While this is also explored in the book, Allie notes the difference between the novels and the show.
“Birdie was the person who Garrett confides in in the OG books, but I think it’s such a nice choice to make that actually Dean,” says Allie.
“Yeah, especially because he’s the sexpert,” Sunny responds, before Allie continues, “I’m like… this does really well for Dean, and it sets him up so well for Allie with the emotional intelligence that he does show eventually in his books”.
It’s safe to say that this show is just as worthy of critiquing as it is watching. Whether it’s the casting of people of colour on the show (or rather the lack thereof), the amount of onscreen nudity, or age gaps between actors, there’s plenty more that Allie and Sunny break down in this Booksmart episode, which you can listen to right here, or below.
You can purchase Elle Kennedy’s sports romances online with QBD Books using this link.