Is this "My So-Called Life" for a new generation?

As a writer, there's nothing more that I love than some good old-fashioned irony.

Exhibit A: Writers and producers butt heads over rights to multimedia content on the Internet. Even before the strike cripples their spring lineup, NBC orders episodes of a show that began as a Web-only product. The show is about how the Internet shapes the lives of twentysomethings.

"Quarterlife" - the latest project from the two guys who were responsible for "My So-Called Life," "thirtysomething" and "Once and Again" - aired first on MySpace.com as eight-minute webisodes before its debut on the small screen tonight at 9 p.m. It's a risky move, sure, but it's also fitting given that the main characters spend an inordinate amount of time on the Web, blogging their most intimate thoughts in the form of web-diaries.

Reviews are mixed. Some critics like USA Today's Robert Bianco write off the show as yet another example of the narcissistic "Look at Me" generation, while others see central character Dylan Kruger as the Angela Chase of the Youtube/Facebook generation. Despite the Friends-ish premise - six friends in Los Angeles - "Quarterlife" is often uncomfortable in its realism. After watching the first eight webisodes, I admit feeling somewhat ambivalent myself to characters who are supposedly my contemporaries.

In the same way that "thirtysomething" was a seminal show about the Baby Boomer generation, there's some potential that "Quarterlife" can be an honest look at a generation that's wired and connected. While that premise may turn off older viewers, it could attract younger ones who find something they can relate to amidst the angst-ridden confessionals. Relatability isn't often something high on the list for most TV producers because, let's be honest, most TV viewers want to forget their mediocre lives (yes, I have often wondered what it would be like to have a laughter track in my life and/or kill robots from the future). Still once in a while, a show like "My So-Called Life" or "Freaks and Geeks" can resonate with viewers by reviving those uncomfortable parts of our lives we'd really rather forget.

Don't have time to catch the show tonight? Watch all the webisodes here. These are basically condensed into hour-long episodes for television.

-- Malavika Jagannathan, mjaganna@greenbaypressgazette.com