Carly wears black chucks in this show.
Everyone growing up in the 2000s had their favorite live-action teen shows. There are so many classics from that era, from Zoey 101 to Victorious to Ned’s Declassified. Many of the leads from these shows became stars and staples of an entire generation’s childhood. Miranda Cosgrove was one of Nick’s fastest-rising stars from her time on one of the network’s biggest shows, Drake and Josh. As the scene-stealing Megan, it was only a matter of time before Nick gave her her own show. That time came with the premiere of iCarly on September 8th, 2007. The show stars Cosgrove, Jennette McCurdy, Nathan Kress, and Jerry Trainor as the main cast, with a wacky ensemble filled out by Noah Munck, Mary Scheer, Deena Dill, Jeremy Rowley, and Bobby “BooG!e” Bowman. The show originally ran for six seasons and ninety-seven episodes, with a 2021 revival adding on another three seasons and thirty-three episodes.
Freddie doesn’t stand a chance.
Carly Shay (Cosgrove) is a young, outgoing teenager living in Seattle with her adult brother and guardian, Spencer (Trainor). They live in an absolutely incredible loft-style apartment due to their father being a high-ranking Air Force officer stationed on a submarine. Carly’s best friend is Sam Puckett (McCurdy), a tough, short-tempered, sarcastic tomboy who has no respect for authority or for anyone other than Carly. The pair are joined at school by the awkward yet tech-savvy Freddie Benson (Kress), who also lives across the hall from Carly. The three have a very close relationship, and at various points throughout the show’s run, each wears chucks that match their different personalities. Carly usually wears black chucks that show she’s a little bit of a rebel but mostly stays understated. Meanwhile, Sam wears bold chucks with Ed Hardy-esque designs that show she’s a wild child. Finally, while Freddie starts the series wearing some comically ugly boots, he also adapts some sensible dark blue chucks, showing how he became more like his friends.
Carly shows Freddie what she bought with the money she made off the website.
At a school talent show audition, Carly and Sam improvise a comedy segment that Freddie records and posts online unbeknownst to them. After seeing the girls' strong chemistry and banter, the online audience clamors for more, and thus they decide to create and host their own web show called iCarly. The trio finds their normal lives have been thrown for a loop when they become online sensations as their show – which features talent contests, recipes, problem-solving, and random dancing – garners international accolades and recognition.
Hold on Freddie!
iCarly, perhaps more than any other of the Nickelodeon shows at the time, was at the forefront of the absurdist comedy that late millennials and early Gen Z-ers would gravitate towards over the next decade. The show premiered when YouTube was in its infancy. The platform’s first major stars, Smosh, had just released their first video lip-syncing to the Pokémon theme song and were years away from doing skits that had the same energy as iCarly. The show ended up being a preview of meme culture as a whole, which is why it is still very prominent and popular today.
Sam wears chucks that match her personality.
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