‘Outer Banks’ Is Exactly the Teen Show You Need to Launch Into Summer

This April Netflix is proving that it’s never too early to start prepping for summer with the release of it’s latest teen drama. The sun-kissed Outer Banks will leave you craving for the future days of surf and sand. But in between its crazy adventures and endless bathing suit scenes lies one of the most fun teen dramas that has premiered in months.

Set in the island group of the same name in North Carolina, Outer Banks revolves around John B (Chase Stokes), a high schooler with a knack for trouble who also happens to be the leader of a group of working class kids called the Pogues. When we first meet him he’s an unstable leader at best. Months ago his sea-loving father disappeared in a boating accident, leaving John B completely on his own unbeknownst to Child Protective Services. Despite all evidence to the contrary, John B suspects his father may still be alive. And fueling his hope is the re-emergence of a fabled, centuries old sunken treasure, the same treasure John B’s father obsessed over his entire life.

On paper Outer Banks seems like a show too convoluted to work. Any premise that includes nonsensical names like the Pogues and the Kooks and lists a treasure hunt as its third most important detail risks being a crowded mess. But Outer Banks is so in tune with its teenage protagonists, the ridiculous situation that binds them together becomes little more than a backdrop. No matter how insane, you want these fishing and boat loving kids to succeed.

John B, JJ (Rudy Pankow), Kiara (Madison Bailey), and Pope (Jonathan Daviss) mock each other with a degree of ruthless abandon, channeling the gleeful savagery that defines adolescence. As long as someone is inside the group, anything is fair game. But the second someone from the outside attacks, any insult is a call to attack. One minute they’ll be brutally insulting their best friend or faking their own death to temporarily horrify of the group. The next they’ll be threatening to kill anyone who dares give the buddy they were just tormenting a distasteful look. It’s that unrelenting yet realistic loyalty that carries Outer Banks through its crazier moments.

And things get crazy fast. What else would you expect from a show that revolves around a bunch of high school kids tracking down buried treasure from the 16th century? From shootouts to corrupt cops, there’s something for everyone who thought that Ozark needed more teen angst.

Outer Banks isn’t quote-unquote great television. It’s not the sort of series that will inspire dozens of oral histories a decade after its release. But when it comes to the sub-genre of addicting young adult trash, Outer Banks is far and above one of the best shows around.

All episodes of Outer Banks premiere on Netflix Wednesday, April 15 at 3/2c a.m.

Watch Outer Banks on Netflix April 15