7 Shows To Watch If You Liked “The Summer I Turned Pretty”
Image via The Summer I Turned Pretty/Amazon Prime Video
The Summer I Turned Pretty – 7 Shows To Watch If You Liked The Summer I Turned Pretty
Anddd we finally have all the episodes of “The Summer I Turned Pretty”and I just finished the last episode. I don’t know how I am supposed to wait for a whole year for season 3!! And I’m definitely not done with summer yet. So I tried to find some really good shows that give off the same vibes as the summer I turned pretty.
About “The Summer I Turned Pretty” :
Image via The Summer I Turned Pretty/Amazon Prime Video
Based on the bestselling young adult novel by Jenny Han “The Summer I Turned Pretty” season one follows Belly as she visits her favorite beach house at “The Cousins” with her mom and brother Steven just like every summer. But this year is different as she experiences her first love and heartbreak with the fisher boys during the perfect summer.
Season 2, “It’s Not Summer Without You” begins right where the first one left off. (Spoiler Alert : if you haven’t watched the first season or read the books before this season contains major spoilers). Aside from that, this season explores more of belly as she navigates her life through friendship, young love and grief and most importantly bringing the summer magic back.
Shows like “The Summer I Turned Pretty” :
1. Looking for Alaska
Image via IMDb/Looking for Alaska
Looking for Alaska is based on John Green’s best selling novel which follows Miles Halter (Pudge) and his friends as they attend Culver Creek Boarding School .Miles used to have a safe environment back at home. As he starts his high school journey things start changing as he meets “The gorgeous, clever, funny, self-destructive, screwed up, and utterly fascinating Alaska Young.” This show also explores his friends and their life as they face challenges of teenage life, friendship, classes, pranks and more until a tragedy happens and they are left with questions. If you liked the summer activities and grief + healing journey of “TSIP: It’s Not Summer Without You” you’ll love this series.
2.Outer Banks
Image via IMDb/Outer Banks
The ultimate summer series? Say no more…Set in a coastal town along the Outer Banks of North Carolina, The show follows a group of friends (The Pogues: John B, Kiara, Pope, and JJ ) who decide to find out what happened to the group’s leader John B’s Father who went missing when he was little. As they begin their journey they discover there’s more to his disappearance as they find legendary treasure tied to it. And they resume their journey of solving and discovering long buried secrets and mysteries and piecing things together. Outer banks has 3 seasons which combine elements of coming-of-age drama, romance, suspense, action-adventure and more to give you the summer feeling similar to “The Summer I Turned Pretty”.
3. Stranger Things
Image via IMDb/Stranger Things
Stranger Things is not exactly summer themed as all the seasons are set in different times of the year but the “friend group, adventure, young love, coming of age” aspect is similar to the summer I turned pretty. Especially, the show’s third season is set in the summer of 1985, bringing a nostalgic and adventurous summer vibe to the series which picks up about one year after the events of Season 2. . While Belly works to bring back the summer magic and her friends together as promised to Susannah, Eleven from “Stranger Things” fights the Mindflayer to keep her loved ones safe. And just like “TSIP” season 3 I’m patiently waiting for the fourth and final season of Stranger Things!!
4.The Vampire Diaries
Image via IMDb/The Vampire Diaries
Do u get deja vu?? Because I definitely do. Aside from the supernatural vampire and seasons setting The Vampire Diary will give you similar feelings of watching the summer i turned pretty. Love triangle? Check , brothers fighting for the same girl? Check. And so many things similar to TSIP that you’ll get deja vu like me
5. One Tree Hill
Image via IMDb/One Tree Hill
Season 2 of TSIP was definitely a rocky start with the fisher brothers’ situations which is also similar to Lucas Scott and Nathan Scott from “One Tree Hill”. This show is set in a small town, which follows the lives of two half-brothers and their complex relationship and shared love for basketball. This show also includes high school, friendships, relationships, challenges, personal growth, overcoming obstacles. and family dynamics that are very similar to tsip.
6. Xo, Kitty
Image via IMDb/Xo, Kitty
When you get two Jenny Han series in the same year?? Xo, Kitty was released this year on May 18, 2023. Which is based on another of Jenny Han’s best selling novels “To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before” characters, the youngest covey sister Kitty who’s especially known as a matchmaker, applies for the Korean Independent School of Seoul, which is same school her mom went and where her long-distance boyfriend Dae attends and gets accepted. In order to find more connection with her mom and reunite with Dae, Kitty starts her journey to Korea. But soon she realizes it’s not as easy as it seems and we get to see her journey discovering life, secrets, friendship & more. There is romance, heartbreak and drama that are very similar to TSIP.
7. Our Beloved Summer
Image via IMDb/Our Beloved Summer
Andddd, Last but not the least because I’m posting “Summer K-Drama recs’ ‘ too very soon. I started my Kdrama era this year back in January and I’ve discovered really good k-dramas and a lot of them are summer themed. Even some of them actually felt like I was living inside the summer drama just like “Our Beloved Summer”. High school sweethearts Choi Ung and Kook Yeon-soo broke up, promising to never meet each other again but fate changed as they had to face each other after 10 years/in their 30s for a video/documentary they filmed over a decade ago. As time passes, their forced proximity helps them to rekindle and… The summer theme, coming of age aspect will definitely give you the feels of TSIP.
