Reception
Viewing figures of the seventh season of Degrassi: The Next Generation did not fare as well as previous seasons. The first twelve episodes averaged only 455,000 viewers, compared to the same number of episodes in season six, which averaged 500,000 viewers. The season premiere achieved the highest figures with 585,000 viewers. This progressively dropped over the forthcoming weeks from 446,000 viewers on 28 January 2008, to 407,000 viewers on 11 February 2008, and continued to fall to 314,000 viewers over forthcoming weeks.
Despite the poor ratings, the mass media still reacted positively to the season. Joel Rubinoff of the Waterloo Region Record praised the show for "remaining consistent ... its ability to shock and surprise in a way that never lets us down ... Shenae Grimes, whose complex portrayal of a young woman in mental pain—and the conflicting emotions that entails—makes her depiction not only believable, but to those who have had similar experiences, entirely relatable." Raju Mudhar of the Toronto Star also had praise for the season, commenting that "the way that it has managed to deal with aging—which has been the destruction for many of its peers, and the level of honesty and attempted authenticity has always set Degrassi apart. The fact that show has always cast actors within a year or two of their characters' ages has always helped." AfterElton.com, a website which focuses on the portrayal of homosexual and bisexual men in the media, and owned by MTV Networks' Logo cable television network, named the character Marco del Rossi as one of their "Top 25 Gay TV Characters".
Season seven also won awards for its gay-oriented storylines; it was nominated for a GLAAD Media Award in the Best Drama Series category, alongside Dirty Sexy Money, Greek, The L Word and the winner, Brothers & Sisters. In the US, The N was presented with The Trevor Commitment Award by The Trevor Project for breaking new ground in the positive representation of gay and questioning youth. The season was also nominated for a Teen Choice Award in the Choice TV: Comedy category, but lost to Hannah Montana. In the 2008 Directors Guild of Canada Awards, which were held on 8 November, "Standing in the Dark" Part Two was nominated in the Television Series Sound Editing category. "Pass the Dutchie", directed by Patrick Williams, won the award for best direction in the Team Television Series – Family category. In the 2008 Gemini Awards the season picked up four nominations. The series won the award for Best Children's or Youth Fiction Program or Series; Shane Kippel and Lauren Collins were vying for the award for "Best Performance in a Children's or Youth Program or Series" for their performances in the episodes "Death or Glory Part Two" and "Talking in Your Sleep", respectively, but ultimately lost to Alexz Johnson from Epitome Pictures' Instant Star; and Phil Earnshaw was nominated for Best Direction in a Children's or Youth Program or Series for "Standing in the Dark Part One".
It was also during this season that Degrassi won a 2008 TV.com award for best teen clique; Hannah Montana, Greek and Gossip girl were among the other nominees included in this category.
Read more about this topic: Degrassi: The Next Generation (season 7)
Famous quotes containing the word reception:
“To the United States the Third World often takes the form of a black woman who has been made pregnant in a moment of passion and who shows up one day in the reception room on the forty-ninth floor threatening to make a scene. The lawyers pay the woman off; sometimes uniformed guards accompany her to the elevators.”
—Lewis H. Lapham (b. 1935)
“I gave a speech in Omaha. After the speech I went to a reception elsewhere in town. A sweet old lady came up to me, put her gloved hand in mine, and said, “I hear you spoke here tonight.” “Oh, it was nothing,” I replied modestly. “Yes,” the little old lady nodded, “that’s what I heard.””
—Gerald R. Ford (b. 1913)
“He’s leaving Germany by special request of the Nazi government. First he sends a dispatch about Danzig and how 10,000 German tourists are pouring into the city every day with butterfly nets in their hands and submachine guns in their knapsacks. They warn him right then. What does he do next? Goes to a reception at von Ribbentropf’s and keeps yelling for gefilte fish!”
—Billy Wilder (b. 1906)