Charlotte Shields-Rossi | a&e editor

“You think you’re the first ones to be young and adorable in New York?”

In 2012, Zosia Mamet got her breakout role playing Shoshanna Shapiro in the hit TV series “Girls” — a show about four women being young and adorable in New York. It has been nine years since the finale, and since then there have been many television shows about 20-somethings living in New York City. But none of them scratched my “Girls” itch – that was, until last summer, when “Adults” came out.

“Adults,” an FX sitcom, follows a group of friends living in Queens, navigating a transition from their post-collegiate years to adulthood. Sound familiar? That’s because it’s the plot of “Girls.” So it’s natural that when the second season came out in August, the show would pay respect to its predecessors with a cameo appearance from Mamet herself asking the ensemble that simple question.

This isn’t the first time that “Adults” has paid homage to or mentioned something from “Girls.” In the first season of the show, which came out in the spring of 2025, the characters keep saying “v of our g.” Come to find out, that is a shorthand for “voice of our generation.” Back in the first episode of “Girls,” Lena Dunham’s character, Hannah Horvath, proclaims that she is the voice of her generation, or at least a voice of a generation. Since that moment I have always considered the characters to be representative of millennials.

I was expecting something similar here. The characters in “Adults” would be the voice of Gen Z. Although the first season made me belly laugh, it fell short in that aspect. In that premiere season, the characters and their actions often seemed like a mockery of the generation made up of what other generations thought of it. It’s important to note that both of the showrunners of “Adults,” Ben Kronengold and Rebbecca Shaw, were born in 1995 and 1996 — Pew Research Center defines millennials as those born before 1996.

But then something changed in August when the second season premiered, the show seems to have grown up and gotten over its awkward stage. Finally, the characters truly felt like they had the possibility of becoming the “vs of our gs.”

The most eye roll-provoking moment of the first season was from the first episode. “The Window” is an episode about how the sexual harassment of the group’s acquaintence becomes national news. Issa (Amita Rao), one of the main ensemble members, goes to a rally in support of the acquaintance. In an effort to get on stage, she pulls out three badges — “Woman,” “Child of Immigrants” and “Sex Worker.” Not only was it unrealistic but the whole “Gen Z’s obsession with identity politics and labels” seemed like an overdone comedy trope.

But then I watched the first episode of the second season, “The Scrub.” Being (or trying to be) young professionals, the housemates all find themselves worried about their digital footprint and how that might hinder them from getting a job.

So they do a “scrub” of their social media, removing anything inappropriate or offensive that they have posted from their years of being on the internet.

A not-so-perfect digital footprint, especially the idea that it can stop you from getting a job, is very Gen Z specific. The writers could have very well done what they did in the first season: play something up for laughs. But they didn’t. During the scrub, the housemates find that Billie (Lucy Freyer), who prides herself on being culturally conscious, went to a culturally insensitive party in high school, sombrero and all. It was funny without being over exaggerated.

“C Alert” was a similar episode in the sense that Gen Z does have a particular affinity for a word (not suitable for print) that other generations have a disliking toward. Anton (Owen Thiele), who is a star employee at his job, messes up one day by using the word as a term of endearment to a coworker. Fearing that this will get him fired, he organizes a campaign with his friends to normalize the “c-word.”

“Girls” will always be my favorite show in the niche NYC-20 year old genre, but I have to give “Adults” its flowers for what it does better than its inspiration. Unlike “Girls” the group of friends in “Adults” are actually friends. Although the characters might not be the best people in the world, they go out of their way to show up for each other when it really matters, even if it is mobilizing a campaign to normalize the c-word.

“Adults,” as of now, only has two seasons and has some growing up to do. But it has a strong foundation: a cast with chemistry, funny show writers and an amazing premise. It will be interesting to see if “Adults” will become the next voice of a generation.

“Adults” season one and two are available in full on Disney+, Hulu and Tubi.

Charlotte Shields-Rossi can be reached at shieldsrossic@duq.edu