The O.C.

The O.C.: The Complete Series Collection
The O.C.: The Complete Series Collection
The O.C. is an American teen drama television series that originally aired on the Fox network in the United States from August 5, 2003, to February 22, 2007, running a total of four seasons. The series, created by Josh Schwartz, portrays the fictional lives of a group of teenagers and their families residing in Newport Beach in Orange County, California. The O.C. has been broadcast in more than 50 countries worldwide and was one of the most popular new dramas of 2003. The O.C. attracted a strong 9.7 million viewers for its first season, but ratings declined as the show went on. The low ratings led to cancellation in early 2007, after four seasons, and 92 episodes, even after an online petition which gained over 700,000 signatures. Re-runs of The O.C. are now shown in syndication on The WB, SOAPnet, and Channel 4.

The show centers on Ryan Atwood, a troubled teenager from a broken home who is adopted by the wealthy and philanthropic Sandy and Kirsten Cohen. Ryan and his surrogate brother Seth, a socially awkward and, initially, friendless teen, deal with life as outsiders in the wild high-class world of Newport Beach, Orange County, California. This includes their often troubled and always dramatic relationships with Summer Roberts, Marissa Cooper, Alex Kelly, Lindsay Gardner, Taylor Townsend, and others. The show also features Marissa's mother, Julie Cooper, and for the first two seasons, her (ex)husbands Jimmy Cooper and Kirsten's overbearing father, Caleb Nichol. School water polo player Luke Ward, Marissa's boyfriend and early adversary to Ryan and Seth, causes problems in the first season. Drama also arises from Marissa's younger sister, Kaitlin Cooper. These main characters have problems and story arcs with numerous supporting characters from their past, workplace, and school.