In the summertime, the box office usually gets filled up with two kinds of films. The first of these, and usually the one most profitable, is the blockbuster. This summer, the sheer amount of blockbusters is incalculable. Already, we've had Jurassic World, which broke records and made over $200 million in its first weekend. Along with that, we have Ant-Man, Terminator: Genisys, and Fantastic Four coming out within the next few months. The other type of prominent film that comes out in the summer is the teen comedy.

Within the past few years alone, we've had some big ones, such as Neighbors, The Fault in Our Stars and The Spectacular Now. The teen comedy genre is one that includes raunchy comedies, coming of age stories and, of course, the melodrama. This summer, along with another Zac Efron-led film ("We Are Your Friends"), we also get three similar, yet unique films: Dope (opened June 19), Me & Earl & the Dying Girl (opened June 26 in select theaters) and Paper Towns,which will not come out until July 24, but the book has been out for seven years. In case you're in the minority of not knowing who John Green is, he is the well known YouTuber and author of various young adult novels. His popular works include The Fault in Our Stars and the already mentioned Paper Towns. The book adaptation of The Fault in Our Stars was praised for plot accuracy, and I expect the same from Paper Towns.

Dope follows the story of Malcolm, a black "geek" living in a poor neighborhood in California. He spends the film trying to figure out his future and who he is as a person. Me & Earl & the Dying Girl follows Greg, a loner teenager who begrudgingly befriends a girl diagnosed with leukemia. This girl tries to make Greg confronts his issues, which mainly includes his future and struggling with self-identity. Paper Towns is about Quentin, an unpopular teenager who goes on an exciting adventure with the most popular girl in school. After their adventure and she disappears, Q must confront his issues with identity and exactly how he wants to spend his life.

Do you see the pattern, here? All three stories cover teenagers at what may be the most difficult transition of adolescent life. These films are about that big leap from being a kid in high school to being an adult. The lists of similarities can go on and on, including (but not limited to) popular girls, senior prom, college applications, being a nerd, the meaninglessness of adulthood, the divide of communication with parents, breaking the rules, extensive pop culture references, narrators, and of course, one last wild crazy adventure. But this does not weaken these stories. In fact, their similarities only serve to really show how universal this experience can be. While experiencing these stories, I see myself in each of the protagonists. How can you not? The characters are incredibly empathetic. You see a little bit of yourself in each of these character, in their faults, in their triumphs, in their mistakes. They're brand new adults with the same impulses and fear as you.

And the biggest of those fears is the fear of the unknown. Most characters experience that. “What am I going to do with the rest of my life? Who am I really? Have I even impacted anything?” These questions are asked across the board and are things that we as college students can't help but ponder. These movies don't have the answers for you. Rather, they present means of which an answer could be found. And they present it to everyone, although it may just appear to be a call right to you.

Ever since George Lucas directed American Graffiti way back in 1973 (and possibly even before that, in the stereotypical happy teen beach movies of the '50s), the young adult story on film has been a universal experience. That's why they stick with us as time goes on. We remember just how personal and connected we felt to those films. How can a stranger make a film that connects to us so personally? It's a rather hopeful feeling, in fact, because it reminds that we are not alone. Even when we feel as if no one could possibly understand how it feels to be us, in our most angst-filled outbursts, some teen comedy comes along and says, "Well, actually..."

Dope, Me & Earl & the Dying Girl,and Paper Towns fill that place this summer. I highly recommend checking them out and finding yourself in these wonderful stories.