Braces are a flash-in-the-pan part of puberty. Most kids have them for only one to three years, and less than half of the population will get them. (Orthodontists estimate that 45% of kids need braces, which doesn’t account for the fact that braces can cost as much as $6,000 without an insurance plan.) Mainly, though, braces are good storytelling elements. Monse getting her braces off in On My Block marked a movement from pre-pubescent to very much in puberty. (Shortly after, she starts hooking up with her best friend, for which she gets slut-shamed.) Missy on Big Mouth doesn’t care about her braces, which is important to Missy’s gleeful nerd persona. And Eighth Grade built its empire entirely on the casting of real middle schoolers. One auditioner for the movie, director Bo Burnham told Seth Meyers, said that “eczema” was one of her special skills. Kids are weird! And, too often, kids on TV are just too prim to be interesting. Braces can’t solve that problem, but they’re a goofy-looking start.