Firefly Lane: Why Kate’s Glasses Are So Terrible

In Firefly Lane, teen Kate wears a distracting pair of glasses, but her glasses are likely a reference to the book. Firefly Lane tells the story of BFFs Kate and Tully from the time their friendship begins to their adulthood. In the present day (which is 2003 in Firefly Lane), Kate and Tully are in their early 40s and struggling with their careers, parenthood, and love lives. Back in the 1970s, a 14-year-old Kate was struggling to keep her glasses from sliding down her nose — why did she have such ill-fitting glasses?

In film and television, glasses are often used to exaggerate the point that someone is plain, shy, and unrecognizable when they take their glasses off. This trope runs the gamut from makeover montages to superhero films, but the common factor is an implicit message implying that glasses make someone less attractive. But even though the nerd trope was likely in play for Kate in Firefly Lane season 1, there’s a line in the book the series is based on that further explains Kate’s eyewear.

Kate wears slightly different glasses in the novel Firefly Lane by Kristin Hannah. They’re described as “horn-rimmed glasses” that are “hopelessly out of date.” The massive lenses and thick frames Katie actually wears in the show weren’t uncommon in 1970, but they were still far less trendy than the metal-rimmed or rimless round glasses worn by rock stars like Janis Joplin and John Lennon. But Katie’s family can’t afford new glasses, which is an extremely common and relatable situation for many glasses-wearing children and teens. It’s understandable that a working-class family with two children wouldn’t be able to afford new glasses every time the popular style changed – or even buy a popular style to begin with.

In the end, Kates oversized glasses accomplish their purpose by reflecting the working-class status of Kate’s family and serving to make her appear unassuming and nerdy. The distractingly huge pair of glasses is so ill-fitted to actress Roan Curtis that she was likely not acting for most of the times that she had to stop the comically large spectacles from falling off her face. Though the show doesn’t make a point of Kate switching out her glasses for a more fashionable style (or getting contacts in the ‘90s), the implication is the same: Kate was an awkward teen who blossomed into a much more stylish and – judging by her impressive Seattle mansion – wealthy adult.

Ironically, oversized glasses have had a bit of a comeback in recent years, so the style of Kate’s glasses could be considered hipster-ish and even trendy. But the fact that they were improperly fitted to her face means they desperately needed to be replaced. The Firefly Lane costume choice was almost definitely intentional because, even though it feels reminiscent of a tired trope, it accomplishes the purpose of staying true to the book and characterizing Kate Mularkey.

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