Every once in a while, you come across a TV show that not only permeates culture, but at the risk of sounding cheesy, the soul. This show is Netflix’s new limited series Adolescence, which has brought in something crazy like 66.3 million views, and it would appear just as many conversations around the topics the show tackles. While the show centers of this period of adolesence —when a child grows into adult—the irony is that after watching it, it’s the adults who are leaving transformed and changed.
What makes the show different is that this isn’t a ‘who’ dunnit? but a ‘why ‘dunnit?’ We see right in the first episode that Jamie, a 13-year old boy, murdered Katie, a female classmate of his. We know because we see him commit the heinous act, clear as day via CCTV footage. Yet somehow, despite the literal evidence that it happened, many viewers were still left not wanting to believe it—because there’s no way this ‘young, innocent-looking, white boy” could have done something so horrible. Or just as bad, if he did it, he must’ve had a reason why.
And that is part of the ‘why’ the show looks to explore. Not just why this kid killed another kid, but why we, as a society, are so hesitant to believe what we know to be true. Thankfully, the show has some answers—a major one being this idea of toxic masculinity.
Too often when we hear the phrase, it’s within the context of men who are already grown, or even young adults. We really see it discussed in terms of the effects it has on the boys on the verge of becoming men. And that’s what Adolescence explores at its core.
During a visit with Katie, a mandated psychologist, we get a peek inside Jamie’s adolescent brain. We not only see this toxic masculinity at play—agression, manipulation, sexualizaton—but we get glimpses of the way Jamie’s view on not just the world, but women, was shaped. There’s mention of…certain podcasts, an exploration of incel culture, conversations on consent, porn, you name it. This particular episode—which is sure to nab Emmy nominations for Owen Cooper and Erin Doherty, was a masterclass not only in acting, but in how easily susceptible young boys can be to the cultural pressures they face and experience online. At a time when boys are literally maturing into the men they are going to be, what they consume plays a direct role in who they ultimately become.
There’s this misconception that danger only exists in the outside world, when the reality is the four walls of a child’s bedroom can be just as dangerous. In the final episode, we see Jamie’s parents struggling to come to terms with the fact that their child is not only a murderer, but that they thought he was safe because “he was just up in his room.” It’s a powerful reminder when kids ‘escape’ to their room after school, with online culture, there is no escaping. They’re immersed in it, 24/7, 365. That’s what the show does so beautifully—shines a light on the topics most adults are in the dark on.
It’s this illumination and inciting of conversations that reminds us why media and art are so important. Over the years there’s been plenty of discourse around whether entertainment can—or should be—educational and a show like this proves that if done correctly, the answer to both is yes. It’s not only educating parents and kids alike, but it’s starting conversations that most families and schools probably weren’t having before. Discussions on incel culture. Popularity. Sex. Peer pressure. Male role models. Consent. The conversations have been so thought-provoking that the British Government is literally making the series—and supplemental resources—available in secondary schools. How powerful is that?