Adolescence

A troubling, and brilliant, television show.

Adolescence is available on Netflix.

While I usually write about music here, every now and then, something outside that realm grabs my attention. This is one of those times.

Adolescence is a complicated stage—for those going through it and those watching from the outside. I’m thankful that social media didn’t exist while navigating mine.

Adolescence is perhaps the best television show being broadcast right now.

About three weeks ago, I spent two consecutive nights watching this show in its entirety. One night, I had my jaw agape at what I was watching, and the second night, I made sure it was as good as I thought it was. It was.

I watch a fair amount of television, and to put it into perspective, I still haven’t seen the new seasons of Severance or The White Lotus, the two other buzzy shows. That said, I’m a sucker for a good British crime story, so this was in my wheelhouse.

There aren’t enough superlatives to describe how good the performances are here. In particular, in the third episode, Owen Cooper plays Jamie Harris (the adolescent), and Erin Doherty plays Briony Ariston (the therapist). Which, if you are to believe the press, was shot the first day Owen Cooper was on set… and it was his first acting gig, thus making this his first time on camera. If you watch it, plant that nugget in your skull.

The writing is strong here and tackles a pretty weighty subject: the origin of toxic masculinity. At least, that is what I took from it. It starts as a murder mystery, but that doesn’t last too long as it turns from a who-done-it to a why-done-it. If this stuff isn’t your jam, it can move slowly, but I’d encourage you to stick with it. All the hype and press you’ve been seeing about it, including this, is on target; it is that good.

About 40 minutes into the first episode, I noticed that despite the numerous scenes and locations, I had not seen an edit. Now, edits should be seamless and not noticeable, but I knew this was different. If you recall the extended tracking shot from Season One, Episode Four of True Detective and were impressed with that, I’d strongly encourage you to watch Adolescence.

I’ve always thought that the skills of everyone in front of and behind the camera to do long takes was beyond impressive. It’s a dance and choreography requiring all involved to operate on their A+ game because there is no margin for error.

Once I noticed I wasn’t seeing any edits, I became hyper-focused on looking for them. It took me out of the story and performances a little bit. Midway through the second episode, I realized this show is just one long take. It’s a bit like watching theater with numerous locations. By the third episode, I was ensconced back into the story.

This third episode is the one that people keep talking about, and deservedly so. The way that Owen Harris manages his performance and the characters’ vacillating moods is breathtaking.

I think I missed the full impact of the third episode because I had spent so much time looking for edits in the first two episodes. After that first night’s viewing, I had settled on the fact that each episode was one long take, and I knew I had to watch it again.

That second night, I was able to let the story unfold. And it unfolds in a timely and perfect manner. It dots all the i’s and crosses all the t’s.

There is loads of chatter about this show, and all of it is deserved. I don’t feel that Adolescence is one of those shows that is overhyped. The writing is strong, the performances are flawless, and, technically, it’s a wonder to watch. And the cherry on top is that it tackles a timely and weighty matter that makes room in the zeitgeist for discourse.

Not every show can claim to do that.