This post contains no spoilers.
If you have any sort of social media, you probably would’ve heard of the Netflix TV series which recently premiered, titled 13 Reasons Why. With Selena Gomez as an executive producer and former Grey’s Anatomy star Kate Walsh being involved, the show had lots of promotion even before it came out on March 31st. Personally, I loved it, and binge watched the entire first season in the span of four days. But even with all the praise from critics and the general public alike, what is the show really about, and is it worth watching?
13 Reasons Why is the TV adaptation of the 2007 novel with the same title. Many say that the show is considerably better- much more characterization and depth to each of the roles. But at the same time, many are criticizing it for reasons I’ll explain below.
To go more into the plot, Hannah Baker (Katherine Langford), a high school student dies by suicide. Before her death, she records a set of 13 cassette tapes in which she explains the reasons why she had killed herself. Clay Jensen (Dylan Minnette) receives the tapes, and begins to listen to them, one by one, learning Hannah’s story. Each tape has two sides, each side containing information on one different person who had somehow contributed to Hannah’s suicide. Each hour long episode revolves around one tape, and would include Hannah’s dictation of it, and Clay’s reaction to it.
Here’s what was liked about the show.
1. It shows what high school is really like.
One of the things I enjoyed most about the show is that an uncensored, genuine version of high school is presented. These kids cuss in almost every other sentence, as we see with so many teens today. It’s not a good thing, but it happens. 13 Reasons Why acknowledges it. You can see the “social hierarchy” that happens in almost every school too. The bullying is harsh, and often crosses a line (which also happens). The only reason this was allowed was because the show was presented on Netflix, rather than mainstream television which usually turns high school into a very easy, but nonetheless problematic place for teens to be. This is, usually, not the case.
2. It tackles important problems in the world today.
13 Reasons Why tackles pressing themes that are an issue today: teen suicide, sexual assault, and slut-shaming. These topics should always be addressed in our society, and we need to give help to those affected by it. That being said, the scenes portraying these topics are somewhat difficult to get through, but the show’s message is vital.
3. The way the episodes were released is, in a way, ironic.
All 13 episodes in the first season were released on the same day, which, thanks to Netflix, is becoming less and less rare. But what I find ironic in this is that perhaps you binge-watched the entire season in a few days, like me. Or maybe you had to force yourself through the long episodes, and some of the scenes. This is just like the characters in the show, of which many had to listen to Hannah’s tapes. Some listened to them all in a night, and some, like Clay, had to slowly get themselves through them. I think that this might’ve been the makers’ goal: to have the audience feel what the characters were feeling in each episode.
I’m going to be honest- I did spend a lot of time watching and enjoying this show, but only after I finished the first season did I think the plot over. It’s true that 13 Reasons Why brings light to important issues like bullying and teen suicide, but at the same time, the way the story’s told doesn’t sit right with me somehow.
I don’t blame the makers of the show, but it’s more of what the book had contained and subsequently, what the series had contained. In fact, the makers had done an amazing job. The episodes were shot well, some of the scenes bordering on uncomfortable to make you feel what the characters were feeling at the time. Dylan Minnette’s character especially had some added hallucinations which depicted what he wanted to do in a certain situation and most were powerful and gave the watcher an interesting shock.
Here’s what many didn’t like about the show.
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It perpetuates the idea that suicide has someone to blame.
The fact that Hannah is recording these tapes, blaming people for her own death (which was her choice, by the way) didn’t sit well with me. Many of the things that happened to Hannah could have been unfair, wrong, and traumatizing. She faced rumours, bullying, and more, and I’m not saying these things don’t matter because they do. Bullying, etc. can lead to suicidal thoughts, but suicide is often a complex matter that has more than “13 reasons” for it. No mental issues were brought to light at all, either. Hannah’s only shown pointing fingers at a bunch of different people saying that it was their fault she died, leaving them to live with the idea that yes, they had technically killed a person.
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It reduces Hannah’s suicide into a means of revenge.
The way Hannah’s suicide seems like, to many, that she did it as a way to expose what people have done to her. Rather than focusing on her emotions and thoughts, as mentioned before, the show gives off a message that Hannah committed suicide to expose the actions of her peers and make them feel guilty. I know this likely isn’t what the directors were intending, but surely, this problem could’ve been fixed somehow.
Clearly, the pros outweigh the cons, even if only by one. There’s also a great cast that I guarantee you will begin to love. I still highly recommend you watch it, because this show sheds light on many, many topics that should and have to be addressed at one point or the other. Suicide is not a small matter. It is the third leading source of teen deaths these past twenty years, and can definitely be prevented by taking the proper precautions. Hannah’s story is something that I believe that should be more widespread and well known.
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Nazifa is now in her third year of a Bachelor of Science program at the University of Calgary. She volunteers with the Let’s Talk Science Club at her university, which helps other students in discovering and pursuing their passions by inspiring them to explore the world of science as a leader. She also volunteers as a Triage Peer at the University of Calgary. She is the first point of contact for anyone coming into the office about services such as booking appointments, as well as guiding them in a direction that meets their career goals.
