Hello everyone
Usually, when I recommend you watch something, I implicitly recommend watching the entirety. This month, I want to suggest you watch just one episode of a series.
The series: Adolescence. And I suggest you watch the third episode (out of four).
Let me tell you some more about Adolescence and why I’m pointing to just one episode.
There are no spoilers here beyond what you can find from the trailer. That said, while I’m putting a link to the trailer, if you can, don’t watch it—it makes too many of the connections which are implicit within the drama, explicit, taking away much of the subtlety and nuance. Just go straight to the third episode and watch that; you don’t need to have watched the first two episodes to understand what’s going on in the third.
What is Adolescence About?
Adolescence is about a 13-year-old boy, Jamie Miller, who is accused of killing a 13-year-old girl in his school.
The story is a detailed, up-close-and-personal recounting of the events after the killing. It focuses on four time periods, looking at the consequences for four separate character groups:
- The morning immediately after the killing, when the police arrest the 13-year-old Jamie and bring him into custody.
- Three days after the killing, when the police visit Jamie and the victim’s school in the search for evidence, and find a group of kids deeply traumatized.
- Seven months after the killing, when Jamie is interviewed by a psychologist.
- Thirteen months after the killing, when Jamie’s family are trying to carry on with their lives which have been torn apart by the events of the past year.
The story is not a whodunnit—we know from the first moments who is accused, although he claims innocence. Instead, it is billed as whydunnit. And while that’s true, I don’t think that’s a sufficient explanation for the broad and detailed look at some of the pressures faced by teenagers today.
Themes
Despite the weight of the themes, the series takes a light touch and lets the characters speak for themselves. There’s a detailed and nuanced look at the factors that may have influenced the 13-year-old’s actions, but the focus is on asking questions, not on giving answers.
Modern Masculinity and Incel Culture
One of the key themes running through the series is masculinity—in particular, what masculinity means in 2025.
There is a highly prevalent element of incel culture—in essence, the ignorant, woman-hating extremes of male behavior, untrammelled by any calming influence. But there are also men (in particular, Jamie’s father) who try to show non-toxic masculine behavior—the kind of men who, despite their own failings, see their role as protector/provider.
Social Media
Social media is pervasive in Adolescence. Even the kids who aren’t “on” social media, are present there. The only way for many of the kids to communicate—to even exist—is through being on social media.
The use of emojis in social media is a revelation to the detective investigating the crime. For Jamie’s schoolmates, a single emoji can communicate what would take adults several paragraphs to explain. A change of color of an emoji can then totally change the meaning of the emoji within the context of a broader message.
For the story, social media is not so much a tool for communication, but a vector for highly targeted bullying, and an influence that is largely hidden to adults due to their lack of understanding.
Schooling
And then there is the school…
I don’t know how representative this school is of modern UK schools, but this one essentially sees its role as crowd control. Or maybe more as a concentration camp to lock kids in for several hours a day meaning the bullied kids can’t run away from their oppressors.
The Gimmick
There is a gimmick which has received much coverage in the press: each episode was filmed in a single take (in other words, one mistake, and the whole scene was lost…but the editing was a lot easier).
There is a 12 minute “The Making of” which shows the behind the scenes work to film the series. The making of is an interesting watch—we get to see how the camera is attached to drones and then removed, how the camera is passed from operator to operator so the filming can pass through windows or move up and down stairs.
The documentary is an interesting watch and the work necessary to get an entire episode captured in a single shot is amazing. Trouble is, with the exception of episode three, I thought that watching the documentary was more engaging than seeing the technique in practice. Indeed, after four episodes, I found the single shot technique was just annoying.
However, the one place I really thought the technique worked well and enhanced the scene was in the third episode.
And to be clear, I’m not suggesting you only watch the third episode because of the technique. I’m suggesting you watch because it’s a stunning piece of drama—that the technique works for this episode is a lucky happenstance.
Episode Three
The third episode involves thirteen-year-old Jamie Miller played by Owen Cooper and his psychologist, Briony Ariston, played by Erin Doherty. There are one or two other minor characters, but essentially the entire scene is Jamie and Briony.
The scene is claustrophobic and uncomfortable to watch. We see a vulnerable, damaged 13-year-old as his psychologist gently probes, trying to understand what happened. Layer by layer, all the elements of the story are tied together, although, again, we get questions, not answers.
What makes this scene are the two performances. It’s easy to throw terms like compelling or electric, but those are both good descriptions. In many ways, since we’re seeing one single performance with emotional ebbs and flows, it’s more like watching a play. But there’s something more than the theatre offers—the camera can move in, out, and around the characters, allowing our focus to move. And there’s no one shuffling in the seat in front of you or blocking the view.
And at the end, we get an insight into the mental damage the interaction has inflicted upon the psychologist.
The performances are gripping. Come awards season, for this scene alone, Adolescence will be winning all the awards.
Erin Doherty’s performance is amazing, but it is Owen Cooper’s Jamie who stays with you. His performance is even more impressive given, first, his youth, and second, the fact that this is his first professional performance.
The Writers
I can’t leave without mentioning Stephen Graham and Jack Thorne, the creators and writers for the show. It is a masterful creation and powerful piece of writing.
They have tried to create something different, to look at some contemporary themes and give them a visceral relevance. In this, they have succeeded. But what they have created is a tough watch. However, if it were not to be a tough watch, then its power and relevance would have been greatly diminished.
And Graham also plays Eddie, Jamie’s plumber father with an utterly believable performance that we would expect from him.
Conclusion
I liked but didn’t love the series as a whole—it’s too grim and the single-shot technique annoyed—but it’s still worth watching. However, several weeks after watching, that third episode of Adolescence stays with me. Go and watch it, you will be affected.
I’ll be back in June. Until then.
All the best
Simon