The nation is about to be hooked on a brand new psychological crime drama as Adolescence hits Netflix. The four-part series, co-created by its lead star Stephen Graham sees a family’s lives get turned upside down as their 13-year-old son is arrested on suspicion of murdering a girl from his school.
Much like Boiling Point – which Graham also starred in – Adolescence’s episodes are shot in one take, making the viewer feel even more submerged in the plot.
But will viewers be let down by the series or is it worth the hype it is sure to get?
What are the reviews of Adolescence saying?
Rotten Tomatoes – a website with collates reviews from different publications – has given the series a very rare 100% rating, based on 16 early reviews.
Laura Jane Turner from Digital Spy gave Adolescence 5/5, writing, ‘The very best drama has the power to irrevocably move you and spark conversation, and Adolescence does both.’
Vicky Jessop of The Standard said, ‘Putting aside the technical skill involved in making a show like this (which is surely titanic), everybody in this series is wonderful.’
Meanwhile, The Telegraph’s Anita Singh wrote, ‘It is a drama so quietly devastating that I won’t forget it for a very long time.’
Margaret Lyons of New York Times said, ‘It uses its pain and shock as a side door into interesting questions and social critiques. It’s about a teen, but its ideas are adult.’
Rolling Stone writer Alan Sepinwall says, ‘This is not an easy watch... But in what Adolescence has to say, and in how eloquently and audaciously it says it, it’s also among the very best things – and an early contender for the best thing you will see on the small screen this year.’
Finally, Daniel Fienberg of The Hollywood Reporter applauds, ‘Fortunately, the camerawork mostly complements both a plot with unsettling contemporary resonance and the human characters, played exceptionally well by the likes of Stephen Graham, Ashley Walters, Erin Doherty and spectacular newcomer Owen Cooper.’
Graham has said of the creation of his new show, ‘We could have made a drama about gangs and knife crime, or about a kid whose mother is an alcoholic or whose father is a violent abuser. Instead, we wanted you to look at this family and think, “My God. This could be happening to us!” And what’s happening here is an ordinary family’s worst nightmare.’
All episodes of Adolescence are available to stream on Netflix now.
Samuel McManus is a senior content creator for Bauer Media, writing celebrity news and features across five of the company’s brands – heat, Closer, Grazia, Bella and Yours. Samuel has worked at Bauer Media since November 2024.