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Adolescence, a complex stage, a rollercoaster of emotions, feelings that we have all undoubtedly experienced. I was very interested in watching this British miniseries since I have a 12-year-old son at home. It is a challenging stage both for them and for the family, where good communication, patience, and empathy are very necessary. Something that was missing in the protagonists of this series, but which highlighted the outstanding performances of Owen Cooper (Jamie) and Stephen Graham (Jack, the father).

The four episodes are undoubtedly gripping, showing how an entire family falls apart after their youngest son is accused of homicide, with nothing they can do to help him.

Both parents are put under pressure, despite having given their son the best education, for failing to see his suffering while Jamie isolated himself from his surroundings as a result of bullying.

The episode that impacted me the most was Episode 3, when Jamie faces the psychologist who evaluates him during the trial process, as he is accused of murdering a schoolmate, Katie. In this episode, we see Jamie transform from a fearful child with many hidden traumas into a violent and out-of-control boy.

I truly recommend watching it.

It portrays the realities and challenges of teenage life. Although it is not a true story, it does focus on worrying issues such as school bullying, social pressure, relationships among young people, harassment through emojis on social media, the 80/20 rule (which suggests that 80% of women are attracted only to 20% of men, leaving “the ugly ones with no chances”), and other mental health issues that young people face today.

In the series, Jamie and his peers use language associated with the “manosphere,” websites and online forums that promote misogyny and opposition to feminism. “Incels,” short for involuntary celibates, are men who blame women for not being able to find a sexual partner. This is how Jamie was labeled at school and on social media, casting doubt on his masculinity. Being branded as an INCEL in his school environment left a huge emotional scar, seriously damaging his self-esteem and leading him to Katie’s murder.

EPISODE 3

This episode is harsh and moving.

Jamie and Briony, the therapist, have at times a tense conversation. She offers him chocolate milk and a cucumber-and-cheese sandwich, which he rejects because he doesn’t like cucumbers. Briony sits closer to Jamie to give him a sense of trust and maintain eye contact. This gesture of closeness makes Jamie eat the sandwich.

With this strategy, she aims to open Jamie emotionally and get him to share his side of the story.

Everything becomes tense when the child psychologist asks him about his relationship with his father and says that his father was ashamed of him during soccer games. Jamie demands to see what she wrote about him, gets angry, throws the chocolate milk, and firmly denies being guilty, insisting it’s all a mistake and confronting her by telling her she has no control over him. After a moment of silence, he calms down and apologizes.

Jamie remains defensive and ironic, but the real breakdown comes when they talk about his relationships with girls who reject him (he sees himself as ugly) and about how Katie, the victim, mocked him online with emojis and offensive comments.

Enraged, he admits to the murder because of Katie’s rejections, though he later regrets it and denies it again. In this whirlwind of emotions, Jamie contradicts himself regarding his guilt.

The psychologist ends the session when she realizes the truth, and this sends Jamie into a spiral: he cries and screams in anger as security removes him.

No trial details are shown—only Jamie serving his sentence and having distant conversations with his family.

Without a doubt, it is a raw, sad series that makes us reflect as parents on the lack of attention and dialogue with our teenage children, where we should pay much closer attention to the subtle signs that they are suffering.

To conclude, I would like to highlight that this 13-year-old young actor, who gave his first performance so masterfully as Jamie, was awarded an Emmy in the category of Best Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or Television Movie. With this, Cooper became the youngest male actor in history to win an Emmy. Applause and best wishes for this boy in his very promising career.