At the end of March, Netflix premiered a new series titled “13 Reasons Why” which was inspired by a novel with the same name written by Jay Asher in 2007. Since its release the series has gotten a lot of controversy due to its harsh topics.

“13 Reasons Why” is about a high schooler named Hannah Baker who

committed suicide by cutting her wrists and bleeding to death in her bathtub. She didn’t leave behind a note, instead she left behind 13 cassette tapes explaining why she killed herself. Each tape is dedicated to a person that had some sort of involvement in her reason for committing suicide, and she wants each person mentioned on a tape to listen to them all and then give them to the next person mentioned. The series focuses on when Clay Jenson, a crush of Hannah’s, receives the tapes. He is one of the last people mentioned on the tapes, so most of the others mentioned on the tapes have already listened to them and want to prevent Clay from finishing them, out of fear that he will expose them all – for the sake of his lost love.

The show goes back and forth between flashbacks of when Hannah was alive to Clay trying to put the pieces together about her death while listening to the tapes. Scenes referring to when Hannah was alive are shown with a golden tint, and scenes from after her death have a blue tint to them, to help viewers follow along. There are 13 episodes, to go along with the 13 tapes she made. Each episode revolves around a tape and the person who the tape is about.

Throughout the series extreme cases of bullying and also rape are shown, which is why the show has a rating of TV-MA. Though the target audience is meant to be students, so that graphic content has caused some outrage for many who don’t believe that young age range to be viewing the show.

But in reality, this show is a high schooler’s reality. Not every high schooler will go through such extremities during their four years, but it is happening around them and that is important for them to know. In fact, the series focuses on how bullying can be happening around people without them even knowing, like Clay who was mostly unaware of the things that were happening to Hannah while she was alive – even though they were close friends.

 

A “behind the scenes” short feature is available on Netflix that shows the directors, executive producers, and cast discussing the important messages portrayed through the series. The directors had psychiatrists and doctors with them at all times, to make sure that the serious scenes were portrayed accurately and tastefully. Therapy dogs were also provided for the cast as they shot the tough scenes.

“We wanted to begin by telling the truth about what effect these events would have. We felt like if we could tell a story, not only with integrity, but hopefully one that had a chance to really resonate with young people who don’t necessarily get a steady diet of truth in their entertainment, and hopefully could stand as something that was an honest representation of their experience.” – Brian Yorkey, an executive producer of the show says in the feature. “We didn’t look away from (scenes like) the sexual assaults in the show, because to do otherwise is to minimize what those characters go through and what teenage girls go through everyday.”

However, it is just as important for parents to view this show. Not only are Hannah’s parents lost throughout the series, but the parents of the students involved in Hannah’s decision are also clueless about the lives of their children. The students, including Hannah, are able to hide their school lives from their families. That fact was highlighted just as much as the bullying that occurred.

“It’s hard to be the parent of a teenager. The teenagers are trying to establish some independence. Sometimes when they would like help on some level, they’re also pushing it away. And both Clay and Hannah, at times, really would like some help, but don’t know how to ask for it.” said Helen Hsu, a licensed clinical psychologist.

“You only know what they’re willing to tell you and you only know what they’re able to tell you. They may Instagram and Snapchat and, you know, Facebook their lives, but that’s curated. Even with all of that, you still don’t really know what’s going on in their life.” – Yorkey.

Suicide is currently the second leading “cause of death” for U.S. teenagers. Some viewers criticized the way Hannah handled her situation and feel that it was a “bad example” for solving problems. The professional counselors on set agreed, but stated that is was also the most accurate portrayal of how teens react when put into tough situations like hers.

“Young adults haven’t fully formed their frontal lobe, or their executive function as we call it, so everything that happens feels like this is forever. They often feel like there’s no way out, and this can lead to very impulsive acts.” Dr. Rebecca Hedrick, child psychologist.

The counselors prescribe some of the teen character’s behavior as symptoms of PTSD, Disassociation Disorder, the Bystander Effect or a Fight, Flight, or Freeze reaction.

 

“You know, Hannah’s an imperfect person. She pushes people away, people that we know would have been there for her. You know, she could’ve been more open. But in a way, she kind of sets up Mr. Porter (the school counselor) to fail. I think it’s okay to recognize that. That she wasn’t perfect, she didn’t do everything she could, and that she should have done more.” – Jay Asher, author of the original story.

Parents and peers could’ve done more as well.

“Adults tend to trivialize what for teenagers and young adults is not trivial. Teenage brains don’t work the way adult brains work. You know? Trauma and pain feel like they’re going to last forever. And I think that we forget that sometimes.” – Yorkey

“I feel like parents being honest and not ignoring issues and not ignoring what they went through will really help kids, I think, be a little more comfortable. (tell them) “you don’t have to tell me everything, but if it’s really something that’s important, I’m here and there’s no judgment.” said Many Teefey, an executive producer, “Hopefully sharing these stories can help parents pay attention to things that may be small to them, but could be rocking the world of their kid.”

“As a society we tend to shy away from these hard topics, and sometimes in cinema we do that too, and I think this is great because it says NO this is a problem and it needs to be addressed.” – Justin Prentice, who played Bryce in the series.

The last episode of the series leaves the viewers with a lot of cliffhangers and hints at a second season, that will cover even more issues teenagers deal with.

(Spoilers) One character mentioned on Hannah’s tape commits suicide and another is shown planning to do a school shooting. Another character is on the verge of finally telling her parents about a rape that happened to her. The results of the trial aren’t revealed and the ending shows Hannah’s parents starting to listen to her tapes for the first time.

RELATED LINK: Pretty Little Premiere Review

“It’s important for viewers to see that there’s often a lot of collateral damage, when someone dies, and the person contemplating suicide might not realize how much how much their death will affect people that they love and that they didn’t want to hurt.” – Rona Hu, psychatrist.

But this season alone offers a lot of help by portraying the hard topics and finally getting the world to talk about them.

“If someone watching this is feeling like their life doesn’t have worth, I hope that you see around Hannah in this show all the people who care about her, and know that there are those people in your life as well.” – Yorkey

 

http://13reasonswhy.info/#usa

(A link to the series’s website, that provides resources for suicide prevention.)