The writers of this teen suicide drama deserve credit for handing you a jigsaw puzzle piece with every episode, making you keep coming back until the puzzle is finished, even if you're not that crazy about the puzzle itself.
I'll try not to drone on about the same things other reviewers have noted about the show, but there were a number of things that just didn't work or rang completely false. For instance:
1. Most of the actors looked well beyond high school age, and none of them spoke the way real teenagers speak. I mean, these were some of the most articulate dumb jocks and cheerleaders I've ever encountered!
2. Hannah's parents were extremely loving and clearly adored their daughter. It made no sense that she couldn't confide in them, even about the really silly things like having her beautiful poem published for everyone to read and enjoy.
3. Speaking of parents, where were most of them? I mean, I understand Justin's absentee drug addict mom, but the others? Seems Bryce's parents simply didn't exist, and whenever Clay or Hannah would wander off in the night for hours a time, it was no big thing.
4. Miles Heizer was horribly miscast as Alex. That boy is gay with a capital "G." I didn't buy for a minute that he was once Jessica's studly boyfriend.
5. Alex's cop father is a strict disciplinarian who makes Alex call him "sir" and inspects Alex's closet to ensure his clothes are perfectly hung and folded. Do you really think a dad like that would let his son bleach his hair white and wear a nose ring? Don't think so.
6. As a parent of one of the students at the high school, Clay's attorney mother would never, ever have been assigned to defend the high school in the Bakers' lawsuit. And even if you suspend your disbelief and say, "Maybe her law firm didn't know she had a son in Hannah's school," if Clay's mom was an ethical lawyer, she'd have immediately recused herself from the case.
7. Does no one in this town close their shades at night, especially when they know someone is skulking around trying to take their picture?
8. What a horrible person Tony is, watching his friend Clay and Hannah's parents in utter despair and agony, when he could easily end their pain by just telling them what the hell's going on. And he sure as hell could've helped the financially strapped Bakers save some money on their lawsuit by just turning over the damn tapes to them! It's all the evidence they needed!
9. The attendance policies at this high school are very lax. Apparently, no one cares when students don't show up for class. And the school counselor doesn't seem to mind at all when he sees a student literally walk off campus, catch a ride, and drive away, even when that student is despondent and a candidate for self-harm.
10. If there are any parents who would have no problem with their child being a lesbian, it's two gay dads. Yet Courtney's just too damn terrified to tell father and father she likes the ladies, with the lame excuse being that she doesn't want to make things harder for them. Puhleez. They'd have a fabulous coming out party for her that would make her the most popular lesbian in the school!
Okay, now that all of that's off my chest, I will say that for the most part, the performances were wonderful, especially those of Kate Walsh, Dylan Minnette,and Alisha Boe. They made the most of the implausible. The episodes were all slickly edited and photographed, and the directing was a cut above.
In the end, though, despite the good intentions of "13 Reasons Why," all I can say is that I have many more reasons why not.
I'll try not to drone on about the same things other reviewers have noted about the show, but there were a number of things that just didn't work or rang completely false. For instance:
1. Most of the actors looked well beyond high school age, and none of them spoke the way real teenagers speak. I mean, these were some of the most articulate dumb jocks and cheerleaders I've ever encountered!
2. Hannah's parents were extremely loving and clearly adored their daughter. It made no sense that she couldn't confide in them, even about the really silly things like having her beautiful poem published for everyone to read and enjoy.
3. Speaking of parents, where were most of them? I mean, I understand Justin's absentee drug addict mom, but the others? Seems Bryce's parents simply didn't exist, and whenever Clay or Hannah would wander off in the night for hours a time, it was no big thing.
4. Miles Heizer was horribly miscast as Alex. That boy is gay with a capital "G." I didn't buy for a minute that he was once Jessica's studly boyfriend.
5. Alex's cop father is a strict disciplinarian who makes Alex call him "sir" and inspects Alex's closet to ensure his clothes are perfectly hung and folded. Do you really think a dad like that would let his son bleach his hair white and wear a nose ring? Don't think so.
6. As a parent of one of the students at the high school, Clay's attorney mother would never, ever have been assigned to defend the high school in the Bakers' lawsuit. And even if you suspend your disbelief and say, "Maybe her law firm didn't know she had a son in Hannah's school," if Clay's mom was an ethical lawyer, she'd have immediately recused herself from the case.
7. Does no one in this town close their shades at night, especially when they know someone is skulking around trying to take their picture?
8. What a horrible person Tony is, watching his friend Clay and Hannah's parents in utter despair and agony, when he could easily end their pain by just telling them what the hell's going on. And he sure as hell could've helped the financially strapped Bakers save some money on their lawsuit by just turning over the damn tapes to them! It's all the evidence they needed!
9. The attendance policies at this high school are very lax. Apparently, no one cares when students don't show up for class. And the school counselor doesn't seem to mind at all when he sees a student literally walk off campus, catch a ride, and drive away, even when that student is despondent and a candidate for self-harm.
10. If there are any parents who would have no problem with their child being a lesbian, it's two gay dads. Yet Courtney's just too damn terrified to tell father and father she likes the ladies, with the lame excuse being that she doesn't want to make things harder for them. Puhleez. They'd have a fabulous coming out party for her that would make her the most popular lesbian in the school!
Okay, now that all of that's off my chest, I will say that for the most part, the performances were wonderful, especially those of Kate Walsh, Dylan Minnette,and Alisha Boe. They made the most of the implausible. The episodes were all slickly edited and photographed, and the directing was a cut above.
In the end, though, despite the good intentions of "13 Reasons Why," all I can say is that I have many more reasons why not.