I wouldn't ordinarily watch a show orientated towards the teen market, the LGBTQ+ interest is what drew me following a fan video someone had made on the Internet. If I had to label which letter the show leans to towards in LGBTQ+ then I would say it definitely would be the + sign! The characters are panromantic as they experiment with their peers. Whilst some characters identify with certain more concrete labels, even they are fluid than they say.
The show generally eskews the traditional labels and lets the young cast experiment with their identities and embraces fluidity. This I found refreshing. This is not your using male centric coming out story. So definitely worth the effort.
I am presuming that as the setting, as pretty much always, is a high school and centred around the swim team the target is young teen Italians. I would safe to hazard they would also be queer and female. Although there is enough in there to interest young males too. I also like that it recognises the 'Coming out' is more organic process than is often depicted on the screen.
The show is at its best when it centres on the twins. Their respective story arcs carry the show. The side quests of the secondary characters like the girls' story lines, the swimming competitions & making a music video arc all add to the length of the show and can feel a bit confusing at times.
The story unfolds in a flash back format covering multiple time periods for all the main cast. Usually, one of the characters is the focus for these flashbacks, not too dissimilar to the Skam format but you never get a whole episode devoted to one character or arc. The synthesis of the flashbacks in the final episode is beautiful.
Not exactly a spoiler but.....
There is the usual drama left for the finale to tease a second season but the show ends as it began and stayed thoughout, in a state of ambiguity. If that's not for you and you prefer a more definite happy or sad ending maybe this show isn't for you.
I watched it in the original Italian with English subtitles. I will watch some of the episodes again in the dubbed version to catch some of what I missed first time around. I can see me going back multiple times. Maybe you will too.
The show generally eskews the traditional labels and lets the young cast experiment with their identities and embraces fluidity. This I found refreshing. This is not your using male centric coming out story. So definitely worth the effort.
I am presuming that as the setting, as pretty much always, is a high school and centred around the swim team the target is young teen Italians. I would safe to hazard they would also be queer and female. Although there is enough in there to interest young males too. I also like that it recognises the 'Coming out' is more organic process than is often depicted on the screen.
The show is at its best when it centres on the twins. Their respective story arcs carry the show. The side quests of the secondary characters like the girls' story lines, the swimming competitions & making a music video arc all add to the length of the show and can feel a bit confusing at times.
The story unfolds in a flash back format covering multiple time periods for all the main cast. Usually, one of the characters is the focus for these flashbacks, not too dissimilar to the Skam format but you never get a whole episode devoted to one character or arc. The synthesis of the flashbacks in the final episode is beautiful.
Not exactly a spoiler but.....
There is the usual drama left for the finale to tease a second season but the show ends as it began and stayed thoughout, in a state of ambiguity. If that's not for you and you prefer a more definite happy or sad ending maybe this show isn't for you.
I watched it in the original Italian with English subtitles. I will watch some of the episodes again in the dubbed version to catch some of what I missed first time around. I can see me going back multiple times. Maybe you will too.