Comedy
Dead Boy Detectives
Dead Boy Detectives targets teens in style and story. But it comes with very adult, problematic content.
A few years ago, Simone Hicks didn’t know where her life was going.
She was a teen mom; her child’s father wasn’t reliable; she wound up marrying her best friend on a whim (and subsequently annulling that marriage); and she had a rocky relationship with her mother.
But Simone decided to get her life together. She put her baby up for adoption and was thrilled when the new parents of her son, Shay, decided they wanted her to be a part of his life.
She applied to college and got into Bringston, an HBCU school where her aunt teaches. She and Jordan are no longer married, but they’re still trying to make their relationship work.
Homecoming
However, even though Simone is starting to figure things out, college is still providing plenty of challenges.
For starters, long distance relationships are difficult—something she and Jordan will have to navigate if they want to remain a couple. She nearly blows her shot at joining the tennis squad when she shows up to the first practice hungover from the previous evening’s activities. And that unstable mother-daughter relationship really shows its teeth when Simone discovers that her mom refused to pay for on-campus housing, since Simone chose not to attend an Ivy League school.
She’s a bit homesick, too, but Simone quickly realizes that Bringston could become a new kind of home, given its predominantly Black student population. “It’s amazing to be someplace that’s for us, by us, and where excellence is expected,” she tells her aunt, Amara.
All-American Problems
All-American: Homecoming is a spin-off of the CW’s other popular series All American, which is based on the life of NFL star Spencer Paysinger. Both shows have inspiring messages about young people overcoming incredible odds to become successful, but those messages are riddled with content issues.
Sexual promiscuity is rampant on campus. Many students just want to hook up with others. One of Simone’s friends is trans, and another is bisexual. Outfits leave little to the imagination. And even though Simone has a boyfriend, she also hasn’t been the most responsible with her sexual decisions in the past (and therefore may not remain loyal to said boyfriend).
Language and underage drinking are also present. A few comments refer to recent events regarding police treatment of minority citizens (which could be triggering for some audiences). And poor attitudes (especially towards authority figures) abound.
A baseball star named Damon gave up the MLB to attend Bringston, and he has a bad habit of reminding his coach and teammates about that sacrifice. Amara comes under fire from school sponsors because she brought a cheating scandal to light that resulted in the suspension of several student-athletes. And Simone’s disagreement with her mom will almost certainly become a theme.
While it seems that the students and teachers of Bringston really do want to build each other up, support one another and come together to create a community of excellence, the show itself is arguably not excellent.
Simone moves cross-country to attend an HBCU school only to discover it’ll take a while for it to feel like home.
We learn that Simone was a teen mom. (And someone from her past apologizes for the way her ex treated her while she was pregnant.) She’s offended when her aunt gives her a gift-basket with condoms but admits she will probably have sex at some point. One of Simone’s friends is trans. Women wear revealing outfits. People dance provocatively. Simone is forced to walk around her dorm in a towel when she forgets her bathrobe and key in her room. A couple kisses.
People struggle with living up to their parents’ expectations. A woman is punished for telling the truth about a cheating scandal. The man behind the scandal gets a job at another school by lying about it. Some people are rude, others are arrogant.
There is underage drinking. Simone is nearly kicked off the tennis squad for arriving to practice hungover. Someone keeps a Bible as a keepsake. We hear references to the “universe.” There are uses of “ass,” “bitch,” “damn” and “hell.” God’s and Jesus’ names are abused.
Emily studied film and writing when she was in college. And when she isn’t being way too competitive while playing board games, she enjoys food, sleep, and geeking out with her husband indulging in their “nerdoms,” which is the collective fan cultures of everything they love, such as Star Wars, Star Trek, Stargate and Lord of the Rings.
Dead Boy Detectives targets teens in style and story. But it comes with very adult, problematic content.
An elf mage contemplates on connection and regret as she watches her human friends grow old and pass away.
