Comedy
Dead Boy Detectives
Dead Boy Detectives targets teens in style and story. But it comes with very adult, problematic content.
“Life is really different when you grow up in a family of outlaws,” Eli says.
No, we’re not talking the train-robbing Western type. Eli’s family is just on the grunt-level side of heroin distribution in Brisbane, Australia. And that’s a truth that Eli’s struggling to come to terms with.
He, along with his electively mute brother Gus, thought that their mom, Frances, and stepdad, Lyle, were done with it all. After all, what was the point of helping Mom wean off her addiction if they were just going to fall back into it again?
Of course, Lyle says that he’s just selling drugs for the money in order to provide a better life for the family.
But can it really be for a better life when it starts bringing dangerous people around?
Originally a semi-autobiographical book by Trent Dalton, Boy Swallows World has been transformed by Netflix into a seven-part limited series. So, what’s the verdict?
Well, it’s probably about what you’d expect. The tale centers on drugs, crime, violence and death, as well as the family trauma that bubbles up from those things. And while we don’t want to spoil anything, let’s just say that those elements can get pretty intense.
This universe includes limbs being severed, including those of children. A number of people die onscreen in violent ways, too. Furthermore, the show depicts domestic abuse, heavy swearing, and drug use and withdrawal.
And in terms of spiritual content, we’ll note that Eli’s brother is hinted to have some prophetic abilities.
Eli may be the boy who swallows a whole universe, but Boy Swallows Universe may be a bit much for many families to swallow for themselves.
Eli and Gus search for clues to discern if their parents have resumed drug dealing.
A man is beaten and thrown into a trunk. Another man is shanked in the back. A live rat is held down and has its tail sliced off with a sword. We’re told that a man was once in jail for murder. Eli pulls his pants down offscreen and is spanked by a teacher with a baton as a punishment for bad behavior. Eli is threatened by another boy with a sword.
Gus draws a penis on a piece of paper as a joke when asked by a therapist to draw how he is feeling. A teacher asks a boy if he was smoking or masturbating when he catches him somewhere he’s not supposed to be. A woman is seen in a shirt and underwear.
We see someone given a couple bundles of heroin. A flashback shows Eli’s mom struggling and screaming through drug withdrawal. We hear a reference to drug wars. People smoke cigarettes. We’re told that one man struggles with alcoholism.
Eli makes a reference to Jesus’ words regarding walking the straight and narrow path—though he uses it in regards to acting morally rather than in Jesus’ salvific sense. Someone mentions that they don’t think Jesus was “fat nor Vietnamese.” A painting depicts Jesus wearing a crown of thorns. Someone mentions that both sinners and saints tell lies.
Eli and Gus crawl through a tunnel that leads to the bottom of an outhouse, and they end up covered in fecal matter.
The f-word is used nearly 30 times, and the s-word is used over 10 times. We also hear crude words that refer to male and female genitalia. Additionally, words like “a–,” “p-ss,” “h—,” “bloody” and “crap” are used. God’s name is used in vain twice, and Jesus’ name is used in vain five times.
Kennedy Unthank studied journalism at the University of Missouri. He knew he wanted to write for a living when he won a contest for “best fantasy story” while in the 4th grade. What he didn’t know at the time, however, was that he was the only person to submit a story. Regardless, the seed was planted. Kennedy collects and plays board games in his free time, and he loves to talk about biblical apologetics. He thinks the ending of Lost “wasn’t that bad.”
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.
