Comedy
Dead Boy Detectives
Dead Boy Detectives targets teens in style and story. But it comes with very adult, problematic content.
Bess is just waiting. Waiting to find the right lyrics. The right beat. The right song.
But waiting isn’t easy. Neither is being brave.
After Bess was booed off stage in New York City by a group of drunken audience members, she never quite regained the small amount of confidence she had to sing in front of others. Which is why she now spends her time bartending, walking dogs and teaching music. Oh, and writing lyrics in her rented storage unit, away from her apartment and people. Well, most people … except the gorgeous-but-taken Ethan who just so happens to randomly hang out in his storage unit, right next door to Bess.
Ethan gets Bess, but he isn’t the only one who seems to understand her better than she understands herself. Her roommate, Prisha, constantly encourages her to get over her stage fright (even as Prisha works on her own issues, such as coming out to her parents). And Bess’s autistic, Broadway-loving brother, Louie, encourages his sister to pursue her dreams, all while figuring out how to pursue his own. Then there’s Bess’s soulful dad, Percy. He has his own in-your-face ways of lovingly pushing his daughter to learn about herself and her style.
But no one can force Bess to find her voice. They can nudge her in all the right directions and lend a helping hand along the way but, in the end, Bess will have to step out on her own. And in doing so she may even write a song or two.
Created by singer and songwriter Sara Bareilles and director Jessie Nelson, Little Voice is a story about learning how to navigate life in your early 20s.
Finding its home on Apple+, this MA-rated show is based in New York City and it incorporates various artistic and musical styles as the beautiful but insecure Bess searches for her voice. But she doesn’t do so alone.
With the help of friends and family, and side stories that are bound to unravel throughout the season, viewers watch lessons of independence, friendship, kindness, bravery and uniqueness unfold before their eyes in a musical, poetic way.
But these lessons come with plenty of cautionary elements. Harsh language is heard throughout and although there aren’t any overt sexual themes in the first episode, there are obvious signs that they’ll develop throughout the first season.
Bess tries to perform onstage but suffers from stage fright. Bess’s autistic brother, Louie, struggles to live an independent life. Bess meets an unexpected stranger who admires her songwriting abilities.
Bess’s roommate, Prisha, argues with her traditional Indian parents about finding the right guy to marry (and she hasn’t told them she’s a lesbian yet). Bess flirts with a handsome stranger, not knowing that he has a girlfriend. While on stage, Bess jokes about oral sex and getting an STD. One female singer wears a cleavage-baring top and another wears a bralette underneath a suit jacket. A couple makes out in a storage unit.
Bess’s brother, Louie, leaves his community home past curfew.
Bess and other bartenders serve drinks at a bar. God’s name is misused a few times. The f-word is heard multiple times as well as profanities like “s—,” “h—,” “a–hole,” “d–k,” “a–” and “d–n.”
Kristin Smith joined the Plugged In team in 2017. Formerly a Spanish and English teacher, Kristin loves reading literature and eating authentic Mexican tacos. She and her husband, Eddy, love raising their children Judah and Selah. Kristin also has a deep affection for coffee, music, her dog (Cali) and cat (Aslan).
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.
