Me

TV Series Review

Ben quickly hides in a stall. Jason, the school bully, charges in just a heartbeat or two later, ready to inflict a serious beatdown. He smashes the stall doors open, taunting Ben that his final moments of safety are soon coming to an end.

But as Jason opens the final stall, he doesn’t find Ben.

He finds another classmate, Leonard.

Well, technically, Jason does find Ben, but he doesn’t know it. You see, Ben can shapeshift into anyone. And just two people know it: Ben, of course, and his stepsister, Max.

The superpower—which developed not long after he started attending a new middle school—fits Ben’s personality. He’s never truly felt like he fits in his own skin. And figuring out who he wants to be as a person? Well, good luck with that.

But perhaps this newfound superpower just might help him answer that question for himself. Because as Ben learns how to wield it, he’ll make some mistakes along the way, and he’ll figure out how he’d like to live his life—all while living in the guise of other people.

Of course, where there’s one superpowered individual, there’s bound to be more. And indeed, there are quite a few others out there, each with their own abilities.

And not all of them want to be good people.

The Meaning of Me

The first season of Apple TV+’s Me is aimed at kids and teens—no surprise, given its coming-of-age trappings. And thankfully, it comes out rather tame for families.

Viewers learn early on that there’s an underlying threat that’ll visit the young Ben before the season ends. But when that threat does come—and some moments do indeed get intense—violence remains at the show’s TV-G rating.

Instead, Me focuses far more on how Ben’s newfound powers help him to figure out who he is in middle school. Yes, he makes mistakes, and he occasionally abuses his powers for personal gain. But episodes often end with Ben reflecting on his actions and regretting any relationships he’s hurt.

Throughout the series, Ben learns various valuable truths: that we can turn to others for help, for instance, and how pressure can make—or break—us, depending on how we respond to it.

Of course, with how prevalent the issue is in our modern social sphere, there are likely some minds out there wondering if Ben’s shapeshifting powers—which he occasionally uses to transform into a girl—are meant to be some thinly veiled commentary on transgender ideology. Fortunately, Me steers clear of injecting such overt messages into its show.

Instead, the only definitive content issues parents will need to consider is the aforementioned light violence as well as a couple instances in later episodes in which someone misuses God’s name or says a word such as “crap.”

And for a show about shapeshifting, the fact that Me maintains its relatively clean shape is super in itself.

(Editor’s Note: Plugged In is rarely able to watch every episode of a given series for review. As such, there’s always a chance that you might see a problem that we didn’t. If you notice content that you feel should be included in our review, send us an email at [email protected], or contact us via Facebook or Instagram, and be sure to let us know the episode number, title and season so that we can check it out.)