Crime
The Irrational
The Irrational finds a behavioral scientist asking questions about memory and the human condition while investigating murders.
Tater has big dreams for her summer: She’s going to have a season of self-discovery. She plans to enjoy some peace and quiet. And the-nearly-10-year-old girl expects to achieve her “final form”—whatever that may be.
On the bus ride home from the last day of school, Tater gushes to her little sister, Nellie, about her summer plans.
Unfortunately, Nellie feels less optimistic about their vacation from school.
“Let me break it to you,” says Nellie. “You’re dreaming too big by even dreaming at all.”
According to Nellie, their hometown Los Angeles is not a place where dreams come true. Not even for girls about to turn 10.
But Tater isn’t going to let Nellie’s negativity ruin her big dreams. As soon as the girls arrive home, Tater initiates step one of her summer plans: alone time.
Even though she shares the house with Nellie, a baby brother, her parents and her grandparents, she’s certain her summer will go according to plan.
But just as Tater settles into bed with her diary, her house begins to shake. Is it an earthquake?
“No, it’s worse than an earthquake,” Tater groans. “It’s visitors.”
The situation becomes much worse when her mom explains that all 12 of her primos—cousins, that is—are going to live with them all summer. And they’re all going to stay in Tater’s bedroom.
“This is supposed to be the summer of me,” wails Tater.
Despite Tater’s initial chagrin about her summer visitors, she learns to appreciate her extended family and enjoy their company. Although Tater has disagreements with her primos, she discovers the unique qualities of each. And the show generally praises family relationships.
In classic Disney Channel fashion, the kids in Primos can behave rudely to each other and to authority figures. The cousins occasionally call each other names and push each other around, and in one episode, Nellie messes with her sleeping abuelo.
Primos also employs slapstick and bathroom humor. Characters make rude noises, one cousin frequently passes gas and another enjoys macabre items such as a plastic bag with an intestine inside. Tater might also be a little … overbearing for some families.
Additionally, we’d be remiss if we failed to mention the controversy surrounding Primos.
Upon its release, the show received social media backlash. Some people have accused the show of being racist for its stereotyped depiction of Mexican Americans. Series creator Natasha Kline denies that, stating that the characters and situations in Primos were based on her own experience and story.
Primos reminds its viewers that family members—despite their quirks—can bring joy and new perspectives to life. But just like family, Primos has its problems, and some parents might deem the bathroom humor, disrespectful kids and show’s controversy as reasons to avoid this Disney Channel series.
(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.)
When Tater’s 12 cousins arrive at her house, her summer plans of peace and self-transformation evaporate. But after a dispute about their shared living space, Tater realizes that a summer with her cousins might not be so bad after all.
Tater, Nellie and the cousins can be rude to one another. Nellie calls Tater a “weirdo” and insists that Tater will “never look cool.” One of Tater’s cousins, Big Nacho, physically bullies Tater by rubbing her head and twisting her arm until it turns red. Big Nacho also steals Tater’s diary. Tater does not want her cousins to live with her, so she attempts to lock them out of her room. The kids can also be disrespectful. For example, Nellie stacks random items on her sleeping grandfather.
One of Tater’s cousins repeatedly expels gas. Tater complains about the disgusting smell of her city and her baby sibling’s dirty diaper. Tater also changes the baby’s diaper onscreen, though nothing critical is seen. One of the cousins brings an “entrail mix” with her, which is a plastic bag with an intestine inside. Some characters make rude noises with their mouths.
In a slapstick comedy sequence, a man runs from killer bees and a truck bursts into flames. A cat attempts to swipe at Tater with its paws. One of Tater’s cousins gives her a slobbery kiss on the cheek. A character snores loudly. Tater jokingly caresses her diary. A female cousin wears a cropped shirt. Another cousin occasionally behaves like a dog and bites a character offscreen.
A character instructs Tater to “scoot your boots out here.” Someone uses the phrase, “What in blue blazes?” Characters also use the terms “scuttlebutt,” “suckers,” “stupid,” “fart” and “pee.”
In a dream sequence, Tater imagines that her cousins transform into terrifying monsters who rip apart her summer dreams. (Tater fights back.) Later, Tater has another dream where she becomes a monster.
A character crawls through the vents in the house. Some of Tater’s cousins try to attack her with their bodies and water guns.
Although the allusion does not appear to be intentionally disrespectful, Tater claims that “in the beginning there was darkness…. Then there was me.” Additionally, while the context does not seem spiritual in any way, Tater’s summer plans involve searching for her true self so she can transform into her “final form.”
Tater’s family—including her dad—suggests that she should only have medium-sized dreams. An uncle makes a joke about using work time to drive his kids over to Tater’s house. Another uncle has a tattoo that reads “love pain.”
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