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NYPD Blue

(Rated TV-MA, Drama, Starring Jimmy Smits, Dennis Franz, Rick Schroeder, Where to watch: TNT, Syndicated, DVD)

  • Is it age appropriate?

    About our ratings

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    Not age appropriate for kids under 15, age appropriate for kids over 99; suggested age 15.

  • Is it any good?

    5.0

  • Common Sense says

    Rich police drama with strong characters. No kids.

Why We Rated This iffy for Ages 15–18

What to watch out for

  • Messages:

    Characters are richly drawn and often seriously flawed. Detectives often skirt the law during investigations, including using violence. Some characters have prejudices -- homophobia, racism, sexism -- it all pops up. Racially diverse cast throughout entire series run. A regular secondary character is gay.

  • Violence:

    Overall, focuses more on the consequences of violence than violence itself. That said, crime scenes often include blood. One episode shows a man shot in the head with blood on his face. Police often use physical violence against suspects and others.

  • Sex:

    Some episodes include realistic sex scenes with some partial nudity (including infamous bare-butt scenes). Characters often appear in their underwear or partially clothed.

  • Language:

    Plenty of cursing and other adult language, like "ass," "hard on," "humping," "bulls--t," etc. Purposely pushed the limits of acceptable prime-time language.

  • Consumerism:

    Not an issue.

  • Drinking, drugs, & smoking:

    One main character struggles with alcoholism. Others drink often. Sometimes cases involve drugs.
 

What Parents Need to Know

About NYPD Blue

Parents need to know that this outstanding police drama is for mature teens and adults only. With its occasional nudity (both male and female) and frequent crude language, the series' daring approach to network television made headlines when it debuted in the early '90s. Physical violence, including police brutality, is common, and viewers often see realistic crime scenes that include blood. Some episodes deal with bigotry, alcoholism, domestic violence, and other mature themes. All in all, it's tamer than just about everything running on pay cable these days, but it's still plenty edgy and definitely not for kids (even in edited-for-syndication versions).

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Families Can Talk About

  • Families can talk about police culture as seen on the show. What are the relationships between the detectives like? How are these different or similar to other types of working relationships? The detectives often use violence while interrogating suspects. Do you think this is realistic? Necessary? How does it make you feel about the characters? How are masculinity and femininity depicted on the show? How do the show's gender roles comply or depart from traditional ones?
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