My family really enjoyed this series. Sexual situations are vague and handled tastefully. There is some kissing - and a bit of it is same-sex, which is not a problem for my kids. Beautiful, absorbing, funny, surprising, dramatic. Lots of fun and escapism. Looking forward to the next season!

After all the rave reviews I purchased the 1st two seasons and sat down with my 2 preteen daughters to watch Season 1, Episode 1. Thinking this would be a way to help them understand more of the social, political, and historical climate of that era, was SHOCKED when it came to the scene of the male servant kissing the duke. Couldn't turn it off fast enough!! I had looked on line prior to watching and didn't see ANYTHING warning of the BLATANT homosexual content. It was hard for me to watch, not to mention seeing the horror on my daughters faces after the CLOSE UP of 2 men kissing. Wish I would have known ahead of time....

I LOVE this show! Every Sunday my mom and I watch this every week together.

This is literally the best show I have ever watched on television. It is absorbing, suspensful, fascinating, and (heads up, parents!) quite educational as well. You can learn so much about aristocrasy in WWI-era (and afterwards) just by watching this show. It is quite entertaining, the acting and storylines are fantastic, and I love how each character, no matter how obscure they are, always get the spotlight at some point in time. I especially love Lady Grantham, who is always sweet to everybody, and the indispensable grandmother (played by Oscar-winning Maggie Smith, aka Proffessor McGonnagal for any Harry Potter fans out there). Oh, and there is also Mr. Bates, who in my opinion is an excellent role model, since he in the beginning refuses to marry or have overt relationships with Anna to protect her honor (a true gentleman). Note: the plots are very complex and the show can be quite lengthy at times, so that is why I recommended it for 15+, not 13+. Contentwise, it is appropriate for 13+, however. I just believe that it will catch more the interest of older teens than younger ones. Overall, great show, great plot, and very educational!

We are watching this series with our 11 year old son and 13 year old daughter. Everyone loves it! There is truly a 'favorite character' for everyone, multiple plot lines, and many teachable moments. We have discussed history, the changing status of women in society, morals, loyalty, friendship, politics, and personal choices/boundaries with regard to sexual activity (same sex, prior to marriage, as well as affairs while married.) I am surprised to see parents here more concerned about a homosexual kiss than about violence and young mortality in WWII, including soldiers paralyzed, disfigured and dismembered. Even an "unexplained event" in the 2nd episode of Season One seems reason for more parental concern (**SPOILER** male guest dies in a daughters bedroom during a romantic evening. Tastefully handled. Very discreet visuals.) Homosexual kisses are on network TV, and part of the fabric of our children's lives. Be willing to discuss (or at least answer questions about) where heirs come from, why a man might want to visit a woman's bedroom, mortality in wartime, homosexuality, alcoholism, politics, classism, affairs with maids, family conflict, and the changing status of women in history. Seems to become a bit soap-opera-esque in mid season 2 but still the best "FamilyTV" that we've found for families with tweens. Enjoy!

Here it from a 9 year old. This show is AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!!!! There are various parts though that could strike a parent as inappropriate. In season 1 they have a servant and duke kissing and then the servant kisses the dukes hand many times. It was totally disgusting for me and my brother Ben to see! They do here and there in season 1 have curses and other bad language for younger ears. At a part of season 1 they have a man come into a daughter's room at a time when he shouldn't be there. They kiss and while they are kissing, the man has a heart attack and dies. His death is unseen, however he is shown dead, eyes wide open. Season 2 surrounds around the war and gets gory. A man goes to jail after he is heard guilty of killing his wife. His cellmate tries to get him in trouble and at one part, the man who kills his wife puts a knife to his cellmate's neck and threatens him. !!**SPOILER ALERT**!! In season 3 the man is found innocent and gets released. Big drama occurs when a daughter of the lord of Downton dies of eclampsia and it shows her dying which gave me nightmares. !!**SPOILER**!! The screen shows up close the daughter dying with her neck puffing out, screaming like mad, and stiff muscles. The gay servant tries getting close to another man while he is sleeping and gets caught trying to kiss him by a footman. The sleeping man wakes up, gets angry, and chases both out of the room. The show has many references to wine and beer and many people smoke. Kissing is not rare but no suggestive body parts are shown ever. Two men have a small fist fight over a daughter. In an episode, surgery is done to a man where they inject a pointy thing in his body and insert a medication. A chest is shown and the injecting gets somewhat gross but nothing suggestive once again. The role model is not great and they send along small positive messages but the show in all not including these parts I've mentioned, is GGRREEAATT!!!!!

Be wary of the homosexual kissing scene and the mostly-alluded-to affairs between one of the three daughters and the duke, as well as between her father and one of the maids. But really, the series is very low-key about sex. Even when married couples are shown in bed in the morning, they are always covered up. This show rarely registers as "steamy" for me, but I know it might for some parents with kids. There is a lot of drinking, but usually not to get drunk. It's more social drinking. One character is accused of murdering his wife, and he seems menacing enough to do it. His innocence remains unproven as of early season 3. I give this a 13-and-up rating not just because some of the content is stuff that's questionable, but because I don't really think kids younger than that would even enjoy it. A lot of the themes are adult not just in the sense that they are inappropriate for little ones, but also just in that they are not interesting for kids under a certain age.