Parents' Guide to

Barkskins

By Melissa Camacho, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 16+

Lots of bloody violence in New World frontier adaptation.

Barkskins Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

What you will—and won't—find in this TV show.

Community Reviews

age 17+

Based on 3 parent reviews

age 16+

Engaging, unsettling, well acted.

Other than the amount of stomach-churning scenes that might be hard for anyone under the age of 16 to watch, Barkskins is filled with one amazing cast, engaging storylines and a perfect aesthetic to finish it off. It doesn't take anything too far than it should. Definitely a must watch, and a definite surprise to see coming from Nat Geo.

This title has:

Great role models
Too much violence
age 18+
Spellbinding, edge of seat series. I loved it! This is how is was back in the day, after doing genealogy it was tough in the new world. I cannot wait for season 2.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (3):
Kids say (1):

This absorbing TV adaptation offers a well-produced historical fiction about colonists seeking freedom and opportunity in the wild frontier of what is now the province of Quebec, Canada. Individual narratives highlight some of the programs created by the French crown to populate its vast territories, many of which preyed on the poor and vulnerable by promising land and economic prosperity. But a large part of the drama is inspired by the competing economic interests of the British and the French, which led to the recruitment of indigenous tribes to help them fight their battles, and became a precursor to the French and Indian War nearly a century later.

Barkskins focuses only on the first 100 pages of Annie Proulx's popular 736-page novel. As a result, it only hints at the overall story's strong environmental messages about deforestation and climate change, and does so with such subtly that it's easy to miss. Many viewers will also be left wanting to see where the characters are headed after the series wraps up. But it's still an entertaining story worth investing your time in, especially if you like historical fiction.

TV Details

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