Butterfly Effect
By Angelica Guarino,
Common Sense Media Reviewer
Common Sense Media Reviewers
Docuseries ponders alternative histories; war, weapons.
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Butterfly Effect
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What's the Story?
Each episode of BUTTERFLY EFFECT recounts an influential historical event, reframing it as a crossroads in the history of humanity. The show uses a combination of storytelling and hypothesizing to visualize the context and importance of major historical events. In addition to reenactment scenes, Butterfly Effect uses moving objects, maps, and graphics to illustrate the importance of these events. When the show approaches a turning point in the story, a breakout scene occurs to consider what might have happened without one key event.
Is It Any Good?
Teaching history is difficult, and Butterfly Effect reminds us why. We have an overwhelming amount of access to knowing what's going on right now, so it's often not enough to keep students interested in history by simply giving context for what happened in the past. Students have to understand why these events are relevant to today, and what they mean for imagining the future they want to see. Butterfly Effect is successful in encouraging curiosity, and it is easy to picture the show being used as supplemental material in classrooms as well as a thought-provoking family show. It should be said that Butterfly Effect isn't the most emotionally compelling show; the narration is rather monotone, and the silhouette reenactments are visually repetitive. That said, the show is kept engaging through exciting 3D modeling sequences that allow viewers to imagine historical events in an entirely new way. Also, the even-keeled storytelling is effective as well.
The goal of Butterfly Effect is to inform viewers about real-life events. Avoiding sensationalizing these events makes for a powerful teaching tool. While there is a time and place for educational media that uses storytelling to target the audience's emotions, there is a place for purely informative media as well. Butterfly Effect is presenting information and asking questions, then letting the viewer form their own opinion about what these events mean for their view of the world. The show clearly lays out its educational goal and meets it in every episode.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the concept of the butterfly effect in their own lives. Can you think of an event that was a crossroads for your family? How did it affect your family, and can you imagine an alternate timeline for what could have happened without that event?
Why is history so important to learn? How does learning the history of the world help people understand how the world is today? What does that mean for predicting the future?
While learning the history of the world is important, do you think it is also important to learn the history of your family and community? How could this information make you a better family or community member?
TV Details
- Premiere date: January 1, 1999
- Networks: Max, Amazon Prime Video
- Genre: Educational
- Topics: History
- TV rating: TV-PG
- Last updated: August 4, 2021
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