Common Sense Media Review
By Marty Brown
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Post-9/11 NYC murder drama has drugs, language.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 13+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Watch
Videos and Photos
City on Fire
What's the Story?
CITY ON FIRE introduces Charlie (Wyatt Oleff) and Samantha (Chase Sui Wonders), who become friends by wandering around downtown Manhattan together in 2003. When Samantha is found dead from gunshot wounds, Charlie finds himself involved in the murder investigation, alongside a violent activist group/indie rock band and a generationally wealthy Upper East Side family.
Is It Any Good?
One way to soup up a relatively routine mystery plot is to add an interesting setting. City on Fire was adapted from a novel that takes place in the 1970s but updates the setting to Manhattan 2003, a.k.a. post-9/11 New York. The series is incredibly accurate to that era, with special attention to the local music scene that produced bands like the Yeah Yeah Yeahs and Interpol. (The band in City on Fire seems specifically inspired by The Rapture and the scene's gravitation toward dance-punk.) Despite the rich setting, the series doesn't seem to have much to actually say about how its characters navigate the trauma of the Twin Towers falling, aside from arbitrarily assigning one a dead father. So the setting ends up feeling like mere window dressing for an otherwise routine murder mystery, albeit one with some cool music direction.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about changes made in adapting a book to the screen. The book City on Fire was set in the 1970s but was changed to the 2000s for the TV show. How do you think that affected the production?
What is the show's setting? Why do you think it's set in this place and time? What does the show have to say about that era? What do you think the setting can tell us about contemporary American culture?
TV Details
- Premiere date : May 12, 2023
- Cast : Jemima Kirke , Wyatt Oleff , Chase Sui Wonders
- Network : Apple TV
- Genre : Drama
- TV rating :
- Last updated : May 15, 2023
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