Parents' Guide to

Life Sentence

By Jenny Nixon, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 14+

Sweet but shallow dramedy about life after cancer.

TV CW Drama 2018
Life Sentence Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

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

Community Reviews

See all
age 13+

Based on 5 parent reviews

Zippy2000
Zippy2000 Adult
August 1, 2018
age 16+

wished for a season 2

A lot of shows are about doctors and people who are dying of cancer not the survivors. So I found this show quite interesting to see them explore the idea of someone who learned to live after preparing to die and a family learning who to restart there lives again. The story line was very cute and the characters were entertaining. Plus what PLL fan doesn't wanna see another show Lucy Hale starred?

This title has:

Great messages
Susanmarth2234
Susanmarth2234 Adult
July 12, 2018
age 10+

10!

Kids need to learn the real world early on! I feel like we should never hide it from our kids. I think that cancer is a big deal that kids should know about. Also I feel like it has a amazing message.... but I won’t tell you guys to spoil it! But I am not the parent for your kids... you should decide what age you lt them see the real world.

This title has:

Great messages
Great role models
See all 5 parent reviews

What's the Story?

LIFE SENTENCE tells the story of Stella, a terminal cancer patient since her teens, who has been pampered in a reality-free bubble for eight long years by her family, who only want to provide her with the best end-of-life possible. This includes post-chemo trips to Paris, where she has a whirlwind romance with handsome brit Wes (Elliot Knight, Once Upon a Time). The lovebirds are soon engaged, and rush back to the States for a quick backyard wedding with twinkling fairy lights galore. Stella is living for the moment, determined to make it all count before her time is up, when she gets the shocking news that she's not dying at all and has been completely cured by a trial cancer medication. She now finds herself with a new lease on life at 23 -- but her family is in shambles, she's married to a man she barely knows, and she has no real life skills or career prospects, as she was never expected to make it to the next year, much less to college.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (5):
Kids say (7):

The concept itself isn't a bad one (How would you live if you thought the next few months were your last -- and what would you do once you found out that was a mistake?), but the show plays it far too safe, and strays too deeply into the saccharine tones and lightweight emotional stakes of the "sappy cancer dramas" it claims to be mocking. In the right hands, Life Sentence could have been pushed into a darkly humorous or straight-up dramatic, emotionally resonant direction, but the show is overly concerned with having its star be at all times scrappy, optimistic, and likable. She comes across more like an old-school Disney heroine than a real person, even in flashbacks of her "sick" years, in which she lays in her hospital bed with lustrously thick eyelashes and brows, a downright glamorous headscarf the only indication that this is supposed to be someone with a terminal illness. Dylan Walsh (Nip/Tuck) and Gillian Vigman (New Girl) star as her embittered parents, who are apparently struggling financially yet still find the means to host impromptu dinners for 30, outfit their home like a Pottery Barn catalog, and pay the rent on their daughter's hip, artsy loft apartment. If viewed as fluffy escapism, the show is a pleasant enough way to spend an hour, but it could have been so much more.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the decision Stella's family made in Life Sentence to keep her in the dark about unpleasant things, all because she was sick and they didn't want to upset her. Do you agree with their decision to keep her in a "bubble," away from reality? How might she and her family have benefited from being honest and open with one another?

  • Talk about the comedic tone of the show, and how it fits (or doesn't fit) the subject matter. Is it ever OK to laugh at a serious topic like cancer?

  • Stella's illness is mainly shown in flashbacks -- did you find these to be realistic? Given what we know now, is the way she reacts to being cured understandable?

TV Details

Did we miss something on diversity?

Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.

See all recommended tv lists

Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.

See how we rate