Parents' Guide to Pandora

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Common Sense Media Review

Melissa Camacho By Melissa Camacho , based on child development research. How do we rate?

age 10+

Predictable sci-fi series for the younger set has violence.

Parents Need to Know

Why Age 10+?

Any Positive Content?

Parent and Kid Reviews

age 16+

Based on 1 parent review

age 14+

Based on 1 kid review

What's the Story?

PANDORA is a science fiction series centering on an orphaned student attending Earth's Space Training Academy. It's 2199, and after the violent loss of her parents, Jacqueline "Jax" Zhou (Priscilla Quintana) enrolls in the Academy with the help of her uncle, Professor Donovan Osborn (Noah Huntley). There she meets bubbly clone Atria Nine (Raechelle Banno), telepathic Thomas James Ross (Martin Bobb-Semple), med student Greg Li (John Harlan Kim), and a Zatarian named Ralen (Ben Radcliffe), whose father serves as their world's ambassador after years of being an enemy species during the long war. Rounding out the group is Jax's roommate, Delaney Pilar (Banita Sandhu), whose data processing power is much more advanced than most species. With their help, Jax hopes to find out more about what led to her parents' death, but with the help of Professor Osborn's teaching assistant, Xander Duvall (Oliver Dench) she soon discovers that her parents' extraordinary research has unboxed a phenomenon that is both mysterious and frightening.

Is It Any Good?

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

This young adult-oriented series combines a young, good-looking cast who come together to help protect the universe while simultaneously creating intergalactic drama. It features lots of predictable sci-fi tenants, ranging from interspecies relationships and advanced holographic technology to the discovery of phenomena that has the potential of redefining life as we know it. But Pandora's special effects are lackluster at best, and the action sequences are more routine than exciting. Diehard fans of the genre will find it a poor substitute for iconic franchises like Star Trek and Battlestar Galactica. But younger viewers may find the interpersonal drama entertaining enough to tune into.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about what Pandora is. A person? A project? Or a metaphor for something bigger? How do we know?

  • Did you know that science fiction stories are rooted in Westerns? What do these two genres have in common?

TV Details

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