Parents' Guide to

Sense8

By Joyce Slaton, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 17+

Drinking, drugs, sex, violence in mysterious sci-fi drama.

TV Netflix Drama 2015
Sense8 Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

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

Community Reviews

See all
age 17+

Based on 23 parent reviews

HHalton123
HHalton123 Parent of 15-year-old
April 11, 2019
age 17+

An excellent programme for older teenagers and adults

As many of the other reviews mention, this programme contains a lot of sex and violence. However, the sex scenes are tastefully portrayed, and it includes frank discussions about the value of sex. Difficult topics like abuse, addiction and suicide are approached in sensitive but informative ways. Overall, it is very varied and educational, including characters and actors from all over the world of all ethnicities, nationalities, genders and sexualities. And, to top it all off, the storyline is engaging and full of witty humour, as well as truly touching moments that will drive you to tears occasionally!

This title has:

Great messages
Great role models
2 people found this helpful.
nwfinfan
nwfinfan Parent of 13-year-old
September 15, 2018
age 18+

Turned off 5 min in

The first scene is a lesbian couple having sex with a strap on that they fling and falls wet on the floor. Wish i would have turned it off 1 min in, there was 0 reason for me to try this show that was recommended to me, never taking that persons recommendations again.

This title has:

Too much sex
2 people found this helpful.
See all 23 parent reviews

What's the Story?

In eerie drama SENSE8, eight strangers living very different lives in different cities all over the world suddenly find themselves linked together. A Korean businesswoman allows her attention to drift from a client meeting and suddenly she has a vision of a woman committing suicide. A Chicago cop starts seeing scenes from the life of an Icelandic DJ. A Nairobi bus driver appears over the shoulder of a Mexican movie star, an Indian scientist experiences the crimes of a petty thief in Germany. None of the newly minted "sensates" know why they're having these visions, what they mean, or what they portend. But they're going to have to figure out pretty quickly, as a nefarious, mysterious corporation knows much more than they do -- and it's already working on tracking the sensates down and using them for a yet-to-be-discovered purpose.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (23 ):
Kids say (15 ):

Let's be honest: Sense8 is saddled with one of the more clichéd premises of modern TV: strangers with a mysterious connection? What is this, Lost? Yet the show's intriguing execution of said premise puts this drama on the "has something" list, despite some downsides. Chief among them: painfully clunky exposition. In addition, audience members will wonder exactly why characters in far-flung locations all are speaking English. The Korean/German/Icelandic/African characters can't be subtitled, really? They can't even have accents?

Nonetheless, Sense8 has interesting things to offer -- chiefly, characters viewers haven't seen before. Sticking a transgender character right in the middle of the action and making the story not about her gender is a nice modern innovation, and the female characters in general are given plenty to chew on. That's a nice touch for TV sci-fi, which tends to treat its women like love interests with no inner life. Sense8's slow-burn storytelling also is well-suited both to Netflix's binge-watch capabilities and to viewers who insist on TV that stands up to repeat viewing and Internet recap-style criticism and analysis. There are clever ideas at work here. Give this show enough time and attention, and it might grow on you.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the show's premise. Is it realistic or fantastic? Do people really have visions of the lives of other people? How do you know? Do TV shows have to be realistic to be interesting?

  • How do you suppose the creators of Sense8 choose the cities their characters are from? What's the percentage of dramas you see set in cities such as New York or London versus small towns? Why do you suppose this is?

  • Sense8's nonlinear plot makes it more challenging to figure out what's going on. Which other dramas or comedies can you name with plots that jump around in time or setting?

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