Parents' Guide to Signal

TV Paramount+ Drama 2016
Signal TV show poster: A woman and two men sit around a small, round table littered with food and drink.

Common Sense Media Review

Joly Herman By Joly Herman , based on child development research. How do we rate?

age 14+

Great acting enriches Korean thriller; has sexual violence.

Parents Need to Know

Why Age 14+?

Any Positive Content?

Parent and Kid Reviews

What's the Story?

In SIGNAL, a child is taken from a school, prompting a hunt for her killer that inspires Park Hae-Yeong (Lee Je-Hoon, Move to Heaven) to pursue a career in detective work. When a cold case from 1989 resurfaces, Park Hae-Yeong is teamed up with Cha Soo-Hyeon (Kim Hye-Soo), a female detective whose leadership skills have been hard won. One night, Park Hae-Yeong hears a noise from the evidence collection from the 1989 cold case. It's a walkie talkie; who's on the other end?

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say : Not yet rated
Kids say : Not yet rated

Riveting and emotional with a moral center, this cold-case Korean thriller is driven by great acting. Signal doesn't woo with high-dollar effects; rather, its strength is the depiction of ordinary people who try to right the wrongs of some sickos doing harm. Throw in a metaphysical phenomenon, and you've got a winner.

Families who like cold-case stories will enjoy this one together. There are brutal images and themes, but they don't dominate as much as in other shows. The unanswered questions in this show will keep viewers guessing.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about curiosity in Signal. How can a detective solve a crime if they aren't curious about circumstances and situations?

  • Teamwork helps detectives in this show solve cases. They say they want to help the victims' families. What does teamwork do for you?

  • The victims' families in this show depend on the perseverance of detectives to solve the crimes that tore their lives apart. How does the perseverance of others make a difference in your life?

TV Details

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Signal TV show poster: A woman and two men sit around a small, round table littered with food and drink.

What to Watch Next

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