The Family Law

Show is about a Chinese family living in Australia. Most major characters are of Asian descent. Characters sometimes speak Cantonese. Characters make references to racial stereotypes -- e.g., the mother says to Ben, "Chop chop, Chinaman! Time to go." When he responds with hesitation about the talent show, she responds, "So what? You have your talent. Everyone says you play like the Black man." Ben calls out his mother for being racist but can't explain why.

References to sexual activity in conversation. Ben has a poster of a scantily clad swimsuit model on the wall in his room.

Characters use crude language. In a conversation about giving birth, the mother says, "Stab, stab, stab, right into Mommy's vee vee," and asks, "Can you imagine squeezing a lemon out of your penis hole?" Ben says to Melissa, "I heard Kristy Ronson woke up naked in a waterbed full of men she didn't know," to which Melissa responds, "Doesn't sound too bad." First episode ends with gross game of "Would You Rather?" in which the questions are about bodily functions.

Parents need to know that The Family Law is based on the bestselling autobiography of the same name by Benjamin Law, who also created and wrote the show. While the show is about the trials and tribulations of a large family, it's not a family sitcom suitable for younger viewers. It deals with issues such as marital conflict and teenage hormones. Though there is not much cursing, there is crude language, most often from Mommy's character, in reference to bodily functions. For example, she says, "No ring, no ding ding," while making a sexual gesture to dissuade her teenage daughter from having sex. When one of the younger daughters mentions that another daughter is itching, Mommy replies, "Cheek or hole?" The show also jokes about racial stereotypes. In one episode, Mommy tells Ben that he plays clarinet "like the Black man," and in another scene, she comments, "The Japanese raped our women during the war ... but they do make lovely stationery." Overall, The Family Law shows a typical family living a normal life with all of its dysfunction front and center.