Parents' Guide to

The X Effect

By Sierra Filucci, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 16+

Tawdry car-wreck of a dating show isn't for kids.

TV MTV Reality TV 2007
The X Effect Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

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

Community Reviews

See all

There aren't any parent reviews yet. Be the first to review this title.

What's the Story?

In THE X EFFECT, two exes and their current partners are invited to a romantic resort under false pretenses. The exes are then reunited, spending a weekend sharing a suite, fine food, plenty of bikini time, and -- if viewers are \"lucky\" -- some drunk hot-tub action. What the former couple doesn't know is that their main squeezes are watching them from a secret location at the same resort. Their weekend is much less pleasant, since they're tortured with cruel choices (for example, would they rather watch their lovers with the sound off or hear what they're saying without a video feed?). As anyone familiar with this type of show can imagine, things heat up pretty quickly for the former flames; once the champagne starts flowing and the clothes come off, it's all downhill. As the weekend ends, the couples meet again, and the exes get to choose who they want -- their ex or their current lover.

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say Not yet rated
Kids say (1):

The X Effect is a car wreck of a show. The meetings between the current and former couples are awkward, painful, and sometimes surprising, and there are no redeeming social lessons other than perhaps "don't sign up to be on an MTV dating show." It's certainly not an age-appropriate pick for kids -- or even teens. That said, if teens do watch, they probably won't see anything they haven't seen before (unless two people eating a single Twinkie at the same time counts).

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about why and how shows like this get made. What's the appeal of watching two people potentially cheat on their significant others? Is it just meant to be a guilty pleasure? Is it responsible to turn the make-or-break points in other people's relationships into a TV show? Why do you think people choose to go on a show like this? Would you ever want to try out for any type of reality show? If so, which? How do you think shows like this get people to participate when they obviously don't know all the details when they're going into it?

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.

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