Parents' Guide to

Younger

By Joyce Slaton, Common Sense Media Reviewer

age 14+

Adorable comedy has sex jokes, drinking, stealth feminism.

TV TV Land Comedy 2015
Younger Poster Image

A Lot or a Little?

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

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age 17+

Based on 7 parent reviews

irnlem
irnlem Adult
September 15, 2020
age 18+

Not for kids at 14!

This could have been a good show with an interesting premise. However, I don't appreciate the sex talk, inappropriate office touching, grabbing of the breast, young woman exposing her chest in public even though it was blurred out, selling used underwear to questionable people to make extra money, young woman with a boyfriend having an affair with an older married man but thinking it's no big deal, etc. There was a cringey and uncomfortable moment where a main character gives a presentation to a roomful of colleagues about a totally inappropriate subject. I think the last straw is showing the main characters being tricked into taking ecstacy! It would have been interesting to see how the main character who is 40, navigates herself by pretending to be 26. It could really have potential but all we get mostly are the characters pushing inappropriate boundaries. I don't recommend this show to anyone.

This title has:

Too much sex
Too much drinking/drugs/smoking
ell57
ell57 Adult
March 24, 2020
age 16+

Good story line

I started this show as a quick watch before bed and I really enjoyed it. The storyline was great with lots of surprises. As the seasons went on the jokes and plots got progressively more inappropriate. But for kids (especially girls) over 16 I think it’s very entertaining and inspiring with touches of feminism and strong female leads.

This title has:

Great messages
See all 7 parent reviews

What's the Story?

When Liza Miller (Sutton Foster)'s husband suddenly leaves her for another woman and she finds herself undesirable in the job marketplace, she pretends to be YOUNGER to land a job. That job? Assistant to temperamental book editor Diana Trout (Miriam Shor), who believes Liza is 26 and only a few years out of college. Liza has similarly fooled her colleagues, such as ambitious junior editor Kelsey Peters (Hilary Duff), and she has sexy 20-something tattoo artist Josh (Nico Tortorella) similarly mesmerized. Thankfully, she also has the help of her hipper best friend Maggie (Debi Mazar) to improve her ruse. But how long can Liza keep her real age under wraps?

Is It Any Good?

Our review:
Parents say (7 ):
Kids say (3 ):

At first glance, this series sounds exactly like the kind of high-concept sitcom that went out of style decades ago. A comedy built around a middle-aged woman trying to pass as 26 for a job? That would fit right in to a night of canned laughs about a housewife who's secretly a witch or a man living with two women pretending to be gay. Yet Younger's smart, fresh writing breathes life into the gimmicky concept, turning what could be a stale comedy into a positively adorable wish-fulfillment fantasy for older viewers. Would you want to live your twenties over again? Could you? Watching Foster learn to navigate Twitter, office politics, and the advances of elaborately tattooed Brooklyn hipsters is both hilarious and pointed satire that points out something quite modern: In the age of Google, anyone can attempt to erase the generation gap with a few clever searches.

Younger has plenty to chew on for younger viewers too, as the show smartly skewers what one character calls "bearded cheesemongers and chicks who look like Macaulay Culkin." Moms and teen/20-something daughters in particular may enjoy watching this together -- and may have a lot to talk about once the credits roll.

Talk to Your Kids About ...

  • Families can talk about the premise of Younger. Is it harder for older people to get hired? For both men and women? If so, why?

  • How would the plot of Younger change if it were set in a small city where everyone knows each other? How about if Liza were a man? A woman in her 60s?

TV Details

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