AIBU wondering about age limits for teens & watching Game of Thrones

[thiswashelpful]

My DS (15) is spending weekend at friends after going to see big football game. Message from him this morning saying that they stayed up real late watching GoT box set...That's got me thinking...

What age are teens starting to watch this stuff?

I know it is very violent, torture, rape, explicit sex, nudity, etc.

It's rated 18... so yeah.

Sorry, sent too early.
I suppose it depends where you stand on letting your 15 yo watch 18s? It is pretty graphic

I've not seen it, but I have read some (mostly very good) reviews that made me aware of the type of content in the show.

He has not seen he show here at home, or even asked to watch it, and I was a bit shocked/surprised when he mentioned it.

It's extremely graphic - it's rated 18 and for good reason (definitely not a 'soft' 18). Depends on how comfortable you feel letting him watch an 18. The level of violence makes me at 29 hide my eyes! 😳

My dc told me I couldn't watch because it was age inappropriate. After half an episode I am inclined to agree: I'm too old for that sort of stuff.

(but dc are 16 and 20)

Rape incest violence from what I gather its about Dds friend started watching it at 15 not something i would allow.

It's very graphic and violent

But I suppose it depends on the teen. If they aren't that bothered by it, and you don't mind them watching it..it doesn't really matter

Dd1 is in her 20s she loves it said mum i dont think its for you

I enjoy it.

I've just bought the latest season on DVD

I'm really surprised that my very uptight naice middle class Mum best friend has allowed her son to watch GOT with his Dad from when it first started on tv over here. Was that about two years ago? If so, her son was 14 then. Oh I had to hoik my judgey pants up over that.

Personally, I don't think there's much in it that a 15-yr-old wouldn't be aware of and/or couldn't cope with. I wouldn't mind a 15-yr-old watching it. It's very gruesome and it sometimes has boobs and willies in it, but I don't think any 15-yr-old is going to be harmed by it.

While I'm sure the occasional boob/willy is a bonus for a 15-yr-old, they wouldn't sit through 20 hours of complicated plot and Lord of the Rings style sword and sorcery just for the odd nipple when they can see (and will have seen, whether you know it or not) far more hardcore material on their mate's phones in an instant.

By the time I was 15 my parents - who were actually quite strict by most standards - had stopped putting any restrictions on my viewing or reading and the same was the case for most of my friends.

Hmm, I love GoT but I'm 29 and I don't think I'm old enough for some of it! It's very graphic and pretty harrowing in places, torture scenes etc. I wouldn't worry about the nudity at all but there are bits that I wouldn't want a younger person seeing. It's difficult because your DS probably wouldn't want to be the one to say he can't watch that, or wouldn't want to watch that, in that situation. But I do think it definitely deserves its 18 certificate.

As it is very good quality and based on a series of books, I'd much rather a 15 year old watched it than some of the other dreadful stuff that's around. Clearly your son and his friend have good taste.

Usually I can't stand gore or sex scenes, but I'm a huge fan of GoT. I know many 15 year old who are too.

The average 15 year old can cope with Game of Thrones

What is the point of it having an 18 certificate then? I'm not worried by the sex, but think the misogyny and violence and very many rapes are not good viewing material. The argument that it's not as bad as other stuff out there is pretty lame.

Interested in this.

DS, just 15, very keen on Breaking Bad and we're happy to let him watch that although some of the violence is gruesome.

How does GoT compare? Thinking of a stocking filler ....

I am flexible and open to negotiation about most things. But I won't have Game of Thrones on in my house because of the level of sexual violence. It is basically soft porn for people who don't think of themselves as consumers of porn.

It gets bad. Torture porn etc.

Breaking Bad and GoT are are different GrumpyOldBag. I can't make a comparison.

It's interesting. I'd say that BB and its themes of drug use, extreme anti social behaviour and violence set in a normal background might be worse than GoT, which is clearly rooted in fantasy, however much people want to say it represents a medieval society.

I think if your 15 year old coped with BB without being turned to crime, GoT would be a walk in High Garden.

I think the Internet offers a far wider array of genuine sexual violence for easy access to teens. Got is a bit of tits, a bit of bonkers, the odd sword, some suggested torturey bits (but karma's a good un) and a couple of genuine breath takers. It is really not tge fast bus to hell that some people would have you believe. Like anything though it's all about what you're happy with and how you assess your own child's suitability as a viewer. There's no correct answer.

Bonking, not bonkers! Although some of it is bonkers.

GrumpyOldBag - GoT is dark and violent (and there's a lot of shagging and rapes do happen) but I think the fantasy setting makes the violence feel less grittily realistic than something like Breaking Bad (in the same way that someone being killed with a sword in Lord of the Rings seems less grim than someone getting killed with a sword in modern-day serial killer drama, if you know what I mean).

Just my personal opinion, though - as you can see, lots of other people are appalled by it! ;)

lots of other people are appalled by it!

Some, but by no means all of those people have never watched it, or have watched only a couple of episodes at the most. Yet they comment on it and its more informed viewers.

I do think it's very violent and full of sex scenes but a lot of teens do watch it. He's probably seen far worse on the Internet, especially if his friends have free access to shows like GoT.