Adolescence - episode 3

[morbidlyabeast]

I’m sure there are already threads on this but I can’t find a recent one. Just watched this episode and am slightly mind blown - spoiler warnings for anyone who hasn’t seen it yet.

Obviously Jamie came across badly at times. He was clearly trying to intimidate the social worker. And it worked. But he was also so childish (because he is a child) and desperate to be liked by her. I’m still confused about what the episode and series in general is trying to say. Is he a horrible, woman hating male who is destined to be an abuser or women? Is he just a confused little boy? Why was the social worker so shook up at the end? I’d love to know other people’s thoughts on it. It was such a tense, difficult watch and the acting from both of them was unreal.

She was a clinical psychologist not a social worker.

She was a clinical psychologist interviewing him for a report.

she was shook up, and retched about the sandwich

I think the impact of that episode was in the contrast between J as a little boy happy to have hot chocolate and chatting about the sandwich, to suddenly being very cruel, in her face, mocking her etc. To practically sobbing at the end begging her to like something about him. It's that flip which is his vulnerability and made him vulnerable to the Andrew Tate crap.

Watched it with DH last night who was on the side of he’s a woman hating little monster who should never be let out. And that’s why she was so upset as she knows she’s got power in that kind of decision. And she was afraid of him. I was more on the he’s a terrified confused little boy who is completely lost. And she was afraid of him. It was so well done.

he was so aggressive and yes it did come from his dad as well as the internet

I think the contrast from the first episode too where he was so frightened and child like to this cocky character, swearing and puffing himself up in the third episode. It was very well done but I still can’t make my mind up if he’s a victim himself or the early stages of a woman hating psychopath.

Well, I think the final stage of being a woman hating psychopathic is when you kill a woman he’s already done that. The decision was made when he took a knife to the meeting place so it wasn’t a sudden loss of control it was a premeditated act. I would imagine such acts would be extremely exhilarating but almost immediately afterwards he’s denying it he wants to pretend it never happened, but of course the facts catch up with him

Agree

Early stages?

He's already killed someone.

I absolutely hate that this show just ignored the female victim. It's not ground breaking, it's like every other show ever made in which the male perpetrator is assumed to be interesting and important and we never hear from the female victim again.

I thought this episode was fantastic, the fact that each episode was shot in one take is mind blowing. What fantastic acting and crewing (if that’s a word) throughout - the school episode in particular must have been so technically and logistically difficult. I’m in awe. In terms of the plot though I wish also that they’d not only focused on the perpetrator but the victim and her family too. It was very one sided. I found the last episode quite boring but the first three were brilliant.

Agree I was hooked by the first 3 episodes but the last was tedious at times and a hard watch. Maybe that's the point. I also agree that an episode from the girl's family's point of view would have been good. It was powerful viewing.

Finished the series now and I do agree it’s all told from the male point of view. The school episode and the final episode kind of explored the fallout it had on everyone else but the psychologist episode (which I found the most tense and powerful) was all about him. The whole series was. And as pp said it really does reiterate that even when the woman has lost her life, all we focus on is the man and his reasons for doing it and how his life is affected.

I thought there might be some sort of closure or wrap up but clearly is wasn’t that sort of show. It wasn’t a nice neat story with an ending.