BIG MOUTH – A kid-appropriate show about sex, drugs, and depression?

The 3rd season of Big Mouth is out on Netflix, and you know what that means—time to watch kids make mistakes and learn life lessons as they become increasingly horny. Big Mouth is definitely not an animated series that is rated G. It can definitely offend the sensibilities However, Big Mouth does something wonderful with its premise. It is a show about kids, and it is also definitely for kids, but the majority believe it is more suitable for adults. Should children—I’m talking about 12 years old and up—be able to watch this series? And even if they are allowed, is it worth it for them (or for you) to invest the time?

Now, I don’t have kids, but I do remember the confusion that comes with a changing body and increasing hormones as one grows older. Big Mouth is about these changes and, similar to my article on Fleabag, the animated series creates tangible characters out of how the children are feeling. These characters are called hormone monsters. They range in gender, size, shape, and personalities, but they all influence the way their preteen experiences life and puberty. Nick Kroll, one of the writers of the shows, has said that he wishes kids had the chance to see this show as they are growing up. This show is a very entertaining and detailed sex-ed course. And it’s one that parents and teachers don’t have to give, which may make it even better because it removes a lot of the embarrassment kids may feel from having to sit down and talk about these things with people they know, with their peers as their fellow audience members. Without their friends and parents around, or with their parents watching and enjoying it with them, kids might be able to take this show even more seriously.

It’s a slippery slope however because we do see some sexually explicit things in this series. And it’s not just sex and attraction and hormonal changes that make up the series—we also see experimentation with drug use like Adderall, mental illness like depression and body dysmorphia, and also a lot of cartoon nudity. I don’t think that these are things most children are unaware of anyway, but placing them all neatly within an easily accessible television show may be too much for some parents to agree with. Similar to the 13 Reasons Why controversy over making suicide more visible to children, Big Mouth doesn’t shy away from issues that many children may be facing. A lot of parents who watch the series may think that these topics are too mature for preteens, but in all honesty a child would have to be incredibly sheltered to not at least sometimes be exposed to mature themes through their social media apps, from other children, or even just on the nightly news.

Big Mouth is, dare I say it, a safe way for children to learn about growing up and the negative feelings and experiences that may be associated with that. The show contains nudity, but it does so to talk about body positivity. It talks about masturbation, but it represents sexual normalcy. The kids may experiment with some drugs, but the show illustrates the negative effects that drugs can cause on a young brain. It’s not censorship. It’s honesty. And in a free, internet connected society where censoring what children see is incredibly hard, it might be the perfect times for shows like this to exist where children can be spoken to honestly about what they can expect as they grow up in a scary and confusing world. I mean, we have Muppets talking about opioid addiction now. It’s time that adults grow up too and realize that the world is not an easy place, and therefore children can’t be expected to always see life as easy and wonderful until it smacks them in the face.

All this serious talk should not overshadow the very important fact that Big Mouth is funny. It’s funny for adults and for kids. It may not be everybody’s cup of tea to see animated child nudity and drug use, but for parents who are wondering if the show is going to corrupt their children, I think that it’s important to watch for yourself and decide if your children would benefit from the material. And if not, it’s still a damn good show that you got to enjoy anyway.

Rating: 5/5

If you’ve watched Big Mouth, do you think you’d let your kids watch it? And is so, what age do you think is appropriate?

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