“I hope you’re ready, because I’m about to tell you the story of my life. More specifically, why my life ended. And if you’re listening to these tapes, you’re one of the reasons why.”
The show "13 Reasons Why" is a show that has recently been added to Netflix. It has made a huge splash and is currently what everyone is talking about. "13 Reasons Why" is based on the New York Times best seller by Jay Asher. The series follows the story of a boy named Clay Jensen who is friends with Hannah Baker who has committed suicide. Not only does she leave behind a wave of shock, confusion, and sadness, but she also leaves behind 13 tapes. Tapes Hannah had dedicated to the 13 people in her life who had to do with reason for why she killed herself. As each person puts on their headphones and listens, they learn several lessons and how their actions impacted Hannah.
"Thirteen Reasons Why" brutally depicts the harsh truth about suicide. The show does it in a way that no other show before has. The producers did not try and sugar coat the incident, but instead opened the eyes of its viewers and spread suicide and mental health awareness. The producers did a great job demonstrating how acts that may seem small can snowball into something much larger within high school walls. Hannah’s name on a list is what started it all.
The show touches on very serious topics that people are sometimes afraid to talk about. Topics such as slut shaming, rape, bullying, and suicide. We see friendships start, friendships end, lies, rumors, and betrayal. Jay Asher and the producers of the show wanted to spread awareness and show people struggling with some of these issues that it is ok and encourage others to speak out when they are being mistreated. Not only do they focus on Hannah but also the people who affected her in her lifetime and how if they had chosen to act more kindly, things could have reached a different ending.
The cast chosen for the show did an outstanding job as well. Kate Walsh, who played Hannah’s mother, did an amazing job acting the very tough role she was chosen for. Dylan Minnette, who played Clay Jensen, made a huge impact on how the show was carried out and, in my opinion, played his part perfectly. Many of the actors and actresses had very harsh scenes they had to act out and I think that, with a few exceptions, the cast was phenomenal.
Another way the show reached out to young viewers was through Selena Gomez. Selena is a very famous actress, singer, songwriter, and now executive producer. In 2011, Selena was actually cast as Hannah but instead turned down the roll to stay behind the scenes. Selena, as well as her mother, have a huge fan base and was able to reach thousands of people through social media and grow the show's popularity and spread the messages it has.
The show spread so many messages and is a show that I feel everyone should watch, especially people who are struggling in middle and high school. Overall, I think the show’s message is to spread kindness and watch your actions. Things that people say and words written on the bathroom stall can really hurt others. What you may think is a small comment can actually be what pushes someone over the edge.
