P5

The products impact and effect on the audience

I think the show is successful in its attempt to engage the viewer. there are some moments, scenes and themes that made me feel uncomfortable but it was educational to me, how different social structures work and how people could react in extenuating circumstances. it shows very well how weak friendships can be and how strong some bonds are, how some people will lean on others for support and how others will not be able to cope. though 99% of people I know are okay in real life, it's an eyeopener to how easy it could be to brave a smile and put on a front when it really hits the fan. it also doesn't show you how you should or shouldn't act. it gives you circumstances and you could try and decide how you think you would react to them.

most people I know saw it either for the same reason as me, with the addition of it being a very well put together show, it leaves you every single episode waiting to see the next one. Netflix saw this show as one of the most binge-watched shows they have released. and those statistics are consistent with me and people I know that have watched it. nearly everyone I know thought the show was very good and entertaining. I think this is also because it came out at a time when we were making the transition between kids programmes and more complex ones. and though there is a lot going on in 13 reasons why, there is nearly constant narration and it is quite easy to get your head around, which is why I think it appealed to my age group at the time so well.

from what I have seen, critics, unlike a lot of other controversial shows, are not 50-50. They seem to lean towards disliking the show for some more in-depth reasons, as they have looked and thought deeper about the show then effectively what the show's target audience would be expected to.

"it’s unfortunate that a show so concerned with the catastrophic effects of misogyny doesn’t manage to avoid some pitfalls of its own. The decision to depict rape graphically, and not briefly, either, was obviously taken with the intention of insisting we witness its brutality; personally, I found it to tip towards the gratuitous. Likewise, a storyline that suggests the love of a sweet boy might have sorted all this out added to an uneasy feeling that stayed with me – that this was more about boys than girls, even though the ruined life of a girl is at its centre. I wonder about its handling of suicide, which again is depicted graphically; one of the adult characters says there’s never really any way of knowing why Hannah did what she did, and I found myself on his side in that, even though I don’t think that is what we’re being led to feel."

Relevant issues of representation

At no point in this entire show, while Hannah was alive, did a female have a representation of any power whatsoever. even when she had died, the trusted power was placed upon a male to ensure her wishes were met. there are multiple graphic scenes of rape and sexual assault, which almost put the females in the wrong afterwards, for what they do or don't do. the power in this show is heavily shifted to the male characters.

tying in with the last point to some extent, Hannah is in one way or another, presented as the damsel in distress. some people have noted that this is on occasion quite a disrespectful outlook on her, before and after her death. additionally, the relationship and the basis of clay's reason to be on the tapes is that he didn't say he loved her. this is made quite explicit that his decision to change a small thing to him, would make a fatal decision for Hannah. this literally puts a light on clay that presents him as a night in shining armour, again, the male role in their friendship had the power.

also in this series, I believe there are some issues with the way male characters are put across. the only male roles that have an authority and the ability to genuinely voice their opinion, sway others, and make a real difference, equally and arguably the most devastating people to Hannah were the tall, strong, sporty, popular guys.
nerdy or geeky guys (and is unbelievably clear which ones these are) and are even called this in the show, are presented as seriously weaker, at a massive disadvantage at everything almost in comparison to the clearly much more physically able characters in this story.

Relevant legal issues

when using racial slurs or offensive language, the rating of the show is greatly affected and the certification. this will have been a large factor on a massive part of the script. equally the detail, censoring and how graphic a scene greatly affects the age rating and certification. for example, there are numerous scenes I would class personally as extremely graphic. for example, rape scenes, sexual assault and Hannah Baker cutting her wrists with the purpose of ending her own life.

The way things have been presented in this show would have been heavily questioned as well, there are things you are not legally allowed to release to people the way the final show was. for example, you're not allowed to be judged as giving a 'tutorial' for suicide. the way Hannah did it in this show was actually very detailed, even to when and where she got the razor blades from and what it felt like. I believe it is the law to at least alert the viewers of what they are likely to see in the film.

"The series was submitted under the BBFC's 'Watch & Rate' service for online-only content.

BBFC compliance staff viewed each episode, considering the content in line with the BBFC Classification Guidelines.

The BBFC has a statutory duty to classify video released on physical media such as DVD and Blu-ray in the UK. Though Video on Demand platforms do not need to submit their content for BBFC classification by law, many, including Netflix, do. The BBFC uses the same Classification Guidelines and age ratings (U, PG, 12, 15, 18) for Video On Demand content as it does for physical media.

The BBFC classified most of the episodes with a 15 age rating, which means we do not consider these episodes suitable for viewers under the age of 15. Four episodes, however, received an 18 age rating."

Relevant ethical issues

throughout the show, there are many examples of tough and distressing situations, for the viewer and obviously for the characters. there are some issues regarding the release of some of the content and especially how it could affect younger audiences. for the majority of the show, the rapists and assaults that happen go unchallenged and not resolved. people who are presented as perverts and creeps effectively get away with it. and people who play with other peoples emotions are completely fine, there was no punishment. tied with this, it is presented that though these people did horrible things, it wasHannah's fault they couldn't deal with their emotions because she killed herself. this puts the blame on Hannah and almost makes it Hannah's fault. 

another potential issue with such a shocking series like this is that if content like this is released, people do, and it is proven, that they will slowly desensitise their emotions to similar shocking things. evidence of this is nearly my entire generation. things shown to this group of people since quite a young age have meant we can watch things and potentially find it funny on occasion, when people who havent seen these things as much, typically older generatons, couldnt bear to watch it.