There is a lot I can't tell you about this show that makes it so good, so here is the most I'll say about the plot without spoiling any twists past the first episode. The show follows around a group of orphans awaiting adoption, though all the kids here have spent their whole lives here. The premise comes when two of the kids realize that the orphanage is actually a farm where children are being raised to feed monsters that exist on the outside, and that 'Mom', their caretaker, knows full well what she has been doing.
From here the show becomes a mix of things. There is a bit of horror to the plot, you see clashing ideals of whether they should try to save everyone, and a heavy thriller aspect to the story as the children try to find a way to escape before they get harvested. The show largely focuses on Emma, Ray, and Norman. They are the three oldest and get the highest scores on their tests. It is these three who are orchestrating the escape itself.
The first area the show truly shines is how distinct each of the characters is, and at the same time how genuine their connections feel. You have the eternal optimist that is Emma, and her almost polar opposite in Ray. Norman is kind of stuck between the two, and as most of the focus is on him in the early parts of the show it feels as though how things will turn out is on his shoulders for how he plays it. Most kids in this orphanage really look up to Norman, and that helps the dynamic work that much better. Any decision he makes is going to have a lot more of an emotional impact than the other two because of these factors.
From here the idea of the show is simple, the three prodigies do whatever they can to get ready for the escape, whether or not that includes all the other kids will be revealed by the end of the season, all while trying to evade Mom and keep there plans safe while trying to escape before any more children are harvested.
The show does a great job at trickling information to you as time progresses, giving you clues as to what the outside world is like, the system behind these 'farms', and the effects that this system has on the Mothers that run them. Despite the whole first season taking place in the orphanage, I do feel I have a good grasp of how this world works, and it never felt like the show was just shoving information at me for the sake of having it.
Another thing I'm fond of, and this holds true especially for Emma and Ray, is that despite them being incredibly intelligent for their age, able to conduct plans you would not expect out of children, the show never forgets that they are still in fact children. You don't walk away from any of this thinking that they don't feel realistic, you walk away feeling like these kids have incredible strength for doing what they are able to do.
The show is really held together as well by Mom, who is an absolutely fantastic villain. The way she is able to keep up her appearance to most of the children while working to undermine the escape attempts of our lead characters is fantastic, and the more you learn about her the better a villain she becomes. The circumstances behind being a Mother of one of the farms adds so much more to her as well, and in a lot of ways, I find it really hard to hate her by the season's end.
It's also a show that manages to look fantastic despite the lack of variety in the scenery. The only real locations over twelve episodes are the house they all live in, the forest surrounding it, the wall that goes around the area, and the gate entrance. The real focus of all the shots remains on the characters, who are incredibly lifelike and expressive. My favorite is Norman, especially his smile. I know that's something small to point out, but it is so incredibly sincere and it feels genuine. I can't even hint at my favorite moment of his in this show, as it's a huge spoiler, but he easily walks away as the best character of the show.
There is very little to criticize here. If there is one thing worth noting, it's that at times the logic some characters use can feel like a bit of a stretch. It's nothing as bad as the end of Deathnote, but there are a couple of instances where we just have to accept a character knows something because that's how smart they are, and not be given any actual reason to how they know what they do. Thankfully there are only a couple instances of this, and neither one of them are too egregious.
It's not often I come across a show this good with so little to criticize. The story told in this first season was amazingly paced, I care about every character, and the story can be both heartbreaking and uplifting. I love seeing how the characters change, and the compromises they have to make to reach the end of the season, and I can't wait for another season to be announced. It is an ending that while it leaves you wanting more, they did manage to tell a complete story. So I highly recommend this show under one condition. Know that you are in fact going to be watching children suffer, and that can be hard for some people. But if you can do that kind of show, this is a must watch this season.
