Prisma

I haven't wrote a review for a while but I'm so shocked (in a positive way) about the beauty of this series that I felt I need to.

I won't spoil much but as a father of a 13 years old boy I want him to watch it with me.

It shows teenage years in such realistic way without over dramatize but never being obvious either.

The acting is so brilliant. I've been living abroad for some time now and prefer English acting over Italian especially in dramas (often too dramatic in Italian movies) but the acting from such young actors is incredible. Mattia Carrano is amazing. Took me 3 episodes to realize he was both brothers (kudos to the director too).

Music is also fantastic.

10/10.

I was instantly hooked and watched both seasons in just two days. The characters and storyline captivated me, particularly Andrea and Daniele, whose relationship was refreshingly unique. The show is beautifully shot, with a stunning soundtrack that enhances every moment. The actors were phenomenal, especially the actor portraying both twins; his duality was so convincing that I often forgot it was the same person. The stories are distinct from anything else I've seen, and I was never bored, always eager to see what would happen next. I'm excited to see more from this exceptional series, and my fingers are crossed for more seasons.

I didn't really know what to expect from this one, I was just pretty hyped since I already fell in love with Ludovico Bessegato's previous work, SKAM Italia. After watching this one too, I can just say that he nailed it again: the way he and Urciolo (who also co-wrote season 5 of SKAMIt with Bessegato) approach the teen drama genre and its various themes feels delicate, real, poetic and captivating. This was such a blast from the beginning to the end, direction, writing and acting were top notch (I still can't believe this is Mattia Carrano's first experience in acting, his work on not one but TWO characters really was immense) and the song choices were so interesting. I can't say if I liked this better than SkamIt, I can just repeat that Bessegato absolutely nailed it again and that to me, this is one of the most interesting coming of age shows that I've ever seen. Don't miss it.

Prisma is an italian tv series directed and written by Ludovico Bessegato and it follows the life of two teenegers who are twins and their friends.

This italian production is so amazing because one of the twins has depression and the other one is exploring his gender and his sexual orientation.

The thing that I loved the most of the series is that all the topics that it has, are treated with respect and don't seem fake, the realistic aspect of it is amazingly done.

It is so important to have this kind of representation on tv, and I will never be tired of saying that this kind of series can save lives. LGBTQ+ and mental issues topics, are so important and real. We have to talk about them.

Thank you so much to the creator and the amazing actors, looking fowars to watch the next season.

I wouldn't ordinarily watch a show orientated towards the teen market, the LGBTQ+ interest is what drew me following a fan video someone had made on the Internet. If I had to label which letter the show leans to towards in LGBTQ+ then I would say it definitely would be the + sign! The characters are panromantic as they experiment with their peers. Whilst some characters identify with certain more concrete labels, even they are fluid than they say.

The show generally eskews the traditional labels and lets the young cast experiment with their identities and embraces fluidity. This I found refreshing. This is not your using male centric coming out story. So definitely worth the effort.

I am presuming that as the setting, as pretty much always, is a high school and centred around the swim team the target is young teen Italians. I would safe to hazard they would also be queer and female. Although there is enough in there to interest young males too. I also like that it recognises the 'Coming out' is more organic process than is often depicted on the screen.

The show is at its best when it centres on the twins. Their respective story arcs carry the show. The side quests of the secondary characters like the girls' story lines, the swimming competitions & making a music video arc all add to the length of the show and can feel a bit confusing at times.

The story unfolds in a flash back format covering multiple time periods for all the main cast. Usually, one of the characters is the focus for these flashbacks, not too dissimilar to the Skam format but you never get a whole episode devoted to one character or arc. The synthesis of the flashbacks in the final episode is beautiful.

Not exactly a spoiler but.....

There is the usual drama left for the finale to tease a second season but the show ends as it began and stayed thoughout, in a state of ambiguity. If that's not for you and you prefer a more definite happy or sad ending maybe this show isn't for you.

I watched it in the original Italian with English subtitles. I will watch some of the episodes again in the dubbed version to catch some of what I missed first time around. I can see me going back multiple times. Maybe you will too.