{"id":240316,"date":"2026-07-16T18:22:24","date_gmt":"2026-07-16T18:22:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/yogaesoteric.net\/?p=240316"},"modified":"2026-07-16T18:22:24","modified_gmt":"2026-07-16T18:22:24","slug":"record-breaking-adolescence-gets-its-inevitable-reward","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/yogaesoteric.net\/en\/record-breaking-adolescence-gets-its-inevitable-reward\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201cRecord Breaking\u201d Adolescence Gets Its Inevitable Reward"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><em>Adolescence<\/em> is back to get its pay-off. In an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/articles\/c5y76dll19po\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">\u201c<em>historic<\/em>\u201d night for television<\/a>, the <em>Netflix<\/em> original drama broke some record for\u2026\u2026. whatever.<\/p>\n<p>Because of course it did.<\/p>\n<p>Because it was always going to.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-240317 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/yogaesoteric.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/ad1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"560\" height=\"280\" srcset=\"https:\/\/yogaesoteric.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/ad1.jpg 1500w, https:\/\/yogaesoteric.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/ad1-300x150.jpg 300w, https:\/\/yogaesoteric.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/ad1-1024x512.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/yogaesoteric.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/ad1-768x384.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 560px) 100vw, 560px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>For anyone fortunate enough to have missed out on the <em>Adolescence<\/em> hype, or self-preserving enough to have tactically avoiding it, the show is about a young boy who stabs a girl at school. It has something to do with incels or misogyny or\u2026\u2026. again, whatever.<\/p>\n<p>It got everywhere faster than is organically possible, was praised as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/tv-and-radio\/2025\/mar\/13\/adolescence-review-the-closest-thing-to-tv-perfection-in-decades\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><em>\u201ctelevision perfection<\/em>\u201d<\/a> by a very predictable list of outlets, and was lauded for \u201c<em>raising important questions on difficult topics<\/em>\u201d. It was even the subject of a question in Parliament.<\/p>\n<p>It was absurd.<\/p>\n<p>But it did its job, it helped justify the <em>Online Safety Act<\/em>, and the shiny new virtual communication ban, and the looming smart phone ban. The artists got their money and their ego boosts and the proud feeling of telling hard truths, even as they doled out sate-approved propaganda that justified authoritarian crackdowns on the internet, past present and future.<\/p>\n<p>And now, of course it has won a lot of awards. A record-breaking amount, apparently.<\/p>\n<p>The show was made by the state in order to tell the populace what the state wants them to hear. The rewards for selling out to power \u2013 even unknowingly \u2013 have always been rich. To encourage the others, if nothing else.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Why everybody was talking about <em>Adolescence<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p><em>Originally published March 20th 2025<\/em><\/p>\n<p>For some reason I woke up recently to a world \u2013 or a pretend media world, at least \u2013 obsessed with the <em>Netflix<\/em> show <em>Adolescence<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>I\u2019m not going to link to it or describe the plot, because I\u2019m not being pulled into this trap. I\u2019m not talking about <em>Adolescence<\/em>, I\u2019m talking about the people talking about it.<\/p>\n<p>That might seem like a paper-thin distinction, but it is an important one, in my consciousness at least.<\/p>\n<p>Why is everyone talking about this show? Why am I being flooded with tweets praising the performances and the writing? Or giving me trivia titbits about the production?<\/p>\n<p>Even the people that dislike it are talking about, complaining about the <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/KeithWoodsYT\/status\/1902446326845260014\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">race-swapped casting<\/a> or political messaging.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s<em> everywhere<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>The front page of the <em>Guardian<\/em> this morning (the date the article was written \u2013 March 20th 2025):<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-240323 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/yogaesoteric.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/ad3.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"560\" height=\"261\" srcset=\"https:\/\/yogaesoteric.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/ad3.jpg 997w, https:\/\/yogaesoteric.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/ad3-300x140.jpg 300w, https:\/\/yogaesoteric.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/ad3-768x357.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 560px) 100vw, 560px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Since when does \u201c<em>what\u2019s trending on <\/em>Netflix\u201d have any impact on the political landscape? What\u2019s going on?<\/p>\n<p>There was even a question about it during Prime Minister\u2019s <em>Question Time<\/em> yesterday (March 19th 2025):<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">\ud83d\udea8 NEW: A Labour MP brings up the Netflix series &#8220;Adolescence&#8221; and asks Keir Starmer if he will support the creators calls to show it in schools to counter &#8220;toxic misogyny early&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Starmer: &#8220;Yes, and at home we are watching Adolescence with our children&#8230; it&#8217;s very good&#8221; <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/hashtag\/PMQs?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">#PMQs<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/YNHaUrmqVT\">pic.twitter.com\/YNHaUrmqVT<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Politics UK (@PolitlcsUK) <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/PolitlcsUK\/status\/1902341838888906937?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">March 19, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.x.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>That\u2019s an MP, apparently, asking the supposed leader of the nation if the latest hit <em>Netflix<\/em> production should be compulsory viewing in schools.<\/p>\n<p>She mentions misogyny as well, but honestly that\u2019s immaterial. The existence of the question is bizarre enough on the meta level that we can disregard the specifics of the politics.<\/p>\n<p>She asked \u2013 and he answered. Not just to say \u201c<em>what an odd issue to discuss in national parliament, go away and never talk to me again about this<\/em>\u201d, but actually giving it credence.<\/p>\n<p>\u201c<em>That\u2019s a very good question madame, maybe we should force school children to consume <\/em>Netflix<em>\u2019s fine content. I\u2019m watching the show myself and must say it\u2019s jolly good!<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Notice how the he not only takes the question seriously, but makes sure to note he is watching and enjoying the show.<\/p>\n<p>This is quite literally product placement.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s no different from when the camera lingers on a Mercedes logo in a movie. It couldn\u2019t be less subtle if Starmer had cracked open a Pepsi, taken a sip in slow motion, licked his lips and said \u201c<em>I always drink Pepsi when I\u2019m working hard to serve the country<\/em>\u201d, then winked at the camera.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s a really good demonstration of the way the system works. And I do mean THE system \u2013 there is only one. Politics, advertising, entertainment, the military and everything else\u2026\u2026. they\u2019re all joined together. Departments of the same company. Fingers on a giant corporate hand.<\/p>\n<p>And, like all good hands, it can multitask.<\/p>\n<p>It can promote media slop for profit while it sells politics that serve an agenda.<\/p>\n<p>What is that agenda? Protecting the children!<\/p>\n<p>From what? Knife crime. Or misogyny. Or hate speech.<\/p>\n<p>Pick your preferred problem, react however you want, the solution remains the same \u2013 more control.<\/p>\n<p>Censor the internet, ban smartphones in schools, forbid the sale of knives online, crack down on hate speech. Tag X people for Y reason. Create a registry, they enjoy creating registries.<\/p>\n<p>You know how this goes.<\/p>\n<p>Knife crime isn\u2019t the problem. We don\u2019t need special rules for selling knives to teenagers or anyone who looks a bit weird. We don\u2019t need a special registry for everyone with a knife block or who googles whetstones.<\/p>\n<p>The internet isn\u2019t the problem. We don\u2019t need rules about who can access what or where or banning anonymity or controlling \u201c<em>hate speech<\/em>\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>Misogyny isn\u2019t the problem. We don\u2019t need special educational classes for young men to teach them how awful they are or to put testosterone blockers in school water fountains to prevent violence or another registry for everyone who follows Andrew Tate on <em>Twitter<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>We don\u2019t need any new rules at all. We have plenty of rules (such as the <em>Online Safety Act<\/em>, which came into force at the same time as the <em>Adolescence<\/em> hype launched).<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-240320\" src=\"https:\/\/yogaesoteric.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/ad2.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"450\" height=\"452\" srcset=\"https:\/\/yogaesoteric.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/ad2.jpg 677w, https:\/\/yogaesoteric.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/ad2-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/yogaesoteric.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/ad2-150x150.jpg 150w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 450px) 100vw, 450px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>The problem with our society is not a lack of rules. The problem is powerful people creating fake problems to scare real people.<\/p>\n<p>The problem is politicians indistinguishable from advertisers and entertainment companies indistinguishable from military contractors and newspapers indistinguishable from intelligence agencies.<\/p>\n<p>The problem is the monolithic nature of global corporate government that uses authoritarianism to boost profits and uses profits to increase its authority in a cycle of exponentially increasing tyranny.<\/p>\n<p>The problem is that hand we were talking about earlier, and the way everything everywhere becomes an excuse for it to tighten its grip around our neck.<\/p>\n<p>That\u2019s the problem. And that\u2019s the reason everyone is talking about <em>Adolescence<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p><strong>How <em>Adolescence<\/em> offers us a peek inside the machine.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><em>Originally published April 1st 2025<\/em><\/p>\n<p>I wrote about <em>Adolescence<\/em> \u2013 or rather the (manufactured) hype surrounding it \u2013 last week. I thought at the time I\u2019d said all that needed to be said. It is just some <em>Netflix<\/em> show, after all.<\/p>\n<p>But then the hype keeps going, and the messaging piles up, and you realize it\u2019s actually a really neat case study in \u2018The Way Society Works\u2019 in our time.<\/p>\n<p>As a quick catch-up for the fortunate few yet to have <em>Adolescence<\/em> forcibly crammed in front of their eyes, the show is about a boy who stabs a girl at school. It\u2019s said to raise \u201c<em>important questions<\/em>\u201d about misogyny and toxic masculinity and \u201c<em>the knife crime epidemic<\/em>\u201d and virtual communication networks and blah blah blah blah blah.<\/p>\n<p>Who cares. I haven\u2019t watched it. It doesn\u2019t matter. Like I said, it\u2019s a case study.<\/p>\n<p>The show was released three weeks ago\u2026\u2026. then it was everywhere. And I mean everywhere. It was reviewed and praised and praised and reviewed.<\/p>\n<p>And everyone in those everywhere places called it \u201c<em>important<\/em>\u201d or \u201c<em>vital<\/em>\u201d or claimed it \u201c<em>asked big questions<\/em>\u201d.<\/p>\n<p>You all know what those phrases mean.<\/p>\n<p>Suddenly, the creators were on <em>Newsnight<\/em> on the <em>BBC<\/em>, <em>Good Morning Britain<\/em> on <em>ITV<\/em>, and even <a href=\"https:\/\/edition.cnn.com\/2025\/03\/22\/entertainment\/adolescence-netflix-teen-boys-wellness-cec\/index.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><em>CNN<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>And what were they talking about?<\/p>\n<p>Politics, obviously. Knife crime and virtual communication networks and online radicalisation and yet more blah blah blah.<\/p>\n<p>The writer essentially said the same phrase all the time, begging the government to <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/BBCNewsnight\/status\/1902509717059944623\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">\u201c<em>consider quite serious change<\/em>\u201d<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Before the week was over \u2013 as we covered before \u2013 an MP was asking if it should be required viewing in schools.<\/p>\n<p><em>Sky News<\/em> claimed that <a href=\"https:\/\/news.sky.com\/story\/adolescence-writers-invited-to-parliament-to-discuss-shows-themes-with-mps-sky-news-understands-13332399?dcmp=snt-sf-twitter\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">\u201c<em>pressure was mounting<\/em>\u201d<\/a> for a virtual communication ban. They don\u2019t say from whom, and it doesn\u2019t matter. It\u2019s all a narrative, no more real than the show itself.<\/p>\n<p><em>Netflix<\/em> have since said they will provide it for free to schools to show to young boys:<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-240326\" src=\"https:\/\/yogaesoteric.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/ad4.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"560\" height=\"289\" srcset=\"https:\/\/yogaesoteric.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/ad4.jpg 660w, https:\/\/yogaesoteric.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/ad4-300x155.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 560px) 100vw, 560px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>This all culminated in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/articles\/cx28neprdppo\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">yesterday\u2019s meeting<\/a>, where the creators of the show \u2013 along with representatives from a \u201c<em>healthy relationship<\/em>\u201d charity Tender \u2013 were invited to Number 10 (UK\u2019s Prime Minister\u2019s Residence) to talk about \u201c<em>the influence of toxic material online<\/em>\u201d and the \u201c<em>serious change<\/em>\u201d they think the government needs to take.<\/p>\n<p>Sir Keir Starmer (or the intern running his account) pledged to \u201c<em>tackle<\/em>\u201d the \u201c<em>challenges raised by adolescence<\/em>\u201d in a tweet.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p dir=\"ltr\" lang=\"en\">The challenges raised by Adolescence aren&#8217;t something we can simply legislate for \u2014 if I could pull a lever to solve it, I would.<\/p>\n<p>It&#8217;s only by listening and learning from the experiences of young people and charities that we can tackle this.<\/p>\n<p>That&#8217;s what I&#8217;ve been doing today. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/bU5ocwpa1T\">pic.twitter.com\/bU5ocwpa1T<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Keir Starmer (@Keir_Starmer) <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/Keir_Starmer\/status\/1906717297089167398?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">March 31, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.x.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>We\u2019re mere inches away from actual legislation based almost entirely on the made-up events of a fictional TV show.<\/p>\n<p>People are rightly pointing this out as ludicrous \u2013 and it is \u2013 but that\u2019s seeing it backwards. We\u2019re not getting laws passed because of TV shows, we\u2019re getting TV shows made so they can pass laws.<\/p>\n<p>The studio behind <em>Adolescence<\/em> gets government funding, as does <a href=\"https:\/\/register-of-charities.charitycommission.gov.uk\/en\/charity-search\/-\/charity-details\/4003156\/financial-history\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Tender<\/a>, the charity that was also invited to that absurd meeting.<\/p>\n<p><em>Netflix<\/em>\u2019s finances have been a source of speculation for years, but <a href=\"https:\/\/deadline.com\/2024\/06\/barack-michelle-obama-netflix-deal-film-tv-1235973074\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">its political associations,<\/a> alongside a track record of producing content <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/The_White_Helmets_(film)\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">that perfectly fits a mainstream agenda,<\/a> really speaks for itself.<\/p>\n<p>Government, charities, corporate media. It\u2019s all one organism.<\/p>\n<p>Does that mean the show itself was cynically produced to fill a need and sell an agenda?<\/p>\n<p>Absolutely certainly yes.<\/p>\n<p>But that\u2019s not to say the actors and writers and celebrity spokespeople don\u2019t genuinely believe in the supposed message. Just that, to paraphrase Noam Chomsky, if they didn\u2019t believe it, they would never be where they are.<\/p>\n<p>They\u2019re working for a distributor with massive and obvious ties to the Deep State, making a project for a studio that gets government funding, working alongside a charity that also gets government funding all so they can tell the government to take the kind of \u201c<em>drastic action<\/em>\u201d they\u2019ve been planning to take the whole time.<\/p>\n<p>They might believe they are speaking truth to power. In reality, their sincere-but-shallow ego-driven virtue signalling is being manipulated so they will tell power exactly what it wants to make people to hear.<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s like wheels thinking they move the car against its will, when anyone watching the machinery from the outside can plainly see the whole point of the car is turning the wheels to make itself move.<\/p>\n<p>This kind of compartmentalization is how the machinery works, and it\u2019s why it\u2019s largely pointless to ever attack actors or celebrities as Deep State assets. Most of them probably are, but the vast majority don\u2019t know that they are, and the people either willing or able to make that realization were weeded out a long time before they got famous.<\/p>\n<p>And now comes the win-win-win of it all.<\/p>\n<p>The cast and crew get fame and acclaim. The studio got profit and kudos. The government got their new law.<\/p>\n<p>And that\u2019s that.<\/p>\n<p>The hype around <em>Adolescence<\/em> is not new or even especially exceptional, but it is so transparent it offers a useful insight. Like an underwater aquarium.<\/p>\n<p>It let\u2019s us see inside a little deeper than usual, and shows us how the machinery works.<\/p>\n<p>*******<\/p>\n<p>Back to present day.<\/p>\n<p>I\u2019d like to end by asking a simple question: How much of a genuine cultural footprint has <em>Adolescence<\/em> left behind?<\/p>\n<p>Compare it in your consciousness to other super viral TV, like <em>Breaking Bad<\/em> or <em>Game of Thrones<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>Put aside the reviews and awards, in the past months has anyone brought it up with you in conversation? Have you even thought about it?<\/p>\n<p>I wrote 3000 words about it, and I genuinely forgot it existed.<\/p>\n<p>There\u2019s a message in that, I think. Eventually, people can tell real from fake. Even if they don\u2019t know they know, they DO know.<\/p>\n<p>I still haven\u2019t seen it, nor plan to ever take a look.<\/p>\n<p><em>Author: Kit Knightly<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>yogaesoteric<br \/>\nJuly 16, 2026<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Adolescence is back to get its pay-off. In an \u201chistoric\u201d night for television, the Netflix original drama broke some record for\u2026\u2026. whatever. Because of course it did. Because it was always going to. For anyone fortunate enough to have missed out on the Adolescence hype, or self-preserving enough to have tactically avoiding it, the show [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":240320,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_uf_show_specific_survey":0,"_uf_disable_surveys":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[977],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-240316","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-masonic-tendencies-in-contemporary-society-3480-en"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/yogaesoteric.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/240316","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/yogaesoteric.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/yogaesoteric.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yogaesoteric.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yogaesoteric.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=240316"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/yogaesoteric.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/240316\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":240329,"href":"https:\/\/yogaesoteric.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/240316\/revisions\/240329"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yogaesoteric.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/240320"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/yogaesoteric.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=240316"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yogaesoteric.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=240316"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yogaesoteric.net\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=240316"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}