It seems like we’ve all seen nearly every Netflix original, but there are a few underdogs that do not really get the recognition they deserve. One of those shows is “Sense8″ which is about 8 strangers who become mentally connected to one another through their rebirth as sensates. Sounds a little weird, doesn’t it? I was one of the people who thought this show wasn’t for me, I thought ‘I don’t really like sci-fi, and it just sounds too crazy.” Every time my younger sister would talk about it and encourage me to watch it I would kind of nod and move on from the topic, but what I didn’t realize at the time was that I was missing out on one of the best shows I have ever seen.
If you are unsure on whether you should watch “Sense” or you started watching it and weren’t feeling the vibe, I ask you to go back and try it again (this time past the first 20 minutes) and live in a world unlike any you’ve ever experienced or seen before. Here are 8 reasons why you need to watch “Sense8”.
1. Healthy portrayal of LGBTQ+ relationships
It is not often that we see LGBTQ couples being treated kindly in a show or movie, there are some good apples that give good representation but not many. ‘Sense8’ does a perfect job at give LGBTQ characters a healthy, and loving relationship. It shows their struggles, and fears of being ostracized in a way that makes the audience see what lies behind a decision.
2. Diversity of all kinds
There are different colored people in ‘Sense8’! And they are actually from the places they say they are in the show (minus Lito who is actually Spanish but lives in Mexico). Beyond race there is also representation of other religions and beliefs. It is so refreshing to hear your language, to see your culture, to see what the world really is…diverse!
3. The action is completely and utterly amazing
If you love a good action sequence don’t think ‘Sense8’ won’t give it to you! When there is any kind of fights you best believe that ‘Sense8’ does not hold back.
4. It is different
There are many great show in the world, but sometimes it feels like I am seeing the same story line with different characters in different locations. ‘Sense8’ is so fresh, so different and it is undeniably astounding.
5. No angst!
The relationships on ‘Sense8’ are healthy, caring, loving. I do not only mean romantic relationships, I also mean friendships. The characters on this show support each other in a non-competitive way that makes you yearn for a spot in the story just so you can feel the happiness all the characters, in and out of the cluster, emit.
6. Men are vulnerable
It is a tale as old as time that men cannot be emotional creatures. Men are taught from childhood that they must be strong, they cannot show emotion, they cannot express the love they feel for their significant other or else they are “whipped”, they cannot cry when it all feels too much. But ‘Sense8’ makes sure the men in the show are not non-feeling robots, and it is real because men do have feelings.
7. The secondary characters
As the viewer you are drawn into the world of each cluster member aka sensate. You feel their happiness, their traumas, their sadness, their pain. Just as you grow to love and care for each individual sensate, and the cluster as a whole, you also care for their friends, their partners, their family. The people who bring them light and support in their normal, physical lives, are people you begin to love.
8. The connection!!!
You begin to care for the characters in ‘Sense8’ practically from the beginning, but the moment they sing “What’s Up?” by 4 Non Blondes in the fourth episode you realize you are 100% part of this show and the characters. There is love, there is loss, there is friendship, and hardships that you endure with the cluster. Everything they go through you go with them, the things they experience and the discoveries they make, you make with them. There is no show with a connection amongst characters, and viewers like the connection in ‘Sense8’.
If I am being honest, this list could go on forever, but the best way to get a feel for what “Sense8” is, is to experience it yourself.