SPOILERS (you have been warned).
Source: Instagram
The final three episodes of Young Royals focus on the interaction our main cast has with their parents and a background romance between Wilhelm and Simon.
The Excessive pressures to achieve and isolation from parents appear to be implicated in studies showing that upper-class children can exhibit elevated disturbance in various areas, including substance use, anxiety, and depression; we see this in August and Felice. Two factors, namely excessive pressures to achieve and isolation from parents, appear to be implicated (both literal and emotional). First, while affluent and underprivileged teenagers are regarded as "low risk" and "high risk," comparative studies have identified more parallels than differences in their adjustment patterns and socialisation processes.
Psychologists will have to address long-standing neglect of a group of youngsters formerly rejected as unworthy of their care in the coming years. While children born to wealthy parents are unquestionably favoured in many ways, they also face severe psychological risks.
My bullet point criticism are written in chronological order of watching the show.
Episode 4, oh episode 4; My notes say it all.
Ep 4 notes
Even with the loss of their first born the parents (the mom mainly) are speaking on Wilhelm about his duty. The lack of mourning time shows how duty is valued. It can also be said that this is seen alot among royals and stryingfrom this duty is taboo.
As a working royal, you're usually all-in or all-out with rare exceptions, especially if you still have an official title and participate in royal activities on some level.
Wilhelm is Pushed to be perfect, From his mom; her saying
“And you will be compared to Erik in …in every step you take.”
Wilhelm retort of “ I already am, I always have been.” This scene shows a level of the queen’s views towards Wilhelm’s competence.
The death is typical, and lacking in me wanting to emotionally invest in Wilhelms pain.
Wilhelm is greving in such a visoral way, i wish they have fleshed out the pairs brotherhood so that the greif was better felt as an audience member.
Erik existed; that was it, nothing past stereotypical good brother. He was just another side character.
I commend the show,you can feel the air at the school change with the events as Wilhelm walks into school. Everyone giving their sympathes but also acting difrently to ward the new future king.
Wilhelm being unable to look at simon — especially in the eyes — the uncomterbility of him knowing to chose duty above love, comes through in the acting.
you can tell wilhem is uncomfortable reading the pre-written PR given speech.
This aspect of Wilhelms's character I enjoy. The willingness and emotional intelligence to stop with the Craft PR words and speak from the heart to connect to people. The pushback from the firm, his mother, and the Queen does create Tension surrounding his choices. If the show did not release the Tension between Simon and Wilhelm early, the Tension oozing from choosing duty vs love would make a more powerful, more profound sense of loss.
The breakup is lacklustre, as I said before, the romance is unearned, so it feels lacking and rushed.
Also, when we're they a couple, they kiss once and flirted for the most part. they have predominently remained friendly since.
Frustrated…..😤 by Wilhelm and Simon’s lack of comunication.
Imagine if that — the breakup — happened in heartstoppers. It would break the audience — the pain would be felt. In young royals, it's meh… He chose duty over love…ok, so what. It is obvious that he would. The love they have or are told they are to have hasn't been earned and is coming off as more obsessive lust between two horny teenagers.
When Wilhelm says he heeds to get rid of all simons text, it is simply that the texts they were having proved the non-existent relationship — we are never shown the texts racy enough to prove this. The text messages we see are a standard teen can we hang out; save for maybe four — that happened after the kiss.
also arent his parents monitoring him, i am prety sure as a royal his textes and calls would be monitored heavily. so mommy probably already knows.
If they were to lean into that fact, it would be a payoff for the Queen mentioning Wilhelm marrying and having a family with a woman, specifically at dinner.
Wilhelm is a gentelman to the women around him; he is very open minded, these are good traits for a leader. However, he does need to strenthen his personal boundaries with others, especially now that he is to be king.
Simon, his side arc is convoluted. like i get that he is stealing his dads pills to sell at school — to august — but he acts like he isn't friend with the prince of the country and doesn't know that august will screw him over the moment he gets even a smell of an upper hand to save his ass.
He and sara are the only characters we know of who are non-affluent you would think that he of all people would realise that august and the world he inhabits sticks to its own circle and that they will chose august over him.
August and Felice's sexcapade is boring. Their Modus operandi is weak. It's a good idea. Both are in precarious positions seeking emotional comfort in physical pleasure, but it's poorly executed. Buffy the vampire slayer, spike and Buffy do the same thing, but it's done well. Also Felice looks bored af.
August seems to be an easily jealous man,
As we saw in episode 3 August is out of money. he is desprate, he’s gonna do someting bad.
August has not earned villain status, just fuckboy level.
Felice is in a place of emotional content, so she is nice to Sara. felice seems to be venturing outside of her perordained bubble.
August’s selfishness and controlling nature are a warning flag, and I agree with Felice’s roommate.
So, August needs to be culled before he gets on my nerves. I know it gets worse from here, but …ahhhhhggg
There is a lack, as Felice and August have been primarily doing their own thing in their separate world. This jealousy feels uncalled for but knowing August's personality, you realise for him, it's about being in front and at the top. Being followed by the kiss with Sara shows he is only functioning for his goals.
though the idea of inviting wille into a secret society of over privliged nutters,you can see wille dosnt want to really be there. the party is a good distraction for wilhelm .
unfortunately for wilhelm this group of boys are priscription drug addicts. i wonder was his brother one as well, if they did erik right, this would create a third conflict with in wille surrounding his brother and if his brother also used drugs, like was his brother on drugs when he crashed — so many question, not enough emothional conection to get the audience to think of them.
An article from the Family addiction specialist states, "Even before the pandemic, children of wealthy individuals experienced higher rates of anxiety, depression, and substance abuse compared to national rates. There is indeed some truth behind the old adage that money can't buy happiness; and while money may be able to buy some of the best mental health and addiction treatments in the world, it does not mitigate the fact that wealthy individuals suffer from such issues at alarming rates."
Source: Netflix
You can see wilhelm just want to forget, the acting is great fut the build up — lack there off — makes it waste full. Wilhelm’s need to forget simon and numb the pain of his brothers death and the jaring pressures now on his shoulders; using alcohol and prescription narcotics was wasted by the tension being release in ep 2 and 3. you see this again as wilhem hides a set of pills from the table.
Wilhelm is having survivors guilt, this moment could be a real connection moment between him and august and it is acted as such but if falls short, somehow. we see august realising he will never truly understand but at the same time it feels flat, something is missing; i jsut dont know what.
Wilhelm's pain montage is strong acting, but the build-up from previouse episodes is… Sigh 😓
The Romantic tension that should have been building up, this ep 4, drunk emotionally sullen Willem should kiss Simon for the first time. This is where the first kiss needs to go; the emotional connection and intimacy should be here.
The bedroom scene leading up to the sex scene was cute and felt genuine;
The sex scene should be in ep 5, at the beginning or the middle. That way, all of 6 can be August going full evil.
August, is the embodiment of growing up rich. As Clay Cockrell wrote in his Guardian article
"Too many of my clients want to indulge their children so "they never have to suffer what I had to suffer" while growing up. But the result is that they prevent their children from experiencing the very things that made them successful: sacrifice, hard work, overcoming failure and developing resilience. An over-indulged child develops into an entitled adult who has low self-confidence, low self-esteem, and a complete lack of grit."
Know what, Nah, the scene can stay in; for if the build-up was done right at the beginning of the series it could work in 4.
That moment at the end of august recording the pair, were he second guests himself is BRILIANT.
I hate to august the character but love the actor (Malte Gårdinger) who plays him, giving such depth to a vile creature.
Though I hate August; He and Felice are more developed as characters than Wilhelm or Simon; Wilhelm and Simon have the nonverbal aspect of falling in love down they lack in the part of communicating and trusting the other. Writers could have used this to their advantage through august or even created a conflict earlier in the season; however, there is a small payoff in TeTensionnd curiosity for season 2, thanks to this lack of communication.
"But I like you, and it is not fake," Prince Wilhelm tells Simon midway through Young Royals. It's astonishing how genuine and lacking Netflix's latest offering seems, especially when contrasted to previous adolescent series of similar ilk, for a show about a young prince attempting to discover himself at boarding school in Sweden.
Cockrell states in his Guardian article, "I'm a Therapist to the super-rich: they are as miserable as Succession makes out." they have reached adulthood completely unprepared to take on any responsibility. The wealthy parents I see, often because of their guilt and shame, are not preparing their children for the challenges of managing their wealth. There is truth in the adage "shirt sleeves to shirt sleeves in three generations". On numerous occasions, the child of a wealthy family has said to me: "We never talked about money. I don't know how much there is or what I'm supposed to do with it. I don't know how to take care of it. It's all so secret and dirty."
Ep 5 notes
It feels so unearned. The kiss the sex the love, feels so unearned.
There wake up scene is cute and playful,, i wish we got more of that playfulned before the sex.
simon is very mischievous in a i want to play way.
August watches the scene with a face of deep contemplation. He seems more in aww than anything else. but we all know he is gonna use this if he wasn't he wouldn't have videoed it.
Wilhelm looks at peace. until August reared his ugly head.
Felice mom is giving me toddler and tiaras mom.
Sara is obviously not use to getting affection so she is clinging to it not realising how august is.
I'm glad felice and her friend s have taken in sara — for now anyway. she appreciates being included.
Ep 5. proves I was right about the mom (Felice)
I don't know if its that he is just awkward or if simon also has either ASD or ADHD like sara. which is a high possibility as both are genetic and since we are never exclusively told whether or not they are twins or if one was held back a year or pushed forward a year.
I love how mature Felice handled sara telling her about august and how they direct the blame toward the perpetrator ie august. In most other shows especially American ones Felice would have probable acted very childish to drum up a fight especially since she is the only character of black decent in the show.
i know licencing music is a chore but really couldn’t maybe get someone to make music specifically for the show then — the electro music sninth song is constant and annoying.
August’s desent begins properly this time, and with terrible annoying music.
For August this school is his life. Wilhelm better be crafty to fix this.
This is why communication is key, also we all know augusts xenophobic ass is just trying to divide our boys.
wilhelms first thought is what his mom would think, high expectations and fear of being a disappointment are wilhelms greatest flaws and make him so easy to control.
Source: Netflix
This scene shows the prince and the pauper disconnect; wilhelm doesn't understand why simon would go so far as to sell drugs; as for Wilhelm everything the living up to expectations and a duty you never asked for.
simons reaction shows the betrayal he feels from wilhelm not understanding the reality of his situation being the outcast.
smart boy gather info on august.
A 10/10 for being as close to real as possible in emotional reactions from the cast.
August pulled the supirorty card against wille and wille pulled the uno reverse. protecting the love interest and knock August down a peg. what could possible go wrong.
"A social network is more important for the less well-off," according to Vox, "but in the gig economy, wealthier Americans may pay for the job that their friends and relatives used to do."
Relatives and neighbours of less affluent households are more likely to supply financial support, child care needs, and home repairs than friends, who "are likely to be crucial for resolving current and forthcoming challenges."
People in affluent homes may spend more of their spare time with their selected social circles since they rely less on family and neighbours for assistance in times of need, people in rich houses may spend more of their spare time with their chosen social circles, and these friendships have the potential to be more fulfilling.
how quickly the loyalty of the other boys filp on august.
the dreamy electronic annoyance that is called music is back.
Im glad felice stood up to her mom — first step to independence for her.
“you’er the only one here i feel i can actually talk to” said wilhelm; but do you talk to him tho. Each episode is happeing ove what i am asuming is 2 month which explains why it feels so rushed.
Source: Netflix
cute mini makeup between the boys.
Ausgust what are you doing!!
finally a new song*
I like the unsure shake the second guessing of should i ruin my baby cousin and the royal family all because he told the club that i have no money.
His face at seeing sara catch him, instant regret moment.
loving Felice’s heart, we love a character with internal growth.
Oh, august you twat , all you had to do was ask for help and wait a bit. Congratulations for being the stupid dick of the year and causign you cousin hell.
“I’ve always been struck by the idea that we’ve become wealthier as a country and by many metrics less happy, less involved in our communities, and certainly interacting less,” she said. “That’s been a puzzle to many scholars and something that’s always captured my attention and interest. I see this as a small piece of understanding that."
Despite its predictability, episode 6 of Young Royals does a great job of depicting the clash between LGBTQ themes and royal tradition. Watch for a refreshing, more realistic take on teen life.
Ep 6 notes
the fallout begins and Simon is getting the blunt of it.
Simon's friends at the best
Simon and Wilhelm's communications skills are only improved at the end…sigh
waisted tension 😡 so much potential lost.
Loving Sara; best character arc so far.
August's true feelings are revealed not that we are surprised.
he speaks like he grew up with nothing.
According to a livemint article, the wealthy desire more since their riches and prestige are inextricably linked to their identities. Wealth and position are how the upper class distinguishes themselves from the rest of society, and they are highly dedicated to their social worth.
August seems to have guilt for his actions or at the very least some level of empathy that he represses so that he can achieve his own goals no matter what.
Sara finally has what she has always wanted, friends,yet she is still desperate for love, acceptance and independance; now because of august it is about to be taken away from her. what I want to know is if she is going to try and use august or if she is actually attracted to him. it would be an interesting subplot to see; as Wilhelm is with Simon and August is their “enemy” it would be interesting to see august and her in a mutually beneficial relationship and the betrayal/ emotional conflict and resolution it would cause as she is Simon's sister. it would be fitting to the cinderella narrative and other tried and true romantic tropes too if she and august were to actually fall for each other. August falling for the same person months earlier he ridiculed. I would not really want to see it though not unless it's done right and august get a lot of therapy as this trope in my opinion helps propagate women being with abusive men or thinking that they can fix these broken men with love and live happily ever after.
Simon and the Queen meeting is as akward as it would be in real life.
Will really doesn't want to let Simon go, but mom only cares about duty.
Simon is like, “Im not gonna be your mistress,”
Felice has gone above and beyond and without greed, resent or bitterness that you would expect in these types of stories. Felice is such an untapped character.
Wilhelm has realized where his mother really stands with him.
loving how it ends, you see the fire burning in Wilhelm's eyes, and a new determination is being born. it is interesting and something to look forward to in season 2. Maybe it’s just me and I am looking into the music too much but the look on Wilhelms’s face and the song revolution — Elias feels like a sneak peeks to the next season — I am reading this too deep now.
Overall the show was well-acted; the plot beats were well thought out, but the order and structure of the series were weak. The series felts rushed and disjointed initially but was passed well for the last two episodes. I am and will probably remain disappointed that TeTensionas lost too early. The confrontations could have had a bit more of a hit if the TeTensionas were there, as the audience would have felt the loss of the relationship for duty and the betrayal of a brother.
The show never delves further than surface-level concepts and tropes, unfortunately, and as a result, it falls flat a lot of time. Heart-twisting moments (good and bad) are lacklustre.
Many of these characters, especially August, have Boarding School Syndrome.
Although boarding schools are primarily an English tradition, their prominence and attractiveness have recently extended throughout the Western world. The sentiments of abandonment are exacerbated when a child is sent away to school, and there are a plethora of studies on the psychological disorders that this can bring. Many wealthy families believe that enrolling their children in a top boarding school is the best option for their academic and social growth. Students who attend elite institutions are expected to have an advantage in building strong peer networks, having more options, and obtaining lucrative professions with decent pay.
According to a study, ex-boarders are more likely to experience marital and family difficulties, workaholic tendencies, mental health issues, and substance addiction. Furthermore, these people are less likely to disclose their challenges or seek treatment since they overestimate their outward confidence and competence. As a result of the particular milieu in which these youngsters grow up, some of the following characteristics emerge: They've come to terms with their loneliness or isolation. A preconceived notion of their gender and role, making it difficult to form close relationships. You have a general suspicion of others due to a sense of abandonment. Instead of seeking professional help, they self-soothe, especially if their coping tactics are hazardous to their health, an outward appearance that belies a lack of inner confidence.
I appreciated how the cast of On Young Royal comprised real-life teenagers (Ryding is 18 years old). Most teen dramas, especially those from the United States, feature protagonists that look like airbrushed models in their twenties (see: Riverdale, The Society, Elite, and so on), but that wasn't the case here. Pores are visible, and as the episodes proceed, each character develops their unique acne storyline. I like how August is the only one that matches the model airbrush archetype because it demonstrates his desperation to get into this elite group. The players are drenched in sweat and dripping in grease. A boarding school might be a sexual pressure cooker, but it can also be a place of discovery and learning. It was delightful to see imperfect skin and costumes that didn't seem like they belonged on a runway in Young Royals and Heartstoppers. Young Royals does a fantastic job with these elements, and I applaud them.
Finally, I agree with Radio Times TV writer Flora Carr, who described the series as "predictable but heartfelt" in her review of the first two episodes. She panned the show's "checklist of teen-romance imagery" and "plot's reliance on characters like August." Still, in the end, she determined that "the realistically teenage cast may also be a breath of new air" for younger viewers.