Trinkets tells the bonding story of three girls from the same high school. They are all required to attend Shoplifters Anonymous meetings. They don’t start out as friends, but before the two seasons are over, they are an unbreakable team.
Trinkets delves into each girl’s story, as well as her family. We meet boyfriends, girlfriends, and many high school friends and teachers.
Elodie (Brianna Hildebrand) is new in Portland, Oregon. She moved there from New Mexico to live with her dad, stepmother, and step-brother after her mother was killed by a drunk driver. She’s a skilled shoplifter and knows everything about music. (In season 2, we learn that she writes songs and sings herself.) And she’s an out lesbian. An out lesbian with no sexual experience.
Moe (Kiana Madeira) has a dad in prison, an older brother, and a mom who is an ER nurse. The relationship between Moe and her mom is warm and loving. She’s brilliant and gets top grades. Her father is Latino, her mother is Anglo. She has a rocky relationship with her boyfriend (Odiseas Georgiadis), but they do hook up sometimes.
Tabitha (Quintessa Swindell) has both parents, who are wealthy. Her mother is African American, her father Anglo. She’s dating the high school hero (Brandon Butler) who is physically and mentally abusive to her. When she finally breaks up with him she dates a series of questionable boys. Tabitha’s character has some lightly touched arcs involving racism. (Check out this interview with Quintessa Swindell at GLAAD.)
These are all twenty-something actors playing high school kids. They seemed more like college students to me. It bothered me that the two straight girls were having sex but the lesbian couldn’t figure it out although she had several chances.
Through many personal and school related high school type drama situations, the girls learned to like each other, trust each other, and fight with each other. They became a tight and loyal unit. The trio and their strength together were the heart of the series. Each girl had issues, problems, and made plenty of mistakes. They were always in some predicament or other.
Predominant themes in the series were personal responsibility and decision making, family relationships, romantic relationships, and the sisterhood of female friendships. A number of storylines carried through the series but the one that took us through season 2 to the end was how the girls dealt with the abusive high school hero. Spoiler alert: he gets his #TimesUp moment.
The series had humor, teen angst, and fabulous music. The pace was consistent and the episodes, at 30 minutes each, were built to binge. I watched both seasons in a weekend and never felt a dull moment. All in all, I found the series excellent entertainment.
I loved that the main cast was women, but women were behind the camera too. Most of the directors were women. Women directors included Sara St. Onge, Clare Kilner, Hannah Macpherson, Ayoka Chenzira, and Megan Griffiths. The series was created by Amy Anderson, Emily Meyer, and Kirsten Smith.
Wouldn’t this poster look swell on Pinterest?
Here’s the season 1 trailer.
And this is the season 2 trailer.
Are you a fan of Trinkets on Netflix? Why do you like it?