TV Show review
February 26, 2020 · TV-MA · Canceled
Woke Score
Lower is better
Breakdown
These are the editorial factors and ratings behind our score for I Am Not Okay with This.
Woke representation / casting
Natural casting fits the small-town setting and source material, with a multiracial supporting character and a lesbian lead whose same-sex crush is central and visible; no forced mismatches, quotas, or heavy signaling.
Woke political dialogue
No explicit political, activist, or social-justice dialogue; conversations stay personal around grief, anger, family, and teen relationships.
Identity-driven story themes
The protagonist's lesbian identity and unrequited crush on her female best friend form a noticeable and integral part of her emotional arc and major plot beats alongside grief and power control; presented as individual turmoil rather than activist framing.
Western institutional / cultural critique
Standard teen and family tensions around loss, school bullying, and parental struggles appear without modern activist spins on patriarchy, toxic masculinity, traditional norms, or institutional systems.
Review
I Am Not Okay with This is a seven-episode Netflix coming-of-age black comedy about Sydney Novak, a 17-year-old girl in small-town Pennsylvania who develops telekinetic powers triggered by strong emotions one year after her father's suicide. She navigates family grief, high school awkwardness, bullying, and an unrequited crush on her female best friend while trying to control her abilities. The story uses the supernatural elements as a metaphor for teenage emotional turmoil and prominently includes the protagonist's lesbian identity and same-sex attraction as a central part of her personal conflicts and plot developments.
Woke character or canon changes
Not relevant; the series adapts the original graphic novel faithfully, including the queer protagonist and core conflicts.
Anti-woke backlash and complaints
No notable right-leaning or anti-woke complaints accusing the show of pushing woke, DEI, or identity-politics messaging; coverage lacked such framing.
Creator track record context
Main creators and producers show low or mild indicators; source author has some left-leaning personal comments in interviews but builds dark, apolitical teen trauma stories without recurring identity or activist patterns.
Production
