Most Catholic and other Christian parents of young kids are very aware of the scarcity of clean entertainment options that the whole family enjoys.
Are there a few good family movies each year that hold my attention while my kids watch? Sure. But when it comes to TV series, the pickings are even slimmer.
BYUtv, which is both a TV network and a free streaming service (available as an app on smart TVs), has a new action-adventure series that actually fits the bill of being both clean and entertaining for the whole family.
The Premise of Itch
This show is an Australian series about a teenage boy named Ithcingham Lofte, who is a little obsessed with chemistry.
Itch, as he’s called, accidentally discovers a new element when he finds a strange rock. This rock’s potential to be either a powerful clean energy source or a terrible weapon lead to some action shenanigans when some bad guys get involved.
Itch is close friends with his female cousin, is occasionally picked on by the cool kids, and has a mild crush on the surprisingly nice girlfriend of the kid who picks on him most.
High Points of Itch
This is a squeaky-clean show. No profanity (though at least once I did a double take when a character said something like, "Stop, Itch."), no sex, and even the female teenage characters are consistently fully covered (a rather amazing feat these days!).
The family dynamics aren’t the main focus of this show at all, but they’re in the background. Itch’s father is gone frequently for work reasons, and it’s mentioned that the parents fight quite a bit, but there’s refreshingly no mention of divorce or broken families.
There’s a little violence and some peril, but nothing too intense. It could be a bit scary and grown-up for some younger kids, but my 6-year-old ate it up.
Itch Isn’t Perfect
This show is a little cheesy at times. And though the plotline is engaging enough for adults watching with their kids, there are definitely some weak points that left me asking, "How did that happen?"
Most of the acting and writing is fine, but the bad guys in particular are a bit flat, and some of the pursuit scenes are a little painful at times as these bad guys fumble more than seems realistic.
There’s also a featured extra in one episode (no lines, but she shakes her head in answer to a question) who looks like she could possibly be a dude dressed as a woman. But nothing is mentioned whatsoever along these lines, so it could have just been a poor job on the part of the wardrobe and makeup department.
Itch Is a Pretty Solid Choice for Family Viewing
Despite the drawbacks, I was pretty pleased overall with how engaging this show was for my whole family.
The first seven episodes of season one have already aired on the BYUtv network, but they’re available on demand on the website or app.
New episodes of ‘Itch’ premiere on the BYUtv channel on Thursdays at 5 p.m. Eastern.
Note: BYUtv is owned and operated as a part of Brigham Young University, which is owned by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), popularly known as Mormons.
Image: BYUtv
Adrienne Thorne is a Catholic mom, blogger and screenwriter.
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