Teen dramas are great because teens, whose emotions are unaffected by experience, have the flush of new discovery.
And this one, Spanish thriller drama Élite, now in its third season has added mystery and darkness.
These high-school kids are rich with perfect lifestyles, living in a world whose social currency includes sex, wealth and power.
Yeah, my high school wasn’t really like that either.
But these teens also suffer from their darkest and deepest secrets and the fear they may surface. And so when there is a murder in the school – that will leave you obsessed and shocked for weeks – which they are somehow tied up in, it all threatens to unravel.
The series throws us into the group’s everyday life at their prestigious private high school, and what happens when three new students from a poor neighbourhood are shipped in when their old school’s roof collapses.
The new students are Samuel, a sensitive boy who works to support himself and his mother, his best friend Christian and Nadia, a muslim girl, who respects her parents and always does the right thing. Of course the new arrivals are tormented by the rich students determined to show they do not belong.
But the stereotypical differences and separation between rich and poor teenagers disappear over the episodes. Bad boys show their sensitive sides and the rich good-looking guy falls in love with the innocent girl.
At the end of the first episode, we find out someone was murdered in the school pool.
As the interrogations to find the murderer take place, we discover more details and secrets from each character. Although the students have designer clothes and beautiful houses, we understand that their lives are not as perfect as they appear from the outside.
The first suspect is Samuel’s brother, Nano, who has just got out of jail and has started associating with bad guys because of his financial problems. For this reason, he tries to expose rich and powerful people for how they take advantage of poor ones. He also tries to steal some money from one of the wealthy families. His background and his behaviour make him a prime suspect in the murder investigation.
I have to say Élite is more than just a teen drama. It can shock you for the taboo themes presented in it, such as the secret homosexual relationship, the sex games and even the incest. It is also suspenseful expanding what we know of each character episode by episode.
And the events in the show as it progresses over the seasons have unsuspected interconnections to exciting dark secrets. And that is the reason why it’s impossible to find this series boring and repetitive.
Who is hiding the worst secret? Who is the killer? And why? And who will do most to save their façade of perfect rich teenager?
I’m not going to spoil who they are, you will have to find out the shocking truth for yourself. And, trust me, after you’ve seen all three seasons out on Netflix, you will find yourself obsessively waiting for the next one!
Available on: Netflix
Genre: Thriller Teen Drama
Makes you feel: at the edge of your seat, wanting more and completely sucked in the mystery and dark secrets of this group of teenagers
Running Time: Approx. 50 minutes an episode, 3 seasons
