Pretty comprehensive take. I don’t agree with a lot of it but it’s a very reasonable take and I can see your point. The only thing I’d probably argue is it’s not aimed only at at risk youth, it’s just aimed at teens, we like to categorize teens into groups and in reality they (as we were as teens) are much more complex than most adults think. One of the things I think the show does really well is present all the characters as rounded and flawed, none of them is perfect and none of them (with probably one exception) is entirely bad. Maybe it’s a naive position but I think anything breaking down the taboo barrier of discussion around mental health, sexual assault, suicide and the plethora of other issues in a way that works and presents a fairly real and visceral representation is a good thing.
FWIW I would hazard a guess the Helen Lovejoys of the world just don’t like seeing how f**ked up the teenage world can be (and this show makes it clear it can be pretty awful)
Yeah I'm pretty happy to agree to disagree on this one as you do present a pretty fair assessment based on the perspective of somebody who enjoys the show to the point where it may be beneficial. I'll admit to cherry picking a bit by implying it's only aimed at at risk teens because as you correctly identify it is aimed at all teens.
My only addition to that would be that, as you've articulated, a lot of teens have rather complex lives that are readily dismissed by adults. The addition of being one of the first generations growing up with social media and a new way to bully and harass has made it quite a bit more complicated than even I would've experienced 10-15 years ago. Because of this, any kid who takes a negative interpretation of this show has the tools laid out for them to indulge in very self-esteem destroying practices and it doesn't present to the tools to demonstrate the methods of help.
I'd also like to contend with your point wrt breaking down walls and taboo that I wholeheartedly agree with it but to a point. Without adequate explanations (which the show could very well be building to in fairness but it hasn't indicated as much yet) and given the dramatic and at times hyperbolic ways in which these dark taboos are approached I'd postulate that it is no longer beneficial to merely break down barriers but instead encourage the pessimistic (pessimism, not cynicism) inner-narrative turning otherwise neutral or slightly positive experiences into downright awful ones internally and promote a negative emotional feedback loop without a positive method of release and reevaluation.
However, that is entirely up to the perspective of the viewer and as you say it could very well be interpreted positively by some or most who feel they can't talk about such issues so I am happy to merely have the discussion about it rather than being unhelpful and just blanketly decry it. Also I 100% agree with your final poimt regarding some of the more emotionally and intellectually immature responses that can be reached by some people.