The final few episodes turn the tension up further as another secret sees Addy and Colette caught in over their heads, with the finale failing to really resolve much and leaving things wide open for a possible second season. From here the series sees this secret begin to divide all three girls, as Addy grows closer to Colette and pulls away from Beth.Īs the series progresses, a really dark and stylistically impressive segment anchors the opening swathe of episodes, turning the story toward something far more darker and multifaceted. When new cheerleading coach Colette arrives to shake things up, what follows is a story that starts to drive a wedge in Beth and Addy’s friendship, while dark secrets blanket the trio.Ĭolette is not as squeaky clean as she first appears either and the catalyst for the drama stems from Beth and Addy stumbling upon a shocking secret their coach holds. Addy and Beth are best friends inseparable teenage girls reveling in the heady world of alcohol, drugs and parties. Around the midway point, things really start to pick up and what follows is an endearing and well written mystery that keeps things interesting and tense, right the way through to its open, cliffhanger ending.īased on the best-selling 2004 novel of the same name, Dare Me is a tale that predominantly revolves around three females. Don’t be put off by the glitzy facade and early vibes in this one though – Dare Me is a show that takes a while to settle into its groove. Surrender at Discretion | Review Score =3/5ĭare Me is an interesting cheerleading drama that takes elements of Gossip girl and other melodramas of its kind and blends them up into a 10 episode series driven by some dark, central themes around murder, rape and jealousy. Things we can't even name.' Make no mistake, this is no pulpy teenage tale: It's a very grown-up look at youth culture and how bad behavior can sometimes be redeemed by a couple of good decisions.Mutually Assured Destruction | Review Score = 3/5 'We're all wanting things we don't understand. Do they owe their loyalty to each other or to their new mentor, who, they imagine, is just like them, only older? 'We're all the same under our skin, aren't we?' 16-year-old Addy muses. 'Holding her hair back while she gagged herself peashoot thin.' Competitive, insecure, and way less sophisticated than they'd like the world to think, the two girls find their long, complex relationship suddenly challenged when a charismatic new coach arrives at school and draws them into her world of deception and danger. How else would she be so familiar with their bored mean-girl patois-'I remember, sort of, being friends with her,' Addy says about a rival on the squad. Count yourself lucky if you've never met (let alone parented!) teenagers like cheerleaders Addy Hanlon and Beth Cassidy Megan Abbott, the author of the disturbing novel Dare Me, clearly has seen such creatures up close.

Dare me based on book