Outer Range parents guide: This sci-fi western could work for older teens

Josh Brolin stars as Royal Abbott, the patriarch of the Abbott family in Outer Range. On the surface, this series looks like it will be a Western. However, it's a brilliant sci-fi tale that adds mystery and twists to the genre.

The Abbott family is struggling to keep their ranch. Others want to buy it, but this is a family not willing to go down without a fight. If only their fight was 100% normal. When Royal (Josh Brolin) finds a black void on his land and a strange woman appears, he has to figure out what the mystery around the void is and prevent other people from finding it.

The second season is almost here, and it promises to bring more mystery and secrets. The question is whether this series is suitable for the kids in the house.

Outer Range parents guide: Explaining the TV-MA age rating

While the official rating in the United States is TV-MA, other parts of the world do give it a slightly lower rating. Canada puts it at 16+ and the UK says 15. It suggests that the series is suitable for the older teens in the house. And when we look at some of the scenes in the first season, we can certainly see why your 16 and over teens could find this mystery enjoyable to watch.

Sex & nudity: There are some mild nudity scenes. We have glimpses of men in their underwear and scenes where naked men’s buttocks are on show. While there are sex scenes, they’re not gratuitous or even fully shown on screen. There is one where you only see silhouettes to imply the sex instead of showing it.

Violence & gore: Violence is arguably why the TV-MA rating was given to the show. There is a moment where Autumn, the stranger who comes to the range, carves a symbol into her chest. There are plenty of fight scenes considering tensions run high and people want to take the Abbott land. We also have a rather graphic scene of a bear being shot and not immediately dying. As someone who loves animals more than humans, the bear hurt me watching it.

Language: There are a fair few F-bombs dropped throughout the series. That’s the worst of the language. Most of the characters will utter “Christ” or “Goddamn.”

Alcohol & drugs: While there are no drugs, there are characters who smoke and chew tobacco. Alcohol consumption is high in this series, with numerous characters getting drunk. This is usually when the violence starts!

Overall verdict: Who is Outer Range appropriate for?

With all the mystery and the twists, I wouldn’t put this on for younger kids, even if it wasn’t rated TV-MA. Some elements of the story will go over their heads. Due to the violence levels, this is more suitable for 16 and over, but just keep in mind that Amazon has set it for 18 and over in the U.S.