Flunk 2018 Series Review

『A Story Where True Emotions Grow Amid Complicated Youth』

🎥 Series Overview

🎬 Title: Flunk (2018~)
🌍 Country: 🇦🇺 Australia
🎞️ Genre: Teen Drama / Queer Romance / Coming-of-Age
🗓️ Production & Release: Season 7 ~ ongoing in 2025
⏳ Average Episode Runtime: ~16–26 minutes
📢 Director: Ric Forster
🖋️ Writers: Ric Forster, Phoebe Willems, Mekelle Mills, etc.
📺 Platforms: YouTube, Vimeo OnDemand, Plex

👩‍💼 Cast: Jessica Li – Ingrid, Akasha Collins – Stella,
Caylen Forbes – Brayden, Madelyn Sheahan – Heidi,
Olivia Wright – Ruby, Lin Yin – Freya, Kallan Adelaide – Dani, Georgia Crisfield‑Smith – Tabby, Holly Monks – Saffron

🧩 In-Depth Story Exploration (Spoilers)

📌 The Beginning of First Love and the Seeds of Emotion

Ingrid confronts her own identity through her feelings for her friend Stella. Recognizing her queer identity in a conservative household brings both emotional confusion and a sense of liberation. The question “Am I really me?” becomes the starting point of their relationship.

💔 Emotional Triangles and Self-Confusion

With the arrival of Tabby and Heidi, the relational landscape becomes increasingly complex. Ingrid is emotionally drawn to Tabby while forming new trust and connection with Heidi. The emotional lines among these three characters cycle through conflict, hurt, understanding, and growth, creating a densely layered narrative.

🌀 Loss After Breakups and the Narrative of Self-Worth

Seasons 4–5 depict breakups between Dani and Jazz, Heidi’s vengeful reactions, and her journey toward independence. Breakups serve not as endings but as new beginnings to redefine oneself, deepening the series’ narrative complexity.

✨ New Relationships, Another Reality

Seasons 6–7 introduce new couples, showcasing diverse forms of love. The stories of Artemisia & Daisy, Kerry & Beth explore trust, passion, and anxiety as the characters navigate the balance of their relationships.

🌙 Spin-Off ‘Sleepover’ – Tabby and Heidi’s Night

Although focused on a single day, this spin-off carries the emotional weight of the entire series. Beyond simple romance, it highlights how two characters support each other’s anxieties, showing that emotional silence can resonate more powerfully than sexuality.

🦋 Emotional Resonance and Significance

🌿 Series Expansion and Universe Building

《Flunk》 evolves beyond a simple web series, expanding its cast and storylines season by season into a cohesive ‘universe’.

🔍 Core Theme: The central theme throughout the series is Emotional Truth. Rather than flashy production, it focuses on characters’ small, personal conflicts, exploring universal teenage experiences—friendship, rivalry, jealousy, self-discovery—through an LGBTQ+ lens.

🎞️ Diverse Characters and Relationships: The series depicts heterosexual, bisexual, and lesbian relationships, reflecting the multifaceted lives of teens rather than a single queer experience.

🎞️ Media Mix: While primarily using short episodes (~5 minutes), the series also produced feature-length film spin-offs and audiobooks/novels that compress main storylines or add new perspectives. This strategy overcomes the limitations of web series and maximizes audience immersion in characters and the universe.

💬 Though the series deals with teenagers’ 'Failures (Flunk)' and setbacks, it ultimately delivers a successful coming-of-age story about finding oneself.

🎯 Personal Rating

💕 Love Scene Level: ♥
⭐ Rating: ★★★★