Stan has unveiled its hotly anticipated original in Year Of.
Year Of follows a friendship group of several students and their community through their last two years at Jubilee High School- which is the school from Stan Original Bump- as they come to terms with the shocking, tragic event that turns their lives in a different direction. Each character is thrust into change and self-discovery, with friendship circles dissolving into new, surprising ones and characters reassessing what’s important to them and who they want to be.
When we begin, teen soccer star Tully (Samson Alston) and his best friend Mo (Samuel El Rahi) help their new English teacher Bowie (Christian Byers) move into his new apartment. The boys then head home to get ready for a night out- where we meet Tully’s parents, principal Lucinda (Danielle Cormack) and builder Alan (Matt Nable), who are excited about their son’s new soccer contract.
Meanwhile, Mo’s sister, Maya (Isabella Graiche) and her besties, just-returned Kate (Sophia Wright-Mendelsohn) and over-thinker Priya (Tharanya Tharan), are also getting ready while catching Kate up after her trip away- including Priya’s plans to hook up with Tully- as Kate’s mum, Ophelia (Caroline Brazier) makes unwelcome interruptions. The teens converge, along with Tully’s new friend Gus (Joshua Hewson), for the party of the year thanks to George (Samuel Dawson) dating Brendan (Nicholas Cradock). While the party creates euphoria for the teens, an unwelcome arrival causes party-goers to scatter… and the boys’ recklessness in their haste to escape has life-changing consequences that will ripple through the community.
While it may sound like a teen drama, the adults get fully developed arcs too, including the teen’s parents- Tully’s parents, Lucinda and Alan Prichard, Kate’s mum and dad Ophelia and Tristan Kellaway (Sam Johnson) and Mo and Maya’s mum, Adela Haleem (Sarah Armanious).
Creators Dan Edwards and Jessica Tuckwell have created one of the strongest shows of the year that’s darker than Bump but full of characters that are compelling. The young cast more than deliver given its tough subject matter.
Year Of is streaming now on Stan
4 stars
