Netflix's 'Spinning Out' is binge-able, satisfying melodrama

After the world lost both One Tree Hill and Gossip Girl in 2012, Netflix stepped up seven years later to fill the void left by both shows with Spinning Out. The drama series, which is set at a skating rink and ski lodge in Sun Valley, Idaho, showcases the competitive spirit and romance that ensues between a group of skaters who spend practically all their time at the lodge or practicing at the rink.

The series follows four figure skaters and one skier gunning for the Olympics: sisters Kat (Kaya Scodelario) and Serena (Willow Shields), fellow skaters Jenn (Amanda Zhou) and Justin (Evan Roderick), and Marcus (Mitchell Edwards), a skier who is friendly with Kat. If that wasn’t enough, Spinning Out also centers around Kat and Serena’s mother, Carol (January Jones), and Kat and Justin’s skating coach, Dasha (Svetlana Efremova).

January Jones as Carol with Willow Shields, who plays her daughter Serena. Credit: Christos Kalohoridis/Netflix

With ridiculous plot developments at every turn, Spinning Out is entertaining, captivating, and fantastically binge-able. At times, the series is so hilariously dramatic that it verges into soap opera territory (a sudden emergency glaucoma surgery, characters denying the professional opinion of sports doctors and specialists) -- but that’s part of its charm. What sets the series apart from the aforementioned fan favorites is that Spinning Out also tackles racism and mental illness with dexterity.

One of Spinning Out’s main plot points is the ways in which Kat and Carol manage their bipolar disorder. Both characters are depicted in states of mania on occasion and utilize Lithium to help with the severity of symptoms. Notably, Spinning Out highlights the stigmas surrounding mental illness, and even makes a point to showcase the ways in which those stigmas are evolving: In an effort to protect her daughter after Kat has an episode, Carol confines Kat to their house and tells Kat’s friends and coach that her daughter has pneumonia. However, Kat is ready to accept support and let others in. So, she tells the important people in her life that she has bipolar disorder.

Although I personally feel unequipped to comprehensively review Scodelario and Jones’s (Mad Men) portrayals of bipolar disorder, both actresses do a fantastic job as tough, relentless, and fearless female protagonists -- Kat is eerily reminiscent of Scodelario’s iconic role, Effy, on Skins. Similarly, Shields’ (Hunger Games) rising star power is palpable, and she balances Serena’s competing girlishness and evolving maturity quite well. Edward’s Marcus is level-headed, kind, and a welcome reprieve from more sporadic characters like Justin and Jenn.

Like other Netflix drama series that have included clear messaging about race such as Orange is the New Black and Raising Dion, Spinning Out takes special care to contrast the experiences of Marcus, who is black, to that of Kat, Serena, and Justin, all of whom are white. When Marcus and Justin get into trouble with the law, Marcus is treated differently than Justin and recalls his parents’ experiences with racist law enforcement officers. Additionally, Marcus fields questions and doubts about being the sole black skier on Sun Valley’s pre-Olympic team and dating white women. Most importantly, Marcus is a full character, and his storyline and goals are complex and fleshed out from the start of the series.

Scodelario's Kat deep in thought at the rink. Credit: Christos Kalohoridis/Netflix

Impressively, Spinning Out also features two LGBTQ characters (Dasha and Gabe, the latter played by two-time Olympian Johnny Weir) whose storylines don’t revolve around or emphasize their sexuality. Overall, the race, sexuality, and socioeconomic status of characters on Spinning Out are not presented in clunky, awkward, or outdated ways. Whereas other drama series have hit cringe-worthy snags or tokenized, Spinning Out leaves viewers at ease.

The first season of Spinning Out is now available to stream on Netflix.