[Header Image: Kiana Madeira as Moe Truax, Brianna Hildebrand as Elodie Davis, and Quintessa Swindell as Tabitha Foster | Netflix]
So, starting Trinkets was primarily down to good timing if we’re being honest. I loaded up Netflix with the intention of finding something quick to watch and this show was on the homepage and a trailer for it began to play almost instantly. Now, the trailer alone was enough to get me interested but I also vaguely remembered people talking about it online and the best part was that it’s only 30 minutes (or less) per episode and there’s only 10 of them in total. So not only did it look like it would be a lot of fun but it was also the ‘something quick to watch’ that I had been looking for and I’m so glad I decided to give it a shot.
For anyone who doesn’t know, Trinkets follows three teenagers Elodie (Brianna Hildebrand), Moe (Kiana Madeira), and Tabitha (Quintessa Swindell) who are thrust into each others lives after meeting at a Shoplifters Anonymous meeting and quickly become friends. This first season explores that friendship but also follows the girls through their individual lives and personal struggles that involve everything from family to other relationships to school life.
By far one of the most interesting thing about Trinkets is how different the girls are. Elodie is definitely the most introverted of the group, Moe has more of a punk style to her and seems to be the most carefree, and Tabitha comes from a wealthy family. However, each girl is so much more than the things I’ve just listed. They all have a lot of depth to them that goes beyond the basic stereotypes that they fall into. Now, those things mentioned aren’t lies per se but as the season goes on, we discover more intimate details about them as their personalities come to light and they become even more three-dimensional. I honestly struggled to pick who my favourite character was out of the three. There are some episodes where it felt like one shone brighter than the others but they’re all just so interesting and lovable and different.
It definitely helps that the three girls have great chemistry and their friendship just makes sense even despite their sometimes differing personalities. I really think it’s easy to find something in at least one of them to relate to or to keep you intrigued with what’s happening to them throughout the season.
And the story is pretty great too. There are some things that happen for each of the girls that spreads across the entire season and it often results in their paths intertwining and the three of them working together. Each girl is dealing with relationships and their own identities with their own personal twist on top. Tabitha is seen in a certain light and has been dealing with some pretty toxic relationships, Moe has an upcoming opportunity in terms of her education, and Elodie is dealing with changes to her living situation after her mother dies. And that’s only the tip of the iceberg. Those things are revealed pretty much right at the start and there’s even more things to discover that helps to mould and direct their individual stories (and therefore the one they share together). I would say the underlying story is just showing how these girls go from being practically strangers to so much more than that and it works too.
There’s something so nice about the core story being that of their friendship and it seems so basic but it’s incredibly fun to watch especially when layered with the individual stories and problems the girls go through. Each thing layered on top means there’s always something going on while still feeling like there’s some kind of stable structure involved.
Really, it is just a ton of fun to watch and Trinkets does a great job at mixing the humorous tone with a more dramatic one. It knows exactly when to poke fun or make a joke and when to be more serious. And honestly? It’s short. The acting is really good (and there’s also a ton of other characters that are all different and most are just as enjoyable as the three leads), the story can sometimes be basic but it’s still well structured, and it is genuinely entertaining. At the very least, it’s not going to take too much out of your day to at least check it out.
It really does needs a second season and I think how that one goes will be more indicative of how good this show is overall. For now, based on what we’ve got, it’s definitely worth checking out.
wonderoes 