Monster: The Ed Gein Story parent guide – Is the Ryan Murphy anthology series suitable for kids?

The Netflix series Monster: The Ed Gein Story is not child-friendly. The series, like the earlier seasons of the anthology series Monster, is rated TV-MA and is extremely violent and graphic, and contains sexual and psychologically dark material, directly based on the real-life crimes of Ed Gein.

Parents and guardians should note the fact that the series is meant to be watched by a mature audience, and contains scenes that might prove traumatizing or inappropriate to children and even to some teenagers.

Season 3 of the true-crime anthology by Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan follows the profoundly disturbing stories of a serial murderer and notorious criminal. This sequel centers around Ed Gein, whose heinous murder, grave robbery, and body mutilation spree in the 1950s in Wisconsin inspired archetypal horror characters such as Norman Bates, Buffalo Bill, and Leatherface.

The series features Charlie Hunnam as Gein and explores his real-life crimes and the psychological torture that made him do them, particularly the relationship with his abusive mother.

Although the horror nature and historical essence of Monster: The Ed Gein Story might be welcome among the adult audience and fans of true crime, the graphic content in it is a strong indicator that it is not meant to be consumed by all members of the family.

If you are still wondering whether it would be okay to watch Monster: The Ed Gein Story with a younger audience, the parental guide and episode reviews will show you why the show deserved the restrictive rating. Continue reading to see what makes it inappropriate for non-adult viewers, and what its plot is.

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Is Monster: The Ed Gein Story suitable for kids?

Official sources like Netflix classify Monster: The Ed Gein Story as TV-MA, meaning the show is designed with mature audiences in mind, and it might not be okay to watch with audiences younger than 17. A TV-MA rating is given because of the following content:

Graphic violence & gore: The series shows real-life atrocities of the crimes committed by Ed Gein, such as murder, body mutilation, grave robbery, and psychosexual obsession. This includes scenes with human remains, gore, and upsetting imitations of the violence that Gein inspired, in line with the horror tradition Gein was part of.

Sexual content & nudity: There are some scenes of sexual acts and allusions as well as some nudity, both in relation to the psychological problems of Gein, and in the details of his offenses.

Strong emotional themes: The series is about the disturbed mental state of Gein, his fixation on his mother, solitude, mania, and also psychosis. These are very disturbing themes that are dramatized in a manner that can be unsettling for young and sensitive viewers.

Profanity: The show is said to have strong language and frequent use of vulgar words, which is also a contributing factor to its mature rating.

According to critics, the show is explicit. Variety refers to it as an "overly graphic rehashing" of the life of Gein, and both the formal parental advisories of Netflix and the reviews of viewers reiterate that the show is not fit to be watched by the weak-hearted.

Earlier seasons of Monster adopted this formula too, as every episode transcends the limits of the real crime narrative by directly presenting the audience with scenes of violence and trauma, emphasizing the adult appeal of the anthology.

It is highly recommended that parents and guardians watch Monster: The Ed Gein Story themselves and only then consider permitting any underage children to view it. The material can be highly uncomfortable, frightening, or even traumatizing to children, and there are no versions or edits that can turn this content into child-friendly.

In case you want something horrifying or crime-oriented but more acceptable to younger audiences, family-friendly documentaries or less intense mysteries may be a better choice.

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Monster: The Ed Gein Story – Plot and themes explored

The third season of the anthology series by Ryan Murphy revolves around the notorious Ed Gein and puts forth a chilling psychological portrait with the depressing background of the bleak Wisconsin environment of the late 1940s and 1950s.

Gein was a reclusive teenager who resided on a family farm since he had a traumatic, controlling relationship with his ultrareligious mother, Augusta (played by Laurie Metcalf in the series). Following the death of Augusta, Gein gets into grave robbing and killing, driven by delusions and a twisted bid to bring his mother back to life.

Gein leads a lonely childhood, and the plot of the story revolves around the backgrounds of poverty, abuse, and religious fanaticism. It quickly unfolds the crimes of Gein, such as brutal murders, mutilation of the bodies, and robbing. Monster: The Ed Gein Story depicts graphically the way in which Gein used human remains to make objects and furniture, which would later be used to design horror legends in movies and books.

Another characteristic of the series is its psychological depth. It brings into focus the mental illness that haunted Gein, in the sense that it made him obsessed with his mother and incapable of being a member of regular society. There are scenes of his efforts to revive the dead and preserve the memories of his loved ones, providing the audience with a terrifying glimpse into untreated psychosis.

The role of Charlie Hunnam as Gein is constructed on the basis of real-life recordings and research, including the tapes of Gein being arrested, which formed the basis of the voice and demeanor of the character. The realism of the show makes it more historically valid, and also heightens the horror and discomfort that the material requires.

Monster: The Ed Gein Story does not hold back on the ugly truth of the situation that it describes, and the story ends with Gein dying of lung cancer and his encounters with reporters and police.

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Monster: The Ed Gein Story is currently streaming on Netflix. Follow SoapCentral for more stories and updates on the series.