“Agatha All Along” takes the Marvel Universe to its darkest place yet, Elon Musk previews droids that he says will perform every household task, and a survey shows that Gen Z defines 27 as the age of adulthood. But first:
Slang of the Week: “Just put the fries in the bag”
Imagine you’re running behind and you just want to grab a quick bite to eat, but the person taking your order seems to want to hear your life story, share theirs, and get the input of the person in line behind you. In a moment of frustration, you might tell the worker, “Just put the fries in the bag.” For teens, this phrase applies to much more than chatty fast-food workers: a teacher telling a story, a friend overexplaining their date, or really anything they see as wasting their time. Whatever the circumstance, the idea remains the same—it’s a way to say, “Quit yapping and get on with it.”
Three Conversations
1. Bewitched
What it is: Disney’s newest streaming Marvel series, Agatha All Along, is witchy, creepy, and far from subtle in its embrace of queerness.
What parents should know: Although she is a long-established comic book character, most people’s introduction to Agatha Harkness was probably when she was revealed as an antagonist in 2021’s Wandavision series. Agatha All Along follows Agatha as she looks to reclaim her ability to wield magic after the events of Wandavision, gathering a skeptical group of fellow witches—a coven—to complete a trial called “The Witch’s Road.” The show includes depictions of witchcraft, occult practices, frightening images, suggestive costumes, and same-sex attraction between Agatha and different female characters. Internet discourse surrounding witchcraft tends to emphasize female empowerment and companionship while ignoring the dark and demonic aspects of its practice. As spooky season continues and witchcraft is at the forefront of the public consciousness, it appears the show is finding its audience.
Continue the conversation: When you hear the word “witch,” what comes to mind?
2. Paranoid Android
What it is: At Tesla’s “We, Robot” event, Elon Musk unveiled the prototype for a domestic robot called Optimus that he projects will eventually be available for less than $30,000.
Why people are nervous: Musk himself has warned that the rollout of AI could lead to “civilization destruction,” and yet like so many in the tech space, he still seems intent on ushering it into our world. The sci-fi trope is that unleashing AI leads to the end of humanity. Yet Musk blithely bills these droids as “your own personal R2D2/C3PO,” promising that they’ll teach, babysit, walk dogs, mow lawns, get groceries, be your friend, serve drinks—“whatever you can think of, it will do.” The full technology is still in development (the robots in the showcase were being controlled remotely) but still, it’s a glimpse of what the world could look like in our lifetimes.
Continue the conversation: Would you be comfortable with a robot joining our family? Why or why not?
3. Arrested Development
What it is: A new poll from the financial education nonprofit Life Happens seems to indicate that for Gen Z, the age of “feeling like” an adult is 27.
What it means: For generations, Americans have held to the notion that an “adult” is simply a person who fits the legal definition (hence the phrase “legal adult”). The sample size of this new poll is small (only 500 members of Gen Z participated, along with 1500 members of other generations), but it does reflect a sea change in attitudes toward maturity and responsibility. Half of respondents related being an adult to personal finances, saying an adult is a person who can pay all of their own bills and be financially independent. Since 47% of Gen Z say they cannot afford to own a home and 39% say they cannot afford children, it makes sense that reaching adulthood feels like a moving target instead of a natural phase of life.
Let’s translate this one further…
In Thomas Hine’s The Rise and Fall of the American Teenager, he argues that the concept of a “teenager” is not so much one static idea but a concept that has taken many shapes and will take many more. These recent survey findings seem like confirmation of his argument, as the length and nature of the phase before adulthood continues to expand in the national imagination.
The Life Happens survey data zeroed in on what it means to be a “grown up,” financially. But Gen Z’s hesitation to define themselves as “adults” extends beyond their financial concerns. And in a hyper-connected world that tempts us with endless possibilities for the future, who wouldn’t want to delay defining themselves as an adult? Adults make final decisions, while it sometimes seems like young people never have to.
The sentiment isn’t limited to Gen Z. As John Mayer put it twenty years ago in his popular song “Stop This Train”: “So scared of getting older / I’m only good at being young / So I play the numbers game / To find a way to say that life has just begun.” To name yourself as an adult has always felt like an ending, of sorts; a cap to screw on the container of yourself and your potential.
So how are we supposed to think about growing old—or being young, for that matter?
The wisest man who ever lived has some thoughts on this. Solomon writes, “Rejoice, O young man, in your youth, and let your heart cheer you in the days of your youth. Walk in the ways of your heart and the sight of your eyes. But know that for all these things God will bring you into judgment.” In other words, youth is something to enjoy—but young people don’t live without consequences any more than older people do. In the eyes of the God who numbered our days before we were born, our whole lives count.
For a full “translation” of everything in this issue, check out our Monday Roundtable podcast. In the meantime, here are three questions to spark conversation with your teens:
- What has been your favorite age so far? What was great about it?
- Is there an age that you are looking forward to being in the future?
- When you picture yourself as an adult, how old are you? What is that person like?
Parenting together,
The Axis Team
PS: This week we shared our conversation with Jeremiah Parks on “Poverty, Social Justice, and the Gospel.” Check it out here!