‘Discovering Her Edge’ Overview: A Sharp YA Sequence About Ambition, Household, and Romance

Discovering Her Edge is a swoony, high-stakes sports activities drama that attracts unfastened inspiration from one in all Jane Austen’s classics and units the story in the extraordinary world of aggressive ice dancing.

From showrunner Jeff Norton (Geek Woman), Netflix’s 8-episode drama Discovering Her Edge relies on the 2022 novel by Jennifer Iacopelli. The ebook rapidly grew to become a phenomenon after breaking into the ‘BookTok’ neighborhood on TikTok, a platform that has change into the go-to place for thus many readers these days. The BookTok neighborhood is turning into an increasing number of influential on the earth of streaming, with the whole lot from The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo to A Courtroom of Thorns and Roses in line for live-action diversifications. 

In Discovering Her Edge, we observe Adriana Russo (Madelyn Keys), a former aggressive skater from a household with an esteemed historical past within the ice skating discipline. When her proud older sister Elise (Alexandra Beaton), is injured in competitors, Adriana decides to place the skates again on to. Nevertheless it’s not only for her personal self-importance. She must earn a sponsorship in an effort to save her household’s ice rink. Together with her former companion — and lover — Freddie (Ollie Atkins) transferring on to a different companion, she finally ends up pretending to be in love together with her new on-ice companion Brayden (Cale Ambrozic), if solely to safe the all-important sponsorship. 

The discharge timing is little doubt deliberate, coinciding with the Winter Olympics 2026 in Milan, the place determine skating may have a distinguished presence. Regardless of Discovering Her Edge being a piece of pure fiction, it offers you an appreciation for the laborious work and dedication that goes into the game. 

All through the collection, we see the youngest Russo sister, Maria (or Mimi, as she’s largely referred to), consistently studying the seminal Regency-era creator Jane Austen as a part of a faculty venture. This virtually echoes the present’s general plot —  it takes inspiration from Jane Austen’s basic Persuasion. It challenges the notion of id and explores earned confidence and renewed love. 

Let’s not get mistaken, the Persuasion inspiration is unfastened at finest, however it nonetheless serves as a strong basis to construct the plot round. It finally ends up with extra YA romance tropes than you possibly can shake a stick at: pretend courting, childhood mates, enemies to lovers, and one of many wildest love triangles you’ve seen on tv for fairly a while. 

The entire plot is constructed across the central love triangle and the ethical dilemmas that include it. After all, skate companions are usually not romantic companions, however they can blossom into romances. When Adriana is thrust again into the ice skating competitors, the one companion she’s capable of work with is Brayden, who’s a extremely coveted and gifted dancer, however infuriatingly conceited. Her real love is Freddie, however he’s since moved onto a brand new companion. What’s extra, all of them share the identical residence the place strain boils excessive and tensions are virtually palpable. When each Adriana and Brayden realise that publicity boosts their possibilities of success, they embrace pretend courting to spice up their public reception and scores… and it really works. The collection retains you guessing and pondering which love is actual, and which is just for private acquire. 

Whereas Discovering Her Edge is Adriana’s story at its core, it additionally explores the relationships, trials, and tribulations of her two sisters — proud and cussed older sister Elise and rebellious youthful sister Maria (Alice Malakhov). I notably loved Maria’s storyline. Anticipated to proceed the household legacy, she struggles together with her day-to-day life as an adolescent in class. Alice Malakhov is a standout performer, delivering scenes with loads of youthful power and enthusiasm. In the meantime, Alexandria Beaton excellently portrays Elise, the fiercely aggressive elder sister, pushed by sturdy feelings. 

The supporting forged all deliver one thing distinctive to the desk. I actually favored Harmon Walsh as Will Russo, the wildly aggressive former world champion and decided father of the three ladies. He’s a loving father at his core, however typically finds himself pushed by enterprise and picture reasonably than by household. Then there’s Ollie Atkins as Freddie and Cale Ambrozic as Brayden. Each of those teenagers are written as stereotypes and residing cliches, however each actors ship stellar performances with a large emotional vary. 

The collection brings spectacle too, particularly within the skating performances. You see the choreography from its beginnings within the dance studio, to limitless gruelling rehearsals, to the visually spectacular requisite performances. 

Admittedly, the plot is chock-full of clichés and it’s very predictable, however that’s not a put-off. For a present like this, it’s concerning the journey reasonably than the vacation spot. The household dramas and fragile romances supply greater than sufficient to maintain you engaged till the ultimate credit roll. And you might effectively need extra. The ending leaves room for an additional season. It has each a satisfying and conclusive ending, whereas leaving the door open for many extra story to inform. 

---

MVP of Discovering Her Edge

Madelyn Keys — It’s laborious to consider that Madelyn Keys has only a few credit to her identify earlier than tackling the star function in Discovering Her Edge. She explodes onto the scene in Discovering Her Edge with an electrical efficiency from starting to finish. From intimate moments to bigger sequences, she owns each scene.

---

Watch Discovering Her Edge on Netflix if you happen to like:

• Spinning Out
• Heartstopper
• Geek Woman
• Ginny & Georgia

---

Discovering Her Edge is a drama that’ll entice lots of demographics, and it delivers a lovely story to every of them. Whether or not that’s teenage drama, romance, and sibling rivalries, which is able to attract followers of Heartstopper and barely extra adult-focused drama like Ginny & Georgia; or the younger grownup viewers and followers of the novel; or certainly followers of determine skating. For viewers who had been disillusioned with the cancellation of the 2020 collection Spinning Out, it will fill that void.