Heartstopper is a beloved show, based on the novels by Alice Oseman. The show includes some heavy topics, including the struggles of mental health, homophobia, and how Gen Z lives compared to what used to be seen on TV. The show is set in Birmingham, New England. It revolves around Charlie Spring (played by Joe Locke) and Nick Nelson (played by Kit Connor), along with the rest of their friend group.
The show starts with Nick and Charlie meeting in class at Truman Grammar School for boys, where they soon become friends. Throughout the first season, Charlie is involved in a relationship with another boy from school, Ben Hope (played by Sebastian Croft). It’s made clear that the relationship is toxic, with Ben mistreating Charlie. While this happens, Charlie also hangs out with his group of friends, Tao Xu(played by William Gao), Isaac Henderson (played by Tobie Donovan), and Elle Argent (played by Yasmin Finney).
At the start of the show, Elle is seen transferring to Harvey Greene Grammar School for Girls after attending the school for boys,inciting a change in the group’s dynamic. As she adjusts to her new life in this school, she makes some new friends, Darcy Olson (played by Kizzy Edgell) and Tara Jones (played by Corinna Brown), who are a couple. Later on in the show, Imogen Heany (played by Rhea Wormwood) is introduced, eventually joining the group. As the season progresses, it’s shown that Tao has developed feelings for Elle, bringing another subplot to the show, and Nick gets closer with Charlie, with the two beginning to develop feelings for each other.
By the end of season one, they start dating, Tao and Elle start to reveal their feelings for each other, and Darcy and Tara join the friendship group. This is where season one leaves off, with everything seeming to go well.
The show transitions to season two, released a year later. All the characters from the previous season are re-introduced, with the main group growing closer than before, with one new addition to the group, Sahar Zahid (played by Leila Khan.) They all have a class trip to Paris, where the couples face some problems with each other, and secrets are revealed. Eventually, their bond strengthens like nothing before and they all move forward, with Elle and Tao dating.
Now with the general background and recap out of the way; the season three recap. One of the biggest notable differences was that Ben Hope, unlike the other seasons, was not introduced in this recent season. In my opinion, I thought it was the heaviest of all three seasons, and by far one of the most relatable. At the start of the season, it’s obvious that the struggles from the previous season are lingering in the lives of everyone in the group, and it all starts to interfere with their lives.
In the past seasons, it was shown that Charlie had struggles with his mental health, particularly around food, and the issue is explored further this season. When this started happening, Tara and Darcy faced their own challenges, along with Elle and Tao. One of my favorite parts of the season, however, was that there was more shown about Isaac than in previous seasons.
Although it wasn’t as much as I may have hoped, I still think that focusing on him and his perspective on everything happening around him in the group was one of the only things missing from previous seasons. As the season progressed, the relationship between Imogen and Sahar changed, which was an unexpected twist that I never really pictured happening. As their relationship develops, things change in Nick and Charlie’s relationship.
As Nick gets ready to go to college, he doesn’t know whether to stay close or move further away from home, due to what took place throughout the season. Overall, however, I think the season was tied in beautifully with the previous seasons, and was adapted on-screen beautifully compared to the novel. I would definitely recommend this show to others, and can’t wait to rewatch it again.
Heartstopper is now streaming on Netflix.
