High school can’t last forever, though Heartstopper will be in the spirit, with the Netflix series of beloved teenagers taking a heartfelt victory lap with its final chapter.
And boy, it’s been a great trip.
After three great seasons, the series says “goodbye” for the last time with a fun and moving 90-minute film that sends Charlie Spring (Joe Locke), Nick Nelson (Kit Connor), and their friends into the future that awaits them. So, how Heartstopper Forever leave the Paris Crew, and how far have we come since we first arrived at Truham Boys School?
I’m trying to work but I just watched the trailer for ‘Heartstopper Forever’
It’s been four glorious years Heartstopperwhich seems to come each season with the signature leaf images returning to the hearts of the fans. The first season hit Netflix in 2022, based on English writer and illustrator Alice Oseman’s Tapas/Webtoon/Tumblr hit 2016 webcomic. Fans of Oseman’s work have found their beloved characters brought to life by Connor, Locke, and the gang, with characters now synonymous with the series. “We built, and we built,” says William Gao’s Tao in the film, and it’s accurate on many levels.
When I reviewed the first season of Heartstoppercomparing it to its younger brothers, I write, “Heartstopper lies the sugary sweet ending of the teenage series, worlds apart Euphoria again Skinsit’s small but it’s just fun Sex Educationwith a new gay love story to match Love, Victor. But it doesn’t shy away from a poignant examination of queer identity in the midst of rigid heteronormativity.” Of course, the show appeared in Heartstopper Forever as its characters (and actors) have grown up; however, it remains true to this curious and empathetic core.
The film, based on the sixth and final graphic novel and set in the last year of high school, is a happy, sad, and realistic finale, with a teenage love story at its heart.
Nick and Charlie were there with it.
Credit: Samuel Dore / Netflix
In Season 1, we met troubled 14-year-old student Charlie Spring (Locke), who was in The Strokes and his toxic, manipulative, and close-minded class teacher, Ben Hope (Sebastian Croft). At that time, he was always in a state of self-doubt, an experience that grew in Seasons 2 and 3, and the latter was a very challenging time in Charlie’s struggle with anorexia, self-harm, anxiety, and physical disorders, Locke providing a critical insight into this internal struggle. In Heartstopper ForeverCharlie is still managing this, but he is campaigning to make the school a safe place for young queer students, where constant bullying makes his life hell. Actually, Charlie is still the person she needed.
We also meet 16-year-old “rugby king” Nick Nelson (Kit Connor), who begins to question his sexuality – and that of his friends – when sparks fly between him and Charlie. Season 2 saw an incredible performance from Connor, as Nick grapples with the struggles of exploring his homosexuality and coming out, with the show also acknowledging biphobia, bi-erasure, and the anxiety of not feeling “good enough.” Nick’s experience in this season touched me deeply, Charlie clarified this problem in one quote: “I think there is this idea that if you don’t mean it, you have to tell all your friends and family immediately. Like you owe them. But you don’t.” This season reminds us of the experience of Connor, who said he felt compelled to speak publicly about his sexuality after pressure from fans.
By Heartstopper ForeverNick fell for Charlie, became proud and curious about his sexuality, and faced the challenges of caring for a loved one with an eating disorder. However, in this film, Nick doesn’t do well, with his dependence on Charlie and fear for his boyfriend’s well-being making a different future seem like a tragic end. Reader, I totally connected with Nick on Heartstopper Foreverlike facing the cruel mirror of my teenage drama. Nick gets really drunk and doesn’t deal with his feelings? Yes, compare. Nick gets jealous of Charlie flirting and gets seriously jealous? Shit. Nick purging his bowels while yelling at someone he loves? GET OUT OF MY HEAD.
Heartstopper Forever you see Nick and Charlie dreaming of privacy and their own space, undisturbed. But they also learn that they’ll be fine without each other, a lesson that’s not easy to learn when you’re 18. Or 25. Or 40.
Heartstopper Forever you see The Paris workers have grown up.
Credit: Samuel Dore / Netflix
Of course, Heartstopper has spent as much time developing its supporting characters as it has its leads. Charlie’s best friends Tao (William Gao), Elle (Yasmin Finney), and Isaac (Tobie Donovan) all explore their identities, dreams, and our dreaded love confessions.
The always measured Finney has seen Elle rise head-on between gender dysphoria and anti-trans hatred, finding her own way through artistic expression. “It seems like the whole world is against me,” he tells Tao in Season 3, reflecting the real abuse, harassment and discrimination young people face every day in the UK. In Heartstopper ForeverElle is still burdened by this discrimination, asking her friends to show her Pride, saying, “I just wanna be myself, to be free, to be happy.” Is it too much to ask?
Credit: Samuel Dore / Netflix
When he wasn’t sacrificing himself on the altar of honor to win the heart of his best friend Elle, Tao kept his friends above water, with Gao’s strength being a welcome joy in a series of very difficult times. And the silent legend of the series, the bookish Isaac, came to the realization of his homosexuality in Season 2 and became lonely among his friends who were together.
Charlie’s cool and dead sister Tori (Jenny Walser), the protagonist of Oseman’s first novel Solitairebecome Heartstoppermoral compass and supreme queen of “take care of her or die”. Tara (Corinna Brown) and Darcy (Kizzy Edgell) live outside and are comfortable together as a couple, not “GOOD PARTNERS” as everyone first thought, it was hard to watch. Darcy explored gender identity and tried new pronouns in Season 3, while dealing with an unsupportive family life.
And Imogen (Rhea Norwood) has had an arc similar to Nick’s, as a popular transsexual who is reluctant to explore her sexuality. By Heartstopper Foreverseeing Imogen’s love for him as gay is delightful.
Heartstopper remains one of TV’s best spaces for compassionate conversation.
Credit: Samuel Dore / Netflix
I will be honest with you. Heartstopper it always makes friendship, teenage vulnerability, and questions of identity its horizon, and it always shocks me, the maturity and compassion these young characters have. Courage, to have emotionally healthy conversations with each other towards the end of puberty! Growing up, I didn’t have the vocabulary to talk to my friends about my identity, queerness, and mental health, which meant watching. Heartstopper as an adult it honestly felt like a series of dreams. It’s a show I wish I’d had when I was a teenager, when heteronormativity made me bury myself.
Heartstopper it has never been about high twists, instead of creating cinematic moments of friendship and finding family, the power to consult each other, to feel included, seen, and loved. Aside from Charlie suggesting they might be “too old for this,” there are plenty of fun scenes including DIY bedroom forts, hidden notes on photo prints, and pasta-burnt sleepovers. For fans, there are memories of Nick and Charlie’s first class together, the famous ice rink, and going back to the room where HeartstopperAn important episode has occurred. “They should put a plaque on the wall: This is where Nick and Charlie first kissed,” Charlie said.
Credit: Samuel Dore / Netflix
Heartstopper she has long enjoyed the excitement, fear, and explosions of new love and hormones. The show has grown through the seasons, from innocent games of twisting the bottle and dancing around to Julia Jacklin, Wolf Alice, or Maggie Rogers in the living room, to the capture, obsession, and chemistry of the first sexual experience and the world-ending damage of real heartbreak.
But what does Heartstopper a show that defies its emphasis on caring, on characters turning on each other, making mistakes, and showing compassion. The kind of soft space viewers deserve, where characters explore their sexuality and identity, find first love, and form friendships that celebrate their authenticity.
I just don’t like it Heartstopper. I needed you.
Heartstopper Forever now streaming on Netflix.
If you feel like you would like to talk to someone about your eating disorder, in the US you can call the National Eating Disorder Association’s helpline at 800-931-2237. You can also text “NEDA” to 741-741 to connect with a trained volunteer Crisis Text Line or visit the non-profit website for more information.
In the UK, you can contact Beat via webchat, emailor telephone — England (0808 801 0677), Scotland (0808 801 0432), Wales (0808 801 0433) Northern Ireland (0808 801 0434). Helplines are open from 3pm to 8pm, Monday to Friday.
