Netflix’s Heartstopper showcases the queer joy the world needs right now
Nick Nelson begins. Innocent, pure and kind. The relationship between these two boys is at the heart of Netflix’s new LGBTQ+ young adult series Heartstopper (minor spoilers ahead).
Based on the webcomic of the same name, created by Alice Oseman, the show is set in the UK and is a poignant coming-of-age tale about queer love.Now, the show is by no means a ‘first’.
We’re lucky that there are now many diverse TV shows and films, like Euphoria, Sex Education, and Love, Simon that have explored life for queer teens in school.But what sets Heartstopper apart from shows that have come before is not just the range of characters featured in it, but also the way the series centres and celebrates queer joy.It is so rare – and powerful – to watch two boys fall for each other or see a lesbian couple happily together (without one of them dying in a season finale cliff-hanger).
Unlike many shows where their single queer character feels tokenistic, Heartstopper brings together characters from just about every part of the rainbow.
