The hit show Heartstopper, based on the beloved graphic novels by Alice Oseman, has returned to our screens this October with its third season. The season follows the very emotional storyline of Charlie’s journey with mental health, but still manages to make sure that the entire cast of characters is well represented in what each of them individually is going through. It was a rollercoaster of a season, but now we will dive into some personal favorite (and important) moments. Spoilers ahead!
As a disclaimer, there will be discussion about sensitive topics such as mental health, eating disorders, treatment facilities, and grief.
5. Tao and Nick
This was, in reality, a very small part of season three, but when Tao sat next to Nick on the floor at the Halloween party and hugged him– lives were changed. This was during episode four when Charlie was away at a treatment facility, and all the characters were feeling the loss of Charlie in their daily lives – especially Tao and Nick. Out of all of the characters, these two were the closest to Charlie; his best friend and his boyfriend. This moment between them is so special because in season one they did not get along very well, but now they have this sort of beautiful friendship. Both of them are dealing with the loss of Charlie in their daily lives and both of them are longing for Charlie to get the help he needs, which is why it was so emotional to see them come together in this moment and be together. Sometimes the best way to get through difficult times or emotions is to have someone to lean on who is going through the same thing with you.
4. Tori’s Screen Time
In seasons one and two, Tori would often be found lurking just around the corner, sipping her diet lemonade out of a straw and being the icon she is. It was so exciting to see Tori have much more screen time this season and have her story represented in the show alongside the other characters. Throughout the entire show, Tori has always been her brother’s biggest supporter and in this season her concern and care for him really shine through, sometimes in the most heartbreaking of ways. What comes to mind is during the “Winter” episode when Charlie says to Tori that Nick treats him as something other than mentally ill, and Tori, with tears in her eyes, responds, “I do too”. It was important to see Tori supporting Charlie through his mental health struggles, which could be why we got more of her this season. But fans of Alice Oseman will know that Tori has an entire book dedicated to her character called Solitaire, and the emergence of Michael in this season as well hopefully hints at more of her story to come!
3. “Love can’t cure a mental illness.”
This line comes in episode 2, in a heartbreaking but powerful moment with Nick and his aunt. How could you not bawl your eyes out when Nick is explaining how he feels like he has to fix Charlie, and always be the one to save him, but he just can’t? It is not healthy for either of them to be so dependent on the other, and Nick’s aunt expresses these sentiments to her nephew. The emotions in this scene are so raw, and many people can relate to loving someone so much that whenever they go through something, you almost feel responsible for their wellbeing. But Heartstopper presents this realistic picture that yes, some issues are bigger than we can take on by ourselves, but that doesn’t mean you are helpless. Just being there through the hard times can be enough. This is a pivotal moment for Nick this season as he grapples with how to support Charlie, leading to this important message for whoever needs to hear it: love can’t cure a mental illness.
2. Aroace Representation
A large part of Heartstopper is the celebration of LGBTQ+ love stories of young, teenage characters. This season it was so heartwarming and special to see even more representation of aroace stories, especially because aromatic and asexual characters are not often highlighted or talked about in popular media. When telling Charlie this season that he is probably asexual and aromantic, Isaac said that he “can’t be bothered to give everyone a vocab lesson,” which says a lot about how much people know about these identities. But it was so lovely to see Isaac grow into his identity more this season, even when dealing with fears about being lonely in the future if he didn’t have a romantic relationship. A lot of the time romantic relationships are prioritized in our culture, but it is refreshing to see a reminder that platonic relationships and strong friendships are just as important as romance.
1. Episode Four, “Journey”
Possibly one of the best (and saddest) episodes of the show, episode four spans two months and shows the perspective of both Nick and Charlie in the aftermath of Charlie’s decision to tell his parents about his eating disorder. The setup of the episode itself is so unique to the show and expertly weaves two points of view of the same time period, starting with Nick’s reflections from September to October and ending with Charlie’s. It was an expert decision on the show creators’ part because it covered so much ground in the twenty-six-minute episode, which is extremely difficult to do. Even so, it felt like both Nick and Charlie were represented fully, Nick’s story representing the often forgotten stories of loved ones of people getting treated for mental illnesses, and Charlie’s story crafting a new narrative of what it can be like in these treatment facilities– a recovery that was not linear, but realistic. The episode also explored the rest of the friend group in the episode, specifically highlighting Tao and Charlie’s friendship and the gift box the group crafted to deliver to Charlie while he was at the clinic.
Hope you all enjoyed season three of Heartstopper and fingers crossed for a season four!