The gift of Netflix’s beloved “Heartstopper” lies in how it showcases queer storytelling in a way that feels joyous, heartwarming and tender to watch.
That’s not to say there isn’t room in the television landscape for more mature representations of queer youth (“Sex Education,” for example). But at the heart of “Heartstopper” is a utopian vision of queer high school life, a rarely represented freedom to simply be and love who you are meant to during those formative high school years.
Here, the emphasis isn’t on bullying or the trauma that queer teens face, like on “13 Reasons Why.” Rather, we get to follow characters leaning into their identity and trying to find joy and community.