It feels like we’re living through a boom time for LGBTQ+ stories onscreen, with queer romance abounding on shows like A League of Their Own, the Queer As Folk reboot, Heartstopper, and so many more that I actually can’t list them all off the top of my head for once (gasp!). Still, all that radiant and life-affirming joy reflected back at me through my TV screen can occasionally make me feel as though I’m…doing “being gay” wrong? I mean, am I supposed to be flirting with hot queer people on a beach at sunset all the time? Because I really only do that once a year, max.
I should have guessed that Never Have I Ever would make me feel better. The Netflix teen comedy—which stars Maitreyi Ramakrishnan as Devi, an irrepressibly hot-headed high school girl trying to navigate the world of crushes, friends, strict parents, and some very real grief—has already established itself as one of the most charming and authentic teen shows out there. But its third season, which premiered earlier this month, takes it to a whole new level.
Previous seasons of Never Have I Ever had already acquainted us with Fabiola (Lee Rodriguez), a science whiz and robotics star who (at first) struggles with how to tell the people in her life that she’s gay. Watching Fab relax into her first relationship with her girlfriend Eve was as sweet as it was soothing, especially when she wrestled with queer predicaments that felt dead-on even to this aging millennial queer, like how to explain to Eve’s cool friends that she didn’t know anything about lesbian pop culture.
It was great to see Fab happy with Eve, but the new season’s twists and turns are arguably even more representative of a phenomenon that many people of all genders and sexualities will be able to relate to; that feeling when you’re just not that into them, no matter how much you may want to be. Season three sees Fab kiss—and eventually date—Aneesa, a classmate who was initially introduced as a foil for Devi and ended up dating Devi’s crush Ben. When Aneesa feels underappreciated by Ben, she turns to Fab, someone who actually is paying attention to the things that matter to Aneesa, like soccer. (Basically, listen to the Tegan & Sara song “Boyfriend” and you’ll understand everything you need to about this love triangle.)
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