As A Fan Of Heartstopper Who Is Also A Lesbian I Hate How People Keep Painting The Narrative That The

As a fan of heartstopper who is also a lesbian I hate how people keep painting the narrative that the show is bad representatiom because its not "gritty"enough or that its made for the straights. First off Heartstopper deals with some very serious topics; Charlie was accidently outed by Tao and got bullied to the point he developed an eating disorder, Nick is constantly battling biphobia, Elle was bullied for years while transitioning, Tara and Darcy have to deal with a huge amount of lesbophobia from their peers and the show recently added scenes that suggest Darcy has a difficult home life.

Just because the show has cute squiggles and leaves instead of a dark colour palate and moody lighting doesnt mean its not a serious show. Also Heartstopper may be cutesy but the novel isnt chaste and sanitized in the way people often portray it. Nick and Charlie have some serious conversations about intimacy and how to balance that with Charlie's insecurities due to his ED. They also have sex and there is even a scene where Nick and the girls go on a college trip and they stop to buy condoms and lube and have a conversation about safe sex.

Heartstopper is an incredibly important show. I think alot of its haters take for granted just how healing it is for queer teens to have a show about queer joy and community while still seeing the characters deal with serious issues in a way that feels authentic. Nicks whole arc with coming to terms with his bisexuality and coming out was a gift within itself and the shows constant messaging about never assuming people's identities and letting people figure themselves out is more relevant than ever.

I'm not saying Heartstopper is the pinnacle of queer representation in media. What I am saying is that this is a good show that has done good things for the community wheter you like it or not. I'm also saying that just because a teen show is cute and heartwarming and isn't hyper focused on drugs and sex doesn't mean it lacks depth not every show is euphoria. Not every teen is doing drugs and having loads of sex and thats fine.

Also stop trying to say Heartstopper doesnt match up to Ofmd or Young Royals or Good Omens. It doesn't have too they arent even in the same categories and believe it or not we can hold space for more than one popular gay show at a time without them being in competition.