Heartstopper

 

Netflix's British teen romance Heartstopper is the sweetly affirming story of two teen-aged schoolboys -- one a bullied, recently outted drummer named Charlie and the other a bi-curious rugger named Nick -- who meet cute one day in a class and discover their mutual attraction.

The eight-episode series stars Joe Locke as Charlie and Kit Connor as Nick and a host of other young actors as their constellation of friends, each dealing with their own matters-of-the-heart. Based on the Heartstopper graphic novels by Alice Oseman, the series features stylistic animated touches -- flurrying leaves, floating hearts, sparks -- that lend juvenilized accents to the narrative's charmingly inoffensive young-adult territory.

The two leads inhabit different emotional landscapes as their friendship becomes increasingly central to their evolving identities. In fact, the relationships among the various characters, while highly relatable and touching, serve as devices to examine the development of young people across sexualities and gender identities.

And the paucity of adults in the series -- aside from a few supportive parents and teachers -- means the story's focus is on the young people. The narrative gaze is not parental or academic, but, in many ways, clear-eyed and uncynical.