Heartstopper part 3

Previous thread.

Hahaha love the title OP!

Which of the lesbians in HS is straight? Tara or Darcy?

cameron monaghan and Jack Falahee who played gay characters in their show were ambiguous/hush-hush for awhile but came out as straight yrs later maybe that is the route Kit will take..

R3 Tara.

It was obvious tbh, she seemed less comfortable kissing Darcy (who's non-binary in real life btw).

R4 Jack Falahee could’ve fooled me. Some of those scenes holy shit.

Non binary isn’t a sexuality though is it? It’s a gender identity. Aren’t they two different things? I’m gay & a female. They are two different parts of my identity.

R7 Yes I do know that, thank you. No need to school me. Point is Darcy's actress being non-binary makes them queer and it shows in the lesbian scenes.

I want to know where I can adopt a dog exactly like Nellie. What a beautiful dog!

Ooooof

Pushing 50 😂 he’s not even 40 is he?! Poor Dan Levy 😂

Moving on from the constant sexuality shite - what’s next for the cast do we think? Obviously we’ve got Dr Who. Presumably Kit will be voice acting for Pan in His Dark Materials again.. I think they actually finished filming that last year. I wonder what the others might go on to do ..

I reckon Joe will have some trouble getting tv/movie roles because he pings way too much. I don't think he could play a convincing straight guy.

He should be okay doing theatre though. I think he's really talented, more than Kit actually.

R13 Kit can look forward to a solid career, he is talented and professional, and already has a decade of work experience aged 18. Joe may have a bit more of a niche career, like a Ben Whishaw or Andrew Scott perhaps, but he is talented and still learning.

Some of these other cast members though... I understand being excited by ones first break and all, but the constant squeeing on TikTok like school girls puts me off a bit tbh. This Bash fella had what, 45 seconds of screen time in the first series, but yet is seemingly inescapable on social media acting the STAR.

[quote] Sebastian Theodore Kemble Croft (born 16 December 2001[1]) is a British actor. He began his career as a child actor on stage before making his television debut as Young Ned Stark in Game of Thrones (2016). He earned a BAFTA Children's Award nomination for his role as Atti in Horrible Histories: The Movie – Rotten Romans (2019). Croft's voice work includes the film Where is Anne Frank (2021) and "Ice", an installment of the Netflix anthology Love, Death & Robots (2021). In 2022, he starred in the Netflix adaptation of Heartstopper as Ben Hope.

Actually, Sebastian is also child actor and was even a Bafta nominee.

Bash was in Game of Thrones, hes by far the most accomplished of the bunch.

Bash is also the most handsome.

It doesn't make him more accomplished because he was in Game of Thrones. Kit seems to have been in more diverse roles like His Dark Materials, Rocketman if checking. his resume. It's your opinion if Bash is more handsome but that doesn't play a part when getting roles.

Yes it does.

Remind us again how many minutes in total Sebastian was in Heartstopper?

That doesn't change anything. How many minutes in total was Olivia Colman in Heartstopper?

R21 Olivia Colman has an extremely successful career and is an established actress. She essentially joined the cast out of charity. You can't possibly compare her to Sebastian, a fledgling actor at best who's quickly going to be forgotten as his good looks fade if he keeps pandering on TikTok.

R21 And how many TikToks has Colman posted gadding about with the rest of the cast and posting sassy comments...?

Someone is definitely taking the biscuit if comparing Croft with the Olivia Colman. Olivia has been acting for years and has an Oscar for crying out loud.

You know, I love Bash & I love his love for HS. He’s the best promoter the show has got, he doesn’t shut up about it. BUT, I do agree this isn’t his starring role & he had very little screen time. I couldn’t possibly gage his acting credentials from HS. He didn’t do enough acting! The show clearly means a lot too him though, for whatever reason.

Joe for me will have to get in with LGBTQ acting scene in the UK. And he’s doing ok with that networking wise I recon. He seems pretty confident in who is. To be 18 & opting to wear a luminous pink suit to the BAFTAs takes balls & a great sense of pride in being a bit different. I think he might do OK. Sometimes niche is good. There is always a need for people to full quirky roles.

I think looks play some part in getting roles.. we seem to be moving away from looks being the only criteria thank god but all roles have criteria. You aren’t going to get Timothee Chalamet playing Bond. But quirky Willy Wonka, absolutely. Bash is a more likely heartthrob in a show for sure, same with Kit. But he’s a bit more bloke-ish to me, more rugby, more jock. Bash is more kinda handsome millionaire in a suit type vibe. I think Joe is quite striking looks wise, he’s different in a good way. But I agree he does ping a bit hard for the leading straight man roles.

I think Bash, Joe and Kit can all have successful careers based on their performances. I also think the some of the girls are quite good as well, especially Joe's sister.

For those of you who didn't follow the cast before the show, Joe's IG was pretty much all pictures of Bash or Bash and him as were his stories. A few weeks before the the show's premiere he deleted most of his personal pics and seemingly uses that account as his public/professional social media. Bash has also deleted a bunch of more personal pics from IG.

R28 Yeah those days were fun. Joe didn’t even try to hide the fact that he was in loooove

[quote] But I agree he does ping a bit hard for the leading straight man roles.

You clearly have no idea what Luke Evans was like in his theatre years.

About Sebastian having very little screen time. God, it is just one minor Netflix show and he is 20. It is not a mega hit film like Titanic that pushed Leo and Kate to stardom. You don’t know how are their careers going further. The fact that someone had main role in Heartstopper doesn't mean he will make a big career, nor having a minor role in it means that someone will not have a breakthrough later. I am not comparing anyone from the show to Olivia Coleman, but nobody knew of her when she was 20 either.

I see more potential in Sebastian, but I might be wrong.

I mean Kit is a bit too ordinary and plain. Sebastian has the glamour and beauty and I believe his looks will peak in few years. But you never know.

I see more potential in Joe. We have enough heartthrobs in cinema to last us a lifetime.

Little Joe

We all know about Joe & Bash R28 😂 Many love to claim they are ‘such good besties’ but let’s get real.

R30, nope. Can’t say I do. In fairness, Joe is really young & will change as he grows up.. who knows what he’ll mature into as he heads into his 20’s! I think he’s great, I hope he does well!

Joe’s favorite episode to film was episode 7 because ”it was fun to do the cinema scene with Bash specifically"

Googlebox is on YouTube if you want to watch. It's really funny.

What do we think about Bash coming back in s2? The hardcore fans adamantly do not want a ‘redemption arc’ for Ben. They don’t think he deserves forgiveness. They also don’t think Alice should change his character and that he should stay exactly as the books .. 🤔

As a 30+ year old adult, I personally think what we do as 14/15 year olds can largely be forgiven unless it’s murder or the person continues to be a twat. Being a bully is nasty but we all grow up and become different people. I’m now the best of friends with a girl who was awful to me in high school because I was gay. She made me cry pretty much daily. But we ended up on the same university course & she came over one day and sincerely apologised for the ‘little shit she was at school’ .. I was cautious but over the next few months, we bonded and I came to know her story and why she behaved as she did. Shes been a best friend for 10+ years now & a huge ally to me.. 🤷🏼‍♀️

The Radio Times podcast with Kit's Hugh Grant "revelation" is live.

He mentions the Tara & Darcy kiss again, at 16:30.

He mentions the Tara & Darcy kiss again, at 16:30.

Eek. The host asks if there was a temptation to laugh in the kissing scenes.

22:25

The "fat" crush on Hugh Grant is mentioned after 26:20

I mean who didn’t have a crush on Hugh Grant back in the day. It’s woman all day long for me but even I fully appreciated Hugh Grant in his Notting Hill days 😂

Still think Kit doth protest too much. Must suggest I might not be straight by mentioning a fat crush on a 60 year old 😂 My interest would have been peaked more if he’d had said good yeh, how fit is Shawn Mendes or Harry Styles 😉

Can the emoji-frau relax with the emojis

R6, yea Jack Falahee was weary to come out as straight because he didn’t want to ruined his character to the audience. I believe Kit will do the same..

Jack Falahee may claim straight but...

Some people on here doth protest too much about his sexuality, something that's private to him. A bit weird obsessing over an 18 yr old's sexuality wouldn't you say especially when he himself has spoken about the subject?

It's so private to him that he addresses it for publicity.

R49 He really has no choice. It comes with promoting a project in which he is acting the role of a man involved with another man. A large part of the fandom will not stop talking and asking about it, many younger 'shippers' in particular. There is a strange assumption by many, seemingly including some here on the DL, that playing gay somehow implies you are gay when the camera stops filming. Very odd, really.

Of course he has a choice. Bash hasn't made a point of saying that he's not labelling or talking about his sexuality. Has it even been a question by interviewers? Joe's coming out was only in passing. None of them have been grilled by journalists.

[Quote] There is a strange assumption by many, seemingly including some here on the DL, that playing gay somehow implies you are gay when the camera stops filming. Very odd, really.

Yes, very strange when comments have been attributed to Oseman about authenticity re the cast and the characters...

I don't care about Kit Connor's sexuality. I do care about the discourse around sexuality. "I would never disclose my sexuality publicly" sends a bad message. And he absolutely did not have to tweet out anything about it.

This R52 ^

And no R45, my leabian frau self loves an emoji 🖕🏼

I watched Heartstopper last night with a group of very masculine gay guys. I’ve been friends with these guys for years and have never seen them cry. By the end of the show all of them were crying & sobbing. Truly is one of the best shows on TV right now. It’s breaking down walls. Its bringing people together.

Joe getting annoyed with fake accounts

R54 And then you woke up.

R56 Crazy but this actually happened. It totally and completely caught me off guard.

Not all gay guys are cool machos as DLers R57.

From Tobie's recent vlog

But R59 ‘it’s just platonic, it sit on my friends knee all the time’ ‘we are just that close of mates’ .. have a day off you weirdos.

Men do not sit hugging each other’s knees. It just does not happen. Look at them. That is not bloody platonic. Plus, in light of all the other REEMS of evidence, we can continue to conclude they are in fact boyfriends.

I don’t mean you are weird R59. Not aimed at you!

R56 I have a heart of ice, but I freely admit that I found myself tearing up at times watching the show; and it was quite the shock to be experiencing that response.

Joe and Kit answer questions for IMDb

They worked the poor kid to tears.

Agree with Kit, Joe would make a great Dr Who.

Bit of a change of dynamics in this interview. Usually Kit is the one leading the chatting & speaks far more but reversed here. Nice to hear Joe chatting away.

What is Kit doing with that hair?!

HS didn’t make me cry at all, it was a pretty happy, cheerful show to me. Minimal angst. I did have to try very hard not to cry on the treadmill in my gym watching the last ep of Young Royals however 😂 the angst, the heartbreak, the music ..

I don't understand the tears, either. Heartstopper is sweet but, holy shit, the stakes weren't really there in the first season. I'm surprised at strong reactions either way.

Just binge-watched the first season and loved every minute of it. It's very feel-good entertainment. Charlie opening the door and Nick standing in the rain was such a Jane Austen moment. *lol*

I thought the best conventionally looking guy was Cormac Hyde-Corrin who plays Harry, the douchebag bully.

Eh, I think the sweetness of the core couple, the innocence, really touched me. Reminded me a bit of my own first youthful relationships I suppose, a time before cynicism and regret came to colour everything.

R66 my god you have terrible taste.

I watched an interview with "Harry." It's hard to believe he's 18. He acts much younger.

Someone mentioned (in a previous thread) that Kit mentions he likes the movie Normal People, and I think Heartstopper's Nick is such a goody two shoes, just like Paul Mescal's Connell in Normal People.

R69 i think he's only 16 and the youngest

Conclusion, from Tobie's latest vlog, Kit kept his distance from the rest of the cast yet again...

Tobie's vlog. Bash and Joe must've been out as a couple to their cast mates at this point since no one bats an eye at them acting like boyfriends with Joe sitting in Bash's lap during lunch.

Why would they keep it a secret, relationships are not something to sneak around & hide so long as you are both single!

r66 - Why are you even reading this thread?

Swedes do it better.

[Quote] Conclusion, from Tobie's latest vlog, Kit kept his distance from the rest of the cast yet again...

So much so that he eats lunch with them? When Joe was sitting in Bash's lap, Kit was sitting at the same table.

They absolutely do R76. Young Royals is brilliant. I think it really gets the right balance between portraying teenagers, awkward but loving sex, new relationships & love. & the cast are breath of fresh air. They are so open & honest in interviews, maybe it’s a Swedish thing but the interviewers do not hold back in asking them all kinds of questions! For a 19 year old, Edvin Ryding speaks with maturity way ahead of his years, yet he retains that teenage energy & silliness. I love him.

Still, all these shows have their place. Young Royals brings the gay angst & forbidden love. HS brings the cute, happily ever after. There is room for both.

Its weird to see sebastian getting so many threads, instead of the actual leads 😅. And, joe and sebastian definitely seems to be too much intimate with each other, for their relationship to be just “ platonic bffs”. But I don’t see, how can that issue is causing such a heated debate . We are free to assume, whatever we like.

R79 Bash has had threads here since before Heartstopper, he was on Game of Thrones and Penny Dreadful. He's good friends with DL fave Connor Jessup:

Sebastian’s had a thread on here way before HS. Him & Joe gained some interest early 2021 via Connor Jessup!

R81 that’s exactly what R80 said lol

Bash also posts lots of content.

Bash and Joe today

I could be considered an eldergay, but I appreciate how much gay content is out there these days and how younger generations grow up with a wide range of gay, LGBT representation in sports and entertainment media.

R85 Drop the fucking Trans

You clearly didn't read the comics because thankfully Elle is here to stay. If a trans person makes you feel uncomfortable then the problem is you and not them.

Kit's answer post 4:56 is so... dissembling. Joe is so chill and straightforward.

I never heard of this show but I work in a library and these graphic novels have occasionally come across my desk. They're cute but everything seems so simplistic and people all seem so sure of their preferences at 16 or whatever "I'm gay!" "I'm bi! I like men and women equally!" "Cool!" "Let's tell my mum!" "Oh boys I think it's so wonderful you're in love!" Is the show this simplistic and sappy? Is it really that easy to be gay now? I don't know, I mean I'm older, but I know kids who are 25 who seem closeted. It just seems about as shallow as you can get.

*Correction - I never heard of the show until fairly recently - and have never seen it.

Well, watch it and report back. The episodes are only a half hour each.

R91 I don't think it's for me.

r92, but the thread discussing the show apparently is.

I watched the show last night and LOVED it. I'm just puzzled by some of the gripes people have about it though, like it being unrealistic and the lack of sex. It was very clear to me from the start what the aim and tone of the show was.

It's a PG focused, idealized gay love story--one that's unabashedly basking in all the romantic tropes that used to be reserved only for straight people (kissing in the rain, flirty snow ball fights, happy endings, etc.) And I loved every minute of it. Was that my experience growing up gay? Of course not.

But what gay teenage boy didn't dream about having those things when they were young...about meeting and falling in love with the handsome, masculine school jock with a heart of gold who, not only loves us back, but is willing to sacrifice his heterosexual privilege to be with us? I daydreamed about that stuff all the time when I was a young gayling.

This show isn't about realism, it's about giving queer people an outlet of escapism that isn't weighed down by trauma and suffering...where queer people get to find their soulmate, fall in love and live happily ever after. Straight people have enjoyed those stories for centuries. About time we get to see ourselves happy too.

Also, I was so impressed by how beautifully shot this series was. It was so cinematic. All the colors, lens flares, romantic lighting...loved it. It was such a beautiful thing to see a queer-centric show with this level of production value, something I couldn't imagine even 10 years ago.

Can't wait for season 2. They will be off to Paris and there are so many more wonderful moments Charlie and Nick have in the future books. Can't wait to see them translated to screen.

R94 Wow! I agree with everything you said 100%. I can’t wait for seasons 2 & 3.

HS is a complete fairytale but that’s not a bad thing. Real life it is not, the characters are these perfectly idealised people, either perfectly good or a baddie, there’s no other dimension to them. & the story is too perfect but I think that’s the point. It’s the fairytale, happily ever after. It’s escapism for the hardcore fans who are probably mostly people who don’t fit in at school very well etc. It’s a cute & very well made show, feel good. And I agree, beautifully shot. The music is great too.

It has its place amongst the angst. It’s not my favourite, I prefer a more realistic character but it’s still good.

I do kinda worry for some of those on Twitter though - they are going to expect an awful lot from relationships though. If they don’t fall in love with someone who is willing to sacrifice their entire life for them, who never makes mistakes & who they never argue with, it’ll be game over.

R96 Agreed… & they’re definitely not gonna meet them sitting around in a gay bar.

R88, his answer is exhausting. Kit tries a bit too hard to be overly mature sometimes I think. Joe is far more relaxed in interviews. And frankly, their characters are really not multilayered & the entire story is about their sexuality. So to that end, they are defined by their sexuality for the purpose of the show. Same with all coming out stories. The entire point of the show is about their sexuality & a usually some kinda hidden love story. That’s not something to be ashamed of..

I've never had a jock fetish.

I also don't understand the Kit hate here.

Like, I remember when straight actors playing gay roles would [bold]literally[/bold] go on TV talk shows and say they had to gurgle with mouthwash after kissing their male costar. Or, how about the guy who played the gay character on Dawson's Creek? He would say all the time in interviews how he demanded it be written into his contract that he would have no more than one same-sex kiss per season.

Like, compared to that, Kit should be given a GLAAD award with what he's said in interviews. I've watched a lot of his interviews, and he's been nothing but humble and thoughtful in his responses, especially when asked about queer representation, his character's bisexuality, the evolving concept of masculinity and the show's impact overall on queer youth. These aren't easy, softball questions--and he's been very articulate in his answers, especially for someone who is only 18.

Even if he was coached on these answers, it's amazing to see such a contrast between where we've been to where we are now in how actors speak about playing queer characters.

For the record, I do think Kit is straight. It would be cool if he wasn't, and we could see two actors who are queer in real life, leading and basking in the success of a queer-centric show...but, so long as he continues to be respectful and thoughtful when speaking about his role and the show, then I'm good.

He has given me media coached. He gets lost when specifics are required. And it's frankly very weird to trot out that "none of the characters are defined by their sexualities" when it's a coming of age tale centred around romance. No one ever says that shit about str8 characters in a rom-com.

I don't hate Kit. I don't know him. But I see nothing wrong with discussing his public statements. He's contributing to discussion, is he not?

R100 He is not allowed to talk about his gay character like the actors you mentioned did in the past. In the past they were allowed to be disrespectful snd they wanted to shake gay away.These are different times and this is a "woke" show. He is not stupid. And he probably has it in his contract too.

I don’t hate Kit either. I’m sure he’s a perfectly lovely guy. But as the star of a queer TV show, being so huffy about his sexuality is annoying. He’s clearly been told to not talk about it. Which is fine but then, don’t talk about it. Don’t keep talking about not talking about it. Don’t do interviews & podcasts banging on about it. And to add insult to injury, talking about the importance of viability. It’s infuriating.

Look at the YR cast. The leads have never stated their sexuality but they just don’t talk about it. It’s not a topic they ever broach or discuss. And frankly, that’s a lot less annoying.

But as above, I don’t hate him. But that’s my opinion of his actions on this particular issue. Otherwise, crack on Kit!

[Quote] He’s clearly been told to not talk about it.

I doubt that. I haven't seen an interview where the other cast members talk about their sexuality. Kit is not being targeted. He, and like the pubicists involved, are choosing to make this an issue.

*and likely the publicists

Even if he had to be coached, I still don't understand why that's a problem. It's a bare necessity of being in the business at this point. You don't think Joe Locke is getting coached on how to do press just as much? I'm sure his answers are just as rote and scripted. I know I would need coaching if I was thrust into the spotlight like Kit and Joe have been, and expected to answer such deep questions about representation and sexuality--and I'm gay myself! Nowadays you say one minor thing that can even be remotely misconstrued as negative, and it's over. That level of scrutiny is insane. You'd be a fool to go into a press junket and just wing it. But maybe the difference is, bottom line, I do think Kit is genuine about the meaning behind those scripted words. I think he generally believes in what he's saying, even if he didn't write the words out himself. He seems nice and probably considers himself an ally. As a straight person, he naturally will have some blindspots when it comes to the nuance of the LGBTQ experience, but I don't expect that from him.

[Quote] Nowadays you say one minor thing that can even be remotely misconstrued as negative, and it's over.

Let's Cancel "Cancel Culture"!

If Kit were truly well coached, he'd respond to that typecasting question with "I should be so lucky to be typecast as a multi layered character" and leave it at that. None of this "these characters aren't defined by their sexuality" nonsense.

Even both Joe and Sebastian are being coached by not revealing the truth about their relationship and pretending to be fake best friends. Sebastian has been in the business long enough to have a good pr coach.

You don't have to be coached to do that. There aren't many steps to "archive these pics on your Instagram page." I hope Bash and Joe don't start getting diarrhea of the mouth like Kit.

[quote]But what gay teenage boy didn't dream about having those things when they were young...about meeting and falling in love with the handsome, masculine school jock with a heart of gold who, not only loves us back, but is willing to sacrifice his heterosexual privilege to be with us? I daydreamed about that stuff all the time when I was a young gayling.

I didn't. Most of the jocks in my high school were pricks. Also I didn't find jocks to be handsomer than other guys. I was friends with two of them, good friends - both straight - hockey player and football player - but wasn't in love with them.

Ok, maybe we didn't all want the jock in HS, but I meant more along the lines of meeting and falling in love with a (seemingly) straight guy--who was kind, sensitive, deeply empathetic--that loved us back and wanted to be with us. You can't tell me you didn't crush hard on straight guys you knew would never return your affections.

Every gay boy has had that experience.

Nick is the embodiment of that fantasy come to life, but in this story, we (i.e., Charlie) gets the dream guy.

I also think Kit is straight and has been super positive about being honored to be part of representing queer folk. As mentioned, the kid is 18 and pretty articulate for his age. He may suffer from trying too hard to be seen as smart but again, he's 18. Joe is more laid back, I think he is still gobsmacked that this is happening to him. Kit IMO just has more serious actor guy vibe desires. I hope they both have satisfying career because they are both talented.

[quote]You can't tell me you didn't crush hard on straight guys you knew would never return your affections.

Yeah, the trouble is, the couple of guys I crushed on were more sort of the bad boy type. They weren't really bad but were the kind that were wiseasses, or sullen, and got detention. Wore tight jeans and boots, and had long hair. They were hot, but I only thought about how they made me feel - sexual - I never wanted one of those kids to be my boyfriend and I never thought about even being friends with them. Maybe that's why I can't relate to the "sweet boyfriend" thing. lol ok I'm weird.

*I mean later on I did have some sweet boyfriends and that kind of relationship - I was lucky, I think - but it was more when I was older. High school was more fucked up.

R112 I agree entirely. I think Kit was great in Heartstopper, his character is so earnest and sweet. Doesn't hurt that I tend to fancy gingers either, he is just fucking adorable.

Kids are groomed, starting with the parents and other authority figures, to crave and chase after approval from others. What makes school, especially high school, so traumatic is that it's one of the first places where kids and teens experience rejection and their peers withholding approval in cruel and traumatic ways.

One of the most fucked up things in a younger person's life is to deal with the fact that the so-called "cool kids" declare you unworthy of their approval and the best they can offer you is bullying you, scarring you for life in the process, making you feel like you deserve that for being so damn uncool and unworthy of approval.

Heartstopper, a light, feel-good gay themed show on the surface, is rather dark when you read between the lines. Charlie falls head over heels for the straight, or "straight", guy who is part of the cool kids crowd. The first part is all about Charlie and his friends insisting that there is no way that Nick would waste a single second in his life to think about Charlie romantically. Charlie risks it all for the slight chance he might get a little approval from Nick while still dealing with a sad and insecure Ben, who is a sociopath predator and Charlie's very first gay experience, establishing Charlie's incredibly low self-esteem, desperate for any approval he can get (including a few stolen moments in some empty room with Ben while said Ben treats him like shit in public).

Heartstopper attempts to empower younger generations, but it also doesn't shy away from pointing out that the same troubles that fucked us "eldergays" up still can fuck up younger generations.

We want Jonny to play the second teacher that goes on the Paris trip. Start a petition 🙏

People here have issues with this show because it fetishizes us, plain and simple and like someone upthread said, it sends the wrong message to youth. Slash fiction, written by women have this in common, they loathe masculinity and men, so they create an ideal world where men aren't important unless they're serving women. That's why this show's lead is the more fem guy and not the jock. What kind of man says he's SCREAMING like a 12 year old girl, just because some guy shows interest in them? Thats what girls do.

I've watched many boys love shows and there's an underlying theme on them, the point of view of straight women that men have to be devoted to them and leave their friends so that love can exist. No wonder they're so miserable. Have you heard this anywhere? That's the number one complaint men have toward their female partners.

Nick Nelson doesn't have a single friend who's a normal empathetic guy like him, which is surreal to me. This show is the utopia most straight women want to live in, a world where the hot masculine men is devoted to them and leave all their friends to be with them because they're all toxic. I was a jock in HS, I wasn't out but I even had an out gay friend who actually helped me come to terms with my being gay. I still had close jock friends who not only liked my gay friend but protected him from bullies, because he was my friend. This doesn't exist in this show, because the author hates men. She literally wrote the show in a way that Nick leaves all his male friends to hang out with a group of mostly women which I'd bet good money is the author's expectations of a romance. It sends a toxic message that one needs to leave what they love and who they love to be with someone else.

Ben is not a sociopath. He is meant to be a 15 year old boy who is closeted & hates himself. He is being a bully because he can’t cope with who he is & he is envious of Charlie. In reality, he would grow up, come out & most likely become a normal, nice, respectful member of society. I hate to admit it but I wasn’t always the kindest teenager. I was bullied horribly for being gay & in turn, I thought it made me cooler if I laughed along at the geekier kids. As a 30 year old, I realise my behaviour was horrible but I was just being a teenager desperate to be cool and desperate to stop them bullying me if they thought I was cool. It hasn’t me a awful adult or remotely a sociopath. I think I’m a nice enough, kind, respectful person.

People are flawed. Teenagers are assholes. We are not one dimensional. HS fans try to make them that way though.

R119...Um, what?

Did you even watch the show?

Charlie literally says in the show he doesn't expect Nick to leave his friends for him. He says "some of the other rugby boys are nice" and even in the later books, some of Nick's old friends apologize to him and they eventually reconcile. In the show, Charlie even goes to the movies to meet Nick and hang out with his friends, which shows that Charlie 1) doesn't expect Nick to abandon his friends for him and 2) that Nick obviously felt comfortable enough with some of them to invite Charlie along. It's only when the homophobic asshat shows up that things go south.

And even then, the homophobic asshat ends up apologizing for being a homophobic asshat in the later books--so even with that character the author shows that positive change is possible.

But no, she must hate men and want them to abandon their friends for straight women. WTF? Sounds like you're projecting your own misogyny to be honest instead of dealing with the actual show and source material.

[quote] Nick Nelson doesn't have a single friend who's a normal empathetic guy like him, which is surreal to me.

At one point in the show Charlie says to Nick "I don't expect you to dump your friends for me. Some of the rugby boys are really nice"

Gaycel?

I don't think you understand what underlying means. The character says this, but the story doesn't serve that, because the friends are bullies to Charlie. He chooses to leave his friends to be with him. Where were the nice guys he speaks of? Why didn't they interject or sided with Nick at the party and at the movie theater?

None of Nicks friends talk to Charlie at the movie theater. You must be blind or a teenage girl, because that scene doesn't represent at all what you say it does. The dynamic of that scene is that Charlie is isolated with Nick while the other boys are happily interacting with each other, the token homophobic notwithstanding.

Charlie is harassed at the locker room then Tao is harassed by the homophobe. Where were the nice ones that he speaks of when that happens? I'll tell you, they're laughing at them. Same when Tao throws the ball at Nick. You know why they didn't come to rescue them? Because what Charlie says is pure lip service to garner sympathy for the underlying reality he wants Nick to leave his friends to hang out with his dorky friends which is what we actually witness.

I think you're the one projecting your obliviousness to the absurdities of the plot. I still love the show for what it is, a fantasy, but let's not pretend that it makes any sense. It doesn't.

Um, have you ever heard of peer pressure? Bystander effect? This is typical behavior, especially for kids in high school who are desperate to fit in. It makes perfect sense they would stand by instead of interjecting. And this shocks Nick because, like I said, he probably thought they would be cool with Charlie there, otherwise he wouldn't have suggested they all hang out.

Again, why would Charlie agree to hang out with Nick's friends if he thought they were all toxic assholes? Why would Nick even invite Charlie if he didn't think they would be cool with him?

Like, the author does the exact opposite of everything you're accusing her of.

In the show, Charlie explicitly says (and shows) he doesn't expect Nick to abandon his friends for him. In the books, Nick's friends apologize and they reconcile (so Nick doesn't end up abandoning them) and even the token homophobe ends up apologizing (showing that even people who do bad things can change for the better).

Where is this hatred for men you speak of? You're just imbuing some "underlying" subtext that's just not there to suit your own twisted narrative about women in your head.

[quote] Um, have you ever heard of peer pressure? Bystander effect? This is typical behavior,

Have you ever hang out with boys and jocks in particular? I don't think you have.

When do we see them even SPEAKING to Charlie? He's literally isolated in this story every time we see him with the other boys. We never see them interacting because they don't actually exist. They only exist in the dialogue as lip service to the plot.

I'm not a gay incel or against women as you project. What I am is a gay man, a former athlete who in fact understands male bonding and the camaraderie that comes with sports. You clearly don't, because you're either a teenage girl or a gay boy that never hang out with other boys. So of course you think what I say is misogyny and not simply a critique on the absurdities of these boys interactions. Love Victor works the same way on how absurd they depict Victor's jock friends, but at least at some point the whole team shows the camaraderie that is expected of them and support Victor dying their hair purple, however unrealistic that was. Unlike what we see in HS.

Jocks act like a pack of wolfs and will defend anyone that plays with them or that are associated with them. Charlie doesn't have this treatment because he's isolated and no one wants to deal with him. The nice guys don't exist, because if they did, they would have jumped to defend not only Charlie but Nick too, since they're close friends. Maybe the creator of this drivel should have hired a male consultant that actually understands that, but of course they already had to hire a LGBT consultant so let's not even get into that.

R128 Have you been glancing your camerades in the shower?

[quote] Charlie but Nick too,

I meant Charlie and Tao too.

Lots of long-winded posts here.

A bunch of straight women?

[quote]I'm not a gay incel or against women as you project.

You accused the author of hating men, then listed a ton of ridiculous examples to support your claim.

Then, when I point out the author did the exact opposite in the actual show/books...it's all about what's "underlying," only lip service, etc.

Again, to reiterate...you're whole point is the author hates men because she has Nick leave his friends to be with Charlie and his group of "mostly women" friends. Funny how you had to specify "mostly women," but I digress...you're not against women at all.

Let's recap 1. Charlie explicitly says he doesn't expect Nick to leave his friends for him 2. Nick invites Charlie to hang out with his friends and Charlie accepts. 3. Nick (in the later books) doesn't end up abandoning his friends, but instead reconciles with them...so...he's still with Charlie and is still friends with his rugby mates.

Literally, the exact opposite of everything you're saying. You can claim "underlying" all you want, but you're straight up ignoring the ACTUAL TEXT in front of you to justify your bogus claim.

[quote] Charlie literally says in the show he doesn't expect Nick to leave his friends for him.

Little frau, that's what your gonna be saying to your closeted hubby when he tells you he's leaving to hang out with the boys. That's what every woman tells their husbands before guilt tripping them into not spending time with them at all. Wait and see.

You conveniently ignored everything I said about male bonding and how male athletes behave and how it contradicts the show, because you can't really dispute that.

[Quote] I meant more along the lines of meeting and falling in love with a (seemingly) straight guy--who was kind, sensitive, deeply empathetic--that loved us back and wanted to be with us. You can't tell me you didn't crush hard on straight guys you knew would never return your affections.

I must be a hard ass but I've never had strong feelings for anyone who was unavailable. And I've never feishized "straight acting."

[quote]You conveniently ignored everything I said...

So did you. But unlike you, I'm actually stating facts and dealing with the actual text of the show/books.

Nick is still with Charlie and still with his friends. He didn't abandon them for Charlie. So, there goes your whole theory that the author is sending some toxic message that men need to leave their friends to have love or whatever nonsense BS you were rambling about.

R132 Don’t pay attention to him. He’s the same guy that wanted them swapping BJ’s by the third episode.

Which would be quite normal behaviour of teenage boys R136.

The author is asexual. Which is peculiar, it must give you a slightly odd perspective on life compared to the 99.9% of people who do enjoy sex..

Are you suggesting the author was forced to include kissing scenes?

The author literally believes these two will be together forever, which says it all really.

Nope R139, I presume you still kiss if you are asexual?! I had always assumed it was just sex & anything sex related that was no?

Who better than an aexual woman to write about first love between a gay and a bi boy? *snerk*

I loved (sarcasm) her line in the book where he asks his mom if she minds and she says something like, "Do you think I was born in 1920?" Hell my mom was born in 1928 and she was open minded about my sexual identity. The line was, like, this superiority to a whole generation, it seemed so insulting, and arbitrary, to me. Like erasing older people or earlier generations - which is common now.

I can't get over Joe's missing tooth (teeth?). I'm pretty sure Kit is also missing a tooth in the same place, that's why he always covers his mouth when laughing.

Yes. Kit has no tooth there as well. You can see it in the video where the cast tries to draw alongside Alice.

Will they get implants for season 2?

Brits have nasty teeth, it's no secret.

What kind of parent will let their kid be on TV with a glaring missing tooth? Teens notice this too.

lets*

If it's good enough for Janice Nicholls...

I can relate, I have missing side teeth as well. He looks cute anyway.

I bet Kit will get an implant before Joe does.

[Quote] I can relate, I have missing side teeth as well.

Did they not grow in? I know someone who had a baby tooth that never dropped out. It began to rot so they had it removed and an implant put in its place.

Looks like he's missing more than one

People are really crazy around here.

[Quote] People are really crazy around here.

Shaming other posters doesn't really work around here. They'll type what they like.

R162 No, they were pulled, I don't have the bone density for implants and we were poor.

It’s so weird they both look to be missing teeth in the exact same place. I’m British, I have nice teeth. I don’t know anyone bar my parents who are missing teeth. Either they just don’t or they’ve had implants. Even my not very well off parents paid to get a couple implants when they lost teeth due to cavities. They are expensive, about £2000 a tooth but they can both afford it for the sake of the fact they are on TV?!

Do you have to reach a certain age before you can have implants?

Why don't they have perfect chicklet TV teeth and perfect skin and hair? I don't understand...

I thought a lot of people had problems with TV and social media normalizing physical perfection in teens and young adults. Don't kids suffer low self esteem and depression because they can't measure up to these impossible examples of perfection? So the kids are missing some teeth. My God, it's realistic.

I know, they'll find more flaws to bitch about. They may be missing teeth but at least they are on a hit show and Netflix and the viewers ain't complaining unlike the people on here.

[Quote] Why don't they have perfect chicklet TV teeth and perfect skin and hair? I don't understand...

Because they have yet to make the acquaintance of this gentleman...

Stop, my eyes!

Off topic but it's a peculiar thing I've noticed - even celebs who are punky and trying to look (or just do look) trailer-trashy, and dirty, still always have perfect, perfect teeth. It just looks so bougie.

New vlog from Tobie. Kit being more sociable and Joe sitting on Bash again LOL

Bash teasing Joe at 07:20 is very cute

I don’t think anyone needs to be perfect. God knows I’m not. I love seeing teens looking like teens & the move away from the perfectly beautiful superstar. I love that they had spotty teenagers on Young Royals. I love Joe, missing teeth & all.

But still, missing teeth. Maybe it’s just me but it’s something I’d have hated as a teenager & begged my parents to sort out for me!

Does Bash ever sit on Joe?

I know someone lost all his teeth as a teenager because he was raised by an alcoholic single parent and never went to a dentist. All his teeth had to be pulled and it wasn't done until he was 19 or 20, and in the service. Not everyone can beg their parents for things.

I don't think either should rush to get implants, or get implants at all. But it is a little surprising that somone whose middle name is Sebastian is missing teeth.

R167 - yes, in an early vlog of Tobies there’s a clip where Bash is clearly going to sit on Joes knee. But the camera cuts away. But you can see him place his hands on the chair to sit down on Joe.

Seemingly Joe sits on Bash far more often though.

Crazy that I never noticed he was missing a prominent tooth! I think Kit generally smiles with a closed mouth, perhaps that is why.

He also covers his mouth when laughing. I wonder if he's popular with Japanese schoolgirls.

Sebastian has nice teeth

R174 Well he is Greek-Cypriot.

And his family most likely have the money for private dentist.

This show is a PR hit, it's not even close to being a hit. It's cheap so it'll fill the quota.

R171...I noticed his teeth look much straighter than they did on the show, so he's probably already in the mist of getting them worked on.

No doubt Joe and Kit will come back in season 2 with perfect smiles, which would be jarring. I understand being self conscious about your smile, but I don't think either of them have bad teeth at all, really. They just aren't perfect, which I kinda liked about the show. They allowed the actors to have acne and normal teeth.

So long as their teeth aren't like those in the picture, then they're good.

Reign with Josh Smith

True R176, Bash’s family are minted.

I think getting your teeth is just a thing when you go on TV in the UK. Remember X-Factor? There was a big thing around how they were all sent to the cosmetic dentist before the live shows. & I remember an actor on one of the soaps talking about his agent sending him to get his teeth ‘sorted out’ .. I forget who, it was in some magazine at the hairdressers. You rarely see actors with bad teeth. BUT this is the UK, we don’t go in for the gleaming white smile. They’ll still probably look bad to the US.

This US resident is perfectly fine with British smiles.

How much does it cost to replace a tooth in the UK? Surely it can't be that expensive?

I don't know Joe's family financial situation but personally, I'd never let my child star in a Netflix show with a missing tooth!

As long as he's depositing the checks in the family account, they can live with a missing tooth or three.

Cost my Dad £2000 per tooth plus £250 fee for the dentist to do it. That’s like approx $2750 ish. We don’t have health/dental insurance here typically (some people do but the majority use the NHS). So you have to pay upfront.

Anyway, moving on from teeth. Anything interesting in the podcast? I’ll have a listen tomorrow..

You definitely can't get implants with NHS dentists, you can get crowns, dentures but implants you have to go private for that. They cost thousands.... My brother in law is Turkish, he broke a tooth at the front last year. He went back to Istanbul to get an implant this year, way affordable compared to England. Perhaps Joe's family couldn't afford to have it done or Joe doesn't want it? Remember this is his first ever role in something.

How did we end up talking about teeth?? Yikes

Aw. Kit bought Tobie a new camera.

Now that it's the off season it'll be interesting to see who in the cast is actually good friends. Obviously Bash and Joe are attached at the hip as more than friends and Will and Kit seem close as well but I think the whole "we are all best friends!", "Happy Birthday!" instagram post for everyone thing will die down fairly fast. Joe seems to be quite close to everyone except maybe Will and the Isaac actor does too.

I had this feeling Kit has a crush on Joe and Joe has a soft spot for him too. Maybe I was being delusional basing their relationship off something my friend experienced in his life. his boyfriend used to make fun of him before they got in a relationship, alot. My friend says he used to get really annoyed by it, all his bf used to do was just get on his nerves, refused to speak normally with him. When they confronted, his bf revealed he used to do it because he was trying to hide his feelings for him, and not to create this weird tension between them. That could have been the case with these two, but after watching their bff test on YouTube, I realised maybe I am wrong.

Here comes the badly written frau fanfiction...

R189 honestly I think they’re fond of each other and Kit likes to subtly tease Joe about Sebastian. If you watch their interviews functionally every time Sebastian gets brought up it’s by Kit who praises him like crazy while looking at Joe. I don’t really sense attraction between them, just friends fucking with each other.

Like when Kit was amused by Joe not knowing that his middle name is Sebastian. Joe wrote Sebastian's middle name (Theodore) lol

R190 Not my fault my truth sounds silly to you. At some point in life, you will have to realise that things like this happen. R191 yeah maybe you are right. As I said, I just thought about it for a while, then the bff test just cleared all my doubts.

R192 that was the one I was thinking of! And even when the question was asked Kit immediately laughed and was like “oh you know this, if you don’t that’s really disappointing”

I want to know how Tobie is comfortable enough to call Kit "Kitrina." Does he feminize everyone's names?

R195 he also called Joe Joanna, right? he's at least fine with those 2

Is one of these Will's girlfriend?

R189 - you do realise Joe has been in a relationship with Bash for over a year right? And hasn’t hung out with Kit once since their promo was done nor very much at all after filming finished last year?

Joe & Kit are wildly different. I don’t see them remaining close friends once they are done with HS.

R197- no idea but one of those girls has the whitest foundation I’ve ever seen 😱

[Quote] one of those girls has the whitest foundation I’ve ever seen 😱

You are clearly unfamiliar with Mrs. Walter Matthau.

Bash and Will hanging out tonight; Kit and Joe must be jealous they've still got exams.

Why would they be jealous? They were at the pub, something adults do all the time. I doubt they were heartbroken at missing one trip to the pub. That’s just not how friendship/relationships/adulthood works 🤦🏼‍♀️

Wondering if the week plus vlog delay is because Tobie is trying to include more Kit stuff or cut out Joe/Bash PDA? Apparently the cast jokes about the Kit hating them all in the vlogs comments so I’m sure they see all the comments about Joe and Bash as well.

What does everyone think the next cast jobs/roles are going to look like? I feel like Kit is clearly being positioned as the breakout star from both reception and interview features. A lot of attention has been focused in interviews with him on how he "emotionally invested" and actually cried in particular scenes; way more questions asked about the technical parts of acting than in Joe's interviews which is sort of interesting.

Yaz is it seems at this point being positioned instead of Joe as the number 2. I actually think Joe is a way better actor than Yaz (she was the stiffest in the show in my opinion, though she's fine), but she got the Dr. Who role though there are 2 more seasons to go of Heartstopper for Joe to get some exposure.

I think Will is more interested in music than acting, honestly, and can see him just doing primarily band stuff after Heartstopper. Bash I think will also have a pretty good career; he's charismatic, a pretty good actor, and good looking - I don't think he'll blow up per se, but I think both he and Joe can have totally good English working careers bouncing around BBC and Channel 4 shows and supporting roles in films. The others will certainly be helped a bit by the Heartstopper fandom though I don't know how much bigger I see them getting in the future.

The Brits have the jug ears quite often.

Is Yaz is the next series of Dr Who or just the anniversary specials? I thought she was OK in HS, nothing particularly special. Her casting along with a black, gay man had rocked my Who loving 70 year old Dad to his core 😂

I don’t think you can judge them that much on this series of HS. None of them really explored any depth to their acting as the show was so light & cheesy. Their lines sounded overly scripted & not that natural. Even Nicks sexuality crisis was pretty cheerful, everyone was accepting. Happy days. Compare them to other young actors exploring more gritty, messy, angsty storylines. I could have acted Bash’s scenes, he was barely in it. I certainly couldn’t judge his acting ability from HS! He is very charismatic though, probably help.

Agreed R206, I liked the show and think they all performed well but it's hard to fully gauge acting range. My perhaps unpopular opinion is that considering how much more experience Kit has than the rest of them I expected him to act circles around them, and I genuinely don't think he outperformed a few of the cast. Specifically Joe and the actress who played Charlie's sister. He was certainly good and one of the stronger members of the cast but I think he, like those two had trouble selling some of the more cringe dialogue but overall edged out the others. I am puzzled by how much praise he's been getting as people are acting like he fully carried the series and I think the two leads and Tori were all pretty equally good, if not incredible.

Same page R207, he could not sell the cheesiest dialogue! The ‘why are we like this’ was a struggle for both of them but Kits sounded particularly terrible. Don’t blame them, it’s a horrible bit of dialogue that I hope they never say again. I discovered HS when I was Young Royals & reading some tweets. Now there are one or two talented youngsters. Edvin Ryding is a fantastic actor. He improvised several of his more difficult scenes which is impressive. The scene where he is high & tripping is really good. He’s only 19. The actor playing Simon isn’t bad either for his first acting role.

I do like Joe & Kit’s OK. I think they both showed some promise. I’m just not sure if their talent will come fully through in HS unless they up the drama a bit. Maybe the anorexia storyline might be a breakthrough for Joe.. will they do other acting gigs between the next series shooting I wonder?

R208 apparently series 2 is meant to start shooting in September; I doubt they'll book anything that'll be filmed in full in the interim. My guess is if their agents have any sense at all they'll have upped their salaries for the next two series and added in an off period between filming the two seasons of even a month or month and a half to allow them to take meetings and other auditions.

Also hoping Joe is impressive with the mental illness and anorexia storylines. The author left it all mostly off the page in the webcomics, though - and while I get not wanting to show scenes of cutting or wasting away on screen I hope Netflix and the studio push them to include more challenging scenes and dialogue so we can see what the actors can do with richer writing than just "why are we like this", "i love liking you", "so are we boyfriends?" It doesn't need to switch to a total drama but I think cutting away the scenes where Charlie has breakdowns and goes to inpatient care fully would be a very odd choice. That being said I can see them using the few month timejump from the comics (where everything from Charlie's parents finding out he needs help, to his going to inpatient care, to his coming home is all fit in a few pages of Nick remembering) to stagger seasons 2 and 3 which would be idiotic but in line with what the creator wanted.

Very curious to see where they take the next two seasons. I hope they do tackle the grittier stuff but it just doesn’t seem like it’ll fit the aesthetic or tone of HS realIy. Instead, there’ll be an entire episode about Charlie getting a hickey 🥴 The *most* teenage of dramas & not the incredible ‘sex’ scene many fans seem to think it will be. But I am curious if they’ll move the kissing on from very chaste to actually kissing as normal humans (& in particular teenage boys) would do. I had thought they might film both series at the same time to prevent the teens from ageing too much. But maybe they’ll go for Sept-Dec 2022 and then March 2023 or something.

R 210 I can see taking a month hiatus over winter (mid Dec- end of Jan) and having the whole filming over ~7 months. Only Kit and Joe would need to be present for the whole thing, and they are also the ones most likely to request a month or so for audition and meeting breaks. We'll see of course but that seems to be the most financially and practically smart solution for the studio and netflix.

R204 I definitely see Will quitting acting. 3 seasons on a popular show gives him a lot of time to launch his band, which he promotes more than he ever did HS. He also said in an interview recently that if the show asked and it felt like the right fit the band would be happy to contribute a song. It did made me laugh because what unknown band actually cares so much about the "right fit" that they'd reject being played on a netflix show, but I can see them using that connection for promo which would help them out a fair bit. IDK abt the others, luck seems so arbitrary like Yaz randomly having the most career opportunities thus far. For all we know the Imogen actress blows up and the rest of them have careers like the cast of Merlin.

lmao no offense to the other posts but i dont care about their long term, just the on set dynamics and relationships. how long do you all think joe and bash will last? who truly dislikes one another amongst the cast?

in my opinion the one onset relationship we overall know about, joe and bash, will last for at least a year longer. they've basically stopped posting together but people see them together all the time both in london and joe's hometown; i feel like they're pretty committed and happy. especially if they film s2-3 back to back and the cast all hangs out a lot, they'll be even more in each others business and seem pretty invested,

idk abt dislike but its been interesting to see the speculation that joe and kit dont get on when to me the more clear distance is between joe and will. idk if i think there's enmity but i think will can be a little "above it all" and joe seems to be really social media interactive and anxious. it's interesting that we've heard about conversations between just kit and joe after filming, hangouts between bash and will, will and kit, and kit and bash and all three or all4 but have never seen a joe and will hangout or even a joe, bash, will or joe, will, kit hangout. i wouldnt be surprised if there was some awkwardness there.

Joe and Bash should be fine as long as they stay out of LA and don't let the press/fans get to them. Since Kit is the one being hounded about his sexuality I don't really see the press really caring about them. Also doesn't seem like they are hiding anything at all or are self conscious about their relationship even if they aren't posting on IG about it. They were snuggling in public last week.

Doubt anyone really dislikes each other, but some people just might not be as close as others. It's unrealistic for everyone to actually be best friends.

Seems like Kizzy is dating someone (another nonbinary person, they/them) from this comment

Is he using this as a coming out or what? I genuinely don't get what this song has to do with Pride.

R216 doubt it, seems like he remembered he’s on a queer show and should do something to recognize pride 2 weeks in

I binged the whole season with a group of close friends I have on Discord. We’re all gay and an ace (closet lesbian). It made me wish for young love, and my other friends bought the book and are obsessed. I love the dynamic if Nick and Charlie— their romance is something I always pined for as a teenager. I might pick up the books, too!

Just curious here, but how many posters on this thread are under 21? Please tell me there are many...

R219 - my group of friends of mine and I range from 21 to 28. We also have a darling 40-year old eldergay but he’s kind of our token eldergay.

It's nice to know that young folks are on here.

Also nice to know that it isn't Eldergays commenting so much on the show.

Yeah a lot of us are younger on here. I’m 26. Most of my friends found out about the site through Reddit.

R222 I found out about DL because it had gossip on some of my favorite 60s musicians..very unique atmosphere this site has and it drew me in. I'm 25

[quote]It's nice to know that young folks are on here.

[quote]Also nice to know that it isn't Eldergays commenting so much on the show.

What's not so nice is gatekeeping. TV shows are for everybody. When did ageism become not only acceptable but encouraged? I don't watch this show but I'm not young and if I fucking want to watch it I'm going to watch it. We were all young once and therefore we can all identify with young love.

R219 I think a lot of the thread is relatively young. I'm 20 and found DL googling to discuss Bash and Joe as I thought they were clearly dating and my boyfriend looks like Joe so I was particularly curious. But I think a wider variety of ages wanting to discuss the show is very normal. Yes a 45 year old saying he wanted to fuck Joe or Kit when they were underage would be creepy, but a lot of the thread is talking about queerbaiting, how realistic the show is, the quality of the acting, etc. I don't think older people are off limits from that.

Believe me nobody wants to fuck Kit here. Eldergay or not.

Kit & Joe were never underage. 16 is age of consent in the UK. They were both 17 during filming. Yes, being interested in a 17 year old at 45 would be weird & not the one but they’ve never been underage.

Happens though. Tom Daley had just turned 19 when he started dating his 38 year old now husband. & for some reason, people loved them and thought they were loves young dream. 19 & 38. Still, they seem happy.

People who are 19 or 20, I hate to break it to you but when you're 40+ you WILL in fact be attracted to younger men, not just men your own age. If you don't think so, you're in for a rude awakening.

I'm just hoping that the guys clamoring for more sex in the show are younger.

But it's great to watch this and be happy for a sweet hat high school love story, and I'm happy with the PG rating.

^sweet *gay* high school love story