I’ve not read the graphic novels or web comics but I saw you would be covering so I gave it a shot--and I’m so glad I did.
What strikes me most is how it really subverts most rom com/LGBTQIA story tropes and expectations (which is such a relief). It also has an excellent dog.
I do like Elle’s story being parallel and then intersecting via her friendship with Isaac, Tao and Charlie. I think without her/the girl’s school storyline the dynamics of just the boys school would be less compelling/ deflate over time.
(Per Twitter, I’m reminded of the joke than “an air mattress is for when you want to sleep on the floor but not right away”.)
I've not read the books, though I have seen pages from them here and there. From that limited experience I found seeing hulking Nick next to Charlie to be off putting, so I am very much in favor of casting a regular sized person to play the role on screen.
Nice, efficient opening. Maybe a little too efficient. At this rate Charlie and Nick could hook up in the next episode with seemingly nothing left to do but snog for the rest of the show, so I'm waiting for some other shoes to drop. At least they took the most obvious possible love triangle / misunderstood intentions plot with Ben off the table already.
I don't care about f-bombs and I'm glad the show is being positioned to be marketable to young teens, but there is something inherently dishonest about representing the desires of 16 and 17 year old boys as stopping at hallway smooches and animated hearts. TV needs to figure out a way to present teen sexuality without it becoming Euphoria.
Thanks for these. I'll be reading and commenting as I watch today. You'll probably be sick of my virtual voice by the end.
I DO think that Oseman's choice to make them 15 and 16 (you're going to get to Charlie's 15th birthday as you go) is conscious on that front. And we can have a conversation about the long-term trajectory of this story on screen once you reach the end of the season.
And yeah, I think there's a fair argument that Giant Nick would seem super weird onscreen, and is also offputting in the books, but once you've read four volumes you do get used to it, and in Volume 4 he—spoiler alert—gets a puppy that fits into the palm of his hands that really adds a new layer to things. But, fair.
I’ve not read the graphic novels or web comics but I saw you would be covering so I gave it a shot--and I’m so glad I did.
What strikes me most is how it really subverts most rom com/LGBTQIA story tropes and expectations (which is such a relief). It also has an excellent dog.
I do like Elle’s story being parallel and then intersecting via her friendship with Isaac, Tao and Charlie. I think without her/the girl’s school storyline the dynamics of just the boys school would be less compelling/ deflate over time.
(Per Twitter, I’m reminded of the joke than “an air mattress is for when you want to sleep on the floor but not right away”.)
Oh and I think you will be glad to know that I absolutely screamed “OUR WOMAN!!!” when Olivia Colman came on screen. Total, delightful surprise.
I've not read the books, though I have seen pages from them here and there. From that limited experience I found seeing hulking Nick next to Charlie to be off putting, so I am very much in favor of casting a regular sized person to play the role on screen.
Nice, efficient opening. Maybe a little too efficient. At this rate Charlie and Nick could hook up in the next episode with seemingly nothing left to do but snog for the rest of the show, so I'm waiting for some other shoes to drop. At least they took the most obvious possible love triangle / misunderstood intentions plot with Ben off the table already.
I don't care about f-bombs and I'm glad the show is being positioned to be marketable to young teens, but there is something inherently dishonest about representing the desires of 16 and 17 year old boys as stopping at hallway smooches and animated hearts. TV needs to figure out a way to present teen sexuality without it becoming Euphoria.
Thanks for these. I'll be reading and commenting as I watch today. You'll probably be sick of my virtual voice by the end.
I DO think that Oseman's choice to make them 15 and 16 (you're going to get to Charlie's 15th birthday as you go) is conscious on that front. And we can have a conversation about the long-term trajectory of this story on screen once you reach the end of the season.
And yeah, I think there's a fair argument that Giant Nick would seem super weird onscreen, and is also offputting in the books, but once you've read four volumes you do get used to it, and in Volume 4 he—spoiler alert—gets a puppy that fits into the palm of his hands that really adds a new layer to things. But, fair.