Warning: slight spoilers ahead.
After becoming one of the hottest shows over the past year or so, “Sex Education” aims to teach young adults more about sex, relationships, and everything that comes along with adolescence in a fictional tale of the lives of Otis Milburn and friends. Watching season 3 can only be described as a whirlwind of emotions, changes, and character developments, all tied into an eight-episode season of chaos.
The Characters
In the latest installment, viewers are introduced to some brand new characters that spice up the flow at Mooredale Secondary School. After the dismissal of headteacher Mr.Groff, Mooredale’s headteacher is replaced with Hope Haddon, who at first seems like a step up from their old principal. After a few questionable changes to the school, the students realize Hope is more of a menace than a teacher in more ways than one.
Between the new single-file lines in the hallways to her making the students feel pretty uncomfortable, Hope soon becomes one of the most hated characters of season 3. Brightening things at Mooredale is the addition of Cal Bowman, a non-binary student who is full of life and personality. They challenge Hope’s new school rules and are frequently the subject of Hope’s cruel school rules. This season, Cal was one of the most interesting characters because of how effortlessly the show incorporated non-binary sex issues and representation.
Otis, Maeve, Aimee, Eric, and the rest of the original sex education cast are all up to their own lives and teenage issues, making for quite an interesting continuation of their storylines. Eric visits his home country of Nigeria for a wedding. Maeve and Otis deal with lingering romantic feelings and new ones, and Aimee deals with the aftermath of being sexually assaulted last season. Viewers also witness quite the change in attitude from characters like Ruby and Lily throughout season 3. The show effortlessly combines the hectic lives of these characters and blends them into quite the season.
The Soundtrack
While I didn’t recognize a good portion of the songs this season, I think the themes used throughout fit well with each scene or moment in the show. One of my favorite musical moments throughout the show was the “sex” song in the final episode. The entire scene and performance from the show’s cast were fun and exciting, all while establishing each character’s right to feel a certain way about sex and the stigmas surrounding the topics discussed. Whenever these original numbers pop up in the show, they are always a little cringy but put forth a message that is usually remembered quite well.
Overall Plotline
“Sex Education” since the first season has always shed light on a different character or a series of characters each episode, all while coming back to the main protagonist Otis and his sex life. Season 3 explains the tense relationship between Otis and Maeve and how they just “fell out” last season.
If viewers recall, in the previous season, Otis finally told Maeve how he felt in a voice message that Isaac deleted, who also has quite the feelings for Maeve. Otis is also sleeping with one of the most popular girls in school, Ruby, who becomes quite fond of Otis despite the differences in popularity and style. Eric breaks things off with Rahim, his former french lover, and decides to pursue a relationship with Adam Groff, who recently came out after bullying Eric for the past two seasons. Their relationship is put to the test when Eric visits Nigeria and kisses another guy. At the same time, the couple continues to deal with issues regarding sex and how the pair would like to go about “doing it.”
Aimee and her boyfriend, Steve, have their relationship tested as Aimee struggles to deal with the trauma from her sexual assault in the last season. So many other characters deal with the pressures of adolescence and growing up as well. I won’t continue to spoil too much else, but season 3 of “Sex Education” has for sure the most chaotic, but in the best way possible for the growing storyline of these young adults.
Final Thoughts
While barely scratching the surface of how in-depth season 3 of this show has been, fans will get gifted quite the season after watching all eight episodes. Not only does the show do a phenomenal job at capturing the importance of safe sex, teenage experiences, but it highlights issues that everyone watching can relate to or might experience at some point in their lives. From dealing with family issues to relationship issues, the season takes a show about teenagers “just” having sex to a whole new level. If you haven’t seen a single episode of this fantastic show, I suggest you log into Netflix immediately and get started because you will not be disappointed.