We are living in the age of content where there is so much entertainment for people to watch and consume. In 2021, there are possibly hundreds and thousands of shows specifically centred around the high school experience, and it’s not a new or novel idea. Netflix, in particular, seems to be producing every show and teen movie that gets pitched to them. Despite the terrible screenwriting and horrible acting (namely, He’s All That starring Addison Rae), they know that viewers will continue to tune in even if they are not truly entertained by the story. Now and then, however, a gem like Sex Education gets released and proves that Netflix still has the ability to create amazing stories about the teenage experience.
Sex Education is about a socially awkward 16-year-old boy named Otis who doesn’t have a lot of lovemaking experience but is well-versed on the subject because of his mother Jean who is a sex therapist. She has dozens of manuals, videos and tediously open conversations about sex in their house. Otis decides to use this reluctant knowledge to open a secret sex therapy clinic at his school with his classmate Maeve after discovering the huge demand for such services among their sexually active yet confused adolescent peers. After trying to deal with his classmates’ problems, Otis discovers that he may need to seek some therapy of his own.
Evident from the title, the show is about sex. Season Three in particular, touches on the trauma of sexual assault, the ineffectiveness of preaching abstinence in high school, how mature communication is necessary for a good sexual experience, and what sex is like for those with physical impairments. However, at its core, the show is about human connection; the complex relationship between parents and their teenage children, friendships throughout high school, and of course, first-time romantic relationships. We all crave human connection whether it’s physical or not, and there are a lot of things that come in the way of achieving that, as seen from the perspective of many characters like Otis. Every single character is amazing with a wonderfully written storyline that makes you sympathize and relate to them, regardless of if you are somebody who is sexually active or not.
When teenage sex and romance are portrayed on-screen, it’s often unrealistic in its performance. Fifteen-year-olds will have six-packs and model figures and can navigate the bed pretty amazingly which sets an unrealistic standard for what the first time might be like for inexperienced teenagers. In real life, characters lose affection, get injured and have broken condoms and accidents in bed. The show is able to portray a more realistic version of adolescent relationships and sexual activity while remaining comedic, light-hearted and entertaining. Along with Big Mouth, Sex Education is a show I would have greatly appreciated watching when I was in high school. It emphasizes the social construct of virginity and the insignificance of “losing” it; the normalization of female masturbation and its diverse ethnic and sexual representation would definitely have made me feel validated as a POC female who rarely saw myself represented on-screen. Fingers crossed there will be a season four!