On November 1, Netflix released the third season of the original series “Atypical.” The coming-of-age dramedy follows the life of Sam Gardner, a teenage boy on the high-functioning end of the autism spectrum, as he navigates the difficulties of adolescence, high school, relationships, and college life. The plot also develops storylines for Sam’s family and friends, including his younger sister Casey and his parents.
The intention behind “Atypical” is to bring awareness to what life is like for someone on the autism spectrum, in addition to highlighting various struggles their family faces in terms of relationships, marginalization and the everyday obstacles of life.
In season three, Sam starts his freshman year of college, determined to prove the “four out of five kids on the autism spectrum do not graduate college within five years” statistic wrong. While anxious about not defying the odds and being the one out of five “success story,” Sam tries to navigate his new life as an independent college student, in addition to balancing his social life, job and romantic relationship.
What I like most about Sam’s story this season is his growth as a character, and his determination to be successful despite the demoralizing statistic and odds set against him. He was also not hesitant to reach out for help when he needed it.
Another important plot line this season was Casey’s journey to finding herself as she explores her sexuality. Casey ends up stuck in a love-triangle and has conflicting romantic feelings for both her boyfriend Evan and best friend Izzie, who she has been growing closer and closer with since the middle of season two. As the chemistry was building up between them, Casey finally acted on her emotions and kissed Izzie, even though she was still dating Evan at the time.
The fact that Casey cheated on her boyfriend with a girl sparked much controversy amongst viewers, who were disappointed with the show’s reinforcement of the stereotypes of bisexuality, portraying the community as “confused players” who can’t have just one romantic partner at a time.
I myself am bisexual, so I understand why people were upset over this. Although I am overjoyed that Casey and Izzie are finally free to be together, I think the show could have handled how Casey found her way to Izzie differently without playing into the cheating bisexual trope. This is not how bisexuality should be represented in the media, especially because it is definitely not the first time we have seen this stereotypical instance unfold on television and in movies.
However, the writer’s of the show did do something right when it came to this plot line: they made Casey and Evan’s relationship end on good terms, which negates any additional biphobia. When Evan found out that Casey had cheated on him with a girl, he was understandably upset, but he did not express any kind of biphobia or prejudice toward her for coming to terms with her sexuality. They even reconciled and agreed to remain friends.
All in all, season season of “Atypical” did not disappoint, and the finale set the perfect foundation for a fourth season. I look forward to seeing the growth of Casey and Izzie’s relationship, and how the rest of Sam’s college experience goes.