Sex Education is the show we all need right now
I’ll be forty in November (gasp), and while I like to think I’m still in touch with the youth of today (I still listen to the hit parade, keep up with the latest disc jockeys and spend much time in discotheques) the reality is I’m not young anymore, however much I still act and feel like a teenager at times.
That’s why Netflix’s brilliant Sex Education is so encouraging to me.
It’s very easy to feel the weight of the world on our shoulders right now. Trump, Brexit, Iran, climate change, racism, homophobia, kitten heels. The list is endless. Reasons to feel hopeful can seem scarce. But as I look out of my window on an all too rare sunny winter day here in Berlin, hopeful is exactly what I feel.
I spent the weekend binge watching the entire second series of Sex Education. I was already a fan of series one but now, with the release of series two, I’m about to set up a fan site.
The show is so many things at one time. It’s both hilarious and heartbreaking, tender and razor sharp, and real and totally fanciful. Creator and writer Laurie Nunn and her team are geniuses who have brought the teen, high school genre that we all know and love bang up to date, with frank discussions around sex, and sexual diversity and politics.
That frankness is a real tonic right now because the show’s portrayal of diverse characters living their lives, finding their way, and being open and proud is in direct contrast to the attempts to silence and oppress minorities all over the world. At a time when reactionary storm clouds are brewing, spending time in the world of Moordale High gave me a sliver of hope for a better future. Look, I’m not insane. I know it’s a TV show, but I hope that Sex Education is an amplified, glossy version of what’s really going on with today’s teens.
The show’s openness and racial and sexual diversity is something that wouldn’t have been possible just five years ago. We are moving in the right direction. Take Eric for example (my personal favourite for obvious reasons). He’s a black, gay, femme, religious teenager, whose family love and accept him. He goes to a school where, though not popular, his sexuality isn’t an issue. He falls in love, breaks up, and goes to parties. It’s all very normal teenage stuff. But this representation matters because not only is Eric a brilliantly written and performed character, but the world he lives in is accepting and nurturing. It’s important that we counter the narrative of “all black and LGBTQIA+ youth of colour are rejected by their families.” It also matters because Eric is not relegated to the all too frequent and tired role of the sassy black sidekick who orbits around the main white character and ends up being a lame clichéd stereotype. Not so with Eric. He’s fully fleshed out, and his storyline this series is, I think, one of the most touching and beautiful to watch.
Likewise, the show’s portrayal of some of the true diversity in human sexuality, like pan and asexuality is also timely and, I felt, dealt with in a refreshingly positive, non-judgmental way.
There’s so much good stuff to talk about in Sex Education that I could easily make a long PowerPoint presentation about it and force you all to watch. I won’t. But you should definitely watch this programme though, it’s really very good. Shows like this work so often because at its core, the teen experience is the same for all of us. The feelings of awkwardness, embarrassment, joy, heartbreak, and wondering what the hell is going on with your body are universal, but every generation has a different take on it. If the students of Moordale High are any real reflection of today’s teenagers, then we’re moving towards a more accepting, diverse, and open future.
It almost makes me want to go back to school! Just kidding. Never again.
