HeartStopper Forever (spoilers included).

[ScaredButUnavoidable]

I got quite the surprise when I realised this “final series” was in fact a two hour film and not 6 episodes like I had assumed.

It only appeared on Nextflix yesterday so I guess not many have seen it yet but I just binged it whilst I have an empty house.

I’m not sure what to make of it really.

The focus was pretty much 95% on Nick and Charlie which was fine, but it felt strange that all the other characters that had played such large roles in the three series were suddenly just floating in the background without really adding anything to the story.

Spoiler Alert: and I was so gutted there was no Olivia Coleman!!! I couldn’t place the woman who played Nick’s mom but I kept getting creepy vibes as though she’d played a nasty character in another show or film I’ve watched and I found it hard to shake it off. I will have to Google her and find out what else she’s been in.

I did enjoy it but it wasn’t as impactful as the three series have been, but I think that can naturally happen as storylines continue. Charlie still stands out as a great actor and I know it’s not real but I hope they have a happy ending as I think Nick would fall apart without Charlie even if sometimes the impression is given that Charlie is the one who is reliant on Nick.

Nick showing his vulnerabilities in the film was probably the best acting Kit has done across the three previous serious so recognition to him for that 👍

Looking forward to hearing the thoughts of others.

Nick’s mum was Anna Maxwell Martin. I thought she did fine. I know her from Motherland but looking on Wiki she has been in loads of things.

I wanted more from Imogen’s story but I guess there wasn’t time to elaborate.

I found it heartwarming but really season one is where heartstopper is at - once Nick and Charlie get together it loses the drama.

I googled her too and it came back to me that she was a really unpleasant character (but brilliantly acted) in a series of Line of Duty which is why I was getting “bad vibes” from her in HeartStopper. I guess in my mind she will always be an evil, manipulative, bitchy police officer which is a million miles away from the lovey Olivia Coleman’s portrayal of Nick’s mom.

I’m actually really glad they didn’t focus on Imogen, but that’s only because I never found her journey from being completely straight in seasons 1&2, to then querying being bisexual at the end of season 3 and now deciding she’s a lesbian, as being genuine. It all came out of nowhere and it felt like the writers were just changing her character (and her sexuality) so she would fit in with the crowd or the storyline. You could see how all the other characters were genuinely struggling with their self discoveries and it was so real, whereas her storyline was all a bit flippant with no real depth or thought put into it and I just felt that approach made took away any kind of believability. It’s like they conceive of the idea of having a straight girl as part of the friendship group so just thought, quick, what shall we do with her?

It’s a shame really as I thought her character was lovely in Seasons 1 and 2 were lovely……she played the role very well of sweet teenage girls all over the world who get crushes on the cute boys and inevitably end up with a broken heart due to the dramas that comes with teenage love.

I completely agree with you though that the Series peaked at Season One! The rest has all been heartwarming (to steal your word) but nothing in seasons 2 or 3, or the film, has come close to matching that moment where Charlie and Nick shared their first kiss in Season 1 ❤️

You can Google why Olivia Coleman wasn’t in it - she was too busy. Anna Maxwell Martin is a great replacement. I enjoyed the film but thought the pacing was a bit slow at times.
Im a massive Heated Rivalry fan and today my social media is full of edits comparing Heartstopper Forever club scene to HR.

I watched it with my youngest . I agree that the focus seemed to be almost solely on Nick and Charlie. I would have liked to know more of the trajectory of the other characters who we had come to know and like .

I appreciate that the focus was always going to be on Nick and Charlie as they were the main love story .
I kept waiting for something awful to happen to one of the main characters as there seemed to be hints .

I am glad it didn’t and I suppose it is similar to Stranger Things when most of the main characters came away unscathed . I think that was a positive as given the teenage audience it is aimed at we had enough teenage angst , without unnecessary drama .
I have enjoyed watching it as it was sweet and touching mainly throughout without being too saccharine as some of the American series can be ( not Stranger Things though).

Yes it was a bit slow in parts . I think Anna Maxwell Martin was good in it . Olivia Coleman’s part was well played in previous series , but the parents roles were never going to be big parts . I love seeing great actresses such as those two being happy to take on smaller parts in great series rather than being completely starry and only agreeing to parts where they get top billing . I loved Olivia Coleman in the Disney Series , The Bear which was a similar non starring but significant role. .

I loved it, but I am a big softy.
More on the stories of the other characters would have been good though. I think this was the first time we found out for certain about Elle’s sex. I’m glad we got that.

Olivia Coleman wasn’t in the previous series either.

It’s always been known that Elle’s sex is male, hasn’t it? (trans-woman)

I don’t think it’s ever been confirmed to the audience. It may have been in the books, I haven't read them.

I don’t think it needed to be confirmed?

We knew from the start she was male as she was at a boy’s school, and then moved to the girl’s school as the boy’s school wouldn’t let her present as female.

I loved it... Yea not as good as the series but lovely, the cherry on top of the icing on top of the cake... These series really helped me talk to my children and the emphasis on consent was great. I also loved the cameo from Derek Jacobi and his beloved..