Sex Education

There’s very little to complain about when it comes to Sex Education’s third outing and those who loved the first and second seasons will be thrilled with the upcoming episodes, which set the same raunchy tone and tell similarly important stories about adolescent love.

The parent’s problems feel minor to those of their offspring and their storylines can be a bit too drawn out. “Sex Education” easily overcomes that minor quibble because Nunn and her cast have created a universe of characters that you inherently want to root for. And it’s so entertaining that after eight almost-hour long episodes it somehow feels like a quickie. And, yes, that’s a compliment.

New characters bring a freshness to the season, with their relentless positivity and openness, and they are well-cast. They adore Eric from the first moment, but they’re less convinced about Otis, which creates some nice tension between the loving friends whose bond has been a highlight of the series.

Iimmaculately, densely written, glorious creation. ... And it’s funny. Endlessly and seemingly effortlessly funny, in a naturalistic way that doesn’t have you listening for the hooves of the next gag thundering down a well-worn track but, like Catastrophe, catches you almost unawares and makes you bark with laughter.

Sex Education won’t be for everybody. The humor is often very dark, the awkwardness so cringe-inducing it can be difficult to watch. But like a well-meaning teen therapist, its intentions are so good that it’s difficult to hold much against the series. Like a generous partner, it’s willing to experiment and find a balance that works. And like sex--like good sex anyway--it’s often an absolute pleasure.

The season’s later episodes effectively turn back towards the things that this show and only this show can do, and do so well. It’s a welcome return to what made the series special to begin with. But even towards the end, it can’t resist trying out familiar moves from many other stories about love, both young and old.

Eager to please but confused, Sex Education could do with a stint on the therapist’s couch itself.

Sex Education has awareness at its core. But thinking about sexuality, talking about these themes, does not necessarily mean the experience, the protagonist exemplifies this very well, being a virgin. It's not about encouraging, and whoever finds it is living in the moon world and that's it. The point is that young people are, whether we like it or not, having sex, without using condoms, having toxic relationships, among other numerous problematic issues that are real in this world of youth. Even the approach to abortion, so private and candid given the script, has to do with the question of our moralism as opposed to reality and what we need to do about it, not against it. Communication needs to happen, because while taboo is taboo, no one will learn anything. And, let's face it, it's pretty ridiculous for a virgin boy to educate his peers about sexuality.

It was a good show until season 4, where they seemingly transplanted the cast into an entirely different show that received the Netflix treatment of everything being super bright colors similar to that of the cringe-inducing Disney children's shows. None of the new cast members of season 4 are particularly interesting, but a lot of the attention gets shifted away from the characters that you spent the first three seasons following towards these brightly dressed but ultimately shallow new characters.

[SPOILER ALERT: This review contains spoilers.]

When the main character became a **** I abandoned the show. There was just no reason for the character change, completely unjustified, and ruined the last character I cared about in the show.

[SPOILER ALERT: This review contains spoilers.]