*A few relationship spoilers.*
We’re halfway through season 2 now, and while I can’t exactly put my finger on why, I don’t think it’s hitting quite as well as season 1. There’s something going on here, in multiple plots, that’s making it fall just a little short. That said, I’m still enjoying the season, and there are parts of this episode that I do really like.
When Ola broaches the subject of having sex, Otis agrees that he’s ready and they make a plan for their first time. In other romantic news, things are progressing between Eric and Rahim, but it’s gotten complicated now that Adam’s back in town, and Jean chafes under the commotion and unpredictability of a full-on relationship. And in non-romantic news, Maeve’s mom asks her to babysit her stepsister during an important school event, and Jackson strikes a deal with Viv to get help on his scenes for Romeo and Juliet.
Otis and Maeve’s plots both go in somewhat predictable directions. Otis has been down the “It’s time I had sex” road before, and while this experience isn’t the sort of disaster that his earlier attempt was, it’s only a matter of time before he finds a way to screw it up. Maeve’s storyline with her mom, I feel, is getting a little repetitive. And part of that might be intentional, because I’m sure a lot of children of addicts have an “I’ve been burned before” reaction when their parents pop back into their lives insisting that it’ll be different this time.
I’m glad that Jackson didn’t get pushed into the background after he and Maeve broke up. Although he’s somewhat separated from the main cast, it’s been interesting to watch him try and discover who he is outside of swimming. He has obvious potential for acting, or else he wouldn’t have gotten cast as Romeo, but he’s not an immediate natural, either. Jackson strikes me as a character who’s used to either being great at things without much effort or not caring enough to really try. His storyline this season has been peeling back the insulation of his golden-boy image, largely thanks to Viv, and it’s making for a good journey for him. This week, we also get the most teenage rom-com bargain ever, which suggests some fun shenanigans on the way.
Jean’s plot doesn’t take up a huge amount of space, but I get a kick out of seeing how oblivious Jakob is to her mounting frustrations—his stuff is everywhere, and the peace and quiet of every moment is shattered by him running the blender to make smoothies. And I appreciate that we’re seeing a continuing thread with Aimee’s experience on the bus from last week. Once again, we see an emphasis that, despite her efforts to downplay what happened, she was absolutely violated.
As I’ve said before, the idea of Eric and Adam together gives me serious pause, and while they do have some nice/cute interactions here, they still have definite red flags as a potential pairing. While Rahim openly asks, “Do you want to be my boyfriend?”, Adam shows up outside Eric’s window in the middle of the night for secret rendezvous. In an incredibly on-the-nose background music moment, Eric contemplates the choice of the two boys set to the lyrics, “Devil or angel, I can’t make up my mind.”
Even though I’m apprehensive about Eric/Adam, Ncuti Gatwa definitely sells the hell out of their scenes together. You completely buy that Eric is wary of Adam, perplexed by him, and yet drawn to him.
I also like Gatwa’s performance in his best friend scenes with Otis. Naturally, Otis shares the news of his big plans with Ola, and Eric is very loudly enthusiastic in his support for his friend. He exclaims, “You’re gonna be deflowered?”, and at one point, he’s leaping and shouting so excitedly that he stumbles into another kid in the hallway, at which point he orders the kid, “Can you calm down?” As pumped as he is, though, at the first hint of Otis’s apprehension, he adds, “Also, you don’t have to do it if you’re not ready,” which is just an excellent friendship moment.
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