Heartstopper 1x04 "Secret" Review

I have a confession to make. A few days ago when I posted reviews of episodes two and three on the same day, I actually ended up binge watching the rest of the season that night. I even stayed up late because I couldn't sleep without seeing the ending. I'm officially more obsessed with Heartstopper than I've been with anything in a very long time, and I'm loving it.

I took some notes while watching that I'm using to write these reviews, from this point on, these have all been written with the knowledge of what comes next. That being said, I'm not going to mention any spoilers for what comes in later episodes.

This is something I've already said, and I'll probably say it in every post about Heartstopper, but this show is just so cute! I can't get over it. I'm already rewatching it, and I still have a giant smile on my face the whole way through. Even at the sadder points in the story, I'm smiling.

The sympathy I felt for Imogen from last episode left when she confronted Tara. She's not horrible in that scene, but it's annoying and cringe-inducing enough that I can't say I particularly like her.

The whole bit about the rugby boys bullying Charlie in this episode really hurt. Harry was already a jerk obviously, but there were times in earlier episodes where Charlie seemed to actually be having fun playing rugby, and a lot of that might have been his crush, but it's still sad to see that ruined by how terrible they treat him. It was especially painful to watch him get hurt and then Nick agonize about how to react to it.

Almost as painful to watch was Nick agreeing to go on a date with Imogen. I really feel for him in that scene though. The show does a great job of showing the peer pressure that's Nick is experiencing. I was never too worried about the date becoming a huge thing, thankfully, but that didn't stop me from feeling just a little bit frustrated at the end of this episode.

Heartstopper 1x03 "Kiss" Review

Here I am, back again. I had to pause this episode halfway through to go make supper, and it upset me. I'm getting even more drawn in to the story with each episode, and that's saying a lot considering I really loved the first one.

Nick takes an "am I gay?" quiz in this episode which made me laugh because it feels like queer characters taking those kinds of quizzes is becoming a trope at this point, but that might just be all the Skam remakes I've watched (because the Isak character always takes one of those quizzes).

I feel bad for Imogen and how she likes Nick without realizing she doesn't have a chance. I was surprised at how confident she appeared when she admitted her feelings to him and he left. She still seemed to think she had a chance even though he left her as soon as possible. I admire that confidence. I also really hope that I stay sympathetic towards her and that she doesn't do something that makes me dislike her when she finds out about Nick and Charlie.

When it came time for the party, I had a lot of anxiety. I really felt for Charlie and how nervous he must have been being around so many people, many of whom aren't nice to him. Despite that, him and Nick finally finding each other in the party was so cute.

Another favorite scene in this episode was Nick standing up to Harry for being homophobic. That was pretty brave of him when he's still figuring out so much about himself. He does end up half-heartedly accepting Harry's apology later, which goes back on his word about not really wanting to hang out with them anymore, but that makes a lot of sense to me since he's a teenager who's very confused. It felt realistic.

Their first kiss was incredibly cute! Seriously. I can't get over how cute this show is. I was beaming while I watched it. It was frustrating watching Nick leave, but I do understand why he did. I'm glad this is a misunderstanding that won't be taking long to clear up though.

I absolutely loved that we got to see Nick showing up at Charlie's door at the end instead of having the episode end on Charlie being upset. It's an excellent cliffhanger that most definitely makes you want to watch the next episode.

Heartstopper 1x02 "Crush" Review

I'm back with a review of episode two! And quicker than I planned because I got eager. Honestly, my willpower is failing me. I watched episode one on Friday and was able to focus on other things with no problem until yesterday (Monday), but now I keep seeing gifs on Tumblr. While spoilers don't bother me, the gifs are making me more eager to watch the rest of the episodes. If only Netflix had decided to release them weekly instead. Then I would have been less tempted. Instead, I have a feeling this show is going to take up most of my week.

There's quite a bit of texting in this show, which isn't surprising considering how much texting we all do in our daily lives now. I really love how Heartstopper is handling all the texting though. The actors are doing a great job of acting even when they're staring at a phone screen. I was beaming throughout Charlie and Nick's entire conversation. I honestly can't believe how long that scene was because I was glued to the screen, which I wouldn't have expected from a scene where characters are just texting each other back and forth.

We get to see more of Elle in this episode, which I'm very happy about! We also meet Tara and Darcy, who seem to be great characters. It was so nice seeing the way the girls welcomed in Elle in this episode, and I'm looking forward to seeing more of them in the future.

There's an extremely cute scene with Nick and his mom where she tells him that he's more himself around Charlie than he is his other friends. That scene might be my favorite in the episode, which is really saying something, considering that I loved everything.

Honestly, I had such a big smile on my face for this entire episode. I absolutely loved it.

Also, I'm going to go watch the next episode right now, and I'll probably write up another review today just so I can watch another episode. So I guess the whole "spreading out the episodes" thing didn't last long. In all fairness, it probably would have if it weren't for Tumblr, but I'm seeing so many gifs of the upcoming episodes that I feel like I should keep watching before I've seen absolutely everything on Tumblr first. So look out for more reviews much sooner than originally expected!

Heartstopper 1x01 "Meet" Review

Recently, I haven't had a TV show to watch on a weekly basis, and I've been missing it, which is funny since I hardly kept up-to-date on any shows for a few years. But for the last couple of weeks, I've been thinking about how much I want something that I can look forward to a new episode of on a regular basis. When I heard that Heartstopper was coming out, I was excited to check it out and have something new to watch.

While I'm excited to watch the series, I'm not really getting the weekly episodes that I'm craving because Netflix released the whole season at once. (I'm a little surprised Netflix still does that when so many other streaming services release them once a week.) Despite that, I'm forcing myself to wait a bit between episodes and also writing these reviews before I watch the next one. I'm creating my own anticipation (and it's very much working).

Heartstopper is based on a webcomic that has been popular on the internet for several years now. I've been aware of Heartstopper since it first started getting attention, but I didn't keep up with it. I heard enough about it to check in on it and read it occasionally, but I've never kept up with a webcomic, and I'm just really bad at keeping keeping up-to-date. Instead, I just read it whenever I remembered it existed and planned to eventually get the physical volumes to read. So, I've read bits and pieces of the comic, but I certainly haven't read all of it chronologically.

I also have a terrible memory when it comes to comics and graphic novels. For whatever reason, those forms of stories just don't stick in my head well, so while I do know the basic premise of Heartstopper and the main characters from the comics, I'm in the dark enough that the TV show feels like a completely new experience.

Part of not being able to remember everything means that there are a few characters who I don't remember from the comic. It's entirely possible that I've read parts of the comic that featured them and just forgot, but it's also possible that they just weren't in the parts I've read. One of those characters was Ben. I was actually a little surprised to find out that Charlie was in a "relationship" (if you could even call it that) right off the bat.

The show did a great job of showing how toxic their relationship was from the very first scene of them together.

On the other hand, Charlie and Nick are adorable together from the first time they say hello to each other. I loved seeing the series of hellos between the two of them only to then see Ben get super defensive over a simple hello from Charlie. Charlie and Nick really do have great chemistry, which is great to see from the first episode. As of right now, I think that was the biggest highlight of the episode.

We really only get short glimpses of Charlie's fiends. We get the most backstory about Elle, who's just started at the all girls school after being bullied at the all boys school. She lies to Tao about having made friends. There's also definitely something going on between Elle and Tao, so I hope we get to see them a lot more in future episodes because I think they could have great chemistry too once we see them together.

There's another member of their friend group, Isaac, who barely speaks this whole episode. I had to Google his name because I couldn't remember it. I really hope we learn more about him in the coming episodes.

At one point, Ben assaults Charlie, which I did not see coming. That scene was quite intense. It's not the sort of thing I want to watch again, and I may skip it if I rewatch the show.

So far, the story seems to be moving really fast. It feels like a lot happened with Charlie and Nick, yet we didn't see much of anything from the other characters. I hope that the other episodes don't feel quite so rushed.

Overall, I enjoyed this first episode. It was extremely cute! And I suspect that the rest of the show will be as well. I didn't get around to writing this review last weekend (after watching the episode on Friday), and I've been anxious about getting it written so that I can go watch episode two. So that's probably what I'm off to do now!

Book Review: The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet by Becky Chambers

Published: July 29, 2014
Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton (originally self-published)
Received: purchased
Read from January 27 to April 1, 2022

Synopsis from Goodreads:

Follow a motley crew on an exciting journey through space-and one adventurous young explorer who discovers the meaning of family in the far reaches of the universe-in this light-hearted debut space opera from a rising sci-fi star.

Rosemary Harper doesn’t expect much when she joins the crew of the aging Wayfarer. While the patched-up ship has seen better days, it offers her a bed, a chance to explore the far-off corners of the galaxy, and most importantly, some distance from her past. An introspective young woman who learned early to keep to herself, she’s never met anyone remotely like the ship’s diverse crew, including Sissix, the exotic reptilian pilot, chatty engineers Kizzy and Jenks who keep the ship running, and Ashby, their noble captain.

Life aboard the Wayfarer is chaotic and crazy—exactly what Rosemary wants. It’s also about to get extremely dangerous when the crew is offered the job of a lifetime. Tunneling wormholes through space to a distant planet is definitely lucrative and will keep them comfortable for years. But risking her life wasn’t part of the plan. In the far reaches of deep space, the tiny Wayfarer crew will confront a host of unexpected mishaps and thrilling adventures that force them to depend on each other. To survive, Rosemary’s got to learn how to rely on this assortment of oddballs—an experience that teaches her about love and trust, and that having a family isn’t necessarily the worst thing in the universe. 

Review:

The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet was another book that I read for Life's Library. It was a book that I'd heard of years ago when it first came out, and I'd been very curious about it at the time. But I also forgot about it somewhat quickly, so I'm not sure that I ever would have picked it up if it hadn't been a Life's Library pick. And, let me tell you, I'm really glad it was because I would have been missing out if I'd never picked it up. This very well might have been my favorite of all the Life's Library reads.

From the first chapter, I was in love with every character in the story. They're such a diverse group who all play such different roles in the story. Even Corbin, who's quite obnoxious, felt like he had an important role to play, and because of that, I felt as fond of him as I did everyone else even when I thought I should be annoyed with him.

Seriously, I can't get over how great the characterization was for every single character in this book, even the minor ones. Everyone had such interesting backstories, and those backstories were woven into the story in amazing ways. I wanted to know everything about everyone. I can't think of a single character who felt lacking.

As someone who loves reading about friendships, I also loved the relationships in this book. While there were also a few romances that were well done, friendship was the biggest driver in the story I think. If you love the found family trope, then this book is for you. It's been a long time since I've read something that has satisfied my craving for found family as deeply as this book did.

While the characters were so amazing that they almost overshadowed everything else, I also loved the worldbuilding. A lot of sci-fi makes humans as one of the biggest, if not the biggest, player in the universe, and that makes sense. As humans ourselves, of course we want to think of ourselves as significant, but in this world, humans are actually considered a minor player on the universal stage, and I loved that! It made the story feel unique, and who doesn't love an underdog story?

I will say that the crew for the Wayfarer specifically (i.e. the main cast of characters in the book) are mostly human. If you include Lovey the AI, then the Wayfarer has nine crew members, and five of them are human. Still, I was absolutely fascinated by how the politics in the universe at large work within this book. We only get bits and pieces of it during the story, but I found what we did get fascinating.

This felt like a world where there was endless potential in terms of telling stories, so I'm happy that there are other books in the series. From what I understand, the other books focus on other characters, which feels bittersweet. I absolutely want to read them and learn more about the world and other characters, but it makes me sad to think about not having more of these characters too.

This was one of the best books I'd read in a while. In fact, I started re-reading it the day after I finished it, which is in part because of a spin-off Discord from Life's Library where we're reading the book through the method of sacred reading. I'm still excited to get to live through the story a second time.