Netflix’s Sex ‘Education Season’ 4 is Simply Irresistible
Sex Education showrunner/executive producer Laurie Nunn, and her stunningly brilliant writers have crafted a hilarious, relevant, and exceptionally touching final season. Moordale Secondary has closed, and Otis (Asa Butterfield, All Fun and Games), Eric (Ncuti Gatwa, Doctor Who), Jackson (Kedar Williams-Stirling, Wolfblood), Aimee (Amiee Lou Wood, Living), Viv (Chinenye Ezeudu, The School for Good and Evil) Ruby (Mimi Keene, Eastenders), and Cal (Dua Saleh, Industry) have moved on to wildly progressive Cavendish Sixth Form College. Eric is excited to open an official sex clinic but comes up against a major challenge. Maeve (Emma Mackey) is in the US doing a highly regarded writing program.
Sex Education season 4 takes storytelling to a whole new level. Cavendish College is this super aware ultra, progressive, safe space for the LGBTQIA+ communities, has done all the diversity and inclusion work, and is determined to be inclusive. Yet, everyone is still imperfect, dare I say human. The show gives us a diverse world grounded in reality with believable characters. All of the character’s storylines are explored with depth, and it is incredible how well-rounded every member of this large ensemble cast is. Unfortunately, we lose several beloved characters in season four but gain several new characters to love. I love ensemble storytelling, and this world reflects life in reality with all of the messiness, nuance, contradiction, and growth that human beings embody at many points in a lifetime.
Sex Education has five substantive dark-skinned Black characters, and it is not a “Black” show! Jackson, Viv, Eric, Aisha (Alexandra James, Backstage), and Cal, are all wildly different, exist in the same world, and are in relationship with one another and the non-Black characters without their “Blackness” being centered. Viv, a curvy cisgendered heterosexual Black woman who is a brilliant scholar, and Jackson, a cisgendered heterosexual Black man and star athlete, are best friends and are not romantically involved. Eric is a boisterous, unapologetically queer Black Christian wrestling with his family’s church’s stand on homosexuality. Aisha is a curvy, Deaf, ethically non-monogamous, queer Black woman who is a member of the Coven, the popular group at Cavendish, and an astrology expert, managing her place in the clique while enduring ableist microaggressions from her hearing friends and professors.
And Cal, the lone American in the cast who is non-binary and wants to maintain their friendship with their ex, Jackson, as they are interested in pursuing a relationship with Aisha romantically whilst taking testosterone and ruminating on getting top surgery to deal with their body dysphoria. Yes, it’s part soap opera, and I absolutely love love love seeing this kind of storytelling.
The same humanizing storytelling strategy is used for LGBTQIA+ characters, and there are several characters who are people with disabilities, from people who are deaf to people who are in wheelchairs. On American TV, you NEVER see people with disabilities on screen living their lives as human beings having human experiences whilst having a physical challenge. Sex Education is brilliant because it doesn’t ignore the reality of the imprint of white dominance but skillfully weaves that aspect of society into storylines in a nuanced way. Abbi (Anthony Lexa) is a bubbly pink-haired white transwoman who is the leader of the Coven, the popular group at Cavendish who is a vibrant, joyous, loving closeted Christian but is always tone policing Aisha is super controlling and regularly practices toxic positivity. Every episode is stellar and surprising with healthy range of challenges connected to sex and relationships that go beyond the boy-meets-girl-boy story structure. Sex Education follows the tradition of the best of British TV. Part super realistic British kitchen sink drama, part British comedy, in a world where people from all over the former British Empire reside. This is the kind of TV I have always wanted to see.
The reason Sex Education season four can introduce such rich new characters is because it is solidly built on the strong foundation of the previous three seasons. Otis and Maeve are managing their long-distance relationship. Otis and his mom Jean,(Gillian Anderson, The Crown), are reckoning with the new baby, Joy, while Otis struggles to open a new sex clinic at Cavendish, and Jean suffers from postpartum depression as she attempts to reignite her career. Adam (Connor Swindells, Barbie) is still nursing his wounds from Eric’s breaking up with him while also dealing with his relationship with his Dad Michael,(Alistair Petrie, Deep State) and deciding not to go to Cavendish College.
The impact of the assault Aimee (Amiee Lou Wood, Living) experienced on the bus is still reverberating as she works to process that trauma. Amiee’s storyline is done exceptionally well in ways that incorporate humor and realism that deeply touched my heart. The characters in Sex Education are all well rounded nuanced and fascinating. I love an intergenerational TV series that gives the audience a look into life at all stages of life and Jean’s story goes deep this year.
And THE SEX!!
Yes, Sex Education still has tons of wildly embarrasing, inspirational, creative, amusing sex and relationship challenges that made fans fall in love with this innovative and compelling series and season four ends perfectly. I love this show.
I give Sex Education Season 4 5 out of 5 stars.
All eight episodes of Sex Education Season 4 Stream on Netflix Thursday, September 21, 2023.
