Who would pay money to watch me beat up that punk? I mean, I'll do it for free, but I'm just curious 😂 And hey, remember, you don't even have to wait to watch my reaction to the final episode of Heartstopper! On my Patreon at the $1 tier you can watch the UA-cam edit RIGHT NOW, and at the $10 tier you can watch the extended cuts of the WHOLE SERIES! Plus, extended cuts of my next few reactions (Encanto and Death Note episodes 1-2) are also live! Go check them out if you're interested! And don't forget to give me your predictions and/or overall thoughts on the series so far!
I think Nick taking so long to actually separate from his friends is very true to his people pleasing nature. He wants to be nice to everyone. And sometimes being nice to everyone means enabling people who are being mean to someone else. I think this was the episode where he learnt that being truly kind sometimes means not being nice and accommodating to everyone. It sometimes means asserting yourself. Setting hard boundaries even when it's uncomfortable. and when it comes to Charlie's self sabotage, I think it really conveys how serious Charlie's mental health issues are. He catastrophizes and has obsessive thought spirals. He believes himself to be a burden, especially romantically, due to the trauma of his relationship with Ben and how Ben made him feel in their relationship.
I think a lot of people who harsh on Tao's reservations about Nick forget that in the past (and in bits of the series), Nick was a bystander in the group that bullied him and Charlie.
Spot on, people pleasing is something I struggle with, too. I can definitely relate to what he went through, I was in a similar situation in middle school where I was a bystander to some bullying of a girl I now like WAY more than the bullies I was "friends" with. It's so hard at that age to cut those ties and way easier to judge from the outside about what someone should be doing!
Also Charlie was very heavily bullied the previous year and Nick looks back on what he heard about in the animated flashback he has in episode 2. Charlie was 14 and was bullied by all ages of kids in an all boys school and had to hide in the art room every lunch time. This is the trauma that Tao was trying to protect Charlie from with Nick's friends.
If you like Isaac, Tobie Donovan did a 9-part vlog of behind the scenes shots with a little bit of his pre-Heartstopper life, finding out he got the part, and then the making of Heartstopper. His channel is "Tobie Donovan" (I spelled it wrong in the chat)
It takes a second (or third) watch through to notice this even if one has read the webcomic/graphic novel, but Charlie's mental health is a major player in Heartstopper and the show has done an incredible job of dropping hints about it throughout the season as a set up for it really coming to the forefront in either season 2 or whenever book 4 is translated to the screen if that is not season 2. Stuff about Charlie shown turning down food, or holding food but not eating it when stuff is on his mind, and him second guessing himself or overthinking things or his dreads getting visualized and worrying about the ramifications of his actions on others has been woven through the show in a subtle way. If you view it that way, some of Charlie's more... difficult... decisions make a lot more sense.
I totally see that! I hadn't noticed the possible eating disorder stuff, but I did relate a lot to the visualization of anxiety, which I also have. I can't wait for the emotional pain of watching him deal with that in season 2 🫠 lolol
If Harry knew what Nick and Charlie were doing, he would call Nick a f*g too. That punch wasn't just for Carlie. I think Nick was extra sensitized to that term and that's why he reacted like that.
Hi Leighton, good to meet. i subscribed to you a few weeks ago and enjoy your take on this amazing show.Ive seen lots but as a 70 yo man,tomorrow actually, I've seen a few in my time.Heartstopper stands alone for many reason. However thats not I wanted to say lol. Tao's hair is beyond strange but when I was informed why I was told when he an Ell were at the boys school,Ell was starting her transition and bullied by some teachers and students,guess who... Anyway, Toa grew his hair out that way to show support for Ells transitioning. Look at it rear to front. Its a "regular boy's haircut then transitions to a more "girls hair style. Honestly Tao has fucking brass balls. I wish they would have explained it buy its in the book. Looking forward to seeing the finally with your comments. Thanks for making me smile.
There is a story behind Tao's horrible hair. Elle used to get in trouble at the boys' school because of the rule that hair can't be longer than chin length. Tao grew his hair out in solidarity with her, before she went to the girls' school.
Isaac was working in the library that lunch period (that's what Tao texted to Charlie when he asked him to eat with him). And since I know you've already seen the last episode, I feel comfortable saying that one.of the things this show does well is show us healthy communication vs what happens when you don't communicate, and honestly, healthy communication is Nick's superpower. As for f***ing Ben Hope, in this episode, we see the effects of his emotional abuse of Charlie. Like someone else has already commented, his abuse of Charlie is way worse than Harry's bullying because he saw Ben as someone who was supposed to care about him. That makes the impact so much more personal and internalized. Now with Harry, I think everyone was right there with you rooting for Nick to punch Harry in the face. Nick and Tao both tried using their words to counter his homophobia more than once. It didn't work. Maybe the violence will. But for Nick, you're so right that he's not just punching Harry to defend Charlie. He's doing it for himself too. The bad thing is that Nick is hearing the insults that Harry hasn't even said to Charlie's face. This hurts Nick too because he knows he's not straight either and this insult is as much about him as it is about Charlie. I loved the scene where he leans on Charlie - literally - for support in dealing with that blatant homophobia. I absolutely hated where Charlie was trying to break up with Nick. The look on Nick's face when he realized what Charlie was saying was really hurt and disbelieving all at once. Thank goodness for the interruption about Tao and Harry's fight! And now I look forward to watching your reaction to episode 8 (the YT cut on Patreon followed by going back to watch all of the extended versions after that.
Yes, you're exactly right about Nick and Harry! It's the embodiment of "What you're saying about someone else could be hurting the people you care about most." And YES the part where Nick leans on Charlie 😍 So damn adorable! Glad you're enjoying the reactions, thanks for watching!!!
Drama, drama, drama. You knew it was coming! lol For me I just have to remember that these are 15/16 year old kids - of course they will do and say stupid things. Not mature enough to see the big picture. I would do so many things different if I could go back to high school knowing what I know now. ugh... Tori is a year older than Charlie so is Nick's age I think and goes to the girls school. Alice wrote a whole book about her so her story really isn't explored in Heartstopper. Issac will be given more of a story line in the upcoming seasons per an interview with Alice. He became a fan favorite even though he didn't show up much.
So true, I desperately wish I could change a ton of decisions I made in high school 😅 And oooh, I definitely need to read all of these books and graphic novels after I've finished watching the series!
We know Tori goes to the girls school because she sits next to Charlie on the school bus and wears the same uniform as the other girls. IRL Jenny Walser is a bit older, 24 or 25 when they started filming. Joe Locke was 17.
i read somewhere that Tao let his hair grow like this for Elle because they didn’t let her wear long hair on Truham. it’s some kind of protest.. it’s gross but cute ❤
Charlie needs to know he’s not making Nick’s life difficult and it’s not always his fault. Because even though Nick got into a fight with Harry and lost some of his friends,it was actually because Nick being with Charlie helped Nick see Harry,Ben & some of his friends true colours. And it’s not even Nick’s friends from the start because friends wouldn’t force you to do something you don’t want to do (Like how Harry & Harry’s friends tried to force Nick into dating Tara & Imogen when Nick wasn’t even interested) or when Harry started to pick on Tao & Charlie even when Nick tried to tell him off to defend them,Harry kept on going and a true friend would of stopped. If Nick didn’t like Harry’s bullying then why did he kept on hanging out with them? because despite when Harry threw the ball at Tao and when Nick asked Tao if he was okay & nicely ask for the ball back but Tao threw the ball back at Nick. It kinda represents how even if you are a nice person yourself (Like Nick) and if you are hanging around with the wrong crowd of people (Harry,Ben & their friends) people (Tao) would see you differently based off the people you are hanging out with. That’s why you have to always surround yourself with people who would respect & accept you for you like Charlie’s friends. I get the fact that the reason why Nick was friends with them was because some of Harry’s friends & Harry was on the Rugby team with Nick but Nick needs to know that you don’t have to be friends with someone just because you are on the same sports team especially people who acts like Harry & Ben all you need is their respect when you are playing since Nick is the rugby star player and teammates at least have to respect him on the field. And Charlie did helped Nick find some better friends when Charlie invited Nick to his birthday party,it helped Nick bond with Charlie’s friends (Tao,Elle,Issac) who will actually respect your decision & are nicer & generous then Harry & his crew.
As for Harry I think he's just very childish and ignorantly cruel in away that he will grow out of once he learns it's not acceptable behavior. That's not an excuse by any means, but he's mean in a way that just really reminds me of very young children who want attention. A lot of children are unfortunately taught this kind of behavior, and although in the Nick and Charlie novella he still comes across as immature and attention seeking and frankly just irritating, he also seems to have gotten rid of the homophobic mindset and has more of an irritating class clown dumb jock energy than what he is at this age which is a flat out bully. Harry's goal is to be liked and make his friends laugh. I don't think he has the empathy or emotional intelligence at 16 (when he really should) to see how much he's hurting people like Tao and Charlie (and Nick) with his "jokes." He does wise up and learn to make people laugh in less problematic ways. Again not excusing his behavior but I think adult Harry will be a much nicer person than teenage Harry based on what we see of him after the events of season 1. As for Ben, that kid knows he's hurting Charlie. and maybe feels bad that he's hurting him but continues to do it anyway because it makes him feel protected from the fear he has about his true identity. While I'm more sympathetic to what Ben is struggling with, I think his behavior is far worse. And on top of that it isn't just generic stupidity like Harry's comments, it's personal,pointed shots and digs at who Charlie is specifically. Meant to tear him apart and make him feel stupid. To make him question his own reality and judgement so that Charlie can never confidently say that Ben is anything besides straight. Ben is hurting and he's deflecting and pushing all that pain and hurt onto Charlie. It's much more disturbing to me than Harry's behavior. And I'm not confident that adult Ben will be a nicer person. Maybe less homophobic. but I think he displayed a level of calculated cruelty that I don't think he'll "age out of" in the same way I think Harry will. TLDR: I dislike both. Harry and Ben. I have more sympathy towards Ben but more hope (haha) for Harry.
God, I hope Harry grows out of it! I agree that Ben's attacks are a lot more calculated than Harry's, he's very purposely cruel. I also agree that both suck, though! And if he were a real person, I don't know if I'd ever forgive either if I were anyone they had bullied, even if they genuinely changed for the better.
The thing is Nick really didn’t have better friends through most of the season 1. Yes he met Charlie’s friends at the birthday party, and had a date thing with Tara Darcy Elle Tao and Charlie but other than that he only had imogen and the rugby lads. Nick only started becoming friends with everyone else later in the season.
Please read the comics, harry yes is homophobic like his hole family but Ben I feel sorry for him he is Bi like Nick but he is scared and Olivia Coleman is so right fighting is NOT the answer! But I understand is Harry and Charlie tells not the gang...Nick told Tara Darcy and Elle and Isaac found at on his own way out
I feel bad for Ben because he has so much self hatred but I also think he is way worse than Harry. He is horrible. Many people have self hatred and don't do the evil things he does.
Who would pay money to watch me beat up that punk? I mean, I'll do it for free, but I'm just curious 😂 And hey, remember, you don't even have to wait to watch my reaction to the final episode of Heartstopper! On my Patreon at the $1 tier you can watch the UA-cam edit RIGHT NOW, and at the $10 tier you can watch the extended cuts of the WHOLE SERIES! Plus, extended cuts of my next few reactions (Encanto and Death Note episodes 1-2) are also live! Go check them out if you're interested! And don't forget to give me your predictions and/or overall thoughts on the series so far!
I think Nick taking so long to actually separate from his friends is very true to his people pleasing nature. He wants to be nice to everyone. And sometimes being nice to everyone means enabling people who are being mean to someone else. I think this was the episode where he learnt that being truly kind sometimes means not being nice and accommodating to everyone. It sometimes means asserting yourself. Setting hard boundaries even when it's uncomfortable.
and when it comes to Charlie's self sabotage, I think it really conveys how serious Charlie's mental health issues are. He catastrophizes and has obsessive thought spirals. He believes himself to be a burden, especially romantically, due to the trauma of his relationship with Ben and how Ben made him feel in their relationship.
I think a lot of people who harsh on Tao's reservations about Nick forget that in the past (and in bits of the series), Nick was a bystander in the group that bullied him and Charlie.
Spot on, people pleasing is something I struggle with, too. I can definitely relate to what he went through, I was in a similar situation in middle school where I was a bystander to some bullying of a girl I now like WAY more than the bullies I was "friends" with. It's so hard at that age to cut those ties and way easier to judge from the outside about what someone should be doing!
Also Charlie was very heavily bullied the previous year and Nick looks back on what he heard about in the animated flashback he has in episode 2. Charlie was 14 and was bullied by all ages of kids in an all boys school and had to hide in the art room every lunch time. This is the trauma that Tao was trying to protect Charlie from with Nick's friends.
If you like Isaac, Tobie Donovan did a 9-part vlog of behind the scenes shots with a little bit of his pre-Heartstopper life, finding out he got the part, and then the making of Heartstopper. His channel is "Tobie Donovan" (I spelled it wrong in the chat)
*runs to check out the vlogs* lolol
Tori is Nick's age. She's in his year but at the girl's school
I can't wait for season two... but watching your reaction makes me want to watch season one for the hundredth time 🙈
I've watched so many other UA-camr's reactions since finishing my watch-through because I'm obsessed 🫣
@Leighton Reacts you and the rest of us... I still search for new Heartstopper reactions. I actually can't get enough. 🙊
It takes a second (or third) watch through to notice this even if one has read the webcomic/graphic novel, but Charlie's mental health is a major player in Heartstopper and the show has done an incredible job of dropping hints about it throughout the season as a set up for it really coming to the forefront in either season 2 or whenever book 4 is translated to the screen if that is not season 2. Stuff about Charlie shown turning down food, or holding food but not eating it when stuff is on his mind, and him second guessing himself or overthinking things or his dreads getting visualized and worrying about the ramifications of his actions on others has been woven through the show in a subtle way. If you view it that way, some of Charlie's more... difficult... decisions make a lot more sense.
I totally see that! I hadn't noticed the possible eating disorder stuff, but I did relate a lot to the visualization of anxiety, which I also have. I can't wait for the emotional pain of watching him deal with that in season 2 🫠 lolol
I hate Harry but I hate Ben more. The things Ben says to Charlie are so much more personal and cruel and made him so insecure.
Very true, he's hurt and wants Charlie to hurt as much if not more!
If Harry knew what Nick and Charlie were doing, he would call Nick a f*g too. That punch wasn't just for Carlie. I think Nick was extra sensitized to that term and that's why he reacted like that.
Totally, he could sense the truth of what his "friend" would say about him if he knew the truth!
Hi Leighton, good to meet. i subscribed to you a few weeks ago and enjoy your take on this amazing show.Ive seen lots but as a 70 yo man,tomorrow actually, I've seen a few in my time.Heartstopper stands alone for many reason. However thats not I wanted to say lol. Tao's hair is beyond strange but when I was informed why I was told when he an Ell were at the boys school,Ell was starting her transition and bullied by some teachers and students,guess who... Anyway, Toa grew his hair out that way to show support for Ells transitioning. Look at it rear to front. Its a "regular boy's haircut then transitions to a more "girls hair style. Honestly Tao has fucking brass balls. I wish they would have explained it buy its in the book. Looking forward to seeing the finally with your comments. Thanks for making me smile.
There is a story behind Tao's horrible hair. Elle used to get in trouble at the boys' school because of the rule that hair can't be longer than chin length. Tao grew his hair out in solidarity with her, before she went to the girls' school.
Isaac was working in the library that lunch period (that's what Tao texted to Charlie when he asked him to eat with him). And since I know you've already seen the last episode, I feel comfortable saying that one.of the things this show does well is show us healthy communication vs what happens when you don't communicate, and honestly, healthy communication is Nick's superpower. As for f***ing Ben Hope, in this episode, we see the effects of his emotional abuse of Charlie. Like someone else has already commented, his abuse of Charlie is way worse than Harry's bullying because he saw Ben as someone who was supposed to care about him. That makes the impact so much more personal and internalized. Now with Harry, I think everyone was right there with you rooting for Nick to punch Harry in the face. Nick and Tao both tried using their words to counter his homophobia more than once. It didn't work. Maybe the violence will. But for Nick, you're so right that he's not just punching Harry to defend Charlie. He's doing it for himself too. The bad thing is that Nick is hearing the insults that Harry hasn't even said to Charlie's face. This hurts Nick too because he knows he's not straight either and this insult is as much about him as it is about Charlie. I loved the scene where he leans on Charlie - literally - for support in dealing with that blatant homophobia. I absolutely hated where Charlie was trying to break up with Nick. The look on Nick's face when he realized what Charlie was saying was really hurt and disbelieving all at once. Thank goodness for the interruption about Tao and Harry's fight! And now I look forward to watching your reaction to episode 8 (the YT cut on Patreon followed by going back to watch all of the extended versions after that.
Yes, you're exactly right about Nick and Harry! It's the embodiment of "What you're saying about someone else could be hurting the people you care about most." And YES the part where Nick leans on Charlie 😍 So damn adorable! Glad you're enjoying the reactions, thanks for watching!!!
At 4:31 notice that Charlie’s dad calls him “Joe” (his real name) in the car. Eventually Netflix fixed that and now we hear him say Charlie.
In interviews the cast said that the milkshakes were Bad..... And they had to shoot drinking them over and over again.
Drama, drama, drama. You knew it was coming! lol
For me I just have to remember that these are 15/16 year old kids - of course they will do and say stupid things. Not mature enough to see the big picture. I would do so many things different if I could go back to high school knowing what I know now. ugh...
Tori is a year older than Charlie so is Nick's age I think and goes to the girls school. Alice wrote a whole book about her so her story really isn't explored in Heartstopper.
Issac will be given more of a story line in the upcoming seasons per an interview with Alice. He became a fan favorite even though he didn't show up much.
So true, I desperately wish I could change a ton of decisions I made in high school 😅 And oooh, I definitely need to read all of these books and graphic novels after I've finished watching the series!
Issac is played by Tobie Donovan
We know Tori goes to the girls school because she sits next to Charlie on the school bus and wears the same uniform as the other girls. IRL Jenny Walser is a bit older, 24 or 25 when they started filming. Joe Locke was 17.
Isaac was on library duty lol
i read somewhere that Tao let his hair grow like this for Elle because they didn’t let her wear long hair on Truham. it’s some kind of protest.. it’s gross but cute ❤
I've heard that, too! It's a very sweet gesture, but, as I like to joke, at what cost?! 😩
@@LeightonReacts well, yeah🤌🏻😂
Charlie needs to know he’s not making Nick’s life difficult and it’s not always his fault. Because even though Nick got into a fight with Harry and lost some of his friends,it was actually because Nick being with Charlie helped Nick see Harry,Ben & some of his friends true colours. And it’s not even Nick’s friends from the start because friends wouldn’t force you to do something you don’t want to do (Like how Harry & Harry’s friends tried to force Nick into dating Tara & Imogen when Nick wasn’t even interested) or when Harry started to pick on Tao & Charlie even when Nick tried to tell him off to defend them,Harry kept on going and a true friend would of stopped. If Nick didn’t like Harry’s bullying then why did he kept on hanging out with them? because despite when Harry threw the ball at Tao and when Nick asked Tao if he was okay & nicely ask for the ball back but Tao threw the ball back at Nick. It kinda represents how even if you are a nice person yourself (Like Nick) and if you are hanging around with the wrong crowd of people (Harry,Ben & their friends) people (Tao) would see you differently based off the people you are hanging out with.
That’s why you have to always surround yourself with people who would respect & accept you for you like Charlie’s friends.
I get the fact that the reason why Nick was friends with them was because some of Harry’s friends & Harry was on the Rugby team with Nick but Nick needs to know that you don’t have to be friends with someone just because you are on the same sports team especially people who acts like Harry & Ben all you need is their respect when you are playing since Nick is the rugby star player and teammates at least have to respect him on the field.
And Charlie did helped Nick find some better friends when Charlie invited Nick to his birthday party,it helped Nick bond with Charlie’s friends (Tao,Elle,Issac) who will actually respect your decision & are nicer & generous then Harry & his crew.
As for Harry I think he's just very childish and ignorantly cruel in away that he will grow out of once he learns it's not acceptable behavior.
That's not an excuse by any means, but he's mean in a way that just really reminds me of very young children who want attention. A lot of children are unfortunately taught this kind of behavior, and although in the Nick and Charlie novella he still comes across as immature and attention seeking and frankly just irritating, he also seems to have gotten rid of the homophobic mindset and has more of an irritating class clown dumb jock energy than what he is at this age which is a flat out bully.
Harry's goal is to be liked and make his friends laugh. I don't think he has the empathy or emotional intelligence at 16 (when he really should) to see how much he's hurting people like Tao and Charlie (and Nick) with his "jokes."
He does wise up and learn to make people laugh in less problematic ways. Again not excusing his behavior but I think adult Harry will be a much nicer person than teenage Harry based on what we see of him after the events of season 1.
As for Ben, that kid knows he's hurting Charlie. and maybe feels bad that he's hurting him but continues to do it anyway because it makes him feel protected from the fear he has about his true identity. While I'm more sympathetic to what Ben is struggling with, I think his behavior is far worse. And on top of that it isn't just generic stupidity like Harry's comments, it's personal,pointed shots and digs at who Charlie is specifically. Meant to tear him apart and make him feel stupid. To make him question his own reality and judgement so that Charlie can never confidently say that Ben is anything besides straight. Ben is hurting and he's deflecting and pushing all that pain and hurt onto Charlie. It's much more disturbing to me than Harry's behavior. And I'm not confident that adult Ben will be a nicer person. Maybe less homophobic. but I think he displayed a level of calculated cruelty that I don't think he'll "age out of" in the same way I think Harry will.
TLDR: I dislike both. Harry and Ben. I have more sympathy towards Ben but more hope (haha) for Harry.
God, I hope Harry grows out of it! I agree that Ben's attacks are a lot more calculated than Harry's, he's very purposely cruel. I also agree that both suck, though! And if he were a real person, I don't know if I'd ever forgive either if I were anyone they had bullied, even if they genuinely changed for the better.
The thing is Nick really didn’t have better friends through most of the season 1. Yes he met Charlie’s friends at the birthday party, and had a date thing with Tara Darcy Elle Tao and Charlie but other than that he only had imogen and the rugby lads. Nick only started becoming friends with everyone else later in the season.
Tori is in the same grade as nick
I think Tori is a year older than Charlie!!!
Please read the comics, harry yes is homophobic like his hole family but Ben I feel sorry for him he is Bi like Nick but he is scared and Olivia Coleman is so right fighting is NOT the answer! But I understand is Harry and Charlie tells not the gang...Nick told Tara Darcy and Elle and Isaac found at on his own way out
I feel bad for Ben because he has so much self hatred but I also think he is way worse than Harry. He is horrible. Many people have self hatred and don't do the evil things he does.