So I just went for drinks with the one gay friend I have and kinda hoped he’d seen it too and I could talk to someone who ‘got it’. He’d seen bits but wasn’t really invested and then began about Love, Victor which he’d seen and he found Victor a bit of a drama queen and didn’t get what he was making such a fuss about at all. Safe to say I shortly mentioned that the series did leave quite an impression on me and moved along. I guess it was good to focus on other things for 3 hours but at the same time.. it’s back to being sad on my own I guess. Wish I knew what it is I needed. I’m doing fine at distracting myself for bits and hoping it will just go away but then.. isn’t that possibly what I’ve been doing for years? Mess
Have any of the Little Heartsobbers here had any succes pinpointing what exactly the sadness is about (and what helps)? Also: which scenes hit you the hardest? For me it's between Spoiler the "you look so cuddly"-hug, the CHVRCHES-scene at the party, "Charlie's a really special friend isn't he?", the first kiss and Nick standing in the rain in front of Charlie's door afterwards. Going by my response just typing this the hug and 'special friend' scene win though.
I think something I really appreciated is the focus on those small moments, the butterflies, the brief touching of pinkies, the agonizing over waiting for a text. Granted, this comes with the territory when you’re telling a story about young teens falling in love. But for someone whose sex life doesn’t resemble the stereotypical “gay experience,”* it speaks to me on a level I didn’t expect. Not sure if that’s pathetic, but it resonates emotionally with me far more than edgier fare. *Not that there’s anything wrong with that.
My favourite scenes: Spoiler Nick and Charlie talking alone before their first kiss. Nick’s “full on gay crisis” moment in the bedroom. In the art room Charlie holding Nick’s hand under the table and reassuring him he’s not like Ben. Nick giving Charlie his birthday present and kissing in the bowling arcade. Nick coming out to his mum (well the whole last 8 minutes of the final episode really from Nick marching off the rugby pitch, to the corridor scene, to the beach etc)
Started my third watch this morning. I don't know what it is about this show that keeps bringing me back. I guess it's the joy – and melancholy – of seeing boys have the experiences I couldn't have just 20 years ago in high school. It gives...hope, I guess? Also, it's just so relieving to watch a queer-centered show that doesn't include hate crimes, religion, (extreme) bullying, sickness, glorified drug use, etc. It's nice to see something wholesome yet inclusive.
To all the repeat-watchers (and considering I'm more upset when not watching then when I am??): do you reckon it's because watching something you never got to have is hard but leaving it behind is even harder? I'm almost done with the This Winter book which for me ends all the reading there is to do and do feel I.. don't want to let go of the closest thing to teenage love I've ever got to experience?
The show is a bit like a drug isn’t it? I suspect we all suffer the same thing. A sense of calm and euphoria for those 4 hours of viewing and then it’s over and the melancholy just comes crawling back. And I would agree with you. I finished all of the books and just watch the series everyday. I don’t want to leave this beautiful world behind but I know I need to stop watching it for my mental health.
Yesterday, when a friend was watching (at home but texting me about it) and I felt like watching it again wasn't the smartest thing but at the same time I thought 'screw it!' I compared it to the ex who you know will only break your heart but you just want to see one last time. But yeah, drug works too. I don't think watching the show really gave me a sense of calm though. I was sobbing pretty much every episode which isn't my idea of calmth or euphoria. After the last few days I did however expect to full on ugly cry rewatching it and while it made me emotional it wasn't as bad as some of the moments I've had while not watching it.
Yeah, I've been stuck in the "do I need distance to breathe because it's the story itself, or is it something else that's only surfaced because of the story?" At least for me, there's a sense of grieving, but also something very... bitter? Or something similar? It's a big whirl of emotions that I don't really know what starts and ends where. ...It's been a long week. I would like a minute pls xo
I've heard people talk about trauma and grief and it makes it all feel so.. big.. but at the same time I wonder/hope these feelings might just be like something you experience after the end of a summer romance and once normal life picks up again the sadness fades away and it's back to normal? (though I'm not sure how much I like my 'normal' after seeing this)
Yeah maybe? I'd just like to know if this is something I solve by 'focussing on something else and just forgetting about it' or by actually doing something about it? (Part of me feels like 'get me a therapist RIGHT NOW, it will save them weeks of digging!!!') Must say, unfortunate as it might sound, that it's kinda comforting to hear more people are affected by it. Otherwise I'd genuinely think I'd lost it.
This is my favorite aspect of the show to be honest. The way Nick looks at Charlie is just….sweet and wonderful.
