So, having power-watched Season 2 of Sex Education last night, I find myself incapable of not sharing something, narratively, that bothers me about Isaac and the Otis-Maeve-Isaac love triangle, if you wanna call it that.
The choice to portray Isaac as manipulative, controlling, and duplicitous feels… kinda lazy?
Like, okay, if you’re examining that story arc, and you ask the question “what function does Isaac’s secret betrayal by deleting Otis’ voicemail serve?” the answer is simple: to show that Isaac is the wrong choice, or in other words, to prove that Otis is the right choice.
Otis royally fucks up when he humiliates and verbally tears down Maeve at his house party. Yes, even if he’s drunk. And the purpose that scene is to give Otis that moment of realization, and to set him on his path of self-betterment, and to really start addressing his fear of becoming an asshole like his father.
So, if Otis is to earn back Maeve’s trust, respect, and affection, Otis should have to be the one to put in the work. The choice of which partner Maeve should be with shouldn’t be decided by who’s less terrible.
The onus is on Otis to prove that he’s the better man, not on Isaac to prove he’s the worse one.
Also, I think that Isaac trying to “trap” Maeve with him plays into a lot of really nasty stereotypes about partners with disabilities. The choice to have Isaac be self-interested, to be someone who prioritizes his own wants and needs, who spies on and is possessive of Maeve, versus being someone who is compassionate, and concerned for Maeve’s feelings, and her wellbeing, and looks out for her, wants to share her burden, for a show that does nuance and representation really well in other regards, really misses the mark, at least for me.
TLDR: There’s no arguing that Isaac’s actions in canon are wrong, but the narrative choice to have him do those things are wrong first.
(also, if the first scene out the gate season 3 isn’t “hey maeve, no pressure, i just wondered if maybe you had anything to say to me re: my message” “lol what message?” then the miscommunication plot is really gonna start pushing credibility i mean h o n e s t l y …)
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