Streaming: "Heartstopper" Delivers An Equally Strong Season Two

by Christopher James

Who’s ready to get emotional? Season one of Heartstopper won raves for bringing to life the acclaimed graphic novels, which present a coming-of-age queer love story between the nerdy and shy Charlie Spring (Joe Locke) and the sensitive jock Nick Nelson (Kit Connor). Alice Oseman’s tale does a wonderful job of capturing the butterflies and emotions of falling in love for the first time, while centering it within the anxieties of coming out and defining one’s sexuality. Though it's meant to appeal to a teen audience, Heartstopper excels at placing adults back in their teenage years, where every text and fleeting glance can feel like an earth-shattering event.

Season two has not lost any of the magic. In so many ways, it examines what happens after “happily ever after” in teen worlds. Charlie got the guy that he wanted, but anxieties and hangups don’t vanish after one triumph. The show’s lovely, delicate touch never gets in the way of tackling hard topics in a realistic manner. Thus, season two is just as deep, emotional and swoon-worthy as its predecessor...

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Star profiles, Heart stoppers, Shanghai blossoms, and more...

• THR Heartstopper (and other series) make Netflix the leader for the Children & Family Emmy nominations -- by a large margin, too
• Advocate Kit Connor (who plays Nick on Heartstopper) just came out as bisexual because he felt pressured to with the online accusations that he was queerbaiting. 
• Fangoria Talks to TV creator/showrunner Bryan Fuller (Hannibal, Pushing Daisies) about Crystal Lake which will be a prequel series (of sorts) to the Friday the 13th movies

After the jump comes more movie news, fun articles, or actor profiles like the superstar who came back down to earth Jennifer Lawrence, and rising hotties Ismael Cruz Córdova (Rings of Power) and Harris Dickinson (Triangle of Sadness)...

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"Heartstopper" and "Yellowjackets" take the Dorian Awards

by Nathaniel R

The 14th annual Dorian Award TV winners have been announced. Mike White's anthology series The White Lotus and Showtime's unnerving but supremely watchable Yellowjackets picked up the most prizes (2 each) while Netflix's high school romance Heartstopper was named the best LGBTQ show. GALECA, the organization behind the Dorian Awards, is comprised of 360 LGBTQ+ entertainment journalists across the US, Canada, Australia, and the UK. (As you know a few members of Team Experience are in this organization.)

After the jump the winners for the TV season (the film nominations run on the calendar year like the Oscars and will be announced in January)...

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Dorian Awards TV Nods: Lots of love for "Hacks", "Heartstopper", and "Somebody Somewhere"

by Nathaniel R

How fab was that lesbian cruise episode of "Hacks"?

Shortly on the heels of the annual TCA nominations as Emmy voters are a-voting, come the 14th annual Dorian Awards TV honors. These nominations come from the The Society of LGBTQ Entertainment Critics, also referred to as GALECA which was the acronym for an earlier name (the name changes are very confusing especially since the signature prize, "The Dorian Awards" doesn't match either of them!). The organization is made up of 385 queer professional critics and journalists covering film and television. A few of those 385 write stuff right here at The Film Experience.

HBO led the nominations with three shows, two comedies (Somebody Somewhere and Hacks) and one drama (Euphoria)...

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Streaming Roulette, May 2022

Okay, time for this month's streaming roulette. You know the rules. We highlight new-to-streaming movies and an occasional TV series by freezing them on the scroll bar at entirely random places and just sharing what pops up. No cheating*!

So when you stopped going to Church is that about the time you stopped seeing your family and your brothers?

Under the Banner of Heaven (2022) on Hulu
A very discomfiting watch just two episodes in, being an Ex-Mormon. Can't imagine how still practicing Mormons are feeling. Always happy to see Andrew Garfield and Gil Birmingham who are paired here as detectives on a double-homicide case that is rapidly growing in danger and disorienting implications...

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