#and also i feel like fans of druck may enjoy sex education

[dusuessekartoffel]

So I just finished Sex Education and I have So. Many. Thoughts. This is super long and also full of spoilers, so you can find it under the cut. 

Let me just say, I love the concept of the show so much. Like, a funny, interesting show with complex characters and really good (and casual) representation that also educates its viewers about sex? Hell yes. This is what I would like all television to be, please and thank you. 

I love how diverse it is. Not just in terms of the cast or the different sexual orientations, but also how everyone’s sex life is so different and unique and it’s so, so realistic? This is what I would have needed as a teenager and it’s what I’ll gladly take now. 

From the second I saw Maeve, I knew she was the love of my life. “What are you into?” “Complex female characters” How can you not love her??

I also really love Otis. Like, honestly, he’s so sweet and kind and just tries his best. To quote one of my other favourite shows: “Son of a sex therapist? What a dream!” 

And don’t get me started on Eric. He’s so precious and I love him and his entire story arc just makes me emotional.

Can I also say, I absolutely love the way his relationship to his father was portrayed? Like, it’s complex and complicated and obviously not easy for either of them, but I love how his father is just genuinely worried for him and tries to keep him safe. And wow, that scene at the school dance was so good.

I really loved the entire school dance episode in general. Definitely my favourite one. 

I think when they played Origin of Love from Hedwig it broke me. I mean, Hedwig in general has that power, but in that scene it was just everything. (Side note, but both Otis and Eric were so beautiful when they dressed up as Hedwig?)

And Otis and Eric dancing together? The cutest! 

Also, Ola and Maeve were both absolutely beautiful in this episode (if it’s even possible for them to be more beautiful than they are anyway) and I’ve never felt this gay. 

Ola is also the bi icon we all deserve, let’s be real here. (The suit was everything.)

One thing I really appreciate is that there is not a single character I truly dislike. Do I think Otis’ mum massively overstepped her boundaries? Yes. Do I think Maeve’s brother’s behaviour was really shit? Of course. Was I annoyed at Adam bullying Eric? Absolutely. Did Jackson’s mum’s behaviour make me uncomfortable? Yes. But do I truly dislike any of them? Not really. Because they’re complex characters and their actions, although shit and dumb and hurtful, are realistic and understandable. 

Actually, I do dislike Adam’s dad. He’s an asshole. 

If we’re on the topic of Adam: right at the beginning, I thought there may be a romance between him and Eric building and then I went “nah.” Boy, was I wrong. To be honest, I’m not fully sure what to think of their whatever-it-was, but it sure was interesting and it definitely felt like some kind of resolution. (To all of the tension between them, at least.) 

I was a bit skeptical about Jean having a love story, because I was really on board with a show portraying a single woman who just has casual sex and enjoys her life and is not desperately searching for a relationship, but damn, they sold it so well. 

Also, Ola is the cutest. 

I really love how, while there’s clearly a romance between Otis and Maeve building (and damn, are they cute), you never hate Jackson or Ola? Because both relationships are portrayed as quite healthy and nice and also Jackson and Ola are both really likeable. I just love that. 

But also, I do really ship Otis and Maeve. Her looking at him in admiration when he was talking to Liam was too much. Also, the jumper thing? So cute. So, so cute. 

Also, Otis stealing that trophy for Maeve? Precious. Plus, a nice nod to him previously not being able to steal. Can I call this character development? Probably not. Will I still do it? Yap.

I haven’t mentioned Aimee yet and I really have to, because I love her. So much. She could so easily be just another popular girl, but she isn’t. I love her friendship with Maeve and I loved that she finally abandoned her shitty friends at the end. Also, “I’ve been wanking all night,” you go, girl. 

On that note, Steve is the best. He just wants girls to enjoy sex with him, bless him.

I didn’t know what to make of Lily at first, but then she was suddenly a bit too relatable at the end there. Plus, she’s really funny. 

That’s another thing I love so much, the show is so funny? Like, genuinely really funny? Without making fun of its characters or relying on dumb humour, it’s just funny. 

I’ve talked so much and I haven’t even mentioned all the actual sex education yet. I love it. I love it so, so much. I love how almost every episode opens with people having sex and they all have their individual, really normal problems, and how Otis, an awkward, 16-year-old virgin is just so good at giving sex advice. 

It makes me want to read books about sex, and honestly, aren’t those just the best kind of shows?

Have I mentioned that I love Maeve? 

Like, seriously love her. She’s an amazing character. I love how she’s smart. Like, academic smart. And she can still be edgy and cool and scary. And also, she can still be street smart and royally fuck up and be really badass, and then she gets to go home and read Sylvia Plath or philosophical books. I just love that she gets to be all of that. That’s how I like my female characters, with depth and sassy lines.

Also, the abortion storyline, wow. It was so well done. Everything about it. I love that they made it realistic and painful (because of course it is), but not more painful than it had to be. It was just spectacular and such an important storyline to show in a series like this. 

I’ve mentioned it before, but I will mention it again, because it’s genuinely my favourite thing about the show: all of the characters are so complex. It’s so much more interesting to watch a show where the characters make mistakes, and then learn and grow and become better, than it is to watch a show about one-dimensional characters. 

About halfway through the season I was like “they’re going to end it with Otis masturbating, aren’t they?” and they did and there was honestly no other acceptable end to this phenomenal season. 

I need a season two. 

[dusuessekartoffel]

Some Thoughts on Druck Season 3, or: a Love Letter to Matteo’s Season

Okay, here we are. The season ended two weeks ago. I don’t think I’ll ever be over it. I don’t think I’ll ever fully recover from watching it all live. It was stressful as hell and and it was more emotional than I ever could have anticipated and it was so, so satisfying. It took over my life for ten weeks, which I’m somehow grateful for, even if it probably took away ten years from my lifespan. I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to express quite how this season makes me feel. I can try, but I really don’t think I can put all my feelings into words. (Which is frustrating, because words are what I’m good at, usually. But I’ll just have to accept that and try.) These are just some of my thoughts on Matteo’s season, because otherwise this would turn into a novel.

From the moment we saw Matteo Florenzi in season 1, I knew his season was going to be good. I knew it was going to be my favourite season 3 remake. I knew Michelangelo Fortuzzi would do Matteo and Isak justice. And yet, I could have never imagined this. I never thought I would love this season as much as I did. That I would feel this much for fictional characters and that their story would touch me so much. I don’t think I’ve ever felt like this about any two fictional characters. Ever. (Not even Harry Potter and that is the one story that has stuck with me for 13 years now.)

Those people who, like me, have been in the fandom since the very beginning, will surely remember how we all knew how much we needed Matteo’s season when this disaster teenage boy first interrupted Hanna and Jonas in the very first clip. And then, sometime towards the end of season 1, people started advocating for trans Even. And I honestly think none of us would have ever expected that Druck would actually make their Even character trans. There was a casting call for a trans actor sometime last fall, but it was explained that it was for another show (which I’m guessing was a lie) and again, no one got their hopes up. When we saw David in season 2, the theories started, but still no one wanted to set themselves up for disappointment. And then Matteo saw David on that first Monday and it was confirmed that beanie boy was German Even and I will never forget how it felt to watch that scene for the first time and to see the fandom’s reactions to it, especially trans fans’ reactions. That Monday was when I realised that a. this season was truly going to be spectacular and that b. I could say goodbye to my life for the next ten weeks. That Monday was when “Druck is a show I like and think is really good” turned into “Druck is more or less the best thing I’ve ever seen and my life will now revolve around waiting for updates and then obsessing over them.” (You think I’m exaggerating, but seriously, on that Monday, I could barely concentrate on my classes and when I got home, I rewatched and rewatched the clip and I already felt way more for this show than I ever thought I would.)

This season was everything. It has its flaws, sure, and we shouldn’t ignore them. Criticising the things you like is good and healthy and we should never stop doing it. But the season also has its good parts, so, so many good parts. This is about the good parts because they are what made me fall in love with Druck again and again and again. (Also because a lot of people have talked about the bad parts and done it better than I ever could.)

David and Matteo have easily become my favourite version of Evak because they just feel so real. The show lets them be just two dumb teenage boys in love. It’s in everything, from both of the actors being the actual age of the characters, to them bonding over Matteo installing that switch thing (I’m honestly too dumb to understand what exactly he did), to Matteo calling David “Alter,” to their first date where they played table tennis with their hands and without a ball, to their dumb playful fights, to that first “I love you,” to them having sex for the first time. That’s what makes it so good, that they’re teenagers. They’re real teenagers. That’s such a rare thing to see on tv nowadays and it shouldn’t be. I’m not even a teenager anymore and I feel more represented by Druck than I have in a long time by anything else.

There’s a million details about this season and about Druck in general that make me love it so much. The music, which is always so good and so fitting. The flawless acting. The fact that they do workshops with the actors, writers and directors before every season and they adjust the characters and the scripts accordingly. The fact that Lukas was allowed to help on the last few scripts. The amazing and always entertaining Instagram content. (Oh, how I already miss #matteomonday and #florenzifriday.) How very much in character everything is all the time. Samstag 20:55. The kissing noises. (Don’t get me started on the kissing noises, because they may be my favourite thing about this season.) The sheer accuracy of everything. How stuff is properly built up and followed through and the writing is just so good.

One of my absolute favourite things about Druck is how good they are at characterisation. It was already spectacular in season 2, when we all suddenly fell for Alex right along with Mia, but they really took that to a new level in season 3. Matteo is one of the most well-written, well-developed characters I have ever come across. His character development was so good and so earned and it feels truly special to have witnessed it in real time. And David. Don’t even get me started on David. I do think a good part of this is Lukas Alexander’s sheer brilliance, but David is by far the most fleshed out and well-written Even character in all the remakes. He got to tell his own story and talk about his own experiences without ever being talked over and that is exactly how it should be. He was portrayed as kind and caring and desirable and funny and complex and more or less the best thing that has ever happened to Matteo. We all fell in love with him as hard as Matteo did. (How could we not have, when he’s the most loveable character played by the most loveable actor?)

But the thing with Druck is, every single character is multidimensional. They all have their little stories without taking away from the main character. I know a lot of people don’t like Sara, but again, she is by far the most well-written Sara/Emma character in the Skam universe. She has her own story and character development and I actually really enjoyed the scenes with her (when she wasn’t trying to get Matteo to kiss her). Eskild is one of my favourite Skam characters, but he doesn’t really get his own story, ever. Hans has an entire background we know about and, just like everyone else, he is also constantly learning and growing. Carlos and Abdi, who could have easily just been there for comic relief, are both fleshed out characters who have their own unique relationship with Matteo. Even Linn, who is in very few clips, has her own, distinct personality and got a cute little storyline about searching for a hobby.

Druck can be a bit messy sometimes and there’s a shit ton of continuity errors, but I think the fact that we are so ready to forgive them for that says a lot. The thing about Druck is that the people behind it care so much. They want to tell a beautiful story and they want to do it right. That doesn’t mean that they never fuck up, but throughout the entire show you can just feel the love they have for their characters and their stories. The fact that they listened to their viewers and gave us David says so much. So does the fact that they had Lukas Alexander work on the last three scripts with them. Or the fact that they broke their “no interviews” rule for those two videos with Annika to educate their viewers. Ever since we learned that they do workshops with the actors, directors and writers before each season starts to adjust the characters and the stories to the actors, I can’t stop thinking about that. It’s such a good example of just how much they care.

I’ve said this a lot this season, but Druck just gets it. They get how to be a remake (there’s a million examples of this, but my favourite one will always be how they took the iconic swimming pool kiss and turned it into their very own thing that felt absolutely fitting to their own characters while also referencing Skam). They get what Skam is all about: it’s about telling stories that matter, creating characters that people can relate to and being brave enough to try new things. This is why Druck is my favourite. Because it doesn’t try to be Skam, but in that, they do exactly what Skam was always meant to do. They open their viewers’ minds and they give people these beautiful stories that they can relate to in ways they may have never been able to relate to anything before. And it’s not even just things like the fact that so many trans viewers have been able to see themselves represented properly for the first time (though of course that is so important), it’s also just how well they portray how being a teenager in Germany feels. I’m not even German and I have never seen myself and my own school experience reflected more in a show. That Abi-Streich transported me right back to the end of my school days and made me feel all the things I felt back then. I have never had that with anything before.

So, yeah. Season 3 sure had it’s rocky parts. People are and always will be allowed to be upset about that. But it was nevertheless such a beautiful season. It made so many people feel seen and represented, whether in David or Matteo or any of the other characters. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a show like this. Going through the Druck tag can leave you with the worst feeling sometimes, but so often, it made me feel joy. And it made me feel grateful. Watching this season live was one of the most stressful things I’ve ever done. But I wouldn’t miss it for anything. Because it was one of the most incredible things I’ve ever witnessed.

I don’t think I can quite put into words how much I love this season and this show in general. But I guess it comes down to this: I am so unbelievably grateful that I exist at the same time as this beautiful show. And I am so unbelievably grateful that I got to witness Matteo’s story and that it made me feel so much. Guess that’s how you explain “wunderschön” to the people who don’t speak German.