Summer vacation is a great time for young learners to sit back, relax, and enjoy uninterrupted hours in front of a screen to catch up on the lives of their favorite TV characters — who, regardless of their main plots, often seem to be involved in some scope of romance. In the midst of rampant portrayal of charming boys and pretty girls getting their happily ever afters exclusively with each other — parents beware. If you’ve kept a supervising eye on the entertainment world this summer, you’ll notice that the Gay Agenda™ has been spreading like wildfire right in front of your precious child’s eyes. Besides, what’s a kid to do but indulge in the recent back-to-back second season releases of “Good Omens” and “Heartstopper,” AKA a queer child’s roadmap to binge-watching themselves into an emotional rollercoaster?

Dear queer kids, this summer’s releases are nothing short of a love letter to you. Representation in media has always been valuable. Whether it comes from seeing yourself on a book cover or finding pieces of your life etched into novels and scripts, media plays a crucial part in putting a spotlight on the parts of the world that usually live in the shadows. For those of you watching with family, a well-placed anecdote or a witty protagonist may also be your gateway to pointing at the screen and saying, “Heads up — that’s me!” But if your TV binge involves hiding in your room or staying up late to watch in the dark, that’s okay too. These representations are ultimately for you, after all.

Some shows are more subtle with this representation, where being queer isn’t the point of the story but the relationships between characters ultimately form the foundation for how the plot itself progresses. “Good Omens” portrays this dynamic through protagonists Crowley and Aziraphale. The fallen-angel-turned-demon and his angelic partner-in-crime spend season one on a mission to incur Armageddon, during which they end up building a secret life together on Earth and actually saving humanity from its end. The pair’s mutual dependency always carries an underlying note of infatuation that only becomes more obvious in season two, where their mission shifts to save both an amnesia-afflicted angel and a blossoming queer romance on Earth. While both seasons have an intense mission to solve, the real intrigue of “Good Omens” comes from Crowley and Aziraphale as individual characters and their dynamic with each other. The show flawlessly develops a relationship built on banter to mask feelings with just enough truth peeking through — in essence, the recipe for a queer kid growing up where their identity is less than celebrated. 

While the average viewer may not experience falling from heaven or acquiring a set of angel wings, they can still easily see themselves in protagonists who are equal parts charismatic and vulnerable. Despite being attached to humanity, Aziraphale’s life is centered around the plans of heaven to work against hell, while Crowley has been estranged from both extremes and isolates himself in his Earthly life instead. This ultimate opposites-attract duo learns that they are far more attached to each other than their respective otherworldly origins, and those origins and expectations are exactly what ends up keeping them apart for so long. In the end, both characters miss out on what they want most — their life with each other — in favor of doing what they think is the right thing. 

And that, dear viewers, is the most heart-wrenching realization of them all. “Good Omens” represents that your flawed experiences and others’ expectations for your life don’t define your ability to love. Seeing each character struggle to balance their hearts with what they’re expected to want provides a sense of comfort that feeling forced into a box of others’ perceptions isn’t your fault. The heart wants what it wants, and if you want better for your on-screen love stories, you deserve better for yourself too.

Raise a hand if that sounds familiar. It does? How’s that religious trauma and hyperindependence treating you?

Okay, don’t worry. Your daily dose of getting called out by your on-screen counterparts does come with compensation of sunshine and rainbows — and, in this case, a sprinkle of cartoon leaves. The long-awaited second season of “Heartstopper” was an immediate hit, with fans eager to see what high school loverboys Nick and Charlie would experience after officially becoming boyfriends at the end of season one. From showcasing the pair in a variety of classic teenage love moments, to developing their story through more heartfelt and vulnerable confrontations, “Heartstopper” skillfully creates a gentle, fluffy romance with twists woven into the quintessential young love that everyone yearns for. Charlie’s history with bullying and its resulting trauma coexists with Nick’s struggle to come out to his community, and the tension from both of their lives are delicately incorporated into the show’s puppy love atmosphere to make even the worst experience an easier pill to swallow.

Beyond Nick and Charlie’s obnoxiously sweet romance, “Heartstopper” also makes room for a variety of identities to make their way to the big screen. The experiences of side characters, like Elle’s life after transitioning, Darcy’s unsupportive mother in contrast to Tao’s endearing one, and Isaac’s self discovery of asexuality are just some of many representations that create the underlying appeal of the show. Whether it’s by sharing your specific label or life with an on-screen twin, or by seeing a character articulate your thoughts with all the right words, every member of the “Heartstopper” audience will find some piece of themselves in the show. Each character creates a subtle but necessary incorporation of people from all walks of life, as a reminder that your ability to live isn’t defined by your labels or how you grew up, but rather by who you are and become.

So, whether you take your media dark with a healthy portion of fluff or vice versa, seeing representations of stories of all kinds provides an experience that goes beyond just enjoying a good show. “Good Omens” and “Heartstopper,” despite their vastly different plots, are both centered around developing relationships that are impactful to the people involved. These second seasons explore the struggle between giving in to love and facing the tension of vulnerability, and both stories end on a shaky note as the audience understands that their favorite lovers have left up more walls between them than they realize.

That dichotomy is a key part of reminding audiences that emotions are not as lighthearted as a fluffy, teasing relationship may seem. And, if you see pieces of yourself in shows like these, that complexity can help you realize that your emotions are not exclusive — especially in the case of queer romances. The contrast between happiness and vulnerability is essential to understanding and experiencing love for yourself. Often, this borderline existential crisis is significantly easier to comprehend when you have an on-screen counterpart to compare yourself too.

So yes, parents. TV may be making your children gay. Or, more accurately, it’s making your children considerably more comfortable with being themselves.
And kids, it’s not just you. It never has been. Go forth and binge-watch romances of all types to your heart’s content.

Summer vacation is a great time for young learners to sit back, relax, and enjoy uninterrupted hours in front of a screen to catch up on the lives of their favorite TV characters — who, regardless of their main plots, often seem to be involved in some scope of romance. In the midst of rampant portrayal of charming boys and pretty girls getting their happily ever afters exclusively with each other — parents beware. If you’ve kept a supervising eye on the entertainment world this summer, you’ll notice that the Gay Agenda™ has been spreading like wildfire right in front of your precious child’s eyes. Besides, what’s a kid to do but indulge in the recent back-to-back second season releases of “Good Omens” and “Heartstopper,” AKA a queer child’s roadmap to binge-watching themselves into an emotional rollercoaster?

Dear queer kids, this summer’s releases are nothing short of a love letter to you. Representation in media has always been valuable. Whether it comes from seeing yourself on a book cover or finding pieces of your life etched into novels and scripts, media plays a crucial part in putting a spotlight on the parts of the world that usually live in the shadows. For those of you watching with family, a well-placed anecdote or a witty protagonist may also be your gateway to pointing at the screen and saying, “Heads up — that’s me!” But if your TV binge involves hiding in your room or staying up late to watch in the dark, that’s okay too. These representations are ultimately for you, after all.

Some shows are more subtle with this representation, where being queer isn’t the point of the story but the relationships between characters ultimately form the foundation for how the plot itself progresses. “Good Omens” portrays this dynamic through protagonists Crowley and Aziraphale. The fallen-angel-turned-demon and his angelic partner-in-crime spend season one on a mission to incur Armageddon, during which they end up building a secret life together on Earth and actually saving humanity from its end. The pair’s mutual dependency always carries an underlying note of infatuation that only becomes more obvious in season two, where their mission shifts to save both an amnesia-afflicted angel and a blossoming queer romance on Earth. While both seasons have an intense mission to solve, the real intrigue of “Good Omens” comes from Crowley and Aziraphale as individual characters and their dynamic with each other. The show flawlessly develops a relationship built on banter to mask feelings with just enough truth peeking through — in essence, the recipe for a queer kid growing up where their identity is less than celebrated. 

While the average viewer may not experience falling from heaven or acquiring a set of angel wings, they can still easily see themselves in protagonists who are equal parts charismatic and vulnerable. Despite being attached to humanity, Aziraphale’s life is centered around the plans of heaven to work against hell, while Crowley has been estranged from both extremes and isolates himself in his Earthly life instead. This ultimate opposites-attract duo learns that they are far more attached to each other than their respective otherworldly origins, and those origins and expectations are exactly what ends up keeping them apart for so long. In the end, both characters miss out on what they want most — their life with each other — in favor of doing what they think is the right thing. 

And that, dear viewers, is the most heart-wrenching realization of them all. “Good Omens” represents that your flawed experiences and others’ expectations for your life don’t define your ability to love. Seeing each character struggle to balance their hearts with what they’re expected to want provides a sense of comfort that feeling forced into a box of others’ perceptions isn’t your fault. The heart wants what it wants, and if you want better for your on-screen love stories, you deserve better for yourself too.

Raise a hand if that sounds familiar. It does? How’s that religious trauma and hyperindependence treating you?

Okay, don’t worry. Your daily dose of getting called out by your on-screen counterparts does come with compensation of sunshine and rainbows — and, in this case, a sprinkle of cartoon leaves. The long-awaited second season of “Heartstopper” was an immediate hit, with fans eager to see what high school loverboys Nick and Charlie would experience after officially becoming boyfriends at the end of season one. From showcasing the pair in a variety of classic teenage love moments, to developing their story through more heartfelt and vulnerable confrontations, “Heartstopper” skillfully creates a gentle, fluffy romance with twists woven into the quintessential young love that everyone yearns for. Charlie’s history with bullying and its resulting trauma coexists with Nick’s struggle to come out to his community, and the tension from both of their lives are delicately incorporated into the show’s puppy love atmosphere to make even the worst experience an easier pill to swallow.

Beyond Nick and Charlie’s obnoxiously sweet romance, “Heartstopper” also makes room for a variety of identities to make their way to the big screen. The experiences of side characters, like Elle’s life after transitioning, Darcy’s unsupportive mother in contrast to Tao’s endearing one, and Isaac’s self discovery of asexuality are just some of many representations that create the underlying appeal of the show. Whether it’s by sharing your specific label or life with an on-screen twin, or by seeing a character articulate your thoughts with all the right words, every member of the “Heartstopper” audience will find some piece of themselves in the show. Each character creates a subtle but necessary incorporation of people from all walks of life, as a reminder that your ability to live isn’t defined by your labels or how you grew up, but rather by who you are and become.

So, whether you take your media dark with a healthy portion of fluff or vice versa, seeing representations of stories of all kinds provides an experience that goes beyond just enjoying a good show. “Good Omens” and “Heartstopper,” despite their vastly different plots, are both centered around developing relationships that are impactful to the people involved. These second seasons explore the struggle between giving in to love and facing the tension of vulnerability, and both stories end on a shaky note as the audience understands that their favorite lovers have left up more walls between them than they realize.

That dichotomy is a key part of reminding audiences that emotions are not as lighthearted as a fluffy, teasing relationship may seem. And, if you see pieces of yourself in shows like these, that complexity can help you realize that your emotions are not exclusive — especially in the case of queer romances. The contrast between happiness and vulnerability is essential to understanding and experiencing love for yourself. Often, this borderline existential crisis is significantly easier to comprehend when you have an on-screen counterpart to compare yourself too.

So yes, parents. TV may be making your children gay. Or, more accurately, it’s making your children considerably more comfortable with being themselves.