By Dominique Tassell
Season Three of Never Have I Ever landed on Netflix this month and has the show well set up for its next and final season.
In this season Devi, played by Maitreyi Ramakrishnan, is definitely still dealing with the loss of her dad but is learning how to better deal with her grief.
While the series is a comedy and does focus a lot on Devi’s love life, it does a wonderful job of portraying the pain and messiness of losing a loved one at a young age and how isolating this can feel.
It can often feel like you’re too much or too hurt and as someone who lost a parent young, it’s incredibly meaningful to see this portrayed onscreen.
It’s not just Devi who is growing this season, with big changes lined up for most of the characters.
Paxton Hall-Yoshida, played by Darren Barnet, has grown so much as a character, and the writing of his and Devi’s relationship was perfect.
Ben Gross, played by Jaren Lewison, does grow throughout the season but not as much as other characters.
Going into the final season, it would be good to see a bit more growth from him. It’s been pointed out by some fans that they really can’t get past some of his comments in the first season, so a little bit of work there would be appreciated.
The ending of this season felt like a weak spot. It was a bit outrageous and not in a good way. It seemed rushed and rash, which is usually very on-brand for Devi but felt a little off in this scenario.
This season also introduces a new love interest for Devi in the form of Nirdesh (Des), played by Anirudh Pisharody.
It’s fantastic to see a South Asian love interest for Devi, but it did admittedly feel off to introduce a new love interest given so much of the first and second seasons were about whether she should end up with Paxton or Ben.
That being said, Des feels the most compatible with her out of all her love interests as he had similar interests and goals, and their chemistry was good too. He feels like a combination of everything Devi is attracted to in both Paxton and Ben.
YA media often falls into the trap of high school sweethearts being endgame, and while that does happen it’s not necessarily the norm. It could be refreshing to have Devi go off to college single.
While I loved the introduction of Des, what is with them hiring men in their late twenties to portray a teen’s love interest? I understand they hired Darren Barnet, who was 29 when the first season aired, without knowing how old he was, but given that people were a bit weirded out by his and Maitreyi’s age gap you would think they wouldn’t do this again.
But no, Anirudh is 28.
Given that the rest of the young cast is firmly in their early twenties, with lead Maitreyi Ramakrishnan currently 20 years old, it feels like an odd choice to cast another much older love interest.
All that being said, the new season was well-done if at times a little rushed. It accomplished a lot while still leaving quite a bit to unpack in the final season. I for one can’t wait to see how it all ends.
