Summary
Liberties, freedom of expression, and boundaries are brought to the surface in episode 2 strongly and thematically.
This recap of Netflix’s Sex Education season 3, episode 2 contains spoilers.
Read the recap of the previous episode.
One of the messages I like that comes from Sex Education is this view of self-worth. At some point in the story, all the characters have a moment of self-discovery, but then that journey leads to the importance of self-love and worth. Discovering yourself is important, but if you do not love who you are, then the foundations fall apart. Plenty of us can take a leaf out of Maeve and Otis’s story in this chapter.
Sex Education season 3, episode 2 recap
Episode 2 opens with Eric putting make-up on Adam — can you believe how much this relationship has advanced and intensified? Adam then drops the bombshell — he’s ready to have sex. Ruby and Otis’s relationship is also developing but in a more controlling manner. Ruby tells Otis to get rid of the mustache. When she heads downstairs in Otis’s house, she tells Jean she’s having casual sex with her son, and it is not dating. The pair then go to school together in organized outfits that Ruby picked.
Family planning is so important, and episode 2 presents that notion. Jakob tells Ola that he’s going to co-parent with Jean. Ola is a little shellshocked and reminds her father that Jean hurt him. To heal and find a basis for co-parenting, Jean and Jakob go to therapy together. Jean admits she is not ready to let go of being a full-time mother — “being an older parent is intimidating.” The therapist tells Jean and Jakob that they need to build a foundation of trust. However, therapy only leads to one thing — Jakob and Jean sleep together. We all believe they make a brilliant couple anyway!
At the school, new guidelines are published by headteacher Hope — new values and rules! Students now have to walk in a single file, and all graffiti will be painted over. It’s all about discipline and control. Hope has gone “all-out.” Hope asks Jackson to walk Cal through the new school values. However, Cal is against painting over graffiti, calling it historical art. They tells Jackson to use powers as a head boy to make a case to Hope to keep it.
It’s abundantly clear immediately that Otis does not fit in with Ruby and her group. From a distance, Aimee asks Maeve if she’s okay with seeing Otis and Ruby together. Maeve claims she’s over it and confesses to liking Isaac. After her admission, Maeve tells Otis that she’s worried about Aimee (after her sexual assault) and wonders if she can speak to his mother for therapy. The conversation turns to “Otis and Ruby,” and Maeve raises that she has never seen Otis as someone who wants a “casual connection” because he cares a lot. Later on, when Otis has sex with Ruby, he asks her if she’d like to hang out, but she’s only interested in sex.
Adam and Eric face their first relationship problem in episode 2; Adam tells his boyfriend that he isn’t sure what he wants. Earlier, Otis had warned Eric not to get hurt by Adam. And then, Adam heads to Otis’s home and tells him to stop talking shit to Eric. Later on, Adam tells Eric how he feels — he wants Eric to have sex with him — “I want you to put your dick in me.” A relationship obstacle is successfully overcome — Eric and Adam have sex!
We reach a stage early in season 3 where Isaac’s actions in the season 2 finale come to the surface. Maeve checks out Elsie’s new foster mother, but she is soon told to leave by her mother, who is furious with her for calling the police and getting social services involved. Later on, Maeve confides in Isaac, stating that the new foster mother is nice, but her mother was shit with her. Isaac hugs her, but then it turns into a kiss. It’s frustrating to watch because Isaac is in this position by being manipulative. However, in a moment we least expected, Isaac quickly moves from villain to an attempt of redemption…
Isaac confesses to Maeve that the night she got the police and social services involved with her mother and Elsie, Otis came over, and he did not tell her. He reveals that Otis left a message on her phone, and he listened to the message and then deleted it. And then the bombshell — Isaac states the message showed that Otis has feelings for her and wanted to make amends. Isaac tries to justify this breach of boundaries by saying he was angry at Otis for not understanding her. He admits to being a dick by protecting her. Maeve is flagrantly fuming — she raises how she trusted Isaac because he was different, but he has messed up.
The scene between Isaac and Maeve is a true example of Maeve understanding her boundaries and how Isaac broke them. She knows her self-worth, and she’s not accepting anything less. Younger generations can take lessons from this.
The ending
And that lesson transfers to Otis; he tells Ruby that if she’s embarrassed with what he wears, they need to end their relationship. He also requests that they get to know each other better, as he wants a more meaningful connection (and he finds her interesting). Surprisingly, she agrees, and they are no longer casual. At school, Otis reveals to Maeve that he’s no longer in a casual relationship with Ruby, which is a double blow to the character. She’s lost Isaac and Otis.
As the episode ends, the new headteacher tells Maeve to get rid of her nose ring immediately. She also takes power off Jackson as a head boy after he challenges her about the graffiti and gives Viv the role so he can pursue “artistic pursuits,” but she says it with a tinge of sarcasm. And then, to close the episode, Hope announces that there will be school uniforms. The episode tries to make a point about freedom and liberties and how they can easily be taken away.
Additional points
- Hope tells Colin that she’s giving him appropriate song choices for the choir after hearing songs
- Michael Groff is desperate and asks Colin if he can stay at his for a while.
- Jean tells Otis that she and Jakob want to be a family, which means Jakob and Ola moving in.
What did you think of Netflix’s Sex Education season 3, episode 2? Comment below.
