“Never Have I Ever” season three, while one of the cringiest things I have witnessed in a while, is worth the watch. The show’s latest season, released on Friday, Aug. 12, features 10 episodes of 30 minutes each. Since following the show since the first season was released back in 2020, I have developed a bit of a love-hate relationship with it. I love the storyline, the complex characters and the South Asian actor representation within the industry, but hate the secondhand embarrassment it gives me approximately every 10 seconds. It’s your typical awkward high school drama with that one character who looks like he should be a father with two kids playing a teen. Let’s dive in.
There were many different relationship developments this season. I wish there could have been an adequate amount of screentime for each of them, but unfortunately due to the season’s short nature that was not possible. One of the relationships that really stood out to me was that of Devi (Maitreyi Ramakrishnan) and her mother Nalini (Pooma Jagannathan). These two have had a rocky bond, or lack thereof, from the start of the show. But in this season we finally see them come to a mutual understanding that they both need each other more than they know and that they should be holding onto each other, instead of pulling away.
I also wish we got to see more of Devi and her cousin Kamala’s (Richa Moorjani) relationship. While they butted heads at first when Kamala moved in with Devi’s family, in this season they had an already-established good relationship. Kamala was sort of the older sister Devi never had when it came to advise about life and boys. We all know Devi could use all the help she can get in those areas if her decision-making track record is anything to go by.
Aside from familial relationships, season three definitely does not lack in romantic ones. Devi has found herself in a love square this season, as new love interest Des (Anirudh Pisharody) entered the picture. Between soft-at-heart jock Paxon Hall-Yoshida (Darren Barnet), academic rival Ben Gross (Jaren Lewison) and the nerdy but easy on the eyes Des, Devi really has her hands full. You would think becoming Paxton’s official girlfriend would solve all of Devi’s problems, but like her therapist has told her many times before, a relationship cannot fix everything.
I’m on Team Paxton, but I can see the argument for Team Ben as well. However, I will not support Team Des (if it even exists) for reasons I cannot disclose without spoiling a big plotline in the season. I will say one of my favorite things about this show is how realistically Devi’s character is written. She is not the perfect high school girl who always knows when to say the right thing and always gets the guy. She is the complete opposite of that, which is kind of how she got in this love square, ironically. Her awkwardness allows for her to be more relatable to viewers. Still, some of her actions are just outright wrong, so I have definitely been thrown for a bit of a loop sometimes when it comes to her. But I still do like her character (I think?).
As for other characters I like, Fabiola Torres (Lee Rodriguez) is one of them. Fabiola deserves better. I said it once and I will say it again. Every love interest she has either gets written off, broken up with, or just not enough screen time. At first she was with Eve (Christina Kartchner) but she ended up moving to South Korea. Then we got the unexpected pairing of Fabiola and Aneesa (Megan Suri). I thought they were cute together, but they did not last long due to “lack of chemistry.” I feel that if they were given a bit more of a storyline, things would have gone differently. Lastly we have Fabiola’s current partner Addison (Terry Hu). This couple has so much potential and seems to be pretty steady, but we have barely seen them together. The only information we receive about their relationship is what Fabiola tells us. We need better content. Hopefully we will see all of these loose ends tie up in the show’s fourth and final season.
I could talk about season three all day and barely scratch the surface of what I want to say. The only way you can truly experience the depth of this season is to watch it yourself. Grab a snack, get cozy, and get ready to laugh. Stream season three of “Never Have I Ever” today.