Netflix’s Never Have I Ever did a pretty decent job adding diversity to the typical teen coming-of-age stories and romances that streaming services are populated with these days. It’s a saturated genre, so it was a breath of fresh air seeing the story of Devi (Maitreyi Ramakrishnan) unfold in a California high school, which clashed with her Indian culture. However, as funny as it gets seeing her and her friends navigate the game of love, Season 2 needs to fix a serious problem.
The problem in question is the problematic sexualization of young boys, a trend that’s been present in the entertainment business since 1967’s The Graduate. Granted, The Graduate features a legally consenting college student. However, there’s been a trope of teen boys hooking up with older women, which occurred on Dawson’s Creek and Riverdale too.
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In Never Have I Ever, the problem first arises in the third episode “…gotten drunk with the popular kids” when Devi visits Trent’s home to study with him and his best friend, Paxton. The latter’s her crush and the guy all the girls want, so Devi’s clocking some valuable time. However, things get uncomfortable when Trent’s mom comes in.
She starts flirting with Paxton, groping him to feel his muscles and asking who he’s taking to prom. He’s the star athlete in school, and his actor, Darren Barnet, is 30. Still, this is no excuse for her to sexualize a teenage boy in front of her son no less. She even jokes about him taking her to prom, “lifting” her up and “throwing her down,” which has some problematic implications. As a result, Devi’s uncomfortable, and Trent shoos his mother away.
The over-sexualization continues in the seventh episode, “…been a big, fat liar,” as Eleanor’s mom, Joyce, returns. Eleanor’s one of Devi’s besties, so Joyce is getting familiar with the kids again as they bake cookies. She left Eleanor to pursue her Hollywood acting career but is back because it didn’t work out. Now, Joyce wants the dirt on who the girls are dating.
Joyce then proceeds to mention “Sexton” as the person she saw Devi with, mentioning that he’s a “hunk,” and he’s “sexy,” which could have been toned down a bit. While it seems mild when compared to the interaction between Trent’s mom and Paxton, it promotes a double standard. Had Joyce been a dad talking about a teenage girl like that, it’d be totally unacceptable — and for good reason. It seems Never Have I Ever wants to position Paxton as everyone’s fantasy guy, but it should stick to teens doing this, instead of making moms out as predators.
Created by Mindy Kaling and Lang Fisher, Never Have I Ever stars Maitreyi Ramakrishnan, Darren Barnet, Ramona Young, Lee Rodriguez, Richa Moorjani, Poorna Jagannathan, Jaren Lewison and John McEnroe. Season 1 is available on Netflix with Season 2 premiering July 2021.
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