Trixie and Katya reading Heartstopper season 2 to filth is the funniest thing you’ll see today
Trixie Mattel and Katya react to Heartstopper season two. (YouTube/Still Watching Netflix)
RuPaul’s Drag Race fan-favourites Trixie Mattel and Katya are going viral for their side-splitting reaction to the second season of the hit series Heartstopper.
The new episodes of Alice Oseman’s teen drama have been widely praised for their heart-felt depictions of queer coming-of-age. There’s Nick and Charlie navigating being out and together at school, while Darcy and Tara are figuring out how to say they love each other for the first time.
It’s a show about realising and exploring queer identity, but some have criticised it for lacking reality when it comes to the more not-safe-for-work aspects of figuring out your sexuality. As one critic put it when the second season was released: “Are teens really this well behaved?”
Now, in a new episode of their comedy web series I Like To Watch, Trixie and Katya have waded into the debate, giving their hilarious, real-time reactions as they watched the show.
Across 31 minutes, the drag duo found plenty of reasons to playfully ridicule what they were seeing, starting with its inescapable Britishness.
“Coming out is a lot harder than I thought, babes. I’m from Leeds,” Trixie mocked in a faux English accent.
“I’m from Yorkshire. I just had a facial and botox,” Katya quipped in response, with Trixie adding: “So, I said to me wife, would you like to eat me Yorkshire Pudding?”
They also took time to declare that they would both like to sleep with the school’s new queer science teacher, Mr. Farouk, played by Nima Taleghani, although not exactly because he’s exceedingly hot.
“The way that I would ride that teacher,” Trixie stated. “British people don’t look right, and that’s what’s kinda hot about it. There’s something there that you’re like…mmm, so crunchy. This is the oldest DNA.”
“And it shows,” Katya replied.
The crux of their discussion focused on whether or not Heartstopper is an accurate depiction of queer teenagers. In a clip that has since gone viral on social media, the pair react to a scene in episode six, in which Nick says he doesn’t want to do anything sexual with Charlie – just kiss.
After watching the moment, Trixie burst into screams of laughter, while Katya simply got up and walked away.
“I can’t f*****g take it any more. What are we watching? Was this filmed for PBS?” Trixie asked, referring to the straight-laced US version of the BBC. Then, mockingly, she added: “My favourite thing about having a high school romance is hand-holding. Why would we f**k when we can smile at each other? They need Lana del Rey in their lives.”
Trixie chipped in by saying: “I will punch you in the mouth if something doesn’t develop. There’s edging and then there’s whatever this is. If we’re in the beginning of a relationship, and we’re in bed, we’re having sex. So, this teenage hand-holding? Girl.”
Getting slightly serious, the pair also dissected why they took issue with Heartstopper’s PG take on teen sexuality.
“I don’t want to watch them have sex because I want to watch teenagers have sex, I want it to be closer to real,” Trixie explained.
Katya agreed, adding: “Coercing anybody into having sex is, of course, a terrible thing. I think we’re advocating for more of a realistic approach to what is generally considered to be the truth.”
Towards the end of their video, the pair did seem to come to conclusion that while Heartstopper might not be for them, it does have an audience, and shows young queer people can embark on sexual experiences at their own pace.
“I forget, many people feel pressured to f**k. There are whole movies about this,” Katya said.
“For every character so far, the story has sort of let them blossom at their own speed, which I guess is really good,” Trixie added.
Elsewhere, the pair were able to touch on some of the important issues that the show addresses, such as bisexual visibility, asexuality and coming out to family members.
“Bisexual [visibility], it just needs to be more, more, more. People have not caught up to it,” Katya declared. “Nick is having a lot of anxiety coming out, and a lot of the homophobia and especially the bi erasure is messing with his head. Mama, the bi erasure is real, especially among gay people.”
And, as Nick revealed his sexuality to his father, Trixie delved into her own coming out experience, saying that she told her brother while she was sitting with him in his truck. He responded with a sweet, if slightly odd, analogy.
“I was so scared, I was like 18. And he goes: ‘I don’t like tomatoes. I think eating tomatoes is kinda gross. But I’m never gonna tell people not to eat tomatoes’. He reaches over, puts his hand on me and goes: ‘You’re still my brother, none of that matters’.”
Heartstopper season two is streaming on Netflix now.
