Heartstopper recap guide: All episodes explained and questions answered

Heartstopper episode guide and recaps

Heartstopper is about to be one of the biggest Netflix shows of spring 2022 and you don’t want to miss it! Chances are, you’ve heard of the new LGBTQ+ romantic series based on the graphic novel of the same name by Alice Oseman. Fans have been blowing up social media talking about how excited they are to see the love story between Charlie Springs (Joe Locke) and Nick Nelson (Kit Connor) unfold on the small screen.

The new show just debuted today, April 22, and we’re sure many have started to binge all eight episodes. If you’re watching Hearstopper and need some moments explained or haven’t checked it out yet and want to get a peek at the show through recaps, look no further! We’re breaking down the biggest scenes in the show episode by episode.

Without further ado, here’s our recap guide for Heartstopper.

Spoilers ahead for Heartstopper.

Heartstopper episode 1 recap: “Meet”

The premiere episode of Heartstopper introduces us to Charlie Spring, a slightly nerdy teenager who’s in a secret relationship with a boy named Ben Hope (Sebastian Croft). Although Charlie is out as gay, Ben definitely is not and doesn’t even want to be seen with Charlie in public. They meet in secret during school where they share kisses without anyone knowing.

How do Nick and Charlie meet in Heartstopper?

It’s the start of a new year and Charlie is seated next to a rugby player named Nick Nelson in class. Despite his initial frustration that he’d have to sit next to a popular athlete who’s in a year above him, he sees Nick and starts to swoon. Charlie’s crush starts to form right away, though he’s under the assumption that Nick is straight.

Charlie and Nick continue to see one another in the halls at school, and we get this adorable montage of the two boys saying “hi” every time they run into each other. There’s certainly flirty vibes between them, but Charlie can’t tell if Nick’s just being nice or what. They see Ben in the hallway, but when Charlie greets him, Ben acts like he doesn’t even know him. What a shame.

We also get to meet Charlie’s friend group, Tao Xu (William Gao), Isaac Henderson (Tobie Donovan), and Elle Argent (Yasmin Finney). We find out that Elle no longer attends their all-boys school, Truham, and now goes to the all-girls school, Higgs, after coming out as a transgender woman. The guys are happy for her, though Tao really misses her. He even continues to buy her favorite juice during lunch out of habit. Charlie’s friends find out that he’s crushing on Nick, and Tao makes fun of him for it.

Over at Higgs, Elle struggles to make friends, and though she’s happy at the school she also misses her group back at Truham.

Ben apologizes in private for ignoring Charlie, though it doesn’t seem he believes it. Charlie takes shelter in his teacher Mr. Ajayi’s (Fisayo Akinade) classroom during lunch. They talk about bullies and Charlie tells him he has a boyfriend. Outside school, Charlie sees Ben kiss a girl. Because of this, he tells Ben he doesn’t want to see him anymore.

Charlie tells his sister Tori (Jenny Walser) that he broke up with his boyfriend, which she seems to approve. While they’re on the bus together, she asks what type of person he’d want to date. When describing his dream guy, Charlie says he wants someone he can laugh with, someone who is kind, and someone who likes being with him. He also mentions someone tall would work as he sees Nick through the reflection when they pull up to school.

To Charlie’s surprise, Nick asks him to join the rugby team after he saw him running in P.E. class. Charlie is hesitant, but agrees with Nick’s persuading.

Ben confronts Charlie in the hallway and Charlie sticks up for himself, also saying he knows he has a girlfriend. Ben gets defensive and really mean in response, and then starts to aggressively kiss Charlie, who tells him to stop. Nick shows up and throws Ben off of Charlie, telling him to leave. It’s obvious that Nick cares about Charlie and wants to be there for him. But could it be anything more than platonic?

Olivia Colman makes surprise cameo in Heartstopper

Academy Award-winning actress Olivia Colman makes a surprise appearance in Heartstopper as Nick’s mom, who we meet as she’s driving him home from school.