The 'Sex Education' Season 3 Ending, Explained
Spoilers ahead for Sex Education Season 3. This season of Sex Education was a fight for self-preservation, for each of our favorite characters in small ways, and for the sex-positive ethos of Moordale Secondary as a whole. As in real life, the results weren't totally good or totally bad, leaving nearly all of the show's relationships in limbo as both the kids and adults work to find themselves. It also left fans to wonder whether there will be a fourth season, where we'll finally see Otis and Maeve ride off into the sunset (or Otis and Ruby maybe?).
While we wait, here's every detail about the Season 3 finale and where we stand going into a potential Season 4.
Eric breaks things off with Adam.
Things were looking shaky for Eric and Adam, who weren't entirely talking after Eric confessed that he kissed someone in Nigeria. Eric also opened up to Otis about the kiss, saying, "It made me feel free." Once they meet up, Adam tells Eric that he wants to make it work, saying he can get over "a stupid kiss."
However, Eric tells him it wasn't just a stupid kiss. He explains that though it was just a kiss, it was something, and that he wouldn't take it back, even though he did feel bad for hurting Adam. He also says that the Nigeria kiss felt easy, adding, "I just feel like I'm ready to fly, and you're just learning to walk. And I've worked really hard to find myself, and I'm beginning to lose who I am."
With that, Eric breaks up with Adam, later putting on his wedding outfit with a full face of makeup in the name of self-care. By the end of the episode, Adam is also taking strides in self-discovery. He competes in his first dog show, cheered on by mom Maureen and Miss Sands, and receives a special mention for Madam's impressive debut. He also finally tells his mom that Eric was his boyfriend.
Jakob is not the father of Jean's baby.
At the start of the episode, Jean is in surgery after her hemorrhage, with Otis, Eric, Ola, and Jakob staying at the hospital. Though it's still too early to tell whether Jean will be better, the blended family does get to meet the baby girl. Jakob and Otis also have a deep talk about what would happen if Jean doesn't recover, with Jakob telling Otis that he's not going anywhere either way.
Jean ends up getting out of surgery safely. Once she comes down from the meds, she makes up with both Otis and Ola. She and Otis also finally have a real conversation about their therapy experience and how much they need each other. Otis even spills the beans on Maeve at the end of the sweet mother-son moment.
Of course, that's before the big bomb drops. Just after Otis leaves, Jean opens the paternity results for Joy. We don't see the actual results, but based on the quiet, "Oh shit," Jean utters, Jakob is not the father of her child. As for who it could be (Otis' dad? random hook up?), the expletive is the last we see of Jean.
Maeve's headed off to the U.S., putting her and Otis on hold.
Maeve stayed over at Anna's place after returning her sister Ellie to her foster mother. Over a morning cup of tea, Anna asks Maeve to move in, and Maeve says yes, having bonded with Anna over Ellie's disappearance. The teen also makes up with Issac, who catches her as she moves out of her trailer, and with her mother, who sneaks onto school grounds to give her the money for the study abroad trip, and also gives her blessing to stay with Anna.
The only thing still standing in the way of the America trip is her relationship with Otis. The show's OTP is separated for the whole episode, but they sweetly stay in touch through text, and Maeve wants to stay in Moordale and pursue the relationship. Luckily, Aimee is there at the eleventh hour to tell her that she's being ridiculous, and she would never let her friend skip an opportunity for a boy.
In the episode's last scene, Maeve tells Otis that she's leaving. "We’ll have to see where we’re at when I’m back," she tells him, and he responds that he's proud of her. When Otis asks it it's a goodbye, Maeve says, "It's a see you soon." Then she's off on a bus, leaving Moordale.
Moordale Secondary closes from lack of funding.
The fight for Moordale's individuality ended in a shutdown. When the kids return to school after their open day rebellion, Head Teacher Hope has ghosted and all her signs and straight-line decals are being removed. The celebration is short-lived, though, as random bureaucrat Mark gathers all the seniors and tells them that the school's last investors have pulled out and that they are selling Moordale Secondary to developers due to a lack of funds.
The kids all have to find new schools to complete their last year, which is a bummer, but they don't leave on a sad note. When it looks like Jackson, Cal, and Viv are headed down that route, OG teacher Miss Sands tells them, "Speaking up for what you believe in is never a waste of time." So the best storylines of the season ends (minus a quick debrief between Hope and Otis) with a glimmer of hope.
Some quick notes on everyone else: Aimee finally breaks up with Steve after a sweet talk with Adam's mom Maureen. Lily re-embraces her alien side and she and Ola make up. Jackson and Cal decide to stay friends, and we get more screen time with Jackson's mom (played by new Emmy-winner Hannah Waddingham!). Cal shows their gender-nonbinary friend how to safely bind their chest. Viv's extremely-hot boyfriend Eugene comes to town, and we see why she would be down for some Bridgerton cosplay. And Maureen and former head teacher Michael don't end up back together.
As for a possible (dare I say necessary) fourth season, creator Laurie Nunn told Glamour that she already has details for several storylines in mind, including Joy's paternity and whether Hope will return. "I've started thinking about series four, but obviously we won't know whether that will be a reality until series three lands and people respond to it. I always write with the hope that I'll get more opportunity to keep writing these characters because I love writing them so much, and I feel like they've got so many more stories in them."
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