Heartbreak High followed feuding best friends Harper and Amerie all season long, only to make up in the finale, but was it a bad idea?
Netflix’s new series Heartbreak High is garnering praise for its accurate portrayal of gen z teens; however, the show’s decision to make Amerie and Harper best friends again was a bad idea. Heartbreak High definitely doesn’t follow the unrealistic high school drama format in which the characters exist in a perfect and accepting universe. Instead, the show chooses to depict the harsh realities of life. Some difficult topics mentioned are bullying, drug use, sexual assault, alcoholism, and racism.
Season 1 followed the feud between Amerie (Ayesha Madon) and Harper (Asher Yasbincek), leaving its audience, and Amerie, to speculate all season long why Harper was upset with Amerie. Harper punched Amerie in the face, slept with and dated the boy Amerie liked, and then had a threesome with that same boy and Amerie’s new boyfriend. Harper also watched as all of their friends isolated Amerie because of the incest map when she played a part in its creation as well. Harper actively contributed to Amerie’s downfall this season because she believed Amerie had a hand in the abuse she faced. Yet, when it was revealed why Harper was upset with Amerie, most of Harper’s actions were still unjustified.
READ: Anikulapo (2022) – Nollywood Yoruba Movie
Many other teen shows have redeemed unlikeable characters, like Sex Education’s transformation of Adam, and the same can be done for Harper. However, audiences’ need more than just an explanation for Harpers’ behavior toward Amerie- they need growth. Harper went too far, and her and Amerie becoming best friends again so quickly leaves little room for maturing or healing because none of their issues were resolved. Unfortunately, many shows make this common error with their female friendships. This results in a toxic dynamic, which is why Harper and Amerie being best friends again is a terrible idea.
Aki and Paw Paw (2021) – Nollywood Movie
Harper Went Too Far In Heartbreak High
The shows script producer and writer Megan Palinkas said, “We’d always wanted to tell a story of two female best friends that had that incredible intense platonic love affair, basically, that can kind of go toxic.” (via Netflix) The toxic Harper/Amerie friendship in Heartbreak High is similar to other tv shows like Awkward and Never Have I Ever. Devi (Never Have I Ever) and Jenna (Awkward), like Harper, have to deal with real trauma, and as a result, their friends quickly excuse their toxic behavior. Consequently, a pattern is created where one friend hurts the other, apologizes, and then all is forgiven.
This pattern always repeats itself, meaning characters like Devi and Jenna mistreat their friends consistently and expect forgiveness every time, but this cycle doesn’t allow room for growth. Therefore, it’s likely Harper will be the same with Amerie because Amerie was too quick to forgive her and didn’t discuss the pain Harper caused her. Ironically, Amerie knows how the situation should be handled. When Malakai cheated on her, Amerie forgave him but decided not to get back together because, while she understood he didn’t mean to hurt her and was still trying to process his assault, he still hurt her. That is precisely how Amerie should’ve dealt with her and Harper’s relationship because the situations are similar.
Another excellent example of how a show should address a complex relationship is Rue and Nexi in Euphoria. Rue mistreats Lexi because of her illness, and while that hurts Lexi, she understands that Rue is hurting as well. So, Lexi gives Rue the space to heal independently but still offers support where she can. She may not always make the right decisions, but Lexi has more boundaries than Harper. If Heartbreak High wants to portray a healthier version of female friendship next season they need to scale back the Harper/Amerie best friends forever storyline, because Harper and Amerie becoming best friends again without addressing how Harper went too far is not healthy.
I love this series