Plot
The story centers around Devi Vishwakumar, a 15-year-old (at the start of the series) Indian-American Tamil girl from Sherman Oaks, Los Angeles. After her father, Mohan, dies suddenly, Devi enters paralysis due to psychological trauma, making her unable to walk for three months. One day, in an attempt to see her crush Paxton Hall-Yoshida, she miraculously recovers and stands on her legs. After having a socially horrible first year, she wishes to change her social status, but friends, family, and feelings do not make it easy for her. Meanwhile, Devi's friend Eleanor deals with learning her absentee mother has been back in town for months with no contact, while Devi's other friend Fabiola struggles to come out as lesbian. Devi's live-in cousin Kamala tries to hide her college boyfriend from her family, as her family expects her to wed Prashant, an Indian man she's never met, in an arranged marriage.
The following year, Devi tries to deal with her grief, her identity, and school life. At the same time, her relationship with her mother, Nalini, becomes strained. When Devi finds out she has to move to India, she and her mom get into a huge argument before they spread her dad’s ashes. While spreading Mohan’s ashes, Devi says sorry to her mom. Devi also has to deal with her feelings for Paxton and Ben, after she cheats on both of them with each other. She also finds out she isn’t moving to India any more, so she has to make up with Ben and Paxton. Adding to the mix is a new entrant in school, Aneesa Qureshi. Devi starts to feel jealous about her popularity/dating her ex, Ben, and starts a rumor about her anorexia, but they make peace and become close friends. Devi also finds her mother romantically involved with Dr. Jackson and is upset that she moved on so quickly from the death of her father, so Nalini ends things with Dr. Jackson for Devi. Paxton gets over Devi's betrayal and the two become romantically interested again after Devi tutors Paxton. Meanwhile, Kamala experiences sexism in her biology research lab. She grows close to Prashant before running away from their dinner because she was scared for marriage. Kamala does try to apologize to Prashant, but they both realize their relationship is not going to work out.
Paxton doesn't refer to Devi as his girlfriend, and publicly refuses her when she asks him to the dance, which makes Devi think that he is using her. They later talk, and Paxton says that they cannot date publicly because Devi cheated on him. Devi agrees to privately date him, but she later changes her mind and breaks up with him because that is what her dad would have wanted her do to. Paxton realizes his mistake and goes to the dance with Devi, apologizing to her. The two begin to date publicly, but Devi starts to feel insecure due to others gossiping about them. When Paxton has a friendly reconciliation with a girl he wronged in the past, Devi's insecurity turns to jealousy, causing Paxton to break up with her.
In the beginning of junior year, Devi finds out that Paxton has a new girlfriend, and Paxton thinks that Devi is really sad about him moving on so quickly. Devi later goes to a birthday party and her mom tells her to take her friend's son, Des, there because he has no friends. Devi is expecting Des will be a complete dork at the party, but is actually surprised as they get along and start dating without their mothers knowing. Paxton realizes that Devi has moved on and they are both in good relationships. Soon, Des’s mom, Ryah, finds out about Devi and Des dating and Nalini approves of them being together. Fabiola and Aneesa also start dating after Fabiola stood up for Aneesa and proved that she deserved someone better than Ben. Devi is really exited for her new relationship with Des, but Des’s mom tells Des to break up with Devi because she “has to many problems”. Devi finds out about this and Nalini stands up to Ryah and tells her that Devi does not have problems. Nalini helps Devi with her breakup. Paxton decides to breakup with Pheobe and Fabiola and Aneesa break up when they realize things are too awkward for them.
In the summer before senior year, Devi loses her virginity to Ben, but it ends awkwardly and Ben ghosts her soon after. Devi grows frustrated, which is amplified when her senior year begins, and she finds out Ben has a new girlfriend named Margot. The two girls get in an argument, which results in Devi yelling profanity that results in a principal's office visit for her and Margot. Margot gives her a series of back-handed apologies, but with the help of Devi's therapist, Devi tries to make up with Margot. This attempt fails and Margot only ends up more enraged with Devi, though they eventually make peace as Margot's father dates Nalini. Devi begins a sexual relationship with "bad boy" Ethan Morales, only to have to break up with him after he steals from a visiting Princeton rep. Devi's dream of getting into Princeton is complicated when Fabiola's mother forces her to apply for Princeton and she gets in ahead of Devi. Encouraged by her counselor and Ben, Devi works hard to get off the waitlist and finally gets accepted at Princeton. Given the proximity between her and Ben, the two decide to date during university life after confessing their feelings to each other the previous night. Pati, Devi's paternal grandma, marries her boyfriend Len, whom she dated for a brief time after overcoming her orthodox and conservative thoughts about aged widows being interested in love after their husbands' deaths which Nalini, Kamala and Devi are extremely enthusiastic about. Kamala is shown to be a little skeptical about Len but is proven wrong later. Paxton starts dating Ms. Lindsay Thompson, a fellow replacement faculty member at Sherman Oaks High. Fabiola is shown to be enjoying robotics at Howard University, as she previously decided that despite her acceptance at Princeton it was not right for her, and Eleanor is trying to make her way into the directing industry while happily dating Trent. Nalini has moved on by dating Margot's father, Mr. Ramos, after the two are set up by Devi and Ben's ex Margot. Kamala moves to Baltimore after her promotion under Dr. Logan and is shown to be with Manish there. On this note, the show comes to an end with every character being at their rightful happy place.
The majority of Never Have I Ever is narrated by professional tennis player John McEnroe particularly in scenes and episodes revolving around the main character Devi with the latter often showing flashes of McEnroe's legendary temper and references to past tennis matches. Two of the episodes are narrated by Andy Samberg for Ben, and another two by Gigi Hadid for Paxton. The narrators, often breaking the fourth wall, give insight into the thoughts of each character and his/her personal struggles.
Reception
Critical response
On Rotten Tomatoes, the first season holds an approval rating of 97% based on 61 reviews, with an average rating of 8.0/10; [47] the second season holds a 94% based on 36 reviews and an average rating of 8.30/10; [48] the third season has a rating of 92% and an average rating of 8.30/10 based on 25 reviews; [49] the fourth season holds a 92% based on 24 reviews and an average rating of 7.70/10. [50] The website's critical consensus for the first season reads, "Never Have I Ever's fresh take on the coming-of-age comedy is hilariously honest, sweetly smart, and likely to have viewers falling head over heels for charming newcomer Maitreyi Ramakrishnan". [6] The website's critical consensus for the second season reads, "Though Never Have I Ever's sophomore season at times suffers from tonal commitment issues, nuanced writing and an utterly charming cast make it easy to forgive and enjoy," while the website's critical consensus for the third season reads, "Never has this charming coming of age series ever let down its fans, and this third season continues the winning streak by approaching the angst of teenage romance with frankness and charm." The fourth season, the website's critical consensus reads, "Chronicling its lovable band of high schoolers' senior year with characteristic charm and grace, Never Have I Ever graduates with full honors as an exemplary ode to growing pains." On Metacritic, the show has a overall weighted average score of 81 out of 100 based on 39 critics, indicating "universal acclaim". [51]
Rohan Naahar from The Hindustan Times described the show as "something like Fresh Off the Boat, but it does a much better job at balancing the comedy and the drama", along with praising how Devi, Nalini, and Kamala were "written with depth". Naahar also praised how Devi's "repulsive [behavior] makes her a real person". [52] Petrana Radulovic from Polygon stated that it was "easy to invest in [the] characters because they feel like real teenagers with real specificities", also praising the series for "highlighting little details in the Indian-American, first-generation immigrant, and Gen-Z high-school experiences", along with praising the "specific humor, which then fold into the plot and turn from just funny bits into meaningful commentary". [53] In contrast to most other critics, Pallabi Dey Purkayastha from The Times of India described the show as going "overboard with stereotyping", mentioning "clichés circling the Indian diaspora that would have held some relevance if this were the 80s or 90s", although still rating the series 3.5 out of 5 stars and describing John McEnroe's narration as "hilarious". [54]
Reviewing the second season, Nahaar from The Hindustan Times described the show as being "clearly the creation of someone who is separated by a palpable generational distance from their culture. But then again, this conflict is what Devi, and perhaps Kaling herself, are hounded by". [55] Joshua Rivera from Polygon described the second season as "continuing to nail a tricky balance between heartfelt realism and Disney Channel absurdism". [56] Divya Kala Bhanavi, writing for The Hindu , said the season "forces us to look at ourselves and acknowledge how much, during our teens, we were more problematic than we like to admit", along with praising how the season "tells the story of different shades of brown feminism across generations. Nalini's notions of what she must do for her family clash with that of her mother's, while Devi's beliefs in expressing her independence varies to those of Kamala". [57] Candice Frederick from TV Guide felt it was "increasingly clear" that the narrator John McEnroe was "merely reciting lines with little authenticity". [58] Inkoo Kang from The Washington Post felt the season was "crowded with characters", with conflicts that made it feel "bloated and weighed down". [59]
Reviewing the third season, Meera Navlakha from Mashable criticized it for the "sheer number of relationships examined", stating that it meant some were "given less brevity and depth" and that plotlines were "often discarded too quickly". However, Navlakha also praised the season for "the idea of "being Indian" [being] explored in a nuanced storyline" and for "some fantastic one-liners and scenarios that blend culture in a way that's rarely seen on screen", along with noting a "thematic shift in the series, focusing more on identity, self-esteem, and change". [60] Sonikka Loganathan from The Hindu praised Devi's character development, while adding that there were "arguably too many subplots afoot". [61]
Jewish representation
Many critics have described the depiction of the Jewish character Ben Gross as being anti-Semitic. Meena Venkataramanan from HarvardPolitical Review wrote, "The show's anti-Semitism is exacerbated by [Devi's] academic rival's characterization as a Jewish caricature and the jokes his religion and wealth generate at his expense". [62] Mira Foxs from The Forward says "[Ben Gross is] a wildly rich nerdy suck-up, with an absent, workaholic Hollywood lawyer for a dad and negligent Jewish-Buddhist type for a mom. He falsely cries anti-Semitism when his classmates reject his (objectively terrible) idea for a class project. And he's dating a painfully stereotypical Jewish american princess named Shira, who he doesn't even like, in order to raise his own social clout; Shira, he tells Devi, is dating him for his money." By contrast, most of the supporting characters, such as Fabiola or Paxton, have been written to defy their ethnic stereotypes. [63] [64]
Evan Greenberg, writing for the feminist Jewish culture site Hey Alma, lodged similar complaints about Gross's character being "rooted in lazy stereotypes". Greenberg highlights Kaling's response to possible jokes being sensitive in an NPR interview, "...because I think the lead is what people would call, like, a marginalized person, like a young Indian American girl, I think we're able to get away with stuff because of a certain powerlessness that that demographic has in society [laughter], honestly," as problematic for a "young, impressionable audience." [65]
In contrast, writer for Jewish parenting site Kveller, Lior Zaltman, praised the show, saying that Gross's character, set up as a typical high-achieving assimilated Jew, breaks into surprising depth and compares Devi's assimilation struggle between her cultural heritage and wanting to be a "cool American teen" to being raised Jewish in a secularized American education. [66]
Indian representation
The portrayal of Indians in the series was inaccurate according to some critics in India. Deeksha Sharma of The Quint felt that Sendhil Ramamurthy's Indian accent was "fake". He received flak from Tamil audiences for saying "thakkali sambar" (transl. Tomato lentil soup ) as "thakli sambar" despite being part Tamil himself. [67] She added that the whole notion of the character of Jaya telling Kamala that she wished she just listened to her parents and "married the guy they chose" and that then she wouldn't have got divorced is problematic. [68]
Audience viewership
At their Q2 report meeting in July 2020, Netflix reported the series had been viewed by 40 million households globally since its release. [69]
