5 Reasons Maeve Is The Best Sex Education Character (& 5 Reasons Eric is)

Outcast Maeve Wiley is a fan-favorite character in Sex Education, one of the best British Netflix shows that came out in 2019, and for good reason. She’s intelligent, tenacious and sensitive with a sharp wit and a cool sense of style. She’s the heart of the show in many ways. After all, Otis wouldn’t have started the sex therapy clinic that the entirety of the first season hinges on without her help.

She’s also arguably had the most character development out of any of the other characters. At first she’s tough and has a hard defensive shell around her, but as time has gone on in Moordale, she has become more open to showing her emotions and vulnerability. However, one of the other fan-favorite characters is Otis’ iconic best friend Eric, known for his hilarious quotable one-liners and bubbly personality. Both characters are so fully realized and have so much depth that it’s difficult to say which one is the best. There are arguments for both points of view.

5 Reasons Why Maeve Is The Best Sex Education Character

Maeve’s Strength

One of Maeve’s best qualities is her inner strength. She’s arguably been through more emotionally than any other character on the show, and her ability to cope and even thrive in the face of adversity show her tenacity as a person. Not only does she struggle with her mother’s addiction problems and her brother’s criminal activity, she manages to live alone, be there for her friends and excel at school.

Maeve is also bullied at school and is a social outcast. At first she’s defensive towards her peers. However, as the series goes on she becomes more open to being vulnerable and letting others in which shows her true strength and her desire to make connections with others, even if it’s scary at first.

Maeve’s Friendships

Although she isn’t perfect as a character, Maeve is a good friend. In the first season she not only befriends dorky Otis, she also retains her secret friendship with Aime despite Aimee’s involvement with the “Untouchables” who bully Maeve. She cares enough about Aimee to stick around, even though Aimee doesn’t want her popular friends to know about her friendship with Maeve.

The friendship between the two continues to grow after Aimee is sexually assaulted on the bus in Season 2. Maeve is there for Aimee in the wake of her trauma and accompanies her to the police station to report the incident. She also rounds up some of the other girls in their year to join Aimee on the bus in a touching display of feminist allyship.

Maeve’s Sense Of Humor

Despite not being as sunny and good-natured as some of her peers, Maeve has a wicked sense of humor and is arguably one of the funniest characters on the show, resulting in her Maeve’s quotes in Sex Education. She’s witty and sardonic and often mocks other students, but she balances this out with her constant willingness to help others.

Maeve uses sarcasm a lot which is part of her tough, defensive exterior. In one stand-out scene that truly encapsulates Maeve’s biting sense of humor, she hilariously quits her job at the pretzel stand in season 2 by giving her boss the finger.

Maeve’s Moral Compass

For someone who’s been through so much, Maeve never lets her bad experiences stop her from making the right decision to help others, even if it gets her into trouble. In a heartbreaking story line from season 2, Maeve is forced to report her mother Erin to social services for relapsing into drug addiction, resulting in her young half-sister Elsie being taken away.

Maeve truly shows her love for Elsie during this storyline, and it’s extremely relatable for anyone from a dysfunctional family. She also makes an effort to help even those who have hurt her in the past. When Ruby becomes the victim of revenge porn in season 1, Maeve makes it her mission to find out who leaked the photo and later joins the others in assembly who claim the photos are of them in order to take the attention away from Ruby.

Maeve’s Fashion Sense

Maeve stands out in Moordale for her distinctly dark and punk-inspired clothing. Almost every other main character is constantly dressed in bright rainbow colors, patterns and stripes taking inspirations from 60’s, 70’s, and 80’s fashion. We rarely see Maeve in anything other than black, and her signature fringe leather jacket of course.

She doesn’t feel the need to conform to what her peers are wearing and expresses herself perfectly through her edgy clothing,  often sporting leather, chunky boots and fishnet tights. It’s impressive that she’s confident enough to be unique in high school where people are so frequently judged.

5 Reasons Why Eric Is The Best Sex Education Character

Eric’s Sense Of Adventure

A standout quality of Eric’s is his thirst for adventure. This trait completely contrasts with Otis’ tendency to stick to what he knows, and that’s arguably one of the reasons the two boys are so good for each other. Where Otis shies away from large social events such as in season 1 episode 2 when they go to a house party, Eric is excited to partake in teenage life, announcing “We’ve been waiting our entire school lives for this!”.

We see a similar side of Eric in season 3 when he visits Nigeria for a family wedding. He befriends a young gay man and goes with him to explore the underground LGBTQ+ scene, completely spontaneously. His adventurous nature often leads to personal growth for the character and makes for interesting viewing.

Eric’s Sense of Humor

Eric became a fan favorite for his hilarious sense of humor and quotable one-liners. He is outgoing and endlessly upbeat, adding comedy to every situation, whether it’s on purpose or by accident. It’s no wonder Eric is so quotable in Sex Education.

He’s often seen playfully making fun of uptight Otis, and his upfront and brazen manner results in some hilarious interactions with other students. Possibly his funniest interaction is in the season 2 opener when he calls out another student for not washing his hands upon leaving a toilet stall, then later tells the same student to go away when he tries to join Otis and Eric’s conversation. “Wash your hands, you dirty pig!”

Eric’s Individuality

Another of Eric’s standout traits is his commitment to his individuality. He is completely unapologetic about being himself and expressing who he is in the purest form. Although to some degree he appears to want to fit in (as in the house party episode when he is yearning to join his peer), he always follows his heart and does what he wants to do without apologizing for it, even if it gets him into trouble.

For instance, in season 1 episode 5 Eric dresses up in drag for his annual birthday viewing of Hedwig And The Angry Inch with Otis. Unfortunately, he is assaulted later in the episode because of his choice of clothes and starts dressing more conservatively for a time, but eventually returns to his bold sense of style, showing his bravery in expressing his unique self.

Eric’s Fashion Sense

Eric has some of the most dramatic and fun outfits in Sex Education and is a truly iconic gender non-conforming character. Because of his bubbly, bright personality he is able to pull off many different looks purely due to his confidence. He often sports colorful florals, ’80s-style print shirts, bright colors and sequins.

He also leans into his interest in make up later in the series and experiments with colorful eye shadow and lipstick to coincide with his outfits. He always looks effortlessly cool and stands out in the hallways at school because so many of ensembles he puts together are made up of clashing colors and patterns. His freedom with his clothing choices is truly inspiring, as well as chic.

Eric’s Kindness

A wonderful aspect of Eric’s personality is his kindness. He’s incredibly forgiving, especially towards Adam who constantly bullies Eric throughout season 1 whilst he struggles with his own sexuality. Instead of pushing him away when it becomes clear that Adam is struggling, Eric empathizes with him and offers him support, eventually resulting in the two of them dating.

He also makes an effort to include outsider Maeve is season 2, asking her to go to Otis’ disastrous party and trying to engineer a situation where the two of them can make up after their fallout. Although he’s not usually around for the sex clinic, he makes his own small efforts to show kindness to others.