The love triangle is actually a required part of the teen show experience, and Never have I everDevi-Ben-Paxton’s love triangle has certainly been through the wringer over the show’s four seasons. Not only has it been a back and forth between the nerdy Ben and handsome Paxton, but in between the drama with the two leads, Devi has also flirted with and dated a handful of other guys.
The route Never have I ever deals with the romantic topics this season may please some and disappoint others. But the truth is that the show actually nails its core love story; Devi’s main relationship has already solidified.
[Ed. note: This post contains major spoilers for the final season of Never Have I Ever.]
Photo: Lara Solanki/Netflix
This season, Devi’s romantic life took some new twists, but – surprise! She ends up with Ben. Yes, after four seasons of bickering, won’t they tension, Devi and Ben Finally end together. It’s not as satisfying as it could be, considering they’re getting together at the last possible moment of this season, after barely communicating with each other for half of the season, and their futures are up in the air as they heading off to two different colleges. . But hey – at least they can redo their awkward sexy encounter from last season and actually have a good time! Doesn’t that count for something?
Whether or not Devi’s romantic arc came together well is up for debate, but here’s the point: As fun as those romances were, they were never the main relationships in her story. Ending on a clumsy and open note is actually pretty true to the high school experience, which the show has always done quite well. But the main thing is that Never have I ever did justice through the best love story in Devi’s life: her relationship with her mother.
Image: Netflix
For four seasons, Devi and Nalini have slowly but surely worked to understand each other better. Their relationship is actually the foundation of the entire series. Devi has many interesting and fulfilling relationships with other characters – her best friends Fabiola and Eleanor, her absolutely perfect cousin Kamala, and of course her romantic interests. But as those connections ebb and flow throughout the show, the relationship between Devi and Nalini is constantly in the background, a through line connecting the whole Never have I ever together.
Teenage girls and their mothers often have tense, complex relationships. Add to that the overwhelming grief of losing Devi’s father, Mohan, and the added thrill of a cross-cultural story, and you get the gist of Never have I ever. When we first meet Devi and Nalini in Season 1, their relationship is broken. Even before Mohan died unexpectedly, things were tense between them, but after his death, it completely splintered.
Overwhelmed by their grief and unable to talk about it, they both draw the worst conclusions when interacting with each other. Devi thinks her mother is strict and overbearing while Nalini thinks Devi is hot-tempered and impulsive. When Devi rebels, she rejects not only her mother but also her culture. That hits Nalini harder, who tries to hold on tighter. Things get a lot worse before they get better – with lots of explosive fights and deep words. But by the end of the first season, they’ve tentatively taken the first step in the right direction, sharing a cathartic, tearful moment together as they scatter Mohan’s ashes on a beach.
Image: Netflix
After four seasons, their relationship isn’t perfect, but they’ve come a long way. They used to argue, but now they repeatedly choose each other – and stick up for each other even when the other person isn’t around. They both work to understand each other. Perhaps most importantly, their relationship has not yet fully recovered. They still argue, because it’s still two very strong-willed women clashing. But now they can see where the other is coming from and express their own love and feelings for each other. Nothing illustrates this better than their final scene.
Nalini, who is stressed about planning her mother-in-law’s wedding, keeps nagging Devi to pack for college. Devi keeps putting it off. Neither of them can expressly say what they actually want: Devi is sad to leave, and don’t know the first thing about packing her whole life in a suitcase; Nalini doesn’t want Devi to go. They bicker about packing but without the malice that colored their fights in previous seasons until finally Nalini goes to help Devi and they have a tearful heart to heart as they sit on the floor of Devi’s room.
Photo: Jessica Brooks/Netflix
It’s an incredibly sweet, genuine moment — and one that hits harder than Devi and Ben’s big romantic encounter! For one thing, Ben and Devi barely spoke this season, and when they did, their relationship seemed to take a turn for the worse. They never really talked about the problems they had with each other. Sure, it’s a beautiful moment, but there are so many elements that undermine it. But in the final scene of Devi and Nalini, we know that the serious tension is resolved. They may bicker, but still love and trust each other in a way they weren’t able to in the first season. The wrapping scene cuts straight to the heart of Never have I evertaking it all back to Devi and Nalini and showing how much they both have grown.
By the end of the show, many of Devi’s relationships are up in the air as she enters a very transitional point in her life. She celebrates one last big gathering with her high school best friends and tentatively begins a romance with Ben. But there is comfort in knowing that Devi and her mother have at least a relationship that will always be there.