Stream It Or Skip It: ‘Never Have I Ever’ Season 4 on Netflix, The Final Season of the Beloved Indian-American Coming of Age Series

The final season of Mindy Kaling’s excellent Indian-American coming of age story is upon us. Let’s get back to high school to find out how Devi’s cashing in of Ben’s “boink” card at the end of season 3 played out, and whether she finally got into her dream school of Princeton.

NEVER HAVE I EVER SEASON 4: STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?

Opening Shot: Season 4 picks up right where the last one left off: with Devi and Ben laying in bed together. Naked.

The Gist: It’s Devi Vishwakumar’s (Maitreyi Ramakrishnan) senior year and it’s time to find out if her dreams of attending Princeton University come true. While Ben and Devi avoid each other after losing their virginities to one another over summer, Ben moves on to another girl, Margot. Devi’s besties Fabiola and Eleanor are both also in solid relationships but are considering what exactly they want for their future, while her former flame Paxton is realizing that college life isn’t what he thought it would be.

What Shows Will It Remind You Of? From the diverse storytelling to the hangout vibes, Never Have I Ever shares a lot with the late comedy On My Block, which Netflix canceled in 2021.

Our Take: When Never Have I Ever premiered in 2020, the series was both helmed as a step forward in diversity and representation while also being nitpicked by the Indian American community for its quasi-rejection of main character Devi’s South Asian roots. But now entering the final season, the series has traversed gossipping aunties, high education expectations, high school parties, unrequited crushes, and of course, love triangles, in a way that firmly has a foot in both worlds.

Season 4 tracks Devi and the Sherman Oaks High gang’s final year of school as they stand on the precipice of adulthood. Devi, confident in both her brains and her test scores, has eyes only on Princeton; Ben feels like a shoo-in at Columbia but doesn’t know how to deal with his feelings for Devi while dating Margot (Victoria Moroles); and Fabiola and Eleanor are deciding what comes next to achieve their respective dreams.

Moments of change aren’t just for the kids though—Devi’s mom Nalini (Poorna Jagannathan) and her grandma Nirmala (Ranjita Chakravarty) attempt to date again while her cousin Kamala (Richa Moorjani) fears being away from family when a new job opportunity arises across the country. Never Have I Ever has always been interested in what change means to its characters, whether it’s reacting to a sudden death of a loved one or adjusting your future based on those who are still around you. It’s the show’s main throughline: change is inevitable, and those that we surround ourselves with are crucial to surviving it.

The secret to the series is Maitreyi Ramakrishnan’s central performance as Devi which propels the show’s heart, and she is as confident as ever in the final outing. Ramakrishnan’s chemistry with Jagannathan (who plays her stern mother), Jaren Lewison (Ben, her enemy turned lover turned…acquaintance?), and Ramona Young and Lee Rodriguez (Devi’s best friends who are as full of personality as she is) are fully on display in season four as Devi deals with college applications and a broken heart.

The final season isn’t perfect—as with any season, some of Devi’s antics can be grating and it sometimes feels like she’ll never learn from her mistakes—but her arc continues to be touching, infuriating, and ultimately hopeful. While it’s hard to say goodbye to these characters, the series ends on a high note that solidifies the four-season journey as one that fans will revisit over and over.

Sex and Skin: Season 4 wastes no time in exploring Devi’s first sexual exploits, showing lots of skin and implied sex.

Parting Shot: Right after an extremely mature conversation with Ben, Devi turns around to see a crude message spray painted on her car.

Sleeper Star: Dwight Howard inexplicably works out at the same gym as Ben and offers him a little love advice in the season opener. “Love is a verb, not just a noun,” he says over a smoothie before Ben reveals he’s a Clippers fan. Blasphemous!

Most Pilot-y Line: “Do you love him?” Fabiola and Eleanor ask Devi. “No, I only love my family and Michelle Obama. But…I do really really like him,” she responds, giving us a slice of teenage anxiety along with a typical Kaling one-liner.

Our Call: STREAM IT. The final chapter is a satisfying send-off to our favorite Sherman Oaks nerds.

Radhika Menon (@menonrad) is a TV-obsessed writer based in Los Angeles. Her work has appeared on Vulture, Teen Vogue, Paste Magazine, and more. At any given moment, she can ruminate at length over Friday Night Lights, the University of Michigan, and the perfect slice of pizza. You may call her Rad.