We just got a double-dose of ‘Heartstopper’ news with a big surprise about what’s to come

Especially as Pride Month approaches, we find ourselves wondering when, exactly, Netflix will announce the return of its beloved gay teen rom-com series, Heartstopper.

April 22 marks the one-year anniversary of the show’s premiere, so surely season two is just around the corner, right? (Please say yes, we need it!)

And while the streamer remains mum on new episodes, creator Alice Oseman is keeping us fed with all sorts of announcements, including the surprise that there’s even more Heartstopper comics on the way than we initially thought!

If you’re keeping track (which we’re sure you are), Oseman just resumed publishing their Heartstopper webcomic on April 1—which fans were relieved to discover was not a joke.

With new issues presumably dropping every 10 days, that latest happenings in the love story between Charlie Spring and Nick Nelson will eventually be compounded into Heartstopper Vol. 5, which Oseman just shared is slated to hits shelves on November 9 in the U.K., Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand.

We were previously told that Vol. 5 would be the epic conclusion to this romance, but—and here’s the gag—the date announcement also came with the surprise reveal that there would now be a Vol. 6 to wrap up the story of Charlie and Nick.

So, why the change in plans? (Not that we’re complaining!)

Over on Instagram, Oseman anticipated that very question, and posted a video explaining their decision. They admitted they were initially having trouble working on the comics that would become Vol. 5, especially because they were trying to wrap up the story while writing season two of the Netflix series.

“I figured out that I was trying to fit too much into Vol. 5,” Oseman said, “and the story would have a better ending if I split it into two books.”

“It was the right thing to do,” the author continued. “I can take my time with the end of the story, make sure all of the characters get their final moment to shine, and properly explore how Nick and Charlie’s relationship progresses in their final years of school.”

Well, that all sure sounds good to us! We’ll never say no to more Heartstopper.

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A post shared by Alice Oseman (@aliceoseman)

Still, a big, lingering question remains: With so much more story on the horizon, will the Heartstopper series possibly be able to keep up?

Let’s face it, television takes a while to make, and series stars Joe Locke and Kit Connor are growing up right before our eyes (not to mention booking big, splashy roles in Marvel and beyond).

Even if the series continued at a rate of adapting one volume into a season per year, we wouldn’t be seeing the conclusion of this story until at least 2027, and the actors will be in their mid-twenties by then. Yes, older actors have been playing teens on television for years, but, at the rate Connor is bulking up, well… we don’t think he can convincingly pull off “high-schooler” much longer.

We don’t mean to come off as pessimists here, we just adore Heartstopper and want it to continue for as long as humanly possible!

But, again, the good news is that the webcomics are back, Vol 5 is due out later this year, and season two of the Netflix series? It’s imminent! (Let us manifest in peace!)