Cal's arc drives multiple episodes, including clashes with headteacher Hope over school uniforms that force binary gender lines, gender-segregated sex education classes where Cal and Layla (another they/them nonbinary student) are sent to the girls' group, and explicit scenes of chest binding with unsafe bandages followed by a proper binder demonstration. These elements position identity-based resistance as a core conflict against the new regime's abstinence and conformity policies, turning routine school storylines into vehicles for gender presentation debates that overshadow other plot threads. Creator statements confirm the deliberate choice to center trans and nonbinary voices while advancing conversations on gender as foundational to the season's arcs.

This intent manifests in the strained relationship subplot between Cal and Jackson, where the nonbinary identity itself becomes the explicit source of tension and Jackson's supposed failure to understand. The result is a season where ideological messaging on identity exploration and pronoun usage repeatedly interrupts narrative flow, forcing viewers to engage with activist framing rather than organic character development or entertainment.