One of the best things about Never Have I Ever is that it has unabashedly portrayed Devi as a flawed, messy teenager. She’s got a temper and lashes out, even when it’s unfair; sometimes, Devi’s outright mean, and other times she’s self-sabotaging, her mouth running away with her without realizing she’s hurt someone’s feelings. She can also be warm and loving, fierce and protective. And no matter what she does, there’s an unfailing sense of confidence and her bright spirit shines through in everything. Simply put, Devi is human, and it’s the show’s greatest strength, the writers unwilling to shy away from the mess and chaos that affects her life.

This is more apparent than ever in Never Have I Ever's finale, as it wraps up Devi’s story, which culminates in her senior year of high school and university prep. The final season thoughtfully provides closure, growth, intriguing conflicts and hurdles for most of its characters, sending Devi off on a new adventure, but not before the episodes take us on a journey that is filled with plenty of emotion and genuine humor. The Netflix series has always found strength in its character dynamics, eager to put them in the middle of situations that will embarrass them and provide them with a few lessons. The result is a final season that is full of heart, emotional depth, hilarity, some second-hand embarrassment (because what would this show be without it?), and mostly satisfying conclusions.

At the start of season 4, Devi Vishaskumar (Maitreyi Ramakrishnan) has finally lost her virginity after sleeping with ex-boyfriend Ben Gross (Jaren Lewison), but their relationship status is complicated by miscommunication and flubs (mostly on Ben’s end). Elsewhere, Devi is excited to apply to Princeton, but must contend with Fabiola potentially taking her spot after her mother pushes her to apply to an Ivy League school. Meanwhile, Paxton Hall-Yoshida (Darren Barnet) takes a job at Sherman Oaks as an assistant swim coach after realizing his time at ASU isn’t what he thought it’d be, and Nalini (Poorna Jagannathan) starts falling for Andres (Ivan Hernandez), the father of Ben’s girlfriend Margot (Victoria Moroles).

The final season is overflowing with exuberance, complicated but natural story progression, and exceptional pacing. However, there are a few stumbling blocks. The back and forth between Devi and Ben, whose growth and maturity doesn’t fully blossom until the final episode, and is too little too late, is jarring and doesn’t flow as naturally as others. Kamala (Richa Moorjani) is thrown into a storyline involving her grandmother Nirmala (Ranjita Chakravarty) and her new boyfriend Len (played by Jeff Garlin, whose presence in the show is off-putting) rather than having her personal life further explored.

What’s more, Aneesa is undervalued and completely underserved as a character. Perhaps Megan Suri had another project while filming Never Have I Ever season 4, but the lack of her character in a season full of tender, funny, and intricate friendship dynamics leaves much to be desired. The few times she did appear, I wondered how much better the series could have been if she’d been given as thorough a storyline as others instead of being saddled with nothing.

Aside from these rather minor quibbles in a largely fantastic season, Never Have I Ever’s final outing thrives. The series allows its characters the space to make mistakes and grow from them, and season 4 is a great example of how far everyone, not just Devi, has come since season 1. Nalini and Paxton get special mention because their journeys have been a lot more potent; not only have they forged ahead, but their own growth helped Devi at one point or another. Where they end up is as beautiful and as earned as Devi’s own personal journey. It’s how any series should end, and we feel mostly satisfied (and even a little teary) letting these characters go knowing they’re in a better place than how we found them.

All 10 episodes of Never Have I Ever season 4 are now streaming on Netflix.