At first glance, Matthew of “Big Mouth,” Netflix’s adult animated series about puberty, appears to be a gay stereotype, a queer foil off which the more important characters can play . He’s flamboyant, snarky and judgmental, even running a tabloid-like morning gossip broadcast at school.

But in its most recent two seasons the show has smartly expanded Matthew’s story line, depicting the life of a precocious queer adolescent who has a propensity for the dramatic and is almost entirely out of the closet. (The lone exception being what Matthew defines as the “don’t ask, don’t tell” détente between him and his father.)

In Season Three, which premiered this month, Matthew (voiced by Andrew Rannells) even pursues his first same-sex romantic relationship, with Aiden (Zachary Quinto), who is the same age. Matthew frets about Aiden with Maury the Hormone Monster — a character who embodies each child’s confused pubescent impulses — but the pair eventually become, well, a pair. Their relationship is quite sweet: Awkward courtship takes place over FaceTime; the two kiss for the first time after Matthew coyly yet confidently slides his hand into Aiden’s while an unimportant movie playing on a nearby laptop fades into the background.

I’m a gay man in my early 20s, so Matthew’s story line caught my attention, namely because his experience differs so substantially from my own lived analog. My queer friends and I all came out in our late teens or as adults and openly pursued our first same-sex relationships only in adulthood. This, queer people will tell you, is fairly standard. For L.G.B.T.Q. adults, Matthew’s subplot offers a glimpse into the childhood we didn’t have. But for those queers who will follow us, Matthew evinces hope.