So, there are actually multiple LGBT shows on TV this season...

I'm in the "any exposure is good exposure" camp. Having gay characters on TV opens up opportunities for discussion, so little by little all those terrible stereotypes would be eradicated. Of course that doesn't mean I don't want to HAVE ALL THE PROGRESS right now, but - well. I'll take slowly shuffling towards the goal over running away from it

Kitty Pryde said:

Well, L and G, at least. So you've got Partners, which is terrible: the gay character is basically Jack from Will & Grace. I love a flamboyant gay person, but he's way way way way over the top. Also: there are other sorts of gay characters available! He is one of the two protagonists, in business with his straight guy BFF.

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I just looked it up on Youtube and seeing it's from the same creators of Will & Grace, it's not surprising. It was way too much like "What if Jack and Will lived together and Will was straight and Karen was a Latina?" It feels a bit of a step back. I mean, shall media return to the very same position about LGBT people that it was 14 years ago? I've like to think we're a little ahead of that.

Nonetheless, I guess sadly things like this tend to get cyclical with minorities on TV in the US. If not, explain why Tyler Perry likes to pretend he's suddenly the new Bill Cosby.

Speaking of The New Normal and Ryan Murphey, his TV Show American Horror Story in its second season, Asylum, has the subplot of a female reporter committed in a mental asylum in 1963 due to her Lesbianism after the Mother Superior played by Jessica Lange blackmails her SO, who is a schoolteacher afraid of getting fired.

And then you've got a handful of supporting gays in returning shows like Happy Endings (I love the dorky fat slob gay guy on this show), Modern Family, Grey's Anatomy, Glee, and Some Generic Legal Drama I Never Watch. On the one hand, I'm happy to see more representation on TV. On the other hand, where are all the characters from the rest of the QUILTBAG (B and T especially!)? And some of the portrayals are so ridiculous they are bordering on offensive.

What do you guys think? Progress? Not enough progress? Back to the drawing board?

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Some progress is being made, perhaps not as fast as we would like but is tangible. Just look, for example, Modern Family, it has its flaws (the classical "Oh look, they have a "male" and a "female" in the relationship, just like us!" "Yes, and it's so cute, as long as they don't kiss or show any sign of affection between themselves whatsoever") but the fact to show a gay couple with a child living a good, fulfilling life shown no better or worst than their traditional analogues, something outrageous only 10 years ago, says a whole, I think.

Some random points of thought, though:

* Is anyone a bit dismayed with the fact that most appearances of LGBT on TV seems to be either sitcoms about how outreagous LGBT are or dramas about how much LGBT suffer? I mean, would another Jack Harkness kill them? Or even a secondary character like the gay mobster who was Adama's brother from Caprica? You know, having at least two other personality traits besides his/her/hir/hes orientation?
* It bugs me whenever a B character appears, it's either a smoking hot woman whose bisexuality is an ornament of her raw sexuality to pander straight male fantasies (13 in House, M.D.) or a straight-up creep and leech (Like in that one episode of Happily Divorced with the cameo of Mr. Sheffield's actor. For those who don't know, Happiy Divorced sitcom with Fran Drescher as a woman forced to live with her recently out ex husband)
* I honestly can't think of a recurring T character since the mistress of William Baldwin's character in Dirty Sexy Money.
* I know it's beside the point, but I can't think of a single black character in Modern Family.

The only new show I'm watching right now with queer characters is American Horror Story. (Which prompted hand-grabbing and declarations of, "I would NEVER do that to you!" between my girlfriend and me.) Honestly, I tend to avoid sitcoms and most dramas that are totally about QUILTBAG characters. I don't think more exposure is better. I think more exposure is just that: more exposure, usually to stereotypes, tropes, and exaggerations.

When I teach about media, I have my students read this great article in a textbook on Will and Grace, basically about how representation matters. When QUILTBAG characters appear on these shows, so often they aren't portrayed as people. The plot is all about them being QUILTBAG! I had to stop watching Glee because of this. I don't want more stereotypes and tropes about what we're supposed to be like. We're people, too.

I want fully fleshed out, interesting characters who are more than their gender/sexuality. Can anyone think of any examples? My brain is failing me today. More tea!

It's not quite the same since I think it's a Web-only series, but has anyone watched any of Jane Espenson's Husbands?

http://husbandstheseries.com/

She's a super writer with lots of credits on Whedon shows and other shows including Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Firefly, The O.C., Gilmore Girls, Dollhouse, Battlestar Galactica, Caprica, A Game of Thrones and Torchwood: Miracle Day and is the prime mover behind Once Upon a Time.

Husbands plot blurb:

Husbands About page said:

Husbands tells the story of two young men, athlete Brady Kelly and tabloid darling Cheeks. Brady and Cheeks sparked a media firestorm when they woke up legally wed after a drunken Vegas weekend. But undoing their “I Dos” with a quickie divorce would only undermine the hard-fought battle for equality, so they decide to give this marriage thing a go. After all, they were doing okay for those six weeks when they were dating . . .

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I love Husbands but it's frustrating that it's so short. More people need to watch so I can have more.

I've noticed a lot of these shows too. Haven't had the chance to watch hardly any . . . but I write a blog for Hoosier GLTBQ community (which is on hold for now) and I keep thinking I at least need to update my TV section, because usually I have a hard time finding things to write there!

Sam Argent said:

I love Husbands but it's frustrating that it's so short. More people need to watch so I can have more.

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Well, then, I'll have to try it.

Jane Espenson is an amazing writer, so her involvement alone would have me interested.

T's had a little bit of action a few years back, but it seems pretty bleak for us in tvland...

It's incredibly difficult for me to get excited about many TV shows in the year 2012 still relying on stereotypes from 1982.

There's a bisexual male character on Revenge, I believe. But I've only ever seen one episode of the show, so I can't say how it comes across.

I have such mixed feelings on Ryan Murphy. Many of his characters (LGBT or not) are walking stereotypes. Some argue, in regards to Glee, that it's satire, but I don't completely buy it. That said, he does incorporate diversity of all kinds, which is great and desperately needed. And yet, on another (third?) hand, his shows tend to start off great and then get so convoluted and sloppy. Still, great to see an openly gay man so powerful in Hollywood.

I don't watch it but Days of Our Lives has a storyline going on right now about two young men embarking on a relationship. It's getting quite a bit of press (for a soap opera).

If we're including webseries, Hunting Season is about being young and gay in NYC. As a young gay man who recently moved out of NYC, I have to say, it hits a lot of familiar points. Plus, the main actor is pocket-sized and adorable. And: skin!

BenPanced said:

It's incredibly difficult for me to get excited about many TV shows in the year 2012 still relying on stereotypes from 1982.

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Whenever someone tells me I should be happy with all the GLBT characters on TV today, I can't help but wonder if white folks said the same thing to African Americans about Amos n' Andy. I don't see many lesbian characters to cheer about, at least not as main characters.

I am addicted to RuPaul's Drag Race, and can't wait until later tonight when I will be home to watch the next episode of All Stars.

Kim Fierce said:

I am addicted to RuPaul's Drag Race, and can't wait until later tonight when I will be home to watch the next episode of All Stars.

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:Spoiler: I was so mad when Pandora Boxx got booted. The bitch did not get a fair shake.

Kim Fierce said:

I am addicted to RuPaul's Drag Race, and can't wait until later tonight when I will be home to watch the next episode of All Stars.

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So am I.

But I'll be waiting until it gets on Netflix. Two weeks ago, I watched the entirety of season 4 in a weekend.


Anyway -- more progress. I've only watched Glee and Happy Endings from the list Kitty provided. Everyone knows my feelings about Glee *grumbles*. Happy Endings is nice.


And I finished watching The Sarah Silverman Program. That was... an odd experience. The Gay Neighbors were quite unlike anything I've ever seen on tv.

thebloodfiend said:

And I finished watching The Sarah Silverman Program. That was... an odd experience. The Gay Neighbors were quite unlike anything I've ever seen on tv.

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They weren't enough to make me want to continue watching beyond the two or three episodes I initially watched. I could relate to them more than any other gay couple I've seen portrayed on TV, but I didn't find the series even the least bit funny.

Sarah Silverman is definitely a weird show! I watched a few episodes but I wasn't hooked!

And yeah, bringing back MiMi Imfurst? She does look like she's made some major improvements, but she didn't seem like an All Star to me in the first place.

Jujubee will always be my favorite. Pandora Boxx is second. Other than Tyra, or whatever her name was though she matured a bit imo, I've always been happy with the winners, though.

I think last season may have been the show's peak. It coupled with the untucked episodes were pretty exciting.

I really like the season where Raja was the winner, too.

I was really torn between Chad Michaels and Sharon Needles so for this All Star's I want Chad to win!

Kim Fierce said:

I really like the season where Raja was the winner, too.

I was really torn between Chad Michaels and Sharon Needles so for this All Star's I want Chad to win!

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Raja was awesome.

And same here. I'm glad Sharon Needles won, though I liked both of them. I like it when the younger contestants push through for newer trends.

So sad that so many of my favorites have to compete. I kind of wanted to see Carmen Carrera come back, but then I remembered that she came out and transitioned.

I watched RuPaul last night . . . and can't wait for the finale!

This is the only TV show I pay attention too right now lol.

So, I'm about episode four of American Horror Story: Asylum. Is it me, or each new episode they add another staple of horror movies? I mean we have had Aliens, Demons, Deviant Doctors and now, Nazis.

I read an article with the creator (whose name I forget and am too lazy to look up), who basically said he wanted to throw in every single thing he could think of. I'm curious to see how it all works out.