Sunday, December 1, 2013
Every Single Week (due by section meeting Wed.)
According to Anna McCarthy, ABC’s president, Robert A Iger, said of Ellen that it “became a program about a character who was gay every single week, and… that was too much for people.” McCarthy describes this perspective as maintaining the “fantasy of queer identity as something that can be switched on for special occasions” along with a “fear of a quotidian, ongoing lesbian life on television.” Since Ellen’s coming out episode in 1997, a number of queer characters, generally secondary characters, have appeared on both broadcast and cable television. Choose a program with a queer character from the 2000s that you are familiar with and examine whether or not that character’s relationship to their sexuality is truly serialized or only focused on during “special occasions,” whether to play up a particular stance on sexual identity or for eroticizing reasons.
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This is a blast from the past, but I specifically remember seeing a show called "South of Nowhere" on MTV that had a lesbian character, and it took me by surprise. I was pretty young when I first came across it, so of course this was a little strange to me because I didn't know much about anything. As I would occasionally watch the show at my friends house, I never even really thought about the lesbian character as a lesbian very much. Of course all the viewers know she is but it is never really something that constantly sets her apart, and there were not many episodes (at least from what I saw) that showcased her struggle to be lesbian or issues with bullying. It seemed to me as if she was there to play off the "sexy lesbian" role that would attract men to the show. She was emphasized in a lot of scenes that included her kissing other girls, of course, and never really spoke out about her sexual orientation otherwise. Other than that she seemed to be portrayed just like every other girl on the show, but a little sassier. Even though a lesbian was written into the storyline and acknowledged, it didn’t really aim to make her an honest view. She seemed to be there for appeal and interest more than anything.
ReplyDeleteCBS’s Gossip Girl featured Serena’s little brother, Eric, as the gay character. Eric was not considered a main character; therefore, his being gay was not serialized. In the beginning of the series, Eric was understood to be straight. Not until later in the series did he out himself as gay. To me, making Eric gay was just a way for the writers to allow Gossip Girl to have a dramatic plot for a few more episodes. After watching the whole series, a lot of the plot lines were used for entertainment purposes only. Still, I think Eric is an important gay character to look at. He was widely believed to be straight. Once he was outted, he did not change who he was. There were no stereotypical changes that many gay characters portray. Eric acted as straight as he did gay; only, he had a boyfriend. Although his sexual orientation was only the center of attention for a few episodes, his expression and the acceptance from his family and friends illustrated a positive attitude towards gay characters. Shows like Modern Family and Glee may focus more attention on the gay characters, but they exaggerate the homosexuality of their characters. If viewers only saw Modern Family, they may paint gay men as flamboyant, expressive characters. Instead, Gossip Girl makes it known that being gay is nothing abnormal or different than any other person.
ReplyDeleteThe show, Modern Family, immediately came to my mind because the show uses a gay central couple. This hit-show on ABC serializes Mitchell and Cam as a gay couple and illustrates their lives raising a child in a world of predominately straight couples. To me, Modern Family is an extremely effective show in the ways it displays minority groups, oppressed populations and family dynamics through its gay characters. I used this show in my research paper in connection with The Brady Bunch and I found Modern Family’s portrayal of the a gay couple to be extremely critical to the discourse of normalizing what it means to be gay in our culture today. By illustrating Mitchell and Cam to be your average American family raising their daughter, Lily, they are debunking the stereotype of homosexuals and portraying them as parents, a role mass audiences can connect with. By creating homosexual characters that audiences can identify with regardless of their sexual orientation, the producers are working to eradicate the negative stigma of homosexuals and incorporate them into mainstream society.
ReplyDeleteModern Family openly works to erase this negative stereotypes and in one episode, Mitchell takes Cam and Lilly to his hometown to visit his mother. During the episode, Mitchell is extremely nervous to introduce Cam to his Grandma and instead of introducing him as his partner and father of his child, he originally introduces him as a farm worker. Later, Mitchell can not carry out the lie and by the end of his conversation with his Grandma, he breaks down and properly introduces Cam and shockingly his Grandma accepts their relationship! This moment is a breakthrough for the show and for homosexual portrayals, as it incorporates elder generations accepting gay relationships on TV, thus making them more acceptable and normal in culture today.
One of the first queer characters to come to mind for me is Bullet, a lesbian/gender queer character, from the third season of The Killing. The core of the show’s third season revolves around catching a serial killer and solving a murder mystery, so naturally Bullet’s sexuality is not always in the forefront. Rather, Bullet’s androgynous appearance and masculine speech and presentation are the details most often pulled into plot lines, such as her disregard of the threat of being kidnapped/murdered because of her more masculine appearance.
ReplyDeleteBullet is drawn into the main conflict of the season when her female friend goes missing, and her major subplot of the season revolves around her unrequited feelings for a girl in a heterosexual relationship. If it weren’t for the occasional mentions to her feelings for this girl, Bullet’s identity as a queer woman would most likely go completely unnoticed, and she could easily be written off as just a tomboy. Interestingly enough, at the end of the season Bullet does get her chance with her crush, only for the crush to quickly quash Bullet’s feelings by saying she was never gay, and subsequently goes back to her boyfriend. Soon after this incident, Bullet becomes the next victim for the season’s serial killer—as soon as Bullet seems to get into a same-sex relationship, the opportunity is ripped away from her and the character is quickly removed from the narrative.
I don’t think that the character of Bullet was used to pump more sex into the show, as she is an underage character and there are no graphic sex scenes in the season. While the show perhaps could have spent more time exploring Bullet’s identity as a lesbian or gender-queer individual (i.e., delving into her past and why she became a runaway), overall I think it does a descent job of introducing an interesting non-heteronormative character who is not just an oversexed conglomeration of negative and hurtful stereotypes.
For this topic a character that comes to mind for me is Kurt Hummel, who is one of the main characters on Glee and who is gay. In the beginning of the series Kurt is confused about his sexuality and even once he is sure that he is gay he hesitates to tell his family and friends, and even dates a girl for a period of time to fool his friends into thinking he is straight. Although his sexuality isn't serialized in the sense that every single episode it is focused on, it definitely was one of Kurt's main plotlines in the first few seasons, as he struggled to find himself and understand his sexuality. One plot that came up a few times with Kurt was his confusion about whether another guy that he liked was straight or not, and also a girl's confusion over liking Kurt until he tells her that he is gay. In some ways Kurt embodies stereotypically "gay male" traits, such as being really into fashion, broadway and other interests of his. However, I think Glee overall portrays Kurt--and other queer characters on the show--in a very positive manner, especially Kurt because he eventually becomes very comfortable with his sexuality and even helps other characters come to terms with theirs.
ReplyDeleteOne character that comes to mind on this subject is Julia McNamara from the FX series Nip/Tuck. For the first four seasons Julia is portrayed as a straight woman and mother of three, who is stuck in a love triangle between the two protagonists of the show. Ultimately she leaves both of them and in season five enters a relationship with a woman named Olivia (who, fittingly enough, is played by Portia de Rossi, Ellen's wife in real life). The storyline plays out for most of season 5 before the relationship ends, and deals with issues like telling her family and introducing her children to the idea of her dating a woman. While a lot of this happens offscreen, it's still very poignant.
ReplyDeleteObviously sexuality is not an easily defined thing and it's not out of the question for Julia to enter a relationship with Olivia despite not identifying as a lesbian. I am by no means saying that this doesn't happen in real life nor that it's wrong. However my issue with it, despite tackling real issues, is that Nip/Tuck is known for its crazy and sexual storylines, and it's unfortunate that this one comes off the same way. The show is about beauty and sex, and by season 5 it feels like Ryan Murphy (the creator of the show) just needed another storyline to put into the mix and decided to randomly put Julia into a relationship with a woman to bring in eyeballs to the show, and it really adds nothing to the narrative. For a while, she's even simultaneously having sex with Christian and cheating on Olivia. The entire thing just seems to be another comment on sex rather than an authentic development with the character, especially since it's never really mentioned again once the two women break up.
Storylines like this come up frequently in television and always seem to be a ratings draw. Marissa Cooper in The OC went through a similar storyline in season two of that show, and once again it was never brought up again. As I said earlier, experimentation is completely normal and in a way it's refreshing to see television refrain from enforcing gay vs straight, but it's hard to take seriously when it just seems like a ratings draw instead.
Although the show (and arguably the entire station) is pretty corny, ABC Family's Greek features a secondary character who is homosexual and, I think, they handle the plot arc really tastefully. From the pilot, the character is introduced as extremely well-spoken and intellectual. He lacks the melodrama that several characters who are simultaneously navigating through the college's Greek life loudly protrude in every episode. This makes the gay character more likable and seemingly headstrong. Although there are some less respectable moments with his character where their purpose is very obviously to remind the serial viewer/clue-in a new or temporary viewer that there is a gay character in the show, such as his excitement in helping his fraternity's sister sorority plan and decorate for their next mixer (he suggests the winning theme of the military, and his facial expression reveals he is alongside the girls who are elated to see the "hot guys in uniform"), the majority of his character arc can be taken quite seriously. They show the very-realistic contemplation the character has in weighing the pros and cons of coming out in different social situations, the avoidance of labeling your sexuality (particularly in college), the emotional consequences of being outed before you are ready, and the dynamic between a homosexual male and his heterosexual, ultra-masculine father. Although it brushes the line of a trope at times, ultimately I think this character is successfully serialized.
ReplyDeleteTrue Blood features a gay character named Lafayette, who fits this question very nicely. Lafayette is an African American man living in the deep American south during the 2000s. What makes him distinct is his overall promiscuity and confidence to say what is on his mind. He always dresses in feminine clothing, sporting make up and jewelry as well. His speech also plays a major role in his sexuality, since he often refers to himself in the third person as “mama” and speaks with traces of a stereotypical gay accent. Lafayette’s relationship with his sexuality is often serialized, the audience understands that he is gay but the show does not purposely go out of its way to remind the audience of this fact. However, during one season, Lafayette’s story involves him getting into a romantic relationship with his mother’s nurse. This plot is the first time that one sees Lafayette truly engaging in homosexual acts that has the story play up the emphasis of his sexuality for the purpose of entertaining the audience instead of furthering the plot. Although Lafayette’s sexuality was brought to the forefront during this season, his love interest dies and Lafayette’s homosexual nature goes back to being a part of his overall character instead of being the focus of it.
ReplyDeleteOne television program that I am somewhat familiar is the animated television show, The Boondocks. The show features a homosexual by the name of Gangstalicious, a gangster rapper. Even though his appearance is very minor (only appeared in two episodes), his inclusion is important to the show. In both appearances, Gangstalicious does everything in order to show his fans that he epitomizes what a real gangster is and should be. However, he is ashamed for being a homosexual. He is a closeted homosexual who would do anything from people finding out. For instance, he gives gifts to Riley in order to keep him quiet from revealing the fact that he had kissed another man. In his second appearance, Gangstalicious begins to throw hints through his music and fashion that he is a homosexual. When people found out that he was actually gay, he faced isolation from everyone who was close with him, including Riley.
ReplyDeleteThe one thing I really appreciated from Gangstalicious’s appearance is showing his fear of coming out of the closet to the media. He believed that if he was to come out, he would no longer be able to make music and that those around him would ignore and hate him. When news broke out that he is a homosexual, Gangstalicious realizes that his fears have come to reality (in the end of his 2nd appearance, he is seen isolated and unwanted from those around him.) This can reveal to viewers of how closeted homosexuals truly feel. One shocking part is when the grandfather says that he is actually considering treating Riley differently if he is actually gay (the grandfather even says that he might not love Riley. He also dreads of the idea of having a gay grandson throughout the episode). All of this could show what homosexuals go through in their everyday lives.
ReplyDeleteUnsurprisingly, I watch a pretty odd selection of television shows, so my first thought was Reno 911! Its main “queer” character is Lt. Jim Dangle. Although the show is satirically offensive in a lot of ways, I actually think that Jim’s character is actually treated pretty fairly. His sexual identity is just accepted as part of his character. Obviously there are some jokes made about it, but it’s nothing too over-the-top or “othering” which may be why the show was kind of embraced by LGBT audiences. One thing that could be construed as offensive in regards to Jim’s sexuality was the fact he always wore those ridiculous short-shorts, but I guess that was more to comedically emphasize how ridiculous his character is. I mean, he’s the leader of the group of “sheriffs,” so the show is an example of someone gay who is in a position of power. The cast ribs each other all the time so to concentrate on the jabs at Dangle’s sexual identity would be kind of redundant. Other than that, his portrayal was someone intelligent and (in some ways) kind, and despite the outfit, his sexuality wasn’t really very gimmicky or over the top.