Comments on: Why Has Showtime Abandoned Gays? (Death of the “Gay Show,” Part II)

By: Markus

Markus — Tue, 28 Dec 2010 16:29:00 +0000

Very interesting posts. As a young, gay man in Germany I have profited a lot from seeing the explicit series “Queer as Folk”. I wonder in general what the gay community can do to make it more interesting for networks (or producers) to make gay shows (movies).

At the end of the day it simply has to be financially interesting. It would e.g. be good if people buy the DVDs instead of just watching the shows on youtube. The more money they make, the more likely they will be to produce new show…

By: In Adult Content, Does Diversity Sell? « Televisual

In Adult Content, Does Diversity Sell? « Televisual — Wed, 07 Apr 2010 04:11:49 +0000

[...] made its mark by being the only network to show explicit gay content, and, while it’s largely abandoned that strategy, it still offers a strong slate of shows geared toward women, offering actresses like Edie Falco [...]

By: siddrick

siddrick — Mon, 22 Mar 2010 13:21:52 +0000

God Bless You

By: Aymar Jean Christian

Aymar Jean Christian — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 23:38:12 +0000

True!

By: List of Gay and Lesbian Web Series Up! « Televisual

List of Gay and Lesbian Web Series Up! « Televisual — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 22:57:05 +0000

[...] as such, and these series are looking to fill a void with the loss of explicitly gay shows like Showtime’s The L Word and Noah’s [...]

By: notesofasexiststayathomefather

notesofasexiststayathomefather — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 20:47:37 +0000

LESBIAN DOUBLE STANDARD: This week we had in-laws over for dinner. Inspired by Chuck we made our own pizzas, including a goat cheese, roasted butternut squash, arugula, olive oil pie…yum! yum! Anyway, over dinner conversation my wife was telling Grandma & Grandpa about how we got a free subscription to Showtime, and that we’re recording ‘The L Word‘, a drama about lesbians. My wife observed: “How come we hear about women who are sick of men and start dating other women? But we never hear a man say, ‘I’m sick of women! I think I’ll start dating men!’”

By: Aymar Jean Christian

Aymar Jean Christian — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 04:54:14 +0000

Good question! I think a show like HawthoRNe provides a good example, a show that’s essentially a genre series (medical drama), but with a lead that’s a little “different.” Sci-fi is good at this, and I could imagine a doctor or lawyer show with a gay lead. Each episode would focus on a medical or legal problem, and the lead “just happens to be gay.” Of course sexuality would — and should! — come up, but the point is that you would identify with the character for other reasons (they’re empathetic, good at their jobs, fight for the little guy, etc.), like with Julianna Margulies in The Good Wife or Jill Scott in No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency: both shows address issues specific to their respective gender/race/class categories, but the show expands the story by fleshing them out as full characters.

By: Miggy

Miggy — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 03:51:12 +0000

Hey,

I’ve read both your posts on this subject and I think they’re incredibly well done.

The one question I was left with, and looking for your feedback on/ some enlightenment, is this: What does a show that “[has] gay characters as leads, but on shows about other things (other than their sexuality)” look like? Is it possible to have a show with a gay lead (as opposed to a bisexual lead) without making the lead’s sexuality a big issue in the show?