Okay, gather 'round all you secret Sesame Street junkies. It's time to play...
ONE OF THESE THINGS IS NOT LIKE THE OTHER!!! Your choices:
A) I am a lesbian B) I love women C) I hate The L Word
I can hear the aghast whispers now. "She doesn't like The L Word??? How can she call herself a lesbian???" Very easy, actually. I'm one of those rare few people left on the planet with self respect and taste. Some of you may want to look those two terms up and see what they mean. I recommend the Merriam-Webster's Online Dictionary. Don't worry, I'll wait.
All done? I hope the big words in those definitions didn't give you any trouble. Now back to "The L Word." The plot revolves around a group of friends, their lives and loves. Sounds pretty benign, until you get down to the lives being dealt with. I can't see how one can appreciate stories about people who regularly lie, cheat on their partners, have rampant casual sex and experience little more than a minute or two of remorse after ruining other peoples lives before going back to doing just what got them into trouble in the first place.
"The L Word" is a subculture nightmare, much like "Queer As Folk," the show that came before it. All it lacks is a gaggle of 'manly man' dykes trying to seduce straight women away from their 'normal' lives - the classic image that every mother and father in America fears, never mind that it's a misconception without any basis in fact. In other words, the behavior patterns being portrayed are exactly why practically every conservative group and religious faction in the US despises and fears all things homosexual. I'm amazed that more lesbians don't dislike the program, but when the reaction from ones peers to such an admission is, at best, dismay and at worst, belligerence, I believe this may be a self-defense strategy. Think "don't ask, don't tell."
But to lay all the blame on "The L Word" or "Queer As Folk," much as I may want to, would be unfair. "Queer" did attempt, in later seasons, to challenge a stereotype or two and "L" seems to be following the same pattern with its current run. However, neither program ever strove to truly change the status quo, pandering instead to what would sell the most and that's what I find most disappointing.
Ultimately "The L Word" is popular because A) Gays and lesbians don't have many media choices out there right now and they will take anything that comes along, and B) That's the type of story that keeps DVD and cable channel subscription sales up. Just look at else is or has been phenomenally popular recently. "The Sopranos" (They're underworld criminals. What's not to love? Answer that and I'll break your legs.), Oz (These are the criminals that DON'T fit the wealthy Italian underworld stereotype! Hey, there's prison bars and everything! Sweet!!!) Quentin Tarrantino films (Blood! Gore! Violence! Oh, and there's even a story in here...somewhere...let me just throw some more violence at you while I find it.), reality shows (Let's follow a whole bunch of people around with cameras and see, first hand, just how screwed up THEY are, then we can feel better about ourselves!), do I have to go on?
Which brings me to my $64,000 question: Why? Why must gays and lesbians be portrayed as criminals or immoral animals in order to be seen in the media? Why Why must people be so base as to prefer programing that exemplifies and deifies criminal or immoral behavior at all? Sadly, I think I answered that question a second ago. People want to see how much more screwed up other people are so they can feel better about themselves. Minority groups are an ideal in this respect. After all, not only can you feel better about yourself by the end credits, you get to feel superior too. And the minorities take it because they'll take any representation they can get. Right?
Maybe they will, but I won't. And I have to hold out the hope that there are others out there willing to stand up and demand more, even if it means being one of the outsiders.
Stand up for something better. You deserve it. We all do.
PS - To all the manly, butch dykes out there, no offense meant to you, only to the stereotypical belief system I challenged.
Special Agent Dana Scully · Mon Mar 12, 2007 @ 08:30am · 0 Comments |