Comments on: A Soapy Wedding

By: Jason D

Jason D — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 17:20:31 +0000

Elise, Joss Whedon, exec producer of Buffy (and the new Dollhouse) is a self-proclaimed feminist– it wouldn’t occur to him to have a gay character go running off to heterosexuality for safety, especially a lesbian character.

By: homer

homer — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 17:08:44 +0000

On As The World Turns, the gay character Luke made out (while drunk) with his step-grandmother’s new husband. This always makes for awkward family dinners.

By: Elise

Elise — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 23:46:27 +0000

The point is, though, that when those relationships are threatened, it’s very, very rarely by one of the straight partners suddenly and randomly falling for a member of the same sex. If you’re a out lesbian on TV though, odds still run about 50-50 that you’ll go running into the arms of a man at some point (or be strongly tempted to do so). Certainly I can only think of one TV show that never inflicted that storyline on at least one of its out lesbians. (Buffy the Vampire Slayer.)

By: Kel Munger

Kel Munger — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 20:16:10 +0000

Please don’t forget that it’s a SOAP OPERA.

How often do soap weddings have one or the other of the partners falling for someone else right before the wedding? (Answer: The wedding is ALWAYS threatened by something or other.)

Infidelity is what makes the drama work; no one on a soap is married once. If Bianca had a happy life, she wouldn’t be a soap character. Instead, she’s her mother’s daughter (Erica has been married so many times I’ve lost count.)

By: Trevor

Trevor — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 16:16:57 +0000

Don’t knock the “awkward moment sex”. If it wasn’t for that I would have actually had to study in college.

By: David

David — Sun, 08 Feb 2009 01:08:31 +0000

“It only reinforces the stereotype among straights that lesbian women are . . .”

Maybe it means that straight men nowadays are just so darned much like lesbians, sometimes real lesbians get confused. If only straight men would just be more masculine, like, oh gay men . . .

Sure put the whole “moobs” thing in a new light – straight men must be deliberately growing ‘em just to trick lesbians into awkward moment sex!

(all of the above is meant in jest, poking fun at het male ideals, rather than make light of the misrepresentation of lesbians on tv)

By: Emily K

Emily K — Sat, 07 Feb 2009 22:34:04 +0000

that sucks, Elise. It only reinforces the stereotype among straights that lesbian women are just “going through a phase” or are really “confused,” or “just haven’t found the right man..” and any other number of bullshit reasons.

By: Elise

Elise — Sat, 07 Feb 2009 22:06:00 +0000

Oh, Trevor.

I bet you thought you were joking.

But as a matter of fact, for the past few weeks Reese has been forgetting she’s a lesbian and is slowly falling for her brother-in-law to-be. Spoilers confirm that she’ll kiss him on the eve of her wedding. Seriously. I wish I was making this crap up.

I don’t follow soaps, but I have been following this storyline for the past few weeks out of a morbid fascination with just how god awful lesbian representation has gotten on TV. This isn’t even the only lesbian who’s fallen for a man in the past month–there’s also Liz on Nip/Tuck, who gave her boss comfort sex (like we lesbians do), and then fell for him.

It’s like lesbian representation has fallen through a wormhole and landed somewhere in the mid-1980s.

By: Emily K

Emily K — Sat, 07 Feb 2009 20:09:30 +0000

Duncan:

Because traditionally, the soap opera audience has been the most conservative of TV audiences.

By: Duncan

Duncan — Sat, 07 Feb 2009 19:08:19 +0000

Friends filmed a lesbian wedding in 1995. (2:24) Why are soap operas so far behind sitcoms?