First off, can we talk about how the show didn’t air an episode on the night of the Super Bowl, but did air an episode on the night of the Grammys? Way to misjudge your audience’s priorities, HBO.
This week, our characters have decided to talk about all the things they haven’t been talking about. Getting the ball rolling on this trend, surprisingly, is typically timid Patrick. Though it’s been two weeks for us, it’s been one short night for the cast of the show, so Babyface and Bossyboss have just awoken after the momentous changing of their sexual positions. (Side note: can we just say that Pat is vers and stop having a conversation every episode about whether he’s the Ross or the Rachel?) Though Kevin has cooked a fattening breakfast in his black briefs and thus wormed his way into my heart, he’s still partnered and there is A TALK. Well, the beginning of a talk. This is Patrick, after all.
Across town, Eddie is asserting himself as the greatest person ever. Let’s review: he listens to Amanda Lepore while getting ready in the morning, he serves his guests coffee in an “I Heart Anal” mug, he takes a multivitamin (my doctor absolutely cannot get me to remember, try though he might), he knows better than to leave Ag alone in his house when he goes to work, and oh yeah, he still works with at-risk trans youth. Love this guy. By the end of the episode, he’s even landed Ag a job. A job! Even though the queer teens looked at him like this:
Ag has succeeded at literally zero things since this show hit the air; Eddie must have given lap dances and donuts to everyone on the hiring committee.
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Awesome sidekicks might be the other theme of this week, actually. While Agustin is getting returned to human form by his hirsute suitor, Doris is creating a Kickstarter campaign for Dom’s chickenwindow while pioneering my new favorite word, chickenwindow. I would eat at a chickenwindow and I’m a vegetarian. It’s like a dance for your mouth. Say it out loud right now. Tell me you’re not happier! Anyhow, Dom is skeptical of this idea, but Doris is skeptical of his skepticism. Could Lynn be to blame somehow? The show is dipping its dainty, slow-moving toe into the whirlpool of gay drama, and I want more.
It’s just a tease for now, though: while Patrick’s interaction with Richie would have devolved into hysterics if we were watching a broadcast on the WB, here on premium cable they have ice cream and listen sensitively to each other. Richie, as another awesome sidekick, suggests that maybe possibly dating your committed boss isn’t the world’s totally best idea. Perhaps in a parallel universe where these people appropriately freak out about things, Bizarro Patrick is getting the message that every one of his friends is sending him.
The simmering pot is often used as a metaphor for unspoken tension. It’s made literal this week when Dom goes to Lynn’s place and finds him skinny dipping in the hot tub with Michael, who you might remember from yesterday’s rugby game (or more likely from the shower that immediately followed). Turns out, Lynn once provided funds for Michael’s burgeoning theater career, and now they’re sex friends. Mustache furrows his brow, spots a pattern, tells his teammate not to call him “daddy,” and proceeds to have what I can only assume is some really perfunctory sex.
The next morning, Dom heads out to the farmer’s market with Patrick, where they spy Kevin and John being happy and couply because they’re, you know, a couple. This in-your-face reality check causes Patrick’s face to shift from his permanently bemused grin to the expression a demon makes while sitting on the toilet. At work, he drags Kevin to the roof and confronts him about their relationship. Bossman is all teary eyes and wagging ears and loving promises. He wants to form a life with Pat, he does! He can make this right, he can! He will talk to John, he will!
Continuing the “conversations we need to have” plotline, Dom heads to Lynn’s flower shop (did anyone else forget that was his job?) at closing time to start a really passive-aggressive discussion of their open relationship. After instigating a negotiation, he disingenuously accuses Lynn of always negotiating. This daddy-on-don’t-call-me-daddy violence brings out the shattering reveal that Lynn is not interested in forging a deeper connection than the one they already have, and Dom leaves with no boyfriend, no financial backing for his chickenwindow… not even a free bouquet!
We close with the closing of Esta Noche, the bar where Patrick once awkwardly danced with Richie. Little has changed in that regard, except that the dance is now emotional: Richie has a cute redheaded date in tow, and Pat is straining hard to project some level of casualness. It’s actually still kind of a demon-on-the-toilet face; he’s really grunting this one out. Luckily, Ag brought Eddie, who is the best social lubricant of all time. Like, that good silicone-based stuff that’s condom safe but doesn’t dry out. Dom tries to muscle through, but disengages from the group immediately because he’s bummed about the breakup and chickenwindow is all he has now. (But chickenwindow! I would feel so fulfilled if my life’s purpose was chickenwindow! Chickenwindow.) Doris takes him home to finish his Kickstarter page.
And then Kevin shows up. You guys: can you believe he didn’t talk to his boyfriend? I totally can. Like, 100 percent. Saw it coming a mile away. Patrick, of course, cannot, because he is the poster boy for credulity. His walk home alone in the dark is so devastated that I can almost hear Charlie Brown’s plaintive piano chords in the background. They’re probably actually playing out loud, just drowned out by the club’s thumping bass. Hopefully everyone finds a pick-me-up next week: it pains me to see gay men in San Francisco being sad while surrounded by drag queens.
Gman23
Loved it!
Blackceo
I swear I really keep trying with this show. I have now caught up with all the episodes this season and I don’t know….for a half hour show I think they are trying to do too much with the characters in a short amount of time and it ends up feeling like very little has happened by episode’s end. I don’t even find the Patrick/Ritchie thing interesting anymore because of how much I can’t stand Patrick now. Augustine on the other hand is actually tolerable this season. I loved how he and Ritchie interacted last episode after he was such an ass to Ritchie. Ritchie to me is the only likable character on that show tho.
If this show is gonna make it tho it needs a ratings surge cuz they are worse than season 1 even tho I’ve heard people say they are enjoying season 2 more.
Raphael
@Blackceo: I totally agree with you! I forced myself to finish the first season and even more so to watch the first episode of the second. For me, it’s enough, I’m done torturing myself, this must be the most boring series ever made.
yaletownman
I can’t really figure out if I like the show or not. I keep watching though I can easily forget about it for weeks between episodes. The show is interesting. The scenerios do seem realistic and so do the characters. With the exception of Ritchie, none are really likable Maybe Richtie is likable because he seems the least narcissistic and self centered. Lynn is Mr. Nice guy and seems to hold a belief that to get sex he must do something financially or helpful to earn it. I wonder if that’s a common belief and reality for most gay men? Patrick is annoying as f *ck but then he reminds me of myself. The middle class white kid from the burbs whose kinda cute but not gorgeous who was overlooked in school but finally exploring a world that he might find his place. I wish he and Ritchie could have made it because I think he could have learned a lot from him and come out a deeper, richer human being.
Jonty Coppersmith
I agree that Richie is the most likable character so far. I’m happy to see that Patrick is finally feeling some guilt about being a home wrecker. I hope he sticks to it and insists that Kevin make a choice. I’m watching just because, but I’m not enamoured with the show either.
Sammy Schlipshit
My two cents worth……
I made a commitment to season 1 because I kept seeing a little progress in the quality of the show.
At the same time it became apparent Looking isn’t so much meant entertainment or enlightening for us gay folks.
It’s more of a documentary.
I guess there are still a lot of brothers and sisters stuck in some hell hole who need to see how some of the city boys live. Those folks need to see how normal and regular it can be to live ones life.
That said, just last night I watched all 4 episodes of season 2. The first two episodes had me shouting in disgust at the TV. What a bunch of stereotype hysterical, whiny babies crap.
Having spent time in rich men’s houses up at the Russian River (which is where they were), that whole scenario was all too true.
But episode three and four started getting my attention.
Didn’t catch all of the writers names but the one written by a woman was the most attention getting and complete for me. She made the characters into interesting and developing men who I found intriguing.
Kevin/Russell Tovey continues to be my favorite guy to watch but recently Dom/Murray Bartlett has become more of a rounded out believable character.
One of the best aspects of the show is how well and varied San Francisco is shown off.
Beautiful city where regular working folks are being eliminated.
The Castro has become overwhelmed by breeders and baby strollers.
Ought to be a law that str8 folks are banned from the area while needing a visitor pass just to meander down the sidewalks gawking at the remaining homos.
I really have mixed feelings seeing my old stomping grounds. I was there during the golden years that ended in a plague.
Here’s hoping the quality continues and improves.
Stay tuned.
dre23222
This episode gave me life!!!!!! Yes I loved it
onthemark
I want some honey/lavender ice cream.
@Geeker: Stop looking.
@dre23222: Keep looking.
jimontp
@Geeker: Hmmm, suppose it might be cause it is the ONLY TV show, besides gay channels, that actually has mostly GAY main characters? And fairly believeable gay characters, across a fairly large age and ethnic range. What, you’d rather look at DAILY reports on underwear models, i.e. ads for various companies. Or White Party pics? Or which straight men sent nude selfies while they were drunk or high? Yeah, I’d like more stories about gay writers, singers, artists and films. But like The Stones said, “You Can’t Always Get……
enlightenone
A mice sloppy humping a sly, top/bottom “fox” doesn’t make him a Ross/vers! It’s still sappy, moron Rachel.
Cam
Ok, so far season 2 is better and I’m actually enjoying it now, and these updates on Queerty are usually better than the show!.
“First off, can we talk about how the show didn’t air an episode on the night of the Super Bowl, but did air an episode on the night of the Grammys? Way to misjudge your audience’s priorities, HBO.”
Perfect. LOL!
robho3
@Blackceo: Totally agree. By cramming the show into a half hour there seems to be no story development. Just when your starting to get into the show its over. It impossible to empathize with any of the characters- none of them are likable. I think possibly the show would work better in an hour long format.
enlightenone
“…This daddy-on-don’t-call-me-daddy violence…”
What the hell does this mean? School me please.
Cee
Being from San Francisco I feel like this show makes SF look and seem really dated.
I feel like I’m watching something out of 1980s. What audience is this show targeting?
The problem with this show is that they don’t give you anyone to care about. They’re missing that crucial part of the formula. You need to have at least one character the audience is rooting for.
Sad to say I only watch this show because I feel obligated to support gay productions to a certain extent. There’s no other gay shows on premium cable that I know of. Ever since QAF it’s been pretty dead.
I had the channel turned to HBO last night while The Looking was on…..only I wasn’t looking. I was watching YouTube videos.
Gman23
I could be wrong but it seems like gay people are their own worst enemies. So judgmental, yet we don’t want to be judged ourselves. I can understand that we are all different and that really the only commonality is that we are attracted to the same sex. This show may not be the greatest but it is practically the only show geared toward the gay person, so in essence it is the best show. Name the better show.
MinnesotaNotNice
My love/hate relationship with the show continues with Season 2. Episode 4 was definitely on the love side as I really enjoy the new character of Eddie and all that he brings with him. My total fave is Richie and has been from the first episode. Richie’s not perfect, but he seems to be the only one not wearing rose colored glasses and can spot the bullshit and avoid getting caught up in it. I love Doris and she needs to be worked into more of the story lines. Patrick is finally getting some real blow back for how he’s mishandled his personal life and I’m looking forward to seeing where that story line goes. It’s always a very fast 30 minutes on Sunday night when my partner and I watch it and we end up talking about what we like, dislike, agree and disagree with. It’s TV, it’s entertaining, it’s maddening, it gets the two of us talking and we always come back for the next episode.
GB
This has to be the most boring show on television. I gave up on it last year, but I was hoping they’d fix it. That didn’t happen.
I’ve been a big fan of Jonathan Groff since his Spring Awakening days, but enough. He’s too good an actor to waste his time here.
enlightenone
@Cee: “…There’s no other gay shows on premium cable that I know of. Ever since QAF it’s been pretty dead.”
Such irony that there have been complex, layered homosexual relations in various forms since before the Birth of Christ, and this is what they have to show for it!
enlightenone
@GB: “I’ve been a big fan of Jonathan Groff since his Spring Awakening days, but enough. He’s too good an actor to waste his time here.”
Well, he’s certainly no Brad Pitt by any stretch of the imagination! And as for his acting chops, I guess we’ll just have to take your word for it.
enlightenone
@Gman23: “…Name the better show.”
Agron & Nasir Storyline: STARZ series Spartacus 2010-2013!
SteveDenver
This episode was one of my favorites.
Richie stunned me again with his wisdom and thoughtfulness: Patrick should not have let him get away.
Dom’s reaction to being called “Daddy” at a very playful moment was so telling. HE IS A DADDY but Peter Pan cannot admit it.
Lynn’s entire arc in this episode was very touching, and also another layer of Dom not getting what he wants and reacting like a child.
This episode made Augustine and his new boyfriend more intriguing.
Finally, Kevin and Patrick were played so beautifully, not too perfect, not dramatically flawed, and no histrionics.
canuckdave
Although I find the characters all winey, self-centred and spoiled, try finding a boyfriend in crumbling Russia or any non-western developed economy.) its a great show, very real. I see bits of the characters in myself and friends.
Random
@Cee:
***The problem with this show is that they don’t give you anyone to care about. They’re missing that crucial part of the formula. You need to have at least one character the audience is rooting for.***
I completely agree with this. I was never a huge fan but Sex and The City understood this. That’s why Carrie was the central character of the show and so many people, particularly women, connected with her as she was portrayed as vulnerable, strong, smart, reflective and perhaps, most importantly, a bit of a rock for the other three characters.
In Looking though, we don’t really see that in any of them as they all seem to act impulsively, without much insight or forethought for the consequences. They’re so wrapped up in themselves that even their friendships don’t feel terribly authentic; like a group of people just thrown together, rather than because they genuinely like and want to support each other, or have anything in common beyond same-sex attraction. In spite of the show’s title, Sex and the City had heart at its core, which is something that Looking sadly lacks.
Random
@SteveDenver:
**Dom’s reaction to being called “Daddy” at a very playful moment was so telling. HE IS A DADDY but Peter Pan cannot admit it.**
Dom may look like a ‘daddy’ type in the eyes of some gay men, but it’s for him to present himself as that, not have that label imposed on him by others. I think this speaks of a wider issue amongst gay men where people feel they need to classify and categorise others according to their own standards which is not only limiting, but says more about their own beliefs and narrow perceptions than anything about the person they’re trying to label.
ChgoReason
The first season was alright. I remember liking the Latino guy cuz knew what he wanted. The other guys seemed to lack insight to their own personalities. That Patrick guy was annoying as f***! Dude, your thirty! How could you not know what you want? u’ve been ridden more than the expressway at rush hour.
Cam
@GB: said… “I’ve been a big fan of Jonathan Groff since his Spring Awakening days, but enough. He’s too good an actor to waste his time here.”
___________________________
Really? I thought part of the problem with the Patrick Character was Groff not being able to play him as an adult, like maybe Groff can’t play adults.
The character has been out in SF for a decade and Groff was playing him like a giggly 19 year old who snuck into his first gay bar. Some of that could be writing, but I’m thinking it’s Groff since the character seems similarly played to other roles I’ve seen him do.
Getting better this season, but maybe only because he’s playing opposite Tovey who knows how a functioning adult acts.
Cam
Oh, and if Dom wasn’t want to be labeled a daddy maybe shaving the 1970’s Castro Clone stache would be a good first step.
Kathukid
The writing in this show really sucks. Very hard to relate to show where the characters are so unlikable.
Kangol
Mattilda Sycamore, a great queer writer, has published a powerful essay on the show, its depiction of a gentrifying San Francisco, and its lack of depth concerning LGBT issues.
enlightenone
@Kangol: Thank you! The 15 – 19 year old’s commenting on this discussion topic love this TV dramedy as it is as they developmentally would, not to reflect what’s in this intelligent, socially informed essay; however, it’s appreciated by me and others I’m sure.
Cam
@Kangol:
I just read Sycamore’s essay, and something interesting; I didn’t know that the director of Looking, was the same director of Weekend. That could explain why it always feels unfinished. Weekend worked because you had two hours to slowly engage with the characters, developing them along the way, getting to know them. Looking’s half hour length might not work well with that directors more thoughtful style of laying out a story. “Combined with the fact that the writing was so….off the first season.”
Random
@Cam: He can style his facial hair as he likes. It’s still not for someone else to impose their own label on him.
Cam
@Random:
What a ridiculous comment. I can’t wait until the last vestige of the closet disappears and all of these “Ohhh, labels are icky” comments finally go away.
So of course he is free to grow a mustache, however, if somebody “Labeled” him as somebody with a mustache is that wrong? He has chosen a look that offers an impression of him. It is not other people’s fault that he doesn’t like what that look represents.
Random
@Cam: He’s chosen to grow a moustache. And…? It’s you and others who have then decided that that makes him a ‘daddy’ when in fact he’s just a middle-aged man with a bit of facial hair.
And it has nothing to do with ‘the closet’ so that’s a total non-starter of an argument.
Random
***It is not other people’s fault that he doesn’t like what that look represents.***
This is the kind of thinking that straight men use to justify being homophobic or sexist:
‘Well, he LOOKS like a fag, so he should expect to be called a fag?’. Or ‘If she’s going to wear a short skirt then she can’t complain if guys think she’s a slut’.
This why labels are dangerous and why we as gay men should move beyond them as they can be both offensive and limiting. And as we saw in the show, Dom obviously wasn’t too happy about having that particular label applied to him.
Cam
@Random:
No, actually you intentionally ignored what I said because you could see how ridiculous it made you sound.
What I wrote was “So of course he is free to grow a mustache, however, if somebody “Labeled” him as somebody with a mustache is that wrong?”
Funny how you didn’t want to respond to that part of it, but instead tried to pretend I said something I didn’t.
If you want to respond to the actual comment please feel free.
Random
@Cam: The point is, he was labelled a ‘daddy’ which he was shown to object to. Not quite sure why you’re dancing around the issue now with silly arguments pointing out the obvious.