United States of Tara‘s Marshall Is Making This Show Television’s Gayest (and Greatest)
Thought Ugly Betty was the gayest non-gay show on television? Or even Spartacus: Blood & Sand? Then you didn’t see last night’s premiere of United States of Tara.
It’s easy to draw similarities between Ugly Betty‘s Justin and Tara‘s Marshall: Both are lean, well-dressed, book-smart high schoolers figuring out their sexuality. But on last night’s second premiere of Tara (tell us you saw it!), we see Marshall, played by the actor Keir Gilchrist, surrounded by a whole new crop of gays that Justin never interacted with. We’re introduced to the gay neighbors; the “gayble” (gay table) at school, complete with the flaming twink set that’s already feuding with the powers that be over whether there should be a gay-oriented “sweetheart” day; and what appears to be the most bizarre lesbian relationship we’ve ever seen: Tara, who is female, has an alter personality named Buck, who is male, and he is about to start a romance with a female bartender.
As we say goodbye to One Life to Live‘s Kish, and just as we were losing faith in any new complexities in television’s gay characters, it’s encouraging to see a whole new menu emerge in Tara. Now all television needs is the anti-Justin and anti-Marshall: The confident gay jock who isn’t picked on by classmates.
I would like to see gay murderers, gay conmen, gay burglars, gay thieves and gay pschopaths. I say this because I think it’s best to show the variety. If we stick to sickly sweet portrayals, we’re distorting ourselves and turning ourselves into a boring, unrealistic stereotype.
By all means, show the positive portrayals. But let’s not avoid the bad ones.
· Flag
@jason… what rock have you been hiding under? we have already BEEN all those negatives, going all the way back to the 40′s and possibly further. it is ONLY now we are beginning to see well adjusted gay men and women of any stripe as well.
yes, it will be nice to see out gay jocks, but show writers write what they know, so its up to us to educate them.
riley, on nick’s degrassi high, is probably among the first to fill the bill as a gay jock, but he’s not out yet, even to himself, although the show is getting there.
in the name of balance, we are owed a hell of a lot more out and rockin gay dudes and accepted lesbians.
· Flag
I love Marshall, I think he is a hilariously well-written and balanced character.
On the anti-marshall/kurt/justin route, there have been a few.
Calvin has already been mentioned and his current love interst, I can’t remember wht the hell his name is.
Andrew on Desperate Housewives was certainly confident and a jock of sorts.
Before Riley on Degrassi, there was Dylan who was Paige’s older, confident, hockey-playing brother. He got involved with the decidedly more effeminate Marco. I wonder if thats where Ryan Murphy got his idea from
· Flag
Jack Magnan,
My point is that continual sickly sweet portrayals of gay men will simply make for boring viewing.
Also, current portrayals shouldn’t be designed as compensation for all those negative portrayals of the past. Compensation is a stupid way of going about things. We need to present a spectrum.
· Flag
Jason, I’m with you… but I’m a horror fan so… yea…
speaking of Horror… Zombies of Mass Destruction features a campy, some-what funny sub plot involving a gay couple. The movie is trash but I found myself loving it anyway just because it gave me exactly what I wanted…
· Flag
Uhg!! Another show I absolutely have to watch now. I’m already the biggest coach potato there is. Uhg! *pass the popcorn*
· Flag
Queerts: you forgot the “anti Kurt”. : p According to Ryan Murphy we’ll all be “gleefull”, Kurt is getting a very masculine boyfriend in a serious relationship when season resumes in April……….