new generations
Manila, 19 April—Finally managed to finish the reboot of The L Word: Generation Q over C’s birthday weekend. I mentioned being excited about this series’ return, considering what it meant to me as a younger queer. We got around to the pilot and the first few eps around Christmas but we put this on hold for the first quarter of the year temporarily before getting back to it during quarantine (of course).
As usual, spoilers up ahead. But first, this video compilation of moments from the original series because why not:
Warning: Major spoilers up ahead!
Some notes on the season:
Why won’t they just let my Tibette heart rest in peace, I mean—I always get roped into rooting for Bette and Tina! God damn it. Anyway, it truly frustrates me that they did not get their shit together after all, although I truly get it. I hate that Bette’s career-driven hardheadedness and ambition is so damn relatable and Capricorn as fuck. Also: Has anything ever broken you so hard than that scene where Bette receives Tina’s news in their fucking kitchen! Like. WOW WARN A PERSON, Jennifer Beals.
LOL Leisha Hailey probably went to the negotiation table saying, Alice better be getting A LOT in the reboot. Because Alice’s sex arc this season is—well, let’s just say I remember her and Dana making out refrigerator-lit and everything, but this season, all their sex lighting was just—oh my god.
Also, I CANNOT unsee how Sepideh Moafi, the actress who plays Nat’s ex-wife Gigi, looks so much like Emma Watson as Hermione and when we realized that, we could not take her seriously. Also—is throuple even a real word, because I’m afraid to Google it.
Kate Moennig as Shane being a very wealthy stylist who buys a bar and names it Dana’s? Sign me up. I just had a hard time wrapping my head around the fact that she’s hung up over an ex-wife (character development?) but is somehow unwilling to have a child with her (Has Shane always been averse to kids? Didn’t she have to take care of her younger brother at some point? Didn’t she date a young mom once? Or maybe I remember wrongly.) But yes, Shane as the glue of their old group, the go-to friend, etc. All considered, mas maayos pa decision-making niya vs Bette this season, aminin.
As for the ‘new generation’—they’re a hot mess. The whole Finley/Sophie thing I did not see coming (sadly—medyo tangang-tanga lang ako sa sarili ko, tbh), but for some reason Jacqueline Toboni as Finley totally sells the arc to me. (Did you watch her in Easy? You should.) Dani and Sophie getting engaged at the beginning of the season was of course the Kiss of Death re: that relationship, but I didn’t see Finley coming, not exactly.
Finley’s definitely Shane 2.0, in that she gets into everybody’s pants, but she also absolutely has that Right Place Right Time All the Time thing down pat—she’s there when you need her, and even if she’s batshit crazy, she’s there. She’s actually pretty sweet, sabaw nga lang. We all have that friend. Anyway—she even has a sex scene with Jamie Clayton! What a time to be alive.
Dani/Sophie is definitely this gen’s Bette/Tina, but it’s like this time their Tina sleeps with their Shane, and I’m not sure how that’s going to pan out, because right now it feels like an absolute friendship breaker. (Or maybe that’s just me?)
I have many feelings about Dani—she’s an ambitious woman who’s excellent at handling crisis comms, don’t touch me—lord, she must be fun to write. Arienne Mandi isn’t too bad on the eyes either. But GOD I hate how the storytelling is somehow always about how a career-driven queer woman can’t keep a good relationship going! Is it always just one or the other? I mean, I get it, you can’t have it all, something’s gotta give etc etc but jfc. We need stories about successful women who also got it together OK??
Anyway, I almost got worried they’d go into Dani/Bette—this was how I missed Finley/Sophie because I spent my time worrying about Dani/Bette… but maybe, not yet? Hm.
For all their talk of their trans character, Micah Lee felt a lot like an afterthought this season. I did love his arc with his mother. I look forward to seeing more of him in Season 2.
The most surprising adorable thing this season: Angie and Jordi. So pure.
From Around the Internet
Anyway, sorry about all that L Word—just had to get it out of my system. Other things ingested this week from around the Internet:
This hilarious thread.
This poem.
My favorite Easter meme:
Lastly, the only commentary about WFH we need:
Happy weekend, xo,
K