The L Word (and everything after)
Manila, 31 August—Nothing brings me back a dozen or so years as hard as Kinnie Starr’s “Alright”. I first heard the song on The L Word, which was a groundbreaking series about women who love women (wlw). There’s been talk lately of a reboot, which is actually premiering in December, fifteen solid years after The L Word’s pilot premiered on Showtime. The reboot, called The L Word: Generation Q, will feature returning cast members Jennifer Beals, Leisha Hailey and Kate Moennig reprising their roles as Bette, Alice and Shane.
I found The L Word at a crucial point in my life—I was fresh out of college and new at work, and on the personal front, I’d been trying to find my place in a bigger queer world, one that was outside that one toxic relationship with my then ex-girlfriend. Fortunately, my boss at the time was an older queer woman, and she introduced it to me. Until now, she is one of my most valued queer mentors.
The L Word was my first exposure to a series that depicted the lives of women like me at a level that was more than just subtext. Hell, not only were these relationships canon—they were at the center of it. Seeing all these relationships play out opened my eyes to an entire range of possibilities, and had me thinking, What if?
And now, it’s a dozen years later, and in the years between I’ve found other series that had canon wlw relationships—we’ve had Brittana on Glee, Naomily on Skins, Doccubus on Lost Girl (lead bisexual character ftmfw still supreme), Vauseman on Orange is the New Black, Cophine on Orphan Black, and of course, Clexa on The 100. There are tons I may have missed, and tons more that are currently on the screen, and I am thankful for all these depictions by all these fantastic writers and artists that have allowed me to see.
But I’m still also really thankful about The L Word. I’m excited to get to know the new characters on this reboot.
Smart Millenniors at the 17th Philippine Quill Awards
A brief work update: Our senior citizen tech literacy project, the Smart Millenniors Program, recently won an Award of Excellence at the Philippine Quill Awards! It was also nominated among the top programs in its division. It’s been such an amazing run, and we’re looking forward to more partnerships, more learnings, and more seniors. :)
Carly Rae Jepsen in Manila
Ticket sales opened today for Carly Rae Jepsen’s Dedicated Tour and oh my god it was sold out in the first hour.
Are you ready for this?
Carly Rae Jepsen is performing at the New Frontier Theater in Quezon City on October 23. See you there!
Happy weekend, xo,
K