Grace Moon
Kelly McCartney
Diana Cage
Kent Martin
Professor Crandall
Michelle Sewell
Ashley Harness
Elizabeth Koke
Erin Blackwell
Julia Watson
Staceyann Chin
Sarah Papplardo
Angela Jimenez
Patrice Kamins
Amy Nicole Miller
The L Word Pages
Boob Tube: 2008 Wrap-Up
Happy New Year, Boob Tubers! In the spirit of out with the old, in with the new, let’s recap some of the most entertaining moments television had to offer in 2008 and look ahead to the fun things coming our way in 2009!
2008’s Top Five Most Memorable Moments in TV Lesboland
5. Thirteen’s hot and heavy bisexual hook-up on House : Finally! Hot chicks going at it on network TV who actually appear to enjoy themselves some lesbo loving! After countless years of network censors and half-hearted actresses limping along at playing gay, this little gem of a scene was a rare delight. Too bad they had to muck it up with all that subtext about Thirteen’s bisexuality just being one more aspect of her penchant for self-destructive behavior.
4. Erica Hahn’s post-coital coming out speech on Grey’s Anatomy : What Callica lacked in chemistry this past season, they may have made up for in heart. Shucking the blinders of heteronormativity after having the best sex of her life with Callie, the usually snarky Hahn teared up, movingly declaring herself “gay… SO gay!” I thought for one shining moment how great it was to see a queer woman’s coming out story so well-told on network TV. Too bad they had to muck it up with the sudden firing of Brooke Smith and hasty de-gayification of the show. Are we noticing a theme here?
3. Talking dirty with Rachel Maddow: Leave it to our girl Rach to make the uber-dire economic meltdown… sexy? I kid not! In discussing Obama’s plan to get the U.S. economy back on track, back in November, Rachel’s eyes smoldered teasingly and she gave a little frisson of delight as she uttered the word… wait for it… “infrastructure.” Yeah, baby! Talk nerdy to me.
2. Tibette rides again! At the risk of throwing a bone to the Tibetter crowd, who, I admit, I occasionally like to poke with sharp sticks, even I got a thrill and melty little “aww” at the extreme hotness (and cuteness) of Bette and Tina’s rekindling last season on The L Word. And when they went home at the end of a long day together as a family with little Angie Portard in the last episode? Totally sweet. Heart-warming even. Do I think they have a nice girl’s chance in Shane’s life snowball’s chance in hell of making it in the long haul? No. Bette will eff it up. But it’ll be fun to watch!
1. Dyke Drama on A Shot at Love with Tila Tequila : The rest of the offerings on this list may have this show outclassed, but for sheer entertainment value, nothing came close last year to the fun of watching Lisa and Tila, those gloriously punch-drunk shadowboxers of lesbian longing, dance around one another. Remember when the jealous Lisa called Tila “fake” and said she needed some space, and a hurt Tila chased after her, sobbing? And they kissed passionately up against a wall. And Lisa stalked off with a “GAH!” And Tila shouted, “I hate you. I HATE you!” And cried some more? And then they made out again, with renewed ferocity, at Elimination? Oh, sweet Jesus. Satisfying in a way that only the marriage of voyeuristic reality TV shenanigans and first rate dyke drama could ever be, this relationship was, for me, the absolute highlight of lesbo TV in 2008. For real. I find myself wishing that MTV would reunite these two for a Whitney and Bobby style show.
Biggest Disappointment of 2008’s TV Lesbolandscape
Gimme Sugar : Oh, Logo. After the fun of Curl Girls I was so looking forward to this reality TV tale of a group of friends trying to start their own lesbo club night event. Alas, the participants were so collectively whiny and passive aggressive that all I wanted by the season’s end was for Dr. Drew to show up and hold Interventions for the lot of them. Lame!
Top Five Things I’m Most Excited to Watch in 2009
5. Virtuality : That is, if it ever sees the light of day. Industry scuttlebutt has it that Fox isn’t happy with Ron Moore’s new sci-fi series, which features a married gay couple as part of the ship’s crew. The network wants the show to be “more mainstream.” (That’s code for “less gay.”) Hmmph.
4. True Blood’s second season : I want more disarmingly ingenuous and cheerful Sookie! More brooding Vampire Bill! More snarky, subtexty Pam! More, more, more!
3. Battlestar Galactica’s final season: Okay, I am frakking DYING to know if there’s anyone left on old, blasted and barren Earth. Surely there must be some humans and/or Cylons still alive there, living in gritty, post-apocalyptic squalor. Mostly, though, I want to see what becomes of the most badass butch chick on TV, my beloved, star-crossed Starbuck.
2. The L Word’s final season: Okay. So I’m totally excited to watch this last season (And to be recapping it right here on Velvetpark!), because I have loved this show and its characters for five long years. That said, I am super skeptical about this Jenny-centric, “Helena, in the conservatory, with the candlestick,” ‘Clue’ type wackiness. Nonetheless, I will miss The L Word keenly when it’s gone, jumped sharks an’ all.
1. Dollhouse : Oh. My. Blog. We can only hope that freaking Fox doesn’t succeed in killing it like they did with Firefly, but for at least seven weeks or so, we get to watch the incredibly hot Eliza Dushku play Sidney Bristow-style badassery and sprechen sie Joss!
To Watch For Next Week…
Monday! Ashton Kutcher and Tyra Banks bring us a new kind of reality TV competition, seeking True Beauty, (ABC, 10 PM).
Tuesday! The season premiere of Scrubs (ABC, 9 PM), and the long-awaited continuation of Nip/Tuck’s fifth season, (FX, 10 PM). Queen Latifah on Jay Leno.
Wednesday! New judge Toby Young ruffles feathers on the return of Top Chef, (Bravo, 10 PM).
Thursday! Private Practice, moves to its new night and time slot (ABC, 10 PM) following an all new Grey’s, (ABC, 9 PM). Kate Winslet on Letterman. Amy Sedaris on Craig Ferguson.
Friday! The series finale of sci-fi fave, Stargate Atlantis, (Sci Fi Channel, 9 PM).
#IranElection
facebook
MySpace
flickr
Youtube
lmz commented on Rachel Maddow’s Got A Big One at 8:29 am
Steph commented on Open Thread: July 4th at 8:28 am
yonks commented on Rachel Maddow’s Got A Big One at 8:23 am
Minniesota commented on Palin’s Rather Interesting Resignation Speech at 8:08 am
Annie Oakley commented on Palin’s Rather Interesting Resignation Speech at 7:13 am
Taem? commented on Palin’s Rather Interesting Resignation Speech at 7:10 am
Sorry I’m late to respond to this, but God yes!!! Gimme Sugar was disappointing! It seemed totally scripted, right? That would be worse, actually, if someone write that crap.
[Reply]
Anyone know where I can watch episodes of TLW online?
TLW was picked up by Aussie owned PRIME channel (here in New Zealand and disappeared after Season 4. grrr!!
[Reply]
The Closer, Burn Noitce, and the L word all start new seasons in January - gonna be a very good month!
[Reply]
is that Battlestar Galactica logo a pussy with a redhot clit in full-frontal or have i been hanging out on a lesbian website too much?
[Reply]
I don’t watch most of the shows you mentioned, so have no clue about the characters/scenes/story lines.
No matter how critical I’ve been of the writing and plot holes in the LWord, it marks a cultural turning point for us as a community and acknowledges the legitimacy and complexity of our lives. Just like any other soap opera or hollywood take on life, it reflected themes/situations I’ve had in my lezzie life Even though the characters don’t look like women I know, neither do the Grey’s anatomy or Private Practice cast look like a group of medical professionals and their inter-relationships are also not as likely. If we can swallow the straight stuff whole, why not the LWord?
Whether I liked a character or not, I love the acting, the artistry the cast members brought into the roles they played. I’m in the minority here, but I love the Jenny character because she is so provocative and complex. Mia Kirschner is remarkable. I will be watching for her in any movie or production she embarks upon. Jennifer Beals and Laurel Holloman were/are also remarkable. I’m looking forward to the sixth season, if not for the drama, then for the buzz it creates among those of us who take it so seriously.
[Reply]
I don’t watch a whole lot of TV, but what few shows I do watch, I never miss an episode. Of the few shows I watch, I’ll only be missing one this upcoming season.
Battlestar Galactica: Entering the final half of the final season (I never understood why they did it this way) promises to be, well, interesting. http://www.scifi.com/battlestar offers recaps for those not as familiar with the drama as, say, us scifi geeks are. You’re going to need it, if any of the teasers and “The Face of the Enemy” webispodes are any indication. This won’t be the end of the Battlestar series per se, however, as Caprica airs in 2010, a sort of prequel series based around another battlestar prior to the second war between Human and Cylon. The show returns to the SciFi Channel January 16.
House: Okay, doing what I do, I’m bound to like this one. The show mixes the whodunit of CSI with the medical drama of ER. Last season left off with a few questions. Will Cuddy (Lisa Edelstein) adopt? Will House (Hugh Laurie) finally grow up and admit how he feels towards Cuddy? How far will things go between Hadley-13 (Olivia Wilde) and Foreman (Omar Epps)? Will Wilson (Robert Sean Leonard) ever be able to get away from House and have a life of his own? This show returns January 6. Episodes are available online at the Fox web sites eight days after it originally airs for those with high speed internet connections.
Terminator: The Sarah Conner Chronicles: This one I set out to watch as a time filler when I got bored, and ended up getting hooked to it. The story follows the usual premise, Sarah Conner (Lena Headey) protecting son John (Thomas Dekker) while hiding from psychiatrists and the FBI, who think she’s a dangerous nut case, while at the same time she does battle in creative and violent ways with cyborgs sent back through time to kill her son. To end the battle, she must destroy SkyNet before it is “born.” She is assisted by a future cyborg teenager named Cameron (Summer Glau). The season’s last episode a month or so ago ended with Sarah being shot and left dying, while chasing after a symbol, while humans from the future work at destroying Cameron because they fear her influence over John. The series returns February 13, and like House is available online 8 days after original airing.
CSI: I’ve watched this one since it first aired. I love the whole scientific approach to whodunits, and this one never disappoints me. I never really cared for the spin-offs (Miami, NY), which I saw as just carbon copies of the original. The series returns January 15 with the final episode for Gil Grissom (William Peterson), and the introduction of Ray Langston (Laurence Fishburn) as the new head of the department. So long as Marg Helgenberger remains, I’m a happy camper. I’ve been a fan of hers since “China Beach” (yeah, I’m that old, lol).
The L Word: This is one show I loved to watch and tried to catch whenever possible. Having said that, I’m passing on the final and very abbreviated final season. All indications are that the series final season is going to be eight episodes of retrospectives, focusing on the character Jenny, while they try, ala Dallas, to determine how Jenny died and who, if anyone, is at fault. Sorry, I get bored easily this way, especially when the focus is on a character I never really cared about or related to as it was. If I wanted to deal with Jenny-type characters, all I have to do is hit the local clubs. Well, that and get lobotomized.
[Reply]
BSG! BSG! woo hoo!!!!!!!
there’s a 13min recap of the first 4 seasons online, in addition to two new trailers for 4.5…. oh i’m nearly crapping my pants in anticipation!
woooo hoooooo!!!!!
[Reply]
Great 2008 recap Julia. I second your “Most Excited to Watch in 2009″ list and I will gladly add “The United States of Tara” to that one (even though I’m mad at Sowtime. Diablo Cody and Toni Collette rock.)
p.s. One correction: Tibette will make it, because I need them too.
[Reply]
Julia, nice lists. Here’s my can’t wait list for 2009 (in no particular order):
Battlestar Galactica
Lost
Life on Mars
Life
Chuck
Heroes
Dollhouse
Terminator: Sarah Connor Chronicles
Castle
Reaper
Doctor Who
Torchwood
True Blood
I’m also looking forward to Sancturay coming back. I stuck with it and like the way the mythology developed. It ended up to be much better than a MOW show.
[Reply]
What’s a MOW show? That sounds dirty…
Movie of the week? Motherlode of whupass? Mind over wombat?
I’ve been really into Terminator: SCC, too! And Castle sounds interesting… I’m still watching Heroes and Lost because I’m incorrigibly loyal like that (Grey’s Anatomy, anyone?), but I’ve been a little disappointed in them in their respective most recent seasons.
[Reply]
OHHHHHHH, NOOOOOOO. I can’t believe this. My top two “can’t wait to view” are the same as Rusty’s. After that, we have a steep fall off in agreement, however.
Geeks to you,
Mins
[Reply]
Ha, I like all of your suggestions better, but MOW stands for Monster of the Week.
Did you watch this week’s episode of SG Atlantis? It was one of the best in the series. And it looks like there will be another SG show – Stargate Universe.
[Reply]
Lena Headey is totally hot. If you ask me….
[Reply]
TiBette will make it, PK…..if for no other reason, The L Word the movie will not make it without them….
[Reply]
Whatever, Shenny-lover! *runs away cackling* *falls down* Ahem.
[Reply]
Already seen them, several times! I’m worse than a frackin’ junkie when it comes to BSG, lol. Also catching the webisodes, though the latest will have to wait until next week, when I get into an area with a faster signal.
Got my satellite dish and DVR up and running in the rig, and I already told my boss to forget I exist on Friday nights for the next few months, lol.
[Reply]
This is how retarded I am. I saved the last five eps of BSG from last spring, so I could watch them mini-marathon style right before the series started up again. (Now-ish, in other words.) And, Miss Fumble Fingers me accidentally freaking deleted the SEASON FINALE off the DVR by accident when I was clearing space on there a few weeks ago.
Boo! Hiss! And incidentally, I totally frakking forgot about the webisodes! So looking forward to watching ‘em now!
[Reply]
I have never seen SG Atlantis, but I plan to watch the entire series on DVD at some point. Like most dirty hippies, I’m a little bit obsessed with the legend of Atlantis, so I’m sure I will heart it.
[Reply]
Don’t think you’re in the minority. My friends and I love the Jenny character, especially in season 5 because she’s outrageously funny. You’ve gotta love a character who spits her gum at you when she’s mad.
[Reply]
LB, you make an excellent point about hetero characters and their storylines on other shows being equally far-fetched. It always bugs me to hear people criticize the L Word for that. Don’t get me wrong, I’m sure we could think of plenty of reasons to criticize this show, but not for the characters being “too hot” or the storylines being silly and outlandish. That’s just the nature of TV! Especially a soap opera type show like this one…
I loathe Jenny, but I will admit to learning to love to loathe her through her onscreen (s)exploits this past year in particular. She’s freaking hilarious.
[Reply]
I enjoyed Atlantis, but I liked SG1 better. The first episode had one of my favorite lines ever uttered on TV. Samantha Carter to Colonel Jack O’Neill (played by Richard Dean Anderson.)
Carter: It took us 15 years and 3 super computers to MacGyver a system for the gate on Earth.
Also, SG-1 had excellent sub-texty goodness between Samantha Carter and Dr. Janet Frasier.
[Reply]
Yes, love. It’s really from the new jewelry line from Zales: Pussies on Fire!
[Reply]
Woohoo! I do love me some subtext…
[Reply]
Rusty, that is, indeed, a great line– and I don’t even watch the show.
SG1 that is– I DID watch MacGyver and in fact recently caught a few more episodes on Miro or Hulu or another of those internet tv networks… I think maybe he was the closest thing to a lesbian on 80’s television.
[Reply]
oh no! I think someone should organize a BSG marathon leading up to the premiere of the first ep of 4.5 ….hmmmm….
Have you seen the website that dissects the Final Supper photo? Something about folding the image in half places the mysterious chalice in front of Kara.
[Reply]
“BSG marathon leading up to the premiere of the first ep of 4.5″
Count me in.
[Reply]