#give me weird dialogue during sex over beating each other up at the alibi any day

[dreamylyfe-x]

this ep was written by a gay man?! is he a self hating gay man like ryan murphy? cause ryan murphy is like those gay characters in that "boys in the band" movie he made where they hate themselves and so take it out on each other. is that what this guy is doing with ian/ mick? cause why else the back to back heavy handed cringe lines like the pregnant line and all that? what gay men would say that in real life? so many quotes in this ep seemed so unnecessary and odd even within this story arc

The only thing I can really say here is that yes, he is gay. 

Beyond that, I’m not going to speculate. I am not a gay man. And besides that, gay men aren’t a monolith. I think mileage varies on the cringe factor, wildly. For instance, last week during a zoom call some people I work with sang a song to the tune Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, but they changed the lyrics to be industry appropriate. I involuntarily pulled my sweater up over my face. Others maintained their decorum.  🤷‍♀️ 

I can imagine a world in which those lines are playful and cute as easily as I can imagine a world in which people have their sweaters up over their head. I am not entirely sure just yet which of those worlds I inhabit. Full power to both sides, because I don’t think either is hurting anybody. I definitely don’t think it means anything about whether or not anybody hates themselves. In fact, I think an argument can be made that there was something of the opposite in allowing Mickey and Ian to be seen in a sexual situation that was not what we’ve come to expect. They’ve been together for years. Surely they’ve branched out a bit. 

(Aside, because you mentioned The Boys in the Band and I have a BFA in theatre: The Boys in the Band film is a period piece and it’s seeking to honour something. The play was written in 1968. It ran on Broadway for just over 1000 performances. To have a play entirely about gay men on Broadway in 1968 -- the Mad Men era -- was incredible enough, but it was also a hit. The men in that movie were representing a very specific experience, but it was an experience that wasn’t being shared before them. So it has its place in history. Which is one of the reasons it has that killer cast.)

ANYWAY, Shameless: I thought that was a pretty strong episode for Frank and Franny, and Debbie and Sandy. I’ll be interested in what we get from him next. I think it’s entirely likely it’ll be interesting. But if I pull my sweater up over my head, then he might just not be for me. I still wouldn’t have anything to say about how he feels about himself.