Ryan Jamaal Swain as Damon, Mj Rodriguez as Blanca, Indya Moore as Angel in Pose. Photo / Macall Polay, FX
Ryan Jamaal Swain as Damon, Mj Rodriguez as Blanca, Indya Moore as Angel in Pose. Photo / Macall Polay, FX
COMMENT: For years, queer art in pop culture has always had to be in on "the joke".
Pioneering shows like Will and Grace and Queer Eye for the Straight Guy had to play up to the stereotypes and fit into a world in which straight people could still feel comfortable.
It was rare that queer people would be leads or have dominating storylines and if they did, they either had to do so in a way which would satisfy the straight male gaze (e. a lot of women making out for the pleasure of straight men), involve a lot of tragedy porn or be open to a world of mockery.
Shows and films which broke those rules certainly existed, but they did so out of the mainstream; relegated to secret spaces and arthouse showings.
Two queer TV dramas are leading this charge: FX's 80s drama Pose, and Netflix's miniseries Tales of The City, based on the novels by Armistead Maupin.
Sure, many - including me - have complained that the writing on these shows is questionable and the acting even more so, but I don't think it really matters.
For years the community has been demanding real representation and visibility and this is that. While they may not be masterpieces, they're a starting point.
Both shows feature queer actors playing queer characters; Charlie Barnett, Murray Bartlett, Ellen Page and trans actor Garcia star in Tales of the City and its gay author Maupin once told BBC, "you can you can feel the truth of what they're doing". Meanwhile, Pose has employed the largest cast of trans actors in television history as well as other queer stars like Broadway icon Billy Porter.
And both shows' writing teams are made up exclusively of queer people.
The result is that Tales, while flawed, is easily one of the best representations of queer life that I've seen in mainstream media.
It doesn't have the tragedy-porn stories about coming out, abandonment, homelessness, substance abuse or sexual violence - or indeed, any violence at all.
It's just a bunch of people of all ages and races, trying to make their way in life. We follow a gay couple whose biggest problem is their age gap, a bisexual woman trying to deal with her estranged mother's return, a trans-man's struggle to keep his relationship on track and two siblings trying to make it big on Instagram.
It's a show which doesn't focus on sexuality or gender, but doesn't downplay queerness either; both discussing and showing various kinds of queer sex and relationships.
Then there's Pose, which journeys back to New York's ball scene in the 80s, and the queer people who, disowned by their own families, made new ones - banding together to not only survive, but flourish.
These characters don't have the luxury of living their lives in peace; they are targeted and attacked, forced to do sex work for money, or rely on drugs for escape. They're also smack bang in the middle of the AIDS crisis and it is taking a heavy toll. But despite it all, it's still a beautiful tale of love, family and acceptance.
There is plenty of room for improvement but the most important thing is that it exists in a time where it will have the chance to do that, having just been renewed for a third season, despite the fact that it's just started its second - that's how important it is.
Similarly, Queer Eye - Netflix's hit makeover reboot with a much more woke Fab 5 - has just had two more season confirmed.
This is progress.
It is also progress that we live in a time where red carpets are being dominated by Pose star Billy Porter, a 49-year-old, gay, black man who wears extravagant gowns and wigs in the spotlight.
It's progress that one of the best albums of the year was by a gay, black man in hip hop (Tyler the Creator, Igor) and Taylor Swift's latest single is raising awareness about and support for America's Equality Act.
It's progress that Youtube's list of trending videos was topped twice this week by online star Eugene Lee Yang's coming out story - a two part release with the first featuring a gorgeous dance piece, and the second, a behind the scenes exploration of Yang's process and personal story.
It's easy to focus on the problems - like the quality of these TV shows or Taylor Swift's problematic relationship with politics - but we need to be sure that we're not missing the forest for the trees.
As with anything, there's room for improvement, but this is the beginning of a new queer era, and that's worth celebrating.
Neon has Pose S2 streaming express weekly each Wednesday.
