Doug PollardGlee & Gay
June 9th 2010 02:57
Kurt
In 1978 the BBC first aired a groundbreaking TV drama series “Pennies From Heaven”, in which the characters mimed to popular songs of the 1930s. They followed this with another Dennis Potter series in the same style, “The Singing Detective”, in 1986. Both were turned into Hollywood movies with little success.
These were not musicals in the true sense of the word. Instead they used pre-existing songs to illustrate mood and character, and to display a simple truth: that ordinary people often turn to popular song to articulate their feelings, but those popular songs can often betray them into feelings that are not really their own.
The latest incarnation of the formula is “Glee”, which is a little closer to a standard musical format. The characters sing - with a little digital assistance - rather than mime to others songs. There is the usual subservience of the dialogue to the songs, and the same rather simplistic treatment of issues typical of musicals, allied with a cruel wit and sense of irony that sends up the whole concept.
The show does not always hit the mark, but when it does it graphically demonstrates the proof of the old saying: never underestimate the power of cheap music.
“Glee” is refreshingly free of the cloying sentimentality and fake uplift that often mars run of the mill musicals. Instead it is sharp, tart and bitchy. And therefore very gay. And enormously popular.
So much so that it has begun to draw fire from the extreme Christian Right. There have been complaints that the only true Christians on the show are depicted as bullying homophobes and self-righteous bigots.
In response, the creators have promised to introduce a ‘kindler, gentler’ Christian, who still won’t approve of homosexuality and extra-marital sex. Let’s hope she doesn’t get lost in the crowd, with another three additional regular characters promised for the next season.
Is the show good for public perception of gays? Usually TV and Hollywood have one rule: if he or she is butch and gay, s/he’s the bad guy. Normal gay guys are few and far between, and frustratingly sexless. See “Will & Grace”.
Queeny gay gays are usually safe but tragic, passive but manipulative, and so far Glee’s Kurt is running pretty true to type. It will be interesting to see how the character changes, if at all, as he goes through what his creators have planned for him: he stops pining for the straight boy, gets a gay jock to play with and loses his virginity.
It’ll also be interesting to see their response if the KKK follow the Christaliban lead and start complaining that there aren’t any nice racists on the show either.
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