LGBTQ+ Representation You Didn't Know You Needed In Your Life
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LGBTQ+ Representation You Didn't Know You Needed In Your Life

The Less-Popular Media You Didn't Know Existed

10
LGBTQ+ Representation You Didn't Know You Needed In Your Life
Brandon Stanton

Ever find yourself dying for more representation for the queer community, but don't even know where to start? Have you watched every ounce of LGBTQ+ TV you can possibly find, and don't know how to find other mediums to fuel your need? Sometimes representation of the queer community is nearly impossible to find - it's even harder to find something that is accurate and relatable if you are part of the community. Writing of queer characters is getting better, but a lot of it is just boring and repetitive or at worst deeply offensive. I've spent hours of my life trying to find accurate and interesting queer characters, and this list is a "Greatest Hits" of sorts.

Warning: There are going to be mild spoilers in the descriptions due to the nature of the article, so if you want to avoid the spoilers just jump right in and consume these wonderful pieces of art. Or, if that doesn't sound like your thing, look up the wikipedia synopsis.


1. Crazy Ex-Girlfriend (CW)

This show is exactly what you need in your life, and the perfect addition to your Netflix addictions. Rachel Bloom, feminist and comedy extraordinaire, along with her co-creator Alina Brosh McKenna have created an unbelievable funny and empowering program with an openly bisexual man in his 40s. Darryl Whitefeather, seen in the gif above, doesn't even realize he's bi until a little over halfway through the first season. His love interest is a gay man who is also very open with himself. This show is overall very positive about sexuality, and it is filled with satire and dripping with sarcasm. If this is your thing, Season one is on Netflix and is worth the watch. Season two is out soon, and I know I'm eagerly waiting its arrival.

2. The Raven Cycle by Maggie Stiefvater

If you want to know more about an abuse survivor who speaks to forests and just happens to be bisexual and his bad*** Irish boyfriend who is covered in tattoos and wants to be a farmer, this is the book series for you. The four-part series surrounds a group of five friends - three boys, a ghost, and a girl. Their destiny is driven by Welsh King Owen Glendower, and their adventures are interesting to say the very least. One of the protagonists, Ronan, is revealed to have a crush on his friend Adam in book two of the series. By the end of the series, they are officially a couple. This series is filled with drama and fantasy, and of course the representation worthy of your time.

3. Emmerdale & Hollyoaks

These two are simultaneously less commitment and more commitment than anything else on this list. Both "Emmerdale" and "Hollyoaks" are soap operas on British TV, and a lot of the episodes are available on websites like YouTube and DailyMotion for those in America who want to watch. Basically, they're like you're typical soap operas but with British accents, so move out of the way "Days of Our Lives." The queer characters on these shows (there are many) seem almost too good to be true, and because there are episodes every day you get a lot more content. They're not only realistic (filled with angst, drama, fighting, and of course the inevitable making up or moving on), they are abundant. There are at least four characters in each of these shows that I can think of off the top of my head that are on some part of the LGBTQ+ spectrum. The only problem is, if you want to keep up on their storylines, you have to watch nearly daily. On the other hand, if you decide you just want to keep up on Robert and Aaron from "Emmerdale" (for example), you can find only their stories on YouTube. If you like British accents and wonderfully written queer storylines, these are the shows for you.

4. Aristotle & Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe

Aristotle and Dante are just two normal kids, apart from their names. These two Mexican-American boys struggle with various things throughout the novel, the least of which is their sexuality. When they meet, they don't expect to mean so much to each other. This takes place in the late 80s, and it is a fairly normal angsty YA novel. Highlights of the books are: Ari and Dante writing letters to each other while Dante is away, the boys lying in the back of a truck discussing their feelings, and Ari's parents telling him he has feelings for Dante (which of course he didn't want to admit to himself). A good-hearted coming-of-age story that's bound to rip your heart out and then glue it back together, this is a great place to find queer representation if you want it in book form.

5. Angels of Sex

This one is a bit different than the others on my list. Of course, still plenty of queer representation for you. "Angels of Sex," original title "El sexo de los ángeles," is a Spanish film about your not-so-typical love triangle. In the beginning, a man and woman are in a relationship. After a very strange series of events, two men and one woman are in a three-way polyamarous relationship. It's beautifully written and wonderfully acted, all-around a great film. The only downside to this is if you aren't fluent in Spanish, because then you have to watch it with subtitles on the whole time (which is what I ended up doing). The plot and the queer representation made it so worth the time and effort, though. I don't believe you can get better polyamorous representation on film.

6. The Get Down

Everyone knows Netflix is unbelievably good at representation on all fronts, despite regular television's hesitation. "The Get Down" is no different, and it also has yet to be sensationalized like so many other Netflix shows. It's essentially the beginning of hip hop music, which was during the 70s when Disco was very popular. It surrounds a cast that is a majority POC, and one of the main characters - Dizzee - shares a kiss with a boy in a disco club towards the end of the episodes that are currently available on Netflix. If you're looking for tons of diversity and awesome music, this is the show for you. The new episodes come out at the beginning of next year and they're bound to be phenomenal.


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This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
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