Pride Month may have come to an end, but the representation of LGBTQ+ people is an important part of media at any time of year.
In the discussion of LGBTQ+, it's common to refer to couples or merely the establishment of someone being LGBTQ+. What is even more valuable is the portrayal of the lives within those identities, and how their obstacles are specific to their sexuality and identity. Seeing those journeys is part of understanding those feelings are normal, how people can overcome them, and how they can be a strength.
Fire Island - Noah
While he does purposely resemble Elizabeth Bennet from Pride and Prejudice, Noah (Joel Kim Booster) has a character arc unique to him through the modernization of this inspiration.
Noah is cynical. Part of this is to be strong for his family - the friends that are the only people he has - and for himself. Even on a week to escape a heteronormative lifestyle and into a community known for its acceptance, there are still class and race dynamics, and he can't escape his disbelief that a rom-com ending can happen for him. Noah has resentment for a monogamous society that he can't find his ideal version of love in, and to see this all broken down when Will shares that interest in a loving, polygamous lifestyle is truly heartwarming. Positive representation of polygamy is so rare in media and seeing Fire Island make steps to give those people happy endings is wonderful to see in 2022.
Heartstopper - Nick Nelson
In Heartstopper, protagonist Nick Nelson (Kit Connor) goes through an arc to realize his sexuality while growing closer to his crush, Charlie Spring (Joe Locke). The season presents a deeply intimate process of discovering sexuality outside of what is thought to be "normal," how those people are treated, and even the media that helps understand the complex feelings an LGBTQ+ person can go through — it's part of why shows like Heartstopper exist.
In the beginning, it's even shown how Charlie's ex Ben Hope (Sebastian Croft) juxtaposes Nick. Both of them are afraid of being bullied for who they are, but whereas Ben treats his relationship with Charlie as a shameful secret, Nick learns to love him openly and love himself. It's no surprise Heartstopper is a highly ranked LGBTQ+ teen show; Nick's wonderful journey represents the importance of loving one's self, and whomever they may love openly.
Queer As Folk (2022) - Ruthie O'Neil
By the end of the first episode of Queek As Folk, a reboot of the original UK series by Russell T Davies, the majority of the characters have personally experienced a mass shooting at a gay bar not unlike the real-life tragedy in Pulse, which traumatizes but does not define them.
Ruthie (Jesse James Keitel) is a transgender woman and a mother struggling to grow into the role. It's not enough for her safe space to be destroyed, or to feel the fear of adulthood, Ruthie experiences the cruelty of an old lover deadnaming her too. Episode 6 does this tastefully, bleeping out her old name, and at every instance of her backstory where she discovers herself. It's easy for the media to make the terrible mistake of using deadnames for shock, but Queer As Folk does it with tact, sharing Ruthie's story and showing her overcome and re-affirm her identity as a mother through her hardship.
Queer As Folk (2022) - Mingus
Mingus is a non-binary seventeen-year-old who sneaks into a nightclub to fulfill their dream of singing in drag, with no small encouragement from the many fashion queens in RuPaul's Drag Race, no doubt. The shooting that occurs destroys their confidence, and Mingus is one of the most affected of the main characters.
Addressing underaged characters in stories about adult safe spaces is difficult, but it is an unfortunate reality that they are vulnerable to being taken advantage of while trying to enter these spaces to experiment with their sexuality. Their arc doesn't end on a completely positive note either. Brodie (Devin Way) abuses the crush Mingus has for him for emotional gratification, but even so, Mingus learns and makes steps to enjoy their ion again. The final musical sequence is one of the strongest in the show, and an important mark to show the healing after a very real disaster the LGBTQ+ community has seen before.
Three Months - Caleb
Though it's a simple coming-of-age on the surface, Three Months deserves a mention for its goal to normalize the discussion of HIV. Following the snarky Caleb (Troye Sivan), the film catalogs his experiences after a condom breaks in a one-night stand with another man who texts him to say he tested positive.
In 2011, this takes up to three months, and so the reason his arc is important is simple: it lets everyone know that everything is going to be okay, whether he's positive or not — It's an important lesson for LGBTQ+ youths. The film even references MTV's The Real World where Predo Zamora shared his HIV diagnosis, clearly attempting to do the same with Caleb as a symbol dispel the toxic conversations around it. Caleb sees that he can still find love and friendship and that there is more to it than the usual discussions that stigmatize it.
Umbrella Academy Season 3 - Viktor Hargreeves
Viktor Hargreeves transitioned in The Umbrella Academy's third season to replicate Elliot Page's real-life transition after season 2. The topic is handled with care, and his family finds no issues with his identity. There are so many stories where LGBTQ+ characters suffer tragedy or mistreatment, but this comedic series has no place for it.
His gender isn't a point of strife, and in fact, a conversation with Viktor's sister results in the show's best quotes. Umbrella Academy isn't an LGBTQ+-focused show, so it's great to see not only Viktor's explanations handled well, but also what the appropriate reaction is for the people around him. It's a highly noteworthy character arc for the year for both respecting the actor and the character, and for the positive example it sets.
Dead End Paranormal Park - Barney Guttman
Many shows like Veneno have great trans main characters, but as the first trans-masculine protagonist in an animated show, Barney already gives a great impression. What's fantastic about Barney is the unapologetically trans-focused conflict with his parents.
Barney's parents accept his identity and love their son, but do so without helping or truly understanding him. In "Norma Khan: Paranormal Investigator," both of Barney's parents try to show for him after he ran away, but are ive in actually ing him against the aggressively ignorant views of his grandmother. Even in acceptance, there are other obstacles, namely the need for friends, family, and everyone around them to actively tackle ignorance. It's a simple story, but one unmistakably centered on the transgender experience.
Everything Everywhere All At Once - Joy Wang
Although Evelyn Quan Wang (Michelle Yeoh) acts as the main character, the love between a mother and her daughter is central to the movie, as is love itself, and the story of their immigration - as evident by the movie's title, it's about a lot of things.
Joy Wang (Stephanie Hsu), Evelyn's daughter, is a lesbian. Like Barney Guttsman, Joy wants her mother to talk to her extended family about her and her girlfriend, and in being dismissed, Jobu Tupaki represents Joy's nihilism as an escape from her broken emotional connections. She finds more things to despise in the universe, because of her disappointment with how she was treated by her loved ones. Evelyn's multi-dimensional journey is in part an allegory for her dismissiveness towards this side of Joy, and it's only when she learns to stop fighting and start loving that part of her daughter that everything is resolved. The ability to express their love was important to them both, and Joy becomes a stronger person for facing that instead of stopping her phone calls and running away.