The AfterElton.com 2007 Visibility Awards

Honorable Mention:

Torchwood, BBC America

While the scripts might be uneven at best, there is no denying Torchwood has broken new ground with the character of Captain Jack Harkness. Played by the out John Barrowman, Captain Jack is the first bisexual character to headline a science fiction program (or any U.S. television program for that matter). And that’s only the beginning for Torchwood, which also featured several same-sex pairings as well as one of the most unabashedly romantic same-sex scenes ever shown on American television.

Best Gay Couple:

Luke Snyder and Noah Mayer, As The World Turns.

Other contenders for Best Couple included Brothers & Sisters Kevin and Chad, Kevin and Jason, and Kevin and Scotty (I think that covers everyone Kevin dated!), Ugly Betty’s Marc and Cliff, Greek’s Calvin and Heath, and Desperate Housewives Bob and Lee. But it was really no contest with the very sweet, well-acted relationship that ATWT fans affectionately refer to as Nuke being the clear frontrunner.

For the most part, the CBS soap has treated the relationship between Luke Snyder (Van Hansis) and Noah Mayer (Jake Silbermann) like any other relationship on the show, with attempted murder, drunken confessions, and paralysis conspiring to keep the lovers apart. Luke’s coming out story was well-done and truly broke new ground on daytime television, as did the history making kiss between Luke and Noah, the first between two men on daytime television.

That being said, Nuke has been noticeably absent over the past several weeks and the relationship needs to be consummated soon or the show will be guilty of treating the characters differently.