How Gay-Friendly Is FX? Not Very

Nip/Tuck Cuts Both Ways on Gay Issues

FX's second original drama was Nip/Tuck, which debuted in 2003 to high ratings, great reviews and tremendous controversy over its salacious story lines and graphic scenes of plastic surgery.

The show, originally set in a Miami plastic surgery practice, is the creation of out writer-producer-director Ryan Murphy. Thus far, it has dealt with bisexuality, same-sex rape, transgender issues, HIV/AIDS and gay prostitution, all handled with the sensationalism that is the show's hallmark.

The drama features one regular gay character, Liz Cruz (Roma Maffia), and in Season 2 it added bisexual surgeon Quentin Costa (Bruno Campos), who in Season 3 was revealed to be the serial killer known as the Carver. While Costa's bisexuality was not portrayed as having anything to do with his murderous inclinations, it was nonetheless frustrating to see yet another bisexual character unmasked as a psychotic killer.

During the most recent season, the two main characters, surgeons Christian Troy (Julian McMahon) and Sean McNamara (Dylan Walsh), dealt with Christian's possible sexual attraction to Sean.

In a season-long arc, Christian found himself having romantic dreams about Sean, ogling a hot, new surgeon (Mario Lopez) while showering at a health club, and seeing other signs he might be gay. When Arthur (Richard Chamberlain), an older, wealthy man hired Christian to "improve" his younger boyfriend surgically, Christian tried to "convert" the young man back to heterosexuality, but failed. Clearly, he only attempted to do so in order to combat his fears about his own sexual orientation. By the season's end, Christian realized he does love Sean, but not in a sexual way.

According to Seomin, Murphy has always referred to the show as "a love story between two straight men," and this past season was likely the crest of that particular wave. While the two surgeons ultimately remain just friends, the exploration of same-sex desire between the two so-far-heterosexual main characters of a hit show is groundbreaking television.

In the context of the exaggerated and often lurid goings-on of this show, one could argue that it has done a fairly balanced job of including both the praiseworthy and the reprehensible. But tolerance of the show's audacious style seems to be the key to how one feels about its handling of gay material.

Rescue Me's Gay Characters Need Rescuing

Ever since its premiere in 2004, Denis Leary and Peter Tolan's New York City firehouse drama Rescue Me has incorporated gay story lines. Early in the series, the firehouse chief severely beats a man who asserts that several of the fallen Sept. 11 firemen were gay men. In an effort to avoid suspension and save his career, the chief reluctantly calls on the help of his son — a gay fireman — who helps him out despite his father's continued disapproval.

The son briefly returns in Season 2 as he and his life partner help the chief care for his wife, who suffers from Alzheimer's. In one scene, the chief is disgusted to hear them having rather loud sex, something that some gay viewers felt to be unrealistic and played for shock value. In Season 4, which debuted June 13th, the son will again appear in an episode involving his getting married, much to the dismay of his father.

Rescue Me's most prominent and problematic plotline involves Mike "Probie" Silletti (Michael Lombardi), a rookie firefighter having continuing difficulties determining his sexual orientation. In Season 3, Probie begins a secret affair with Chris (Timothy Adams), his male roommate. When his fellow firefighters find out, they treat him with a mixture of revulsion and some tolerance, frequently mocking and teasing him.

Over the course of the season, Probie's relationship with Chris is revealed as abusive and destructive to say the least. Both men deny being gay, get into verbal and physical fights, and Chris also lies and cheats on Probie, eventually throwing him out of their apartment. Probie later has a three-way with a brother and sister, but while having sex with them, suddenly realizes he isn't attracted to the brother, saying "Uh, guys. I don't think I'm bi anymore."

According to critic Michael Ausiello of TVGuide.com, this season Probie is going to realize he is actually bisexual, be injured on the job, and spiral deep into depression.

One of the most troubling things about Probie's story line was that executive producer Peter Tolan once stated that "the story line came out of a childish delight at discomfiting" Lombardi, the actor who plays Probie. Immature adolescent behavior not being the best muse, he did go on to say, "once we committed to it … well, now we've got to protect our character and do right by him and let's really make this plausible."

However, some critics point out that little about the character is plausible, and that his sexuality is treated like an offensive joke. FX's Seomin argues that the portrayal is genuine, and noted, " Not every portrayal of realization needs to be decisive or definitive; there also need to be portrayals of the confusion."

In Season 3, Lee Tergesen played Sully, a cross-dressing firefighter who is briefly assigned to the station and quickly takes to giving the other firemen massages. While he is never labeled as "gay," he makes the men uncomfortable, and they waste no time in getting rid of him once his cross-dressing proclivities are revealed.

Seomin added: "Unfortunately, the environment of a ladder house full of firefighters — it's still overwhelmingly an environment of homophobia. I feel the portrayals are realistic."

Both Peter Tolan and Denis Leary have declined repeated interview requests from AfterElton.com, as has Michael Lombardi.