Gays of our Lives (April 06, 2009)

What the show did worst: It was bad enough that Deniz started having an affair with a woman then flitted back and forth between the two, but what might have been worse was how his relationship with Roman was reduced to random hookups while Deniz lied and blamed everything on Roman.

Random Thoughts: It’s puzzling why the show ended the relationship the way it did, but even more puzzling is why Deniz was allowed to go on to have other relationships while poor Roman hasn’t had so much as a date. On the plus side, word has it that Roman will soon have a new man. Let’s hope so. Dennis Grabosch is much too engaging and appealing to be relegated to the background or playing sidekick to the show’s bad girl. That might be fun, but it’s not a story.

Overall Grade (on a scale of 1 – 5 Nukes): 2 and a half.

Emmerdale Makes History … and Little Else

Emmerdale’s gay bartender Paul Lambert (out actor Matthew Bose) had several affairs and relationships over the years, but his most significant relationship was with Jonny Foster (Richard Grieve), a storyline that culminated in the first legally sanctioned gay marriage on U.K. television.

There were a few bumps along the road, however, most notably Paul’s odd and unhealthy hankering for married bisexual Grayson Sinclair. Despite being engaged to Jonny, Paul slept with Grayson then tearfully confessed the next day. Jonny forgave Paul and they married, however, Paul couldn’t stay away from Grayson and eventually Jonny left him. Months went by before Jonny contacted Paul about getting divorced, but the two realized they still loved each other, reunited and set off for a new life together in Australia.

What the show did best: For a storyline that received a great deal of screen time, there aren’t many good moments. I could say that Jonny and Paul’s wedding was a high point since it made television history. But even that was marred by the fact that the couple weren’t allowed to kiss at the altar. They simply hugged. Talk about a double standard!

Paul and Grayson’s ill-fated affair doomed the storyline
… and the characters

What the show did worst: Gee, where do we start? First there’s Paul’s sick relationship with Grayson in which Paul seemed to be turned on by Grayson’s homophobic diatribes. Then there are the hammy, overacted scenes where Paul confessed his one-nighter with Grayson.

But perhaps worst of all was the bungled reunion between Paul and Jonny, which was more about his mother’s ridiculous schemes to keep him in the village than the healing of a broken marriage. Paul and Jonny reunited without so much as discussing why they broke up to begin with, and then – to add insult to injury – they barely hugged before being booted off the show.

Goodbye without so much as a peck

Random Thoughts: The Paul/Jonny/Grayson triangle was clearly a mistake on the writers’ part. But rather than fix it, they just dumped the whole arc, fired most of the players involved and left Paul without a story. Following the debacle of Paul’s exit, there are no gay male characters left in Emmerdale. One hopes with the slew of new characters on the scene and those to arrive in the future, the lack of gay visibility will change.

Overall grade: Two Nukes.