Best. Gay. Week. Ever. (November 14, 2008)

Better, much better.

I'm so glad you returned to the old format. In fact, I'm so glad, that I will refrain from making any snarky comments. I won't even point out the Grocers' Apostrophe on page 3. I really do enjoy this column and have been reading it longer than almost anything else on After Elton. Welcome back.

I'm Ti-Fauxing the show, but not for Rodney's lame "Lover On The Down-Low" storyline. I'm in it strictly for the Hart Bochner shirtless scenes.

It takes a big editor to come to his senses after only one "improvement" edition. We love you. And this installment reminded me how much I look forward to Classic Coke.

I do watch The Starter Wife, and not just for cute Rodney; I've had a crush on Hart Bochner since a film called Apartment Zero. And I love the "classic film" redos they throw into the episodes -- the Hello Dolly! was fabulous, and I wonder if the fact that Rodney could dance well but Hart Bochner could barely keep from tripping meant that one really was gay and the other wasn't.

Heaven help me, I have been watching Stylista, but all those Hasselbeckian 20-somethings are getting on my nerves. The new reality show that I'm feeling guilty and wicked over is First Class All The Way, with its of-a-certain-age, plastic-surgeried travel-concierge women. One of them is called Cindy, and she is the closest thing I've seen to an actual woman behaving like the "We are ladies" character from Little Britain. Cindy looks like she might get fired soon, so enjoy her passive-aggressive gusto while you can.

And again, welcome back, Michael. My gay week wasn't half as best-y last week without you being normal.

 

 

The blog is still unchanged...whether you wanted it that way or not.

I LOVE the Starter Wife, even if Rodeny wansn't there I would still totally watch the show. If you don't like it just don't watch it, simple as that...;)

oops read real comment lower...

KO is absolutely amazing!! What a wonderful thing to say and so right on. No yelling, no pointing fingers...just a simple question "why do you care?"

MSNBC was dead right to ink this guy a new contract. Between him and Rachel Maddow, I can finally watch news and analysis w/out wanting to 1) throw a glass @ my tv, 2) yell in frustration and anger @ the utter stupidity, 3) wonder why questions weren't asked that should've been (that means you Anderson Cooper), and 4) wish that there were some anchors and pundits who don't buy the bullshit that comes out of the so-called "mainstream" media and that hell pit of non-news Fox.

I was going to give the 'new' fomat a couple weeks but now am glad I don't have to - I so look forward to many of the regular features on here - congrats to Bloody Brian by the way - and this was a fav and how I started my friday mornings. Thanks for putting into sensible words how I felt about the Prop 8 BS. I've been muttering to myself all week and trying to make it not sound like 'reverse hate speach'. Also thanks for the notice of Leonard Pitts who I will send a thank you email to so as to balance what I am sure he is hearing from the negative side. Thanks for, as always, a delightful column.

PS Tony Perkins has taken a perfectly good name and ruined it. He should have to turn it in and go by Anne Phelps Coulter instead.

Worried how mean you're being to Sherri Shepherd or Elisabeth Hasselbeck? Gosh, I kept finding myself mentally interjecting expletives into what you wrote, and 'gosh!' wasn't one of them. You're a bunny.

 

I am glad BGWE has returned to the previous format. It is one of my favorite columns of the week and highly anticipated. I didn't even bother reading last week's column. It did not perk my interest, whatsoever. But now I have a whole column to read and reread over the weekend.

Thanks!

She was even more disappointing for fans (I'm using that term very loosely to refer to people who watch the show- it's garbage) of the show like me. Many of us were really starting to see a change in Sherri the last few weeks of the election. She seemed to be getting more intelligent, she actually did research and she had no trouble smacking EH down. I was extremely disappointed that she fell for the ridiculous lies of the No on 8 campaign. I don't know what to think of her now. I still hate Elizabeth more, though.

Glad to have the BGWE back to its true form.

I know you got a lot of flack, snark and complaints last week Michael so I'm sorry to have to do this but...please, please, please, on behalf of the readers who live outside of the United States if at all possible can AfterElton stop posting videos using the Hulu service ? If its worth sharing, share it with everyone.

Of course, in your rundown of our opinions of last week's "new, improved" BGWE, you forgot the Chicago Fire:

 

Meanwhile, I am a bit disappointed with John Abraham's "choice" comment; but, I suppose we must consider that India still criminalizes homosexuality--has he said anything about the current effort to decriminalize it? At least I can still fantasize about him. 

 

Check out my blog: http://radicalsexy.blogspot.com/

I, too, was going to give the new format one more week but... yay... like this one much better. In regards to the lack of outreach to the Black Community when it comes to "No on 8": although it would have been the proper thing to do, I question why we should have to because give or take a few decades ago, this fight was theirs. I, like many others, assumed that if you are part of a maligned and oppressed minority, wouldn't you understand another minority's plight and help support them? Especially if it rings similar?

And in terms of Anderson Cooper: I am not sure why we continue to think he would support our fight, which he doesn't belong to. I mean, he hasn't been open about his sexuality. I would not expect him to point out blatant stupidity because... well, is he even really gay? Plus, it's network news. It's half a step above Entertainment Tonight.

Just some thoughts.

The View has always been a sad, sad show, even when there were more liberals than conservatives on it. But at least, back then, they were mostly just petty, mean, and sometimes ignorant. Now they are spreading *ignorance*. The women are often good interviewers (or they were back when I sometimes watched), but the hot topics section is silly, and I cringe to think that some people consider the show a feminist concept. There is absolutely NO reason for anybody to worry they are being too mean towards the show.

 

As far as redefining marriage, it's a pity how many social conservatives don't know human history. I am sure most of them are glad that marriage in most modern societies is not the ownership of one woman by one man, or of many women by one man. That was quite a change. It was also a HUGE redefinition of marriage when men were no longer legally allowed to rape their wives, or physically punish them for disobedience. (And this is a more recent change than some people realize.) Humans constantly redefine marriage, and thank goodness for that. I hope you guys in America get equal marriage laws soon.

Dan's comments on this are absolutely right on. That these hate groups would use homeless children as pawns in their anti-gay agenda is truly evil. Children given up for adoption by their straight parents can't possibly be better off in no family at all. Many children go unadopted because of health or mental/emotional issues that make them undesirable. These "traditional family" fools that bang on about children needing both a male and female parent are in effect discarding the hard-to-adopt children in the system by removing a huge segment of people that could adopt these needy children.<br>

Dan is right in saying that if unmarried people are not considered fit parents, it's only a short slippery slope to hell in finding that any unmarried person might be unfit to parent their own children. Complacency can lose people their rights in a heartbeat.<br>

I say we take the warning labels off everything and let nature take it's course.

The person taking the interview is Karan Johar,who is rumoured to be gay. And no,John hasnt said anything about the ongoing battle. There are efforts being made to decriminalize homosexuality in India though,with the the health minister and other prominent figures supporting the repeal of sec 377 which make homosexuality a criminal offence.

Well, if we're looking at overall coverage of Prop 8, I'd say Rachel Maddow deserves an up arrow for the segment where she an Melissa Harris-Lacewell discussed the meme saying that the African-American vote pushed Prop 8 over the edge. If I got the link right you can watch it here. If that link doesn't work, look for a segment called "Post-election chaos" on the Nov 7 show.

The thing that drives me batty about Hasselbeck on The View is that she's so satisfied in her ignorance. When I was in high school, I used to read conservative op-ed columnists but in the internet era its so obvious that pretty much every major conservative voice is only repeating talking points without adding any independent thought and Hasselbeck does that in spades. She clearly doesn't realize it when someone contradicts what she just said because she'll be saying the exact same thing at the next chance. She's not a panelist, she's a parrot.

I believe you're talking about Brian Hallisay, currently starring on the CW's Privileged. He also happened to play Jimmy Bruno in Cold Case's amazing "Forever Blue" episode.

 

Privileged won't make it past the first season, but it's an entertaining watch when you've got nothing better to do. It reminds me of why I watched The OC (aside from all the pretty people, of course): watching "normal" folks get shoved into a world of excess and indulgence. It's a "fish out of water" tale I can, if not relate to, aspire to. Privileged's main shortcoming is that it just doesn't have the storytelling chops that The OC did (at least in the beginning of The OC's run, before Ryan became acculturated into the Newport Beach lifestyle and the soap-opera dramas took center stage.)

 

Anyway, that was far too much talking about the show. I'll just say that Brian Hallisay looks 100x cuter in color.

The pink nation will party - oops, I meant sleep - soundly tonight, knowing that BGWE is safe.

Thanks Michael - and you quoted me! AE fame at last...

When anyone says "history dictates... such and such" remind them of reality: For thousands of years countless heterosexuals have used religious mythologies to commit genocide against gay people and allies - that is why marriage is traditionally defined the way it is. Anyone standing up for human rights was killed. Most religious zealots cannot admit they have committed atrocities against other groups for centuries - whether against gay people, against Native Americans, against blacks, against women, against other religious sects, etc. Mass-murdering people through the Ages and then claiming "tradition" demands continued exclusion is the most appalling and evil rationale for discrimination ever concocted.

I'VE TRIED TO WATCH THIS SHOW SINCE IT STARTED. I NEVER GET FURTHER THAN THE FIRST COMMERCIAL. SO MANY PEOPLE TRYING SO HARD TO BE FUNNY AND JUST NEVER MAKING IT. GREAT CAST AND THE WORST WRITING ON TV THIS YEAR. PITY.

.... was his character on Four Kings ever outed as gay? Cause I watched that show (yes, I was one of the 3 people who liked it) and the running joke was that he was gay because he never dated (though his buds were cool with it). Then they had an episode where the show teased that he was coming out of the closet, but he 'came out' as a Republican. So I'm just wondering if there was an episode where he actually admitted to being gay.

I used to have a problem keeping myself from reading BGWE on Thursday night before bed for a warm fuzzy - I liked it so much. After last week's column, I felt like someone had stolen my puppy. I'm glad I took the time this morning over my coffee to discover the puppy was just hiding under the bed.

Just a shout-out to Lloyd Bochner fans. Hart Bochner fans I'm sure are legion in here -- or ought to be. Hart we love you. Apartment Zero was beyond fabulous.

 

Now get before the cameras and take off your clothes!

Thanks for the switch back. What a wonderful way to start the morning! 

The up arrow is back for BGWE. One teeney, tiny, problem.. most of the clips you posted are only available if you live in the US. Here, in Canada I cannot view them.

I totally appreciate the frustration folks feel when it comes to not being able to watch clips we post. Hulu is embeddable mostly only for NBC shows so it doesn't serve us well for many of the clips we use. Hopefully, more of the networks and other sites that Geoblock their clips will start to change their policies. Until then, our hands are tied on some of these but I do apologize for the inconvenience!

I slogged through all the DVRd episodes of Starter Wife last weekend and am mainly only going to continue to do so for Judy Davis. As for last week's Graham Norton, the full hour version did air on BBC America last year, I think they just did that half hour edit to coincide with the season of Dr. Who that it went with [and the fact that Dr. Who was 90 minutes, so had an unusual 30 minute slot to fill]. For those that don't know; here in the US Dr. Who is a year behind on BBC America, but just about up to date on SciFi.

I am a huge photography fanatic, so i may go to the prop 8 march in D.C. and take a crapload of photos to share with ya'll. should be interesting :-)

Thanks for bringing the old format back, I appreciate that you read the comments and listen to what your fans want. Keep up the good work!

Yaaaayyyyyy!!!!! I love this column so much, thank you for giving it back to the people! a thousand up arrows for michael! :D It's good to see that you actually care about what we have to say and follow through with an apology and reinstating what shouldn't have gone. love you michael ;)

Thanks Michael for changing it back. And sorry for the flack, but we love our BGWE. Its become one of the staples of the site. I know its a lot of work, but I just want you guys to know that we do really appreciate it.

Quantum of Solace is good, not great. I saw it yesterday.We may not get Craig in a swimsuit but we get shirtless shots and Im not complaining.

Good stuff this week. Thanks for the tidbit, love Keith.

I know it's an entertainment site but I do enjoy when the site goes a bit political. At the risk of sounding too sensetive I'd need to start bathing in Sensodyne, I have cried (balled) in the past month more than the the month after graduating college. First, Obama (happy), second Porp 8 fiasco (sad), then the enthusiastic backlash-activism for prop 8 (happy), and finaly last weeks BGWE (sad). So with all the ups and downs recently (ala the stock-market) I hope I can count on BGWE, Obama, and my militant-gay-activist (pumping fist with pinky in air) to make this Holiday season one of happy tears. And since I'm a Jewelry Business Owner, you might understand why I'll need all the laughs this season. HAPPY THANKSGIVING.

 GAY POWER

 

When I watched that episode, the impression that I got was not that John Casey considered being kissed by a man an indignity, but that he considered being kissed by CHUCK an indignity. Casey's disdain for Chuck and his nerdiness are emphasized a lot of the time and I honestly saw it as anti-Chuck rather than anti-gay. That was just my impression though.

of our readers? I'm not sure, but it definitely beats the roasting we got last Friday! :-) Seriously, thanks to everyone for ALL of your comments both last week and this week. We do try to read everything you folks post (and you post a LOT!) since AfterElton.com isn't really our site after all -- it's your site because as corny as it sounds, without you folks to read our stuff, then debate, rate and rant about it we're nothing but a tree falling in the woods with no one to hear it. Or something like that! I can't promise I won't make another misstep at some point in the future, but I'll always listen to what you have to say with an open mind. And as I said in the column, the silver lining here was learning just how many of you love the column so much. You like us! You really like us! ;-) (Apology to poor Sally Field.)

 

 

 

"You bit the hand, Marty, You bit the hand!"

On Page 7, you missed an 'i' in there on "Christine." I wanted to ding you on "canceled" but it's spelled correctly either with one or two "l's." What a ridiculous language English can be!

I'm glad you've resurrected the old format. And we didn't even have to send you several tons of nuts.

On another note, maybe my mind's in the gutter, but when I first saw that photoshopped pic of Tony Perkins, I wasn't exactly thinking "nasal appendage".

...and even a mention in BWGE! I should complain more often. Thanks for a return to a great feature...and snarky as usual. Yay for denouncing Elizabeth Hasselbeck as a substandard life form!

What you say about Anderson Cooper is very fair and understandable. However, Step off! Haha...don't be talkin' 'bout my man like dat...he is after all my future husband. Thank the stars he has a thing for Latinos.

Haha last week's BGWE getting a down arrow is SO meta...or is it a paradox!? Whatevs. It should never happen again otherwise you risk a gay-space and time implosion. Perish the thought.

Anyway, keep up the good work Michael!