I’m no stranger to the indulgence of trash television. I watched the first two episodes, and because I’m both impatient and nosy, devoured both books the day after. I equate the fanfare with the 50 Shades of Grey craze in 2012, when I assumed everyone knew the media was a “so-bad-it-is-good”, corny romantic drama.
Erotica has always been a pillar of queer culture and one of the first forms of representation to become widely available. Women make up the largest demographic of enjoyers and creators of erotic literature. Heated Rivalry is no exception to this phenomenon. I asked my sister, with whom I had watched some of the show, why she and her friends enjoyed it so much. She offered me the perspective of the show being an example of a relationship void of misogyny. To some, the show was a safe space where people were not watching themselves be objectified and could watch a cute love story unfold.
The show became the most-watched television show of the year, and the lead actors became instant stars. It was the only thing anyone wanted to talk about. I started noticing how many people were asking me if I had watched the show. They waited, withheld breath, and with bulging eyes, expected me to parrot back the same enthusiasm.
“I thought it was okay at best.”
It felt like a record scratch. Whenever people would question my response, it felt as though they couldn’t understand why I, a gay man, did not love the show with two gay men kissing. I’d try to alleviate the tension with jokes about the dialogue and Hudson Williams’ blank, dry line readings and expression. Yet, the confusion persisted. At every social gathering, I’d find myself having the same interaction time and again.
I am happy for what it has done for queer people in sports, and for addressing the homophobia that persists in those spaces. However, I did not see the historic representation that I was being told the show had.
Almost all queer media that comes out now is either incredibly depressing or fetishised. We don’t have When Harry Met Harry, or How to Lose a Girl in 10 days, we have Call Me by Your Name or Heated Rivalry. For me, the show is about two uber-masculine men meeting up once every three years, culminating in them still loving each other in secret for — spoiler alert for the next season — the next seven years after one of them comes out to their parents.
After the show, I noticed a difference in the way people viewed same sex relationships, and queer people in general.
There is the problem of the infantilization of gay men, especially William’s character Shane, where the dialogue consistently reminds the audience that he is the passive one in the relationship. This is a huge issue with queer representation in media; a person’s sexual preferences immediately dictate their position in the relationship. It shoves queer people into a heteronormative mold to make it easier for people to digest their relationships.
The characters do not have agency over their sexuality beyond expressing it physically. In the scene where Shane admits to being gay to his girlfriend, the sensitive moment turns into a joke about his sexual preference.
If portrayals of queer identities must be flattened to be successful, then what progress is actually being made?
