W and I are just emerging from a fugue-like state brought on by binge watching six seasons of The L Word. That’s 78 episodes if you’re counting along at home.
W had been scanning through the offerings on Netflix and stumbled upon the series. And there we were watching Jenny Schecter being accosted by Marina Ferrer in a bathroom somewhere in California.
One word. Shane.
There was no stopping us once we got started. We couldn’t get enough Bette, Tina, Alice and of course, Shane. Swoon.
Now, I have to get back to my real life and stop pretending I’m a famous writer who hangs out in Los Angeles’ coolest coffee shop by day and attends only the hippest and hottest Girl/Grrrl parties by night. (Please tell me all nine seasons of The Facts of Life are NOT on Netflix. Just the thought is so tempting.)
We had watched The L Word when it first ran on Showtime. Flash forward ten years, and here’s what stuck out this time around:
* Wow, what a groundbreaking show. The L Word certainly was ahead of its time. It paved the way for Girls and Orange Is the New Black.
* Are there no butch women in L.A.? I used to think Shane was kinda butch. She’s not. Like Papi says upon meeting the legendary Shane: “You’re just a skinny white girl.” So true.
* I always wanted to be Shane. Or maybe Shane’s wingwoman. You know, me and Shane hanging out, picking up the ladies. This time around, I realized Shane is kinda a jerk.
* And what’s up with Shane’s hairstyling skills? It’s tousling of hair. That’s what it is. Tousling. Of hair.
Ivan, you rock.
* Ivan Aycock. I want to be Ivan Aycock.
* Can you spell infidelity? So much cheating. Keep it in your pants, ladies.
* Jenny Schecter is actually interesting and likable in the first few seasons. Whether you like her or hate her, there is no The L Word without her.
Max, you deserved better.
* Really, couldn’t you have been a little more sensitive toward the transitioning Max? Max, I’ll be your friend. We’ll go to a sports bar, drink some beer and eat some wings. Forget those high femmes. Call me. And really Part 2: Did you have to make Max pregnant? Really?
* What a total waste of Xena: Warrior Princess. Um, you couldn’t find a better role for Lucy Lawless than some hack detective? Other ideas: L.L. has an affair with Bette. Or Xena herself chops off Jenny’s head with her sword, places it on a stake in front of The Planet and runs off with Alice. No one saw that coming. Discuss.
* * *
Ok, y’all remember The L Word. Why don’t we play Marry, Kill, Screw. I’ll go first ’cause it’s my blog.
Marry — Tina because she seems the most normal. Ands she’s cute. Except when she’s with Henry. She’s hideous then. (W votes for Tasha because she’s into all that officer/gentleman stuff.)
Kill — Everyone is going to say Jenny. And, in a twist of irony, Jenny dies in the series finale. So, I’ll go with someone else. I’ll go with Dylan because she is uber-annoying. And she doesn’t deserve Helena, the British bombshell. (W goes with Jenny. She is wearing her “Kill Jenny Schecter” T-shirt as I type.)
Screw — Helena. (W says Latino hottie Carmen. She loves Carmen. You have no idea.)
The Flannel Files 
I love that show, but doesn’t every queer lady lol marry: Tasha, love her whole gentlewomen vibe kill: Jenny for obvious reasons of course, although sometimes I relate to her character and screw: Bette or Papi because I love a woman in a fabulous tailored suit and Papi because she oozed sex lol
Good picks. Tasha is probably the butchest character on the show. And it’s fun to hate on Jenny. Jennifer Beals is a hottie. Every couple of years, I have to watch Flashdance (mostly for the dance scene in the club). Killer soundtrack, too. Now I’m showing my age.
Oh it takes me back! The L Word started our Freshman year of college and we of course didn’t have Showtime so we all got in the car on Sunday nights to drive to a nearby school’s Field Hockey house and watch it in a big les-fest on their hardwood floor. To this day I am still beyond annoyed at the final season but we still have all the box sets (cause that’s when they were actually BOX shaped) and we watch every now and again.
I always LOOOOVED Alice! Jamie was all about Bette and Carmen. 🙂
Oh, my. Now that is a lezz fest (with an extra “z.” You just had to say “field hockey.”
Yeah, that last season was a bummer. Like they couldn’t think of a better way to end? Alice is such a fun character. And Bette and Carmen … a couple of hotties.
Haha yeah and did I mention by “we” I meant the Softball team? 😀
Well, that is the topper. That field hockey/lesbian group must have included every lesbian within a 30-mile radius.
Fuck Jenny
Marry Alice
Sorry Tina
Really I just wanted all of them as friends, slowly getting there
Oh my, I think you’ve killed my pretend wife.
And, yes, that’s the allure … wanting the lot — flaws and all — as friends.
I had a huge crush on Tina back in those days so she’s my pick to marry as well as screw. Hated Jenny so she’s dead…I hope. I also hated Max. He became whiney and pathetic and the pregnant thing was just too much for me. I liked Dana a lot and was really upset when they killed her off. Too bad the ending was so lame.
I still haven’t made it through once, I’m embarrassed to say. I started the series with season feeling most identified with Jenny (because I too was married and coming out, and alternatively because she’s a bit like my coming out crush artistically). Since I’ve not finished, I don’t know why everyone hates her soooooo much, but I can imagine. I can imagine. I think I stopped with the episode where she throws a hissy fit about a review in a lesbian mag.
That should say “during season one, I felt…”
The writers really throw Jenny under the bus in the last two seasons. That whole magazine thing blows up and she ends up doing some really creepy things. It’s probably good that you stopped watching when you did.
I loved reading this! Haha!
Thanks. Such an iconic show.