Streaming services added LGBTQ tabs for pride month
It’s June 2022. 53 years since the unofficial start of Pride celebrations, and one year since the ever present phenomena of rainbow-washing was put into the perfect words.
The efforts of corporations to pander to progressive sensibilities for the duration of pride month grows more comedic each year. Any sensible company trying to peddle their wares onto the queer community has probably already sponsored a drag race mini challenge.
In the only corporate show of allyship to affect my life: streaming service homesceens have added a “telling LGBTQ stories” type tab for pride month. So let’s dive in.
Rupaul’s Drag Race All Stars 7 (currently airing)
Mother, may I confess my sins? I was going to skip this season.
While the queens who enter the Werk Room are so clearly talented and deserving of the stage, I’ve been feeling inundated with drag race seasons.
How foolish of me to think that an all-winners season would be a good one to miss. And with Bob the Drag Queen hosting the pitstop, I ate my words and committed to the watch. The new format promises an exciting finale and allows us to learn more about the queens through their alliances and strategies.
If you need a season to binge and somehow haven’t watched the Canadian installments of the series, watch those. Consider it an assigned viewing.
Heartstopper (2022)
Holy fuck. I have watched the series three times, each time watching all ten episodes back to back in a day.
Made for young audiences, Heartstopper could be the perfect light hearted watch with your family. The highschool coming-of-age story follows Charlie and Nick, a pair from different stratas of popularity.
Jump scare warning: Heartstopper features the appearance of a prolific Buzzfeed quiz. The scene may induce screams and cackling from anyone who has previously passed the “Am I gay?” quiz with flying colours.
Legendary (2020-present)
The first season of Legendary is perfect television. Created by HBO, the show had an appropriate budget for its production and prize money. The houses and their performances were electrified by live audiences present for most of the season.
The nature of ballroom will have your favourite house on top one week and out the next, with the bottom houses. The different themes for each ball keep the fashion and performances fresh.
We’re Here (2020-present)
This show takes inspiration from Queer Eye and its cast from drag. Shangela Laquifa Wadley, Eureka O’Hara and Bob the Drag Queen travel through the U.S.A. in decked out RVs to visit conservative small towns and teach nominees about the art of drag.
Each episode follows three beginners as they prep for a drag performance at the end of the week. What does this short and intensive preparation entail? Deep conversations regarding sexuality and the lack of a queer community in small towns.
What else can you expect? Homophobia! Though not in every episode, the show usually begins with the queens rolling into town in full drag and going to the core of the city to hand out flyers for their end-of-week drag show. On many occasions, they are met with racism, homophobia and threats.
Despite this, the show always manages to find a light note in the members of the community that they work with. These first time drag artists may find their own pride through the performances, or as allies, find greater acceptance of the queer community.
Pose (2018-2021)
Pose has the largest trans and gender non-conforming cast of any television show to date. This fictional account of the New York City ballroom scene over the course of the AIDS crisis is brought to life by an incredible cast, including some broadway and ballroom legends.
The three seasons amounted to 26 episodes, over the course of which the community experiences immense loss and grief. I know better than to recommend this to anyone who is not up for a heavy watch. The brief series deals with many matters that could be distressing to watch.
