Whoa! What the hell was that? I can hardly believe what I just saw!
Even now, five years later as I rewatch the show, my feeling is still
the same as when ‘Queer As Folk’ made its debut, with the premier
episode. Kudos have to go to Showtime for having the balls to show gay
people as fully developed characters, flaws, sex life, and all. I
remember when I first heard about the show. I was channel surfing and
landed on ‘Entertainment Tonight’ which was just wrapping a story about
Sharon Gless and a new gay themed drama. My curiosity was piqued and I
went to see if I could find out more and subscribed to Showtime just to
be able to see it. That was in the summer of 2000 and in the few months
waiting for QAF to premier, I got hooked on ‘Beggars and Choosers’
solely because I was interested in the gay character played by Tuc
Watkins on the show.

Up until this point the only other dramatic portrayal of a gay person
on TV at the time (at least to my knowledge) was Jack McPhee on
‘Dawson’s Creek.’ And even at that he was a secondary character that
was not always on and the farthest they went was a very quick peck on
the lips. When ‘Queer As Folk’ burst onto the scene in December 2000,
Christmas came early. Not only were there gay men featured in a
dramatic series, but they were my age and they just weren’t talking
about sex, or making cheesy ‘Will and Grace’ type jokes about it; they
were doing it, and doing it with a full frontal assault. What gay man’s
heart was not pounding when Brian brought Justin back to his loft, took
off his shirt, poured a bottle of water over his head and then asked
Justin if he was coming or going?

The show unfolded in a manner that instantly swept you up and into the
lives of these people. You felt like you were right there with Michael,
Brian, and Justin Running through the halls of the hospital to
Lindsay’s room. In the short time to this point, Brian was already
established as a selfish, self-centered prick, but when he held his
son, Gus, for the first time, the smile on his face and look in his
eyes told a completely different story about this guy – a story that
you had to know more about. That hidden side of Brian was glimpsed even
further in the rooftop scene, one of the most powerful in the entire
series. When he held out his hand to pull Michael up on the ledge with
him, it cemented their relationship in a way that was never seen
before. It wasn’t just one man holding out a ‘how do ya do” or
“helping” hand to another. It was a gay man holding out his hand to
another gay man – a friend, a brother, and lover on a level beyond
sexual. It was at that point you began to realize there is something
special about this show that is going to forever change the way
dramatic television depicts gay characters.

Just when you thought they couldn’t go any further, they did. When
Brian and Justin had sex, it wasn’t just steamy kissing and cuddling
between the sheets. It was vivid, in your face (literally face-to-face)
anal intercourse they were depicting. At that point I thought, Oh my
God!They are never gonna let this continue. The show will be yanked off
the air before Christmas or cable systems will drop Showtime entirely
and it will be forever forgotten about. Despite the graphic depiction
of gay sex, that some called pornographic, but most called art, and
bashing from both without and within the gay community, Showtime did
not cave and stood strong in its commitment to the show and it’s
creative vision for not only the rest of that season, but four more,
creating an unrivaled legacy that was destined to change and positively
affect the lives of millions of gay (and straight) people all over the
world.