Greetings, reader!
I've already ranked the best LGBTQ+ movies, the best cult LGBTQ+ movies and the most Pride-appropriate TV episodes during the Pride Months of previous years. But here's one that I haven't done yet: the greatest queer couples from television! I hope you enjoy, and I wish a safe and happy Pride Month to everyone reading!
Here are my honorable mentions: Colin Hughes & Michael (Ted Lasso), Jay Bilzerian & Matthew MacDell (Big Mouth), Madame Vastra & Jenny (Doctor Who), Ola Nyman & Lily Iglehart (Sex Education), Raffi Musiker & Seven of Nine (Star Trek: Picard).
10. Darlene & Dominique DiPierro (Mr. Robot)
Oh man, this unlikely romance was a brilliant masterstroke by the writers. In a series that was never particularly focused on romantic pairings, we spend a bunch of time growing invested in two major characters who initially don't have many scenes/storylines together and aren't an obvious item-to-be even when they do start to run into each other more often. But then, all of the sudden, there's this chemistry.
At first it's subtle, and then it starts to hit you like a ton of bricks, and it's satisfying how the characters realize their feelings in a pace very similar to the viewer's train of thought. The love between Darlene and Dom adds a lot of emotional core to the final season, and this representation for the lesbian community is quite on-brand for the socially minded series.
9. Bob Hunter & Lee McDermott (Desperate Housewives)
I'm still working my way through Desperate Housewives, so I'll have to see whether or not I'll end up eating my words of praise here, depending on the relationship's trajectory. So far, Bob and Lee have been like any of the show's married couples - they have their issues and can be quite difficult, but at their best, they're an absolute delight.
After the heteronormative milieu of the first seasons, the addition of a proud gay couple onto Wisteria Lane was a fantastic injection of fun and diversity, and Bob and Lee are just the kind of supporting characters that you always want to see more of - they don't have as much screentime as the biggest major characters, but all of their moments and storylines are gold. And man, what a delicious dynamic! Both actors contribute wonders to their chemistry, with the end product feeling like a real married couple you know and love.
8. Elena Alvarez & Syd (One Day at a Time)
Ah. perfect. Season 1 of the One Day at a Time reboot follows the main family's daughter Elena awakening to her gay identity, and coming out of the closet, in what is a brilliant portrayal of the coming-of-age process and finding one's queer identity. After this solo journey, season 2 was the perfect time to introduce a proper love interest for her, and the new character Syd was immediately a blast of fun. They also made for important representation for the nonbinary community, who are still grossly under-represented in our media. Elena and Syd are fantastic characters, with great chemistry and a safe and respectful vibe.
7. Mitchell Pritchett & Cameron Tucker (Modern Family)
I never watched Will & Grace growing up, so for me, these two are the OG's. In a time before LGBTQ+ characters in media became such a common occurrence that a bunch of tough conservatives got scared shitless that their way of life is being threatened because a character on a TV show has preferred pronouns, Modern Family was an important trailblazer for queer representation. Many consider this sitcom to be the first case where the major characters include a gay couple in a series that isn't marketed first and foremost as a "gay series" or strictly for the gay community, but rather in a mainstream television show marketed for general audiences.
So, Mitch and Cam get a lot of points for historical impact alone - studies have shown time and again that positive media representation for minorities, at its best, saves lives, not to mention taking part in a general shift towards social progress. But it's not only that - Mitch and Cam rule! At least for some of the time. At their worst, they could be a fairly toxic couple, but in a weird way, that also works as positive representation - it's like the show skipped the awkward step of "Let's be scared and write these minority characters as perfect angels to signal that we're trying to be good people" often seen in well-intentioned but clunky media, and went straight to writing the married gay couple just like TV writers would write a married straight couple. And, let's face it - at their best, Mitch and Cam made for a fantastic love story. The wedding episode is the biggest tear-jerker in the show's 11-season run.
Also, I like to remind people of this fact whenever I can - Jesse Tyler Ferguson, who plays Mitch, is gay in real life, whereas Eric Stonestreet, who plays Cam, is the greatest actor of all time.
6. Bill & Frank (The Last of Us)
Yes, it's just one episode, but it still makes my top ten (and it's not even the only instance like that on this list!). Really, if you're a good enough storyteller, one episode is plenty of time to tell a touching and complete love story - a challenge for sure, but one that a certain few have completed. In this The Last of Us episode, we follow side characters Bill and Frank, played by Nick Offerman and Murray Bartlett in two gripping, fleshed-out performances.
The episode is a major change of pace for the series, but it helps in making the show's worldbuilding feel more complex and relatable, while working wonders just as an individual story outside the show's other plotlines. It's an episode that will melt your heart, and (interpretational spoiler alert) utterly break it. The story of Bill and Frank is written and acted with aplomb, and will stay with you long after the credits have rolled.
5. Kelly Booth & Yorkie (Black Mirror)
Some might fight me on this, but this is the ultimate one-episode LGBTQ+ love story, even ahead of Bill and Frank. The episode San Junipero came out in the show's third season, only nine years ago - yet it has already become the stuff of legends. The story of Kelly and Yorkie hits hard on all possible levels, truly becoming one of the most touching love stories of any kind that I've seen on television. It plays out like a mini-movie, with the viewer absolutely falling in love with the characters and following with utter fascination as they fall for each other.
The episode's creative sci-fi element really helps make the romance even more powerful, much like the case with supernatural romance movies like About Time and Palm Springs, and the chemistry between actresses Mackenzie Davis and Gugu Mbatha-Raw is just unreal. I also love the against-all-odds way in which this episode sticks out from the rest of Black Mirror - I won't spoil any details here, but if you know, you know.
4. Adira & Gray Tal (Star Trek: Discovery)
Ah, these two make my heart swell, and if you watch Star Trek: Discovery, chances are they'll make your heart swell too. Discovery was already on track to be the gayest Star Trek show to date, with the endearing romance between major characters Paul Stamets and Hugh Culber as well as the supporting-cast lesbian Jett Reno stealing every scene (actress Tig Notaro is a national treasure, and it's funny how her real-life name sounds more like a sci-fi character than any made-up Star Trek alien).
But, yeah - season 3 of Discovery added some essential further representation to Star Trek, introducing the franchise's first major nonbinary character Adira, as well as its first trans character Gray. The existence of these characters, and the nonchalant way in which they're treated, is a brilliant testament to the utopic future setting of the franchise: in this enlightened version of the future, where humanity has grown past hatred and discrimination, there isn't any transphobia or antigender attitudes, so everyone is super chill with these characters, as it should be. Of course, the same can't be said for the 'fans' who got upset that "Star Trek has gone too woke" and protested - I can't fathom how someone's media literacy skills can be so terrible that they've sat through the original Star Trek series and never realized the Vietnam War parallels, the Civil Rights Movement metaphors and the overall socialist nature of the Federation. Star Trek was always woke, and it takes a special kind of idiot to only realize it now.
Anyhow, the story of Adira and Gray is pretty great. They have each others' backs, they develop a unique and quite literally star-crossed bond, and they work on overcoming their obstacles. They're both among the show's best characters, so all of their scenes and storylines together are a pretty special treat (not to mention how the 'family unit' formed by them and Paul&Hugh is just such a cozy and safe-feeling element in the show's atmosphere for us LGBTQ+ viewers).
3. Sameen Shaw & Root (Person of Interest)
In the second season of this underrated sci-fi crime drama, there's an episode called Relevance, in which we meet Sameen Shaw for the first time. She'd go on to be one of the show's major characters, becoming a part of the main cast from season 3 onward, and she immediately comes across as a serious force to be reckoned with in her first episode. At that time in the show's narrative, Samantha "Root" Groves is purely a villain, so no one's first though would be "hey, these two should end up together". But, already in that episode, the seeds are sown, in a fleeting moment of sudden flirtation and sexual chemistry, that may seem abrupt for a first-time viewer - but, when re-watching the series with the knowledge of the adventures these two would go on, feels so right and downright prophetic.
The character archs of Shaw and Root as individuals are wild and chaotic, so it makes sense that their trajectory as a couple is completely f**king bonkers. But it works. I won't spoil any details here, but the fifth season utilizes this love story for some of the most tear-jerking moments in the entire series - the way in which showrunner Jonathan Nolan intertwines this blast of beautiful lesbian love with the show's genius sci-fi elements makes for some seriously powerful storytelling.
2. Raymond Holt & Kevin Cozner (Brooklyn Nine-Nine)
This couple is everything. Throughout this sitcom's eight-season run, Holt and Kevin are just so perfect in their unique way, one that is equal parts heartfelt and hysterical. Holt is the show's hands-down best character, and from the first episode where we meet Kevin, it's just such a delight to know that for all the ridiculous peculiarities in Holt's persona, he has found someone who shares his quirks and is his perfect match. In my single years, the idea of such an authentic weirdo finding another weirdo who matched his style really gave me hope that there's someone for everyone who is looking (and, thank God, this turned out to be the case).
The late great Andre Braugher and the always-delightful Marc Evan Jackson have so much fun with their roles and their mutual chemistry, making for what feels like an authentic marriage with its struggles and uplifting moments, despite the inherently bewildering personalities of the characters. Their arch in the final season, where their marital troubles reach a point of crisis but they decide to weather the storm and overcome the obstacles, is honestly powerful as hell. The scene in Game of Boyles, where Holt's line "This is the real world, Santiago. Relationships end in unsatisfying ways every day. People don't run to each other in the rain" is followed by Kevin's voice shouting "RAYMOND HOLT?" from outside the building in the rain, is hands-down the most tear-jerking moment of the entire series. The love between two cultured, comedically over-serious men is a beautiful thing.
1. Callie Torres & Arizona Robbins (Grey's Anatomy)
Ah, my emotional support lesbians. Now, the full trajectory of Callie and Arizona's complicated relationship leaves a lot up to debate (you can read a less spoiler-avoiding account of my thoughts in my "Ranking every couple from Grey's Anatomy" post from last month) - but there's no denying that at their best, these two were the sweetest, hottest, most insanely chemistry-riddled couple on television.
Shortly after Callie's endearing and well-written bi awakening arch, her first female love interest Erica was written off the show, leaving viewers wondering how her love life will continue within the grand mythos of the show's relationship drama - and when she and Arizona started to get close, something just f**king clicked. Sara Ramirez (who, by the way, is nonbinary in real life, so it feels extra right to highlight them in a Pride Month post) and Jessica Capshaw (who, by the way, is Steven Spielberg's stepdaughter - not relevant to Pride Month, but just a delightful fun fact) are magnificent in their roles, and arguably the biggest trace either character leaves on the series is this larger-than-life love story, filled with powerful and unforgettable moments. Tears, man, absolute tears.
Thank you for reading! Tune in next week as I celebrate my 26th birthday by ranking the 26 movies that I have the most personal relationship with.
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