QR22 Day 15 - Just Juliet

 

Day 15 of Queer Rep—we’re already halfway through the month!—and today I’m talking about Just Juliet by Charlotte Reagan. It’s another delightful romcom, this time with a bisexual lead. Bisexuality can be tough to represent accurately and in a meaningful way. The tendency is to either let a bisexual main character fall into a heterosexual relationship and basically treat them as straight, or to let them have a homosexual relationship, and all but label them gay or lesbian (do a quick search for “bisexual erasure” and you’ll scratch the surface of this problem).

But Just Juliet doesn’t do that! While it does have a strong central romantic relationship, it still manages to represent bisexuality intentionally and in a well-rounded way. It’s a really solid book and deserves a read! 🏳️‍🌈

Ongoing master list for Queer Rep here!

QR22 Day 14 - Everything Everywhere All At Once

Okay, so Saving Face is a queer Asian-American rom-com ahead of it's time. Everything Everywhere All At Once is a queer Asian-American drama turned mystery turned insane sci-fi multiverse romp that is (probably?) also ahead of its time. And just like Gideon the Ninth is my favorite book I’ve read in the past few years, Everything Everywhere All At Once is probably my favorite movie from the past few years.

This movie is so out there but I love it. Actually I love it because it is so out there. No no wait actually I love it because of how it is so out there. Yep, thats the one. This movie makes the mundane seem exciting, the grotesque feel whimsical, and the absurd exude meaningful truth and significance. It has exciting, well-produced action, heartstring thrumming (snapping?) drama, and scenes of two rocks literally just sitting on a cliff for minutes at a time. I’m not kidding. And it’s beautiful. And it’s Day 14 of Queer Rep. 🏳️‍🌈

Obligatory ongoing master list link here.

QR22 Day 13 - Saving Face

 

Day 13 of Queer Rep!

Saving Face is a queer Asian-American rom-com ahead of it’s time. It came out way back in 2004, written and directed by Alice Wu. (Alice Wu also wrote and directed The Half of It, another queer Asian-American rom-com that came out in 2020 that didn’t quite make my list but is also awesome and really good; and she helped write Over the Moon, a delightful musical fantasy film that also came out in 2020. I think what I’m saying is this: even though she’s only been involved in three major projects over the past 18 years, Alice Wu has produced some really strong stuff.)

And there’s something really refreshing about seeing older films (yes a film from 2004 is now classified as old, I’ve worked through it and apparently now you need to as well, don’t @ me) with queer characters that let them (a) just…be queer, (b) go through a believable arcs and conflicts (i.e. let them be queer and a person at the same time), and (c) perhaps most importantly find happiness. This film does all of those things, and it does them well. If you haven’t seen it, you should. 🏳️‍🌈

(check out master list here!)

QR22 Day 12 - The Last of Us (and sequels)

Okay, so for Queer Rep Day 12, we're jumping into video games with the survival horror franchise The Last of Us.

Most of the queer in The Last of Us happens in the Left Behind downloadable content and the sequel, The Last of Us Part II. But the first game is worth mentioning because (1) one of the queer characters is present even if it isn't exactly textual that they're gay, (2) in order to play the Left Behind content you have to at least own the first game anyway (and actually playing it provides a lot of helpful context), and (3) it's almost universally acknowledged as one of the greatest games ever made.

That should put some oomph behind my words when I say that I think Part II is even better. Which is a controversial opinion, by the way. Few video games have been more polarizing than The Last of Us Part II, and there is some valid criticism out there about the game as well as some really off-the-wall crazy nonsense that tries to pass as “criticism”—and a lot that falls somewhere between those two extremes.

As for me, I think Part II is beautiful, if harrowing. Hopeful, if haunting. An examination of revenge and forgiveness (of others and self) that somehow manages to be too heavy-handed, too light-handed, and incredibly deft all at once. I genuinely think the games are high quality and tell compelling stories. And I love the queer. I love the sheer weight of potential between Ellie and Riley in Left Behind, I love the genuine, simultaneously well-worn and honeymoonishly new relationship between Ellie and Dina in Part II, and I love the introduction of Lev, a trans character who became one of my favorite characters overall in the series, in Part II as well. Basically, there’s a lot to love about the Last of Us franchise, even if there’s a lot to dislike, but I think it’s worth checking out. 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️

And of course check out the ongoing Queer Rep list here.

QR22 Day 11 - Happiest Season

 

For day 11 of Queer Rep we're hitting the holidays and another sapphic romance with Happiest Season!

Kristin Stewart is amazing. Aubrey Plaza is amazing. Mackenzie Davis is...really great in this role but I'll be honest I shipped Stewart and Plaza more than Stewart and Davis (you'll have to watch the movie to find why, won't you?).

And let's not forget Dan Levy. For me the real piece de resistance is 100% Dan Levy's speech about the process of coming out towards the end of the film. Seriously, that monolog alone makes it worth it. But it's also a really fun film! So check it out! 🏳️‍🌈

(And check out the ongoing Queer Rep list here!)

QR22 Day 10 - Kelly Quindlen

 

You'll notice a lot of romance and rom-com recs on my queer representation list this month. Part of that is a new appreciation I have for the romance genre, admittedly, but another part is the fact that romance stories--usually--have happy endings! And as much as I love exploring the darkness, sometimes I just want to see characters just, like be happy. Especially when their stories may not have historically ended that way. So that's why you'll see a lot of romantic comedies on my list!

And Kelly Quindlen can write a rom-com, ya'll. Queer ones, in point of fact. Late to the Party and She Drives Me Crazy are perfect exampless with super fun and believable characters with engaging and delightful arcs.

In contrast, her first book, Her Name in the Sky, is definitely a little rougher around the edges (that cover though), and it's a more serious approach to a sapphic romance in a very religious southern community (I...wouldn't exactly classify it as a rom-com, even though there are funny moments--this one is more of a drama) but it has so much heart, and I think I love that book the most because of that heart.

But seriously, they are all so good, and whether you're into a fun rom-com or a more serious take on sapphic romance, you can't go wrong with Kelly Quindlen. So that's day 10! Check out the master list here! 🏳️‍🌈

QR22 Day 9 - If I Was Your Girl

Day 9 of Queer Rep! (Ongoing master list here.)

If I Was Your Girl by Meredith Russo is a YA romance novel where the main character is trans, and not only does it present a teenage transgender experience in an informative, nuanced, and hopeful way, it's also a really wonderful romance story in it's own right. I can't wait to see more stories that build on books like this one! 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️