Analysis of Queer as Folk

Considering I’ve been watching the television show Will & Grace since it first aired in 1998, I thought that this paper would be a no-brainer. It’s about two gay men and their incredibly annoying yet lovable straight female friends; like I said, it’s just oozing politics. However, I believe this show is much deeper than just some other gay show (no pun intended). Masked by it moments of comedy and hilarious banter between characters, this show was thought to be “revolutionary” and “ground-breaking”. Most people thought that finally a television show on a major network portrayed openly gay characters in a new light. A light that made them relatable, often even family-oriented, which was obviously not the party going, AIDS-stricken man that mid-90s culture was used to. Although I agree that the gay men were in fact portrayed in a new light, is this a correct or “positive” representation of gay men? Is there any good representation of gay men on television or are they all negative? My answer to this crucial question is simply there is neither a positive nor a negative representation of gay men and women on television and possibly never will be. When first turning on this episode or any episode of Will & Grace, the viewer is usually greeted with a tiny harmonious theme yet no opening montage of video clips usually seen on primetime comedies. This makes the show automatically inviting and welcoming the viewer in as part of the show. This tactic is probably used to get the viewer, especially those watching for the first time, to immediately feel comfortable and wanting to watch more. There are no clips of Will kissing any other man which doesn’t implicate that this is a “gay” show at all. In this particular episode we are met by the title characters that most of the time, appear to be dating. Is this on purpose? Considering Will is a gay man and Grace is his best friend, this might also be used as a tactic to get the viewer comfortable with the fact that Will is an