Gays and lesbians often project their own experiences onto the experiences of characters in non-queer-themed televisions shows or films. Reading queer subtext into television shows or films that probably weren't intended to contain queer subtext is especially easy when such shows or films involve characters who, by no fault of their own, were born with or somehow acquired superhuman abilities.

Mainstream society feels threatened by these individuals, treats them as "the other" and persecutes them, often by passing laws that discriminate against them. For example, for most of Heroes, Nathan Petrelli chose to hide his ability to fly so he could blend in with the rest of society, even initially denying that he had the ability to fly.

When Petrelli finally scheduled a press conference to make his ability known to the public, hetero viewers probably thought, "Wow, do you think he will levitate in the middle of the press conference? That would be cool!"

Queer viewers probably thought, "Nathan Petrelli is about to come out of the closet to the public! His mom is going to flip out!" (And how many of those queers gasped when he was shot before he could make the statement, believing that he must have been shot by an anti-superhuman extremist or a self-hating queer — excuse me — a self-hating superhuman, who was afraid of the repercussions of revealing the existence of superhumans to the public?)

Another example is The Incredibles, where the government regulates the behavior of superheroes. Any objective interpretation of The Incredibles would reveal absolutely no queer subtext whatsoever, but that doesn't prevent queers from rattling off parallels to institutional oppression of gays and lesbians. … continue reading

If the name had not already been taken, the show Heroes should have been renamed Lost, because that’s how I feel after watching any given episode this season: Why are there more alternate futures than there are members of the Wu Tang Clan?

Why do characters on that show rotate in and out more frequently than bleached-blond bunnies rotate in and out of Hugh Hefner’s Playboy Mansion? Why is uber-villain Sylar suddenly a good guy? Why is the fresh-faced cheerleader Claire suddenly evil? Why does Angela Petrelli have such a nice figure, even though everyone in the show seems to have sprung from her womb?

David Lynch must have been hired as a creative director, because nothing on that show makes sense anymore.

This is why I’m going to keep things simple. The one thing we can agree on is that having superpowers makes a woman just a tad bit sexier. (Wonder Woman, anyone?) However, superpowers come at a great cost, especially if you are an ordinary woman trying to date a woman with superpowers.

Here are some of the female characters on Heroes, and the pros and cons of dating each one based on a combination of their superpowers and temperament.

Claire Bennet (Hayden Panettiere)

Pros:
— Everyone has fantasized about the cheerleader. Yes, you too.
— If you save her, you save the world.

Cons:
— May get angry at you and purposely drive her car into a brick wall. She will walk away unharmed. You won’t.
— A father so overbearing that he makes Joe Jackson of the Jackson family seem like a lamb.
— Feels no sensation in her body, so you’ll know she’s faking it (she's of age in real life).

Evil-meter:
— Either Lucy Diamond before she met Amy Bradshaw in D.E.B.S. (evil-ish), or Lucy Diamond after she met Amy Bradshaw in D.E.B.S. (not so evil) — the answer depends on which alternate future you happen to find yourself. Hence, evil-meter inconclusive. (But either way Lucy Diamond is sexy, and who knows — you could be her Amy Bradshaw, and she will turn out nice.)

Dateability index:
— Decent, but watch out for random people who may break into her house during your alone time and attempt to cut her head open. That always puts a damper on things. … continue reading

As if Heroes wasn’t already one of the most inspired shows on TV: The producers of the hit series have announced that they’re adding the gorgeous Brea Grant to the cast for next season. Grant, who you may recognize from her guest spots on Friday Night Lights and Cold Case, will play a character named Joy whose super power is "uncanny speed."

Grant's character will first appear stealing paintings from a museum and getting called out by Hiro. It sounds like she’ll be one of those mysterious types, leaving us all to wonder if she is good or evil.

Alongside Ali Larter’s doppelgänger hero and Hayden Panettiere as a bad ass, indestructible cheerleader, Grant ups the cast’s "pretty" factor a few good notches. They'll all return (along with the rest of the Heroes cast) on September 22. Can you wait that long? … continue reading

I'm a geek worshipper. It's really a form of positive self-esteem, since I am kind of a geek myself. I always love to find women in entertainment who seem to be geeks, not only in the characters they play, but also in real life. GeekSugar.com shares that sentiment and has kicked off a poll of the most popular female geeks of 2007.

First candidate: Mary Lynn Rajskub, Chloe O'Brian on 24.

The pictures are from her spread in Geek Monthly earlier this year. Although Chloe is an übergeek on 24, always able to hack into secret data just in time to save Jack's life, Rajskub herself is not too technically savvy. But in my opinion, she has geek cred because she does things like appear as a troubadour on Gilmore Girls and volunteer for the Young Storytellers Program. I do have one geekish issue with Chloe & company, though. Are we really supposed to believe that a government agency is smart enough to use Macs? … continue reading

Look, I don’t consider myself a prude. Sure, I sometimes furiously fly my feminist flag, but otherwise I’m pretty hard to shock. And I’m the last person on the planet to tell consenting adults what they should and shouldn’t do in the privacy of their own homes. Still, when I saw these pictures of Rihanna and Hayden Panettiere for the latest issue of GQ, my only thought was “Ewww.” Like, seriously, ewww.

Now, it’s not just the poses that give me pause. It’s the context. Ah, isn’t it always the context? Let’s start with Rihanna. The magazine took the 19-year-old pop star and bent her over the knee of 30-year-old fellow singer Robin Thicke, whose hand is mid-spank. Nope, nothing creepy about that. And nothing creepy about these either.

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And then there is Hayden.

It's "Must-See Bunny TV" in this week's episode of She Made Me Watch This! Of the 29 shows we started out watching this season, find out which ones are still on our must-see list (besides Bones), which ones we've given up (besides Private Practice), and which we're on the fence about (get it together, Reaper!).

Then we review two TV shows released on DVD this week: The L Word Season 4, and Veronica Mars Season 3.

Along the way, there's tangential reminiscing about Dynasty and Moonlighting, a pie chart, and a rant from Lori about why the road to hell is paved with insubordination.

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Watch it here now...

It’s T-minus seven days to Halloween weekend, and you know what that means, right? It means that it’s time to find a costume. But before you grab that bed sheet and just pass yourself off as Casper again, why not take a cue from the stars instead? Look, wasn’t it nice of Bones stars Emily Deschanel/Wonder Woman and Michaela Conlin/Cher (with Catwoman Tamara Taylor hiding in the background) to model their outfits in advance for us?

It’s easier to look like a famous star than you might think. Here is a quick do-it-yourself guide to dressing up like your favorite celebrity this Halloween, complete with a handy checklist of supplies you’ll need for each look. … continue reading

I am not particularly drawn to the paranormal. As I mentioned previously, I had a few issues after my brother tricked me into seeing Poltergeist. And it's not just that I get scared. (Of course, it's partly that I get scared.) It's also that it's just not my thing most of the time. I did watch The Twilight Zone, and I like the occasional campy heaven-and-hell–themed movie (Two of a Kind, Oh God, Switch). And there's The Hunger. But that's not about the vampires.

It seems, however, that my tastes do not reflect the current television lineup. Alessandra Stanley, the New York Times TV reviewer who recently expressed dismay at how insecure the new Jaime Sommers is, notes that this season is paranormal-heavy. I must say I agree with her that it is pretty weird.

She noted that a few of the paranormal shows have been on for a least a couple of years:

The Ghost Whisperer

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Last week (it seems like an eternity ago), I launched a vlog about people of color in entertainment with my friend and co-host, Sarah Pecora, and we asked you guys to help us determine what we should call it. Well, you delivered! Although I still have a fondness for The P.O.C. Report, I was shamelessly won over by mlei's utilization of my last name in the phrase "The Lo-Down." So welcome to the first official episode of The Lo-Down!

This week, we talk about three shows we watched last week on TV (last week's episodes, not this week!):

• Heroes, including new hero Dania Ramirez's lesbian connection and her thrilling new X-Files-ish power.
• Why Sarah thinks Sarah Shahi is better on Life than in The L Word (Malinda maintains it's about hot pants).
• Our favorite lines from Ugly Betty, and Malinda's favorite fantasy role model from UB.

We also continue to provide relevant P.O.C. acronyms at key moments. Speaking of acronyms, last week several of you called us out for misspelling "Philipino Olympic Committee" (as an adjective, it's actually Filipino). Before I get started on my rant about spelling (believe me, I have one!), let me just say that we got the acronyms from AcronymFinder.com, but even then, I got things wrong. The actual acronym they suggested is Philippine Olympic Committee, which does exist.

Check out this week's vlog: … continue reading

Ali Larter, lately known for her Resident Evil: Extinction success, as well as her role on an obscure television show you may have heard of (let's call it Heroes), is featured in the October issue of that highly esteemed home of journalistic integrity, Cosmopolitan.

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In the interview, Larter notes, "I told my boyfriend after three weeks that I wanted to marry him and that we could do it tomorrow." Well, I for one enjoy knowing that Larter is more or less living the heterosexual version of the age-old lesbian stereotype (or tradition, depending on who you ask).

Heroes is back tonight, and my inner fangirl rejoices!

In addition to Lyndsy Fonseca as April, the would-be (but won't be) lesbian cheerleader, there are four fetching new females to watch out for this season: [Spoiler alert! You've been warned.]

Variety revealed that Kristen Bell will be playing a character named Elle, a "sexy, mysterious young lady who has ties to the supposed death of Peter, H.R.G.'s past and the future of Claire."

Her 13-episode arc begins in October. Reportedly, Tim Kring, the show's creator, described her as "'a little unstable' and 'a cautionary tale of what our Heroes could become.'" Oh, Kristen, my TV has missed you — insert joke about Elle's power having something to do with zingy one-liners here. … continue reading

I spent most of this past Saturday afternoon fighting my way through crowds over at the Minnesota State Fair. For those of you who've never been there, which I'm guessing is many of you, we Minnesotans have a strange fascination with heads sculpted in butter. Each year at the fair, we crown Princess Kay of the Milky Way (yes, that is her official title) to be a spokesperson for the midwest dairy industry. Then at the fair, we stick her in a cooler with a sculptor and an enormous block of butter. Her likeness gets carved and we stand around watching while she freezes her behind off for the sake of dairy. I'm going to guess that by the time she's done, she would prefer the route the milk folks have taken.

Hayden Panettiere certainly didn't mind the photo shoot, though I'm certain a few of you would have volunteered to keep her warm while her butter head was being carved. Here's a short clip with a little behind-the-scenes action from the photo shoot and some comments from Panettiere on the honor of being the next milk face. … continue reading

As the search for a new Uhura gets underway, the original has signed on to a new gig.

Nichelle Nichols has been enlisted to join the ever expanding cast of Heroes for the upcoming season. Soon the cast of the show's sophomore season will be large enough to staff the whole of Starfleet Command, which is good considering they keep stealing crew members from the starship Enterprise. You Heroes aficionados will remember that George Takei of Sulu fame made an appearance last season as Hiro's father. Clearly the folks in charge of Heroes have managed to locate a functioning transporter, however, as they have managed to beam Sylar onto the newest version of the infamous starship. … continue reading

Yesterday I visited the set of NBC's Heroes, where I learned that the lesbian cheerleader named April, who was to have been played by Lyndsy Fonseca, has been dropped from the show. Earlier this month, Fonseca was cast on ABC's Desperate Housewives as the daughter of Nathan Fillion (Waitress, Firefly), another new addition to the show. When I asked Heroes creator Tim Kring whether he had recast the part of April, he said, "Well, yes, in a manner of speaking, yes. She obviously appeared in the show, so it's not recast, it's just that character can't be on our show anymore. She's got another job."

Fonseca has already shot one episode of Heroes, so you'll see her in that episode, but it's unclear as to whether her character's sexual orientation will have any role in that one-time appearance. "The character went away when she got a new job," Kring said of April the cheerleader. "When we make those kinds of deals — smaller-arc deals — we don't have the right to hold onto them if they get a big series regular job, so that's what happened."

Last season, Heroes encountered some controversy when the character of Zach (Thomas Dekker) was de-gayed, so I asked Kring if this new development meant that there would be no gay characters in Season 2 of the show. "I'm not saying that, no," he responded. "I'm just saying that character — we had to go a different direction when she got another job." So far there's no word on what that other direction is, and ABC has not yet responded to my requests for further information, but we'll let you know if we find out more.

Season 2 of Heroes premieres Monday, Sept. 24 at 9 p.m. ET on NBC. … continue reading