Pose

I'm in agreement with everyone who is in love with this show. Just want to give a shout out to MJ Rodriguez, who plays Blanca. She is the real standout in a very good cast.

I just finished watching the series two nights ago. It is the most emotionally impactful show I have ever watched and possibly the most emotionally impactful piece of media I've consumed in my life to this point. When I finished the series I could hear Blanca in my head, inspiring me to be a better person.

As a transwoman, seeing a show that featured so many and focused on telling the stories of queer BIPOC people, the AIDs epidemic, and just our fight to exist... this show is so important to remind us that in the face of so much resistance and hate we must stand up for ourselves and our queer siblings and be there for each other. I don't know where I am going with this. I spent two hours bawling my eyes out watching the final two episodes on Monday and I am still processing this.

This is a series that opened my eyes and taught me a lot about a world that I'm ashamed to say I didn't know much about. What is really nice about the series ,except the fact that all the actors in the series are simply amazing, is that we are shown (although I'm sure it's only fragile) all the experiences and difficulties the characters go through. Although it is a matter of years past, you can see that our world has progressed, but not much in its attitude towards the different. Maybe if all people are exposed to this series, then maybe something will change, because as the series says, the world does not change on its own, the people are the ones who change it.

This is an original show with a fantastic cast! I suspect a lot of us are learning a lot about "things we didn't know we didn't know." The ballroom culture of the 80's is fascinating, as are many of the characters. This show operates smoothly at several different levels and tackles the hard stuff. At its heart is the issue of family-it's enduring position as safe harbor & moral compass, and the human tendency to create families of our own to uphold and sustain us when the traditional model has failed.

It's very early in the season to begin an assessment as the story arc is just developing, but I'm "in" thus far. I'm hoping that Ryan Murphy doesn't create a trajectory similar to what we observed with "Glee" and am comforted that he stayed away from a "Paris Is Burning" musical (thus far) as the film itself caused controversy and uproar related to matters of appropriation. I hope that the Pose writers listen to community members on set and keep it real, though many are too young to have experienced, first hand, the events they portray. Please continue to seek out and promote talent in the form of community members who were in the ballroom scene and solicit their input! HIV ravaged the community during this time period and those seeking the comfort of others living the same experience, sharing the same space, were challenged in many ways. It's difficult to invest in relationships that may be fleeting due to a deadly illness.

For those critiquing the acting, it's unfortunate you're not celebrating the use of transgender talent within a community that exists largely in the shadows and is marginalized in our narrow-minded society. For those making societal degradation comments, there are lots of other channels. TV Land may be more your speed.

All that said, I'm loving what I see so far! Thank you for taking this on.