The Bisexual

A rowdy romp through love and loving...and lusting. Immensely enjoyable, it put me in mind of Issa Rae's characters. Desiree is believable and vulnerable; acting all around was quite good, production values met the challenges. Well-written and realized, the dialogue flowed smoothly.

I laughed out loud several times, which doesnt happen often! Great writing and acting. Only wish there had been more than six episodes.

The Bisexual wasn't exactly the smash hit that Channel 4 wanted and from the outside it isn't very difficult the see why. With the lack of any real promotional material (the poster I'm using is just the poster for Akhavan's film Appropriate Behaviour with the title slapped on the bottom) and a title that just screams out-of-touch it's not difficult to see why audiences didn't quite gravitate towards this project.

I'm not here to tell you that the Bisexual is some undiscovered masterpiece or anything though it's got some stuff going for it but I can only give it a light recommendation.

If you are looking for a more realistic portrayal of sexuality than most network shows are wiling to give I guess this could be sort of what you are looking for but in my opinion the main plot about Akhavan's character discovering her hidden sexuality while also trying to win back her ex-girlfriend (played wonderfully by Maxine Peake) is the least interesting part of the show.

It seems to me that this show exists more because people love other shows that handle these topics and less because there was a story to tell. I say this because I believe this would be a far greater show if the focus was on Gleeson's character and the break-up was the B-plot. Time and time again I found myself completely invested in the life of the struggling Irish writer only to remember that this show was about his room-mate.

I really feel bad having to critique the whole show together because even though I'm certainly not a big fan of 5/6 episodes of the show episode episode 5 is indie/art-house television done right. Although some people may find the flashback concept to be a gimmick I found that by showing what had lead these characters to where they were at the start of the serious only elevated the tragic nature of the show, especially for Gleeson's character.

ultimately The Bisexual is a forgettable little show that never quite reaches it's full potential.

Somewhere, somehow, this show seemed to miss the mark in revealing what it is like to either explore feelings of bisexuality or what it is like when you identify yourself as bisexual. Leila simply comes off as an immature, insecure and awkward woman who is struggling to find a place in the world, which the later episodes reveal she never had. This is less about being bisexual and the questions and difficulties that come with it and more about a person who has no limits on needing and getting attention. There was so much potential, as Akhaven wrote some very complex supporting characters but none of them seem to be going anywhere.

I absolutely love this series. It is written extremely well, and seems modern and quick (in a good way) as opposed to more formulaic. The acting is superb as well--every single character is perfectly cast. I feel like the show doesn't really shy away from any discussions, and I really like that the show focuses on multiple characters, so it is able to touch on so many issues--sexuality, family, codependency, etc.

I went into this show expecting it to be more drama than comedy, and expecting so much less out of the supporting characters. I was pleasantly surprised by the depth of character they were able to build up in just six 30-minute episodes.

I really, really hope they renew it for another season. I think that it's a really important series that deserves a lot of attention.