The L Word

i checked out the show, to be honest, for the reason you might expect. and for that purpose i was pretty disappointed. but i'm not entirely crass and i continued watching. now i'm a cinephile who doesn't make a lot of time for TV shows, but this was a truly terrific achievement.

this is a top shelf, highbrow, a-class, quality show for intelligent people almost exclusively. the characters are well-developed, and backed by nuanced performances. the dialogue rings true, never TV-like at all. and the story arcs are present without that pesky soap-opera feeling.

on top of that, the shot selection and cinematography are freewheeling and experimental(sometimes to a fault-as in the rotating camera in the Chinese restaurant-but no matter). the show is more than worth an hour out of my week.

that damn theme song however is the worst. so ham-handed and silly, ugh. it practically undoes all the subtlety of the show when it wails "this is the way that we live!!" not to mention that awful list of verbs in the middle. and such a long song too! that and the sometimes equally obtuse selection of music for the soundtrack is the worst bit.

This artistically well-done Showtime-made TV series primarily focuses on portrayal of lesbians in their 20s to 40s as urban professionals and deals with their everyday issues; at the same time, thematic materials such as working on relationships or struggling against temptations have universal qualities so that any open-minded persons, regardless of gender and sexual orientation, can associate with the happenings in the show. Also, dramas without males' chauvinistic nature create a uniquely comfortable mood, which even the straight audience may feel refreshing. Gaining a wide range of supporters and fans beyond the lesbian community must be a big factor of the show's success, which made it possible for the series to continue to Season Two.

Speaking of the show's success, one cannot overlook its artistic merits, which are extraordinary as a TV show's. Many incidents are interwoven into one compelling story; a lovable ensemble cast that consists of a variety of personas engages in acting; and the director of photography Robert Aschmann takes full advantage of his skills and creativity in amazing long takes, aggressive crane shots, and illuminative lightings. There is inconsistency among episodes on writing, directing, and editing due to the fact that several different artists have worked on each episode; this drawback may be inevitable for a TV series. Among writers and directors, Rose Troche, the legendary director of Go Fish, writes believable dialogues and directs intimate scenes with crafts, while Lenka Svab stands out among editors, dazzling and mesmerizing the viewers with a deliberate disorientation. Some writers make homage to historic filmmakers such as Godard, Cassavetes, and Soderbergh by having the characters refer to them; this is a tiny detail but certainly amuses film fans.

The L Word is one of the most original shows I've ever seen. It's the only real lesbian show ever made. It's breaks down stereotypes, and shows you that not all lesbians are butch. It deals with real issues that lesbians have, but at the same time maintains its humor (some of the one liners are hilarious). It's not trying to be perfect or overly explicit (although the sex scenes are nowhere near self-conscious). The women on the show are all gorgeous and very talented. The acting is the most solid part of the show. Some of the characters show so much emotion with so little dialogue (like my personal favorite, Marina, played by Karina Lomabrd). The show has no limitations. Pretty much every boundary was crossed by the end of the first episode, and that's a good thing. This is by far my favorite show, and if you haven't seen it you really should. Gay or straight, you'll love it.

My only complaint is that Karina isn't coming back for season 2. Hopefully she'll be back for future seasons.

I think that some people are so used to watching 1 or 2 dimensional garbage they wouldn't know a really good show if it jumped up and slapped them.

This show is EXCELLENT. Nuance, subtext, the characters (particularly Jenny - like her or not) are so real... they breathe! I've read a lot of comments in different forums about how these women don't look like "lesbians". I'm not sure what "lesbians" they've been looking at but the ones that I know look a lot like these women. Progressive, professional, feminine, sexy and proud of it. Keep up the good work Chaiken and crew!

I find it interesting that someone who only watched one episode could make such a broad statement of an entire season of episodes. I've watched the whole thing. It's more than worth watching a bunch of straight women (with the exclusion of, I believe, one or two of the actors) believably pull off a lesbian role. It's unabashedly a lesbian show. Written by, as I understand, mostly lesbian writers for a mostly lesbian audience. The lesbian community has been under represented for far too long. While there are some short comings in the script, the acting is hardly bad. In fact, it's the shows subtleties that give it the life it has. These are situations and representations of people who could exist in real life. As the show progresses, it is almost certain to be inclusive to most if not all lesbian life styles. Give it more than one episode, and try to watch it from beginning to end. As a 20 something lesbian myself, I find it a relief to have such an involved show with an excellent cast. You don't have to be a major name in acting to have talent worth watching!! On an end note, I wouldn't mind seeing the writers get into the possibility of an second generation homosexual character... just a thought.