Catie Byrne Featur Edor The relatnship of Jane Fonda’s Grace Hanson and Lily Toml’s Frankie Bergste the Netflix Origal seri, “Grace and Frankie,” begs wh an endg. The two disver that their hbands, Robert Hanson and Sol Bergste, played by Mart Sheen and Sam Waterston, not only want a divorce, but are gay,…
Contents:
- GRACE AND FRANKIE: THE COMPLEXY OF GAY INTY
- WHAT ‘GRACE & FRANKIE’ GETS RIGHT & WRONG ABOUT GAY FRIENDSHIP
GRACE AND FRANKIE: THE COMPLEXY OF GAY INTY
* grace and frankie gay representation *
The two disver that their hbands, Robert Hanson and Sol Bergste, played by Mart Sheen and Sam Waterston, not only want a divorce, but are gay, and want to be together. Season two of “Grace and Frankie” took a turn om s first season of dramatic edy to a drama wh edic moments, as the show put more foc to the stggl of Robert and Sol’s new life together as gay men. In the midst of fily, failed relatnships, ath, marriage and renciliatn, Robert and Sol grow and velop their relatnship and gay inti, while the formerly clashg Grace and Frankie velop a strong bond of iendship wh one another.
That the show even attempted to equate the credible pth of Grace and Frankie’s love for one another to the tepid and blasé relatnship between Frankie and Jab, speaks to the lengths wh which media — even gay media — will work to downplay and unrcut the possibily and strength of romantic love between two women.
The plexy of gay inty, however, is shown explicly the growth of Robert and Sol’s relatnship and their nceptualizatns of themselv as gay men. One of the most powerful scen of this velopment was — after beg spurred by Sol to unabashedly embrace his past and gay inty — when Robert cid to e out to his mother. The rigned and sually btal homophobia wh which his mother displayed reactn to Robert’s g out, was among one of the most heartbreakgly realistic pictns of what is often really like to e out.
WHAT ‘GRACE & FRANKIE’ GETS RIGHT & WRONG ABOUT GAY FRIENDSHIP
It is Sheen’s impecble actg that reprented the tears, sadns and often hntg realy of what is like to live wh the homophobic disappotment and disapproval of a parent. Addnally, Robert and Sol do not emerge as the primary source of gay tensn throughout the season.
Gay men thrive a tribe. That’s what I’ve learned om TV shows, thk piec, and Instagram photos featurg groups of gays. But that’s not how my gay plotle has veloped.