Written by Christopher Michael Smith.
Watching LGBT+ films and television over the past decade has invited a lot of praise as well as criticism, and worse, discourse. The difficulty in finding a story that ticks all the boxes in the wildly diverse LGBT+ experience is an impossible task, and not everyone is going to connect with every story or feel represented.
Strangelove likely won’t be able to tick all those boxes either (once again, an impossible task), but in its first few episodes, it does tick a lot of them. By focusing on a group of friends with different needs and different personalities, the opportunity to explore a wide variety of stories presents itself, and Xolalpa’s thoughtful writing really steps up in this department.
It isn’t just that these characters have very different lives, but because each character represents a unique and relatable experience. On top of the very gay-specific storylines, this crux of the series is four Millennial adults trying to make ends meet, something that everyone can relate with, and it holds nothing back.
Strangelove features Xolalpa’s signature writing style of real, lived-in characters and candid human drama. The serial format serves his style very well, allowing his characters to grow and breathe more organically than ever. These characters are brought to life by terrific performances from a strong ensemble.
Alexis Vazquez, Brandon Baez, Eduardo Segura, and Raury Rolander are all given ample time to shine individually, but also have tremendous chemistry with one another. These four friends are brutal and sassy with each other in ways reminiscent of the Golden Girls, but at heart there’s an underlying bond between them that is truly beautiful. You can tell that beyond their own lives, desires, stress and interpersonal relationships, these four deeply care about each other. These first few episodes give us a strong sense of chosen family that is truly beautiful.
But it isn’t just the hard-hitting drama that makes Strangelove so special (though it does have that), this show is funny! The naturalistic humor that comes out of these conversations brings on a much welcome levity that beautifully balances out the heavier moments, and even makes it feel more honest.
The LGBT+ experience is not a monolith, and no film or series or book or any other piece of artwork is going to fully represent the entire community. But there is something so special about a series that in its first few episodes delivers on a carefully-woven tapestry that effectively captures the joy, the sadness, the pain, the awkward, the love, and just the right amount of tea and shade that impacts so many of our lives. Seeing all of that packed into the first few episodes like it’s easy leaves me very hopeful for the potential that Strangelove has.
