The networks' 2002 Fall TV schedule is now official and there will be three new ensemble dramas set in San Francisco. Two of the three spotlight a large female cast. So, what is the likelihood of seeing a well-constructed lesbian lead character? Unfortunately, if you go by the prior examples of Bay Area based shows like Charmed and The Division, the answer is a resounding "none!"

Now, some say that having any gay character in a show with a Golden Gate locale is "stereotyping" and shouldn't be done on those grounds alone. Maybe. If there were a dozen TV series with queers trolling the Castro every week, I might be inclined to agree.

Sorry, what channels are those on again?

Of course, the executive producers and network suits will spin and whine, claiming they don't want to have a clichéd character backdrop yet will have no problem dumping a truckload of overused situations in their plotting (but that's another issue).

For a city that is considered around the world by homosexuals and heterosexuals alike as "The Gay Disneyland," not representing a significant segment of its population in a TV show for fear of offending the mainstream audience is beyond irresponsible. It perpetuates the status quo and silently reinforces the bigotry. Try to envision having a new ensemble series based in Atlanta without an African-American lead. Could you imagine the outrage?

Where is our outrage?

Let's start with the weakest contender, FOX's Girls Club from David E. Kelley. The story centers on three, 27-year-old women attorneys who live together in SF and who have been best friends since law school. Hmm, remember how Mr. Kelley used lesbianism as a cheap one-shot ratings ploy in his other shows? And with only three pretty leads to sell the series (ala Charmed), those are unsatisfactory numbers for studio honchos. In their tiny minds, there just wouldn't be enough "straightness" around to successfully dilute the impact of a lesbian character into the overall arc. Who knows, there is the slim possibility that an alterna-grrl could turn up in the club but I won't even bet pretzels on it.

The second and biggest question mark is Meds, a dramedy from Marc Platt of last summer's sweet/silly movie, Legally Blonde. This series takes place in a SF HMO hospital. It has a mixed cast of seven but the primary focus will be on the two lead male doctors. Leads are characters whose point of view drives the story and they are pretty much on every episode. Supporting or peripheral characters are used mainly as props for the leads and are rarely given a purpose beyond one-liners or living scenery. We might have hope for a background butch on this show but remember, it's from Touchstone (a Disney company) and it's on ABC (a Disney network). You do the math!

The final and most promising show is CBS's Presidio Med from John Wells of ER fame. With five female leads portraying doctors at yet another SF hospital, the numbers look encouraging. Also, the fact that Wells' ER is the only major network series with the guts to feature an on-going, complex, lesbian storyline could be a precedent for his new entry into prime time. I'm keeping my fingers crossed on this one.

That being said, one would assume that having a current drama set in San Francisco with five featured female players should easily include at least one Sapphic sister. One would assume.

Soon to be wrapping up its sophomore season, Lifetime's original series, The Division, follows the professional and private lives of five female San Francisco Police Department inspectors.

Surprise, all five lead characters are straight!

It should be noted that, according to the Golden State Peace Officers Association, nearly 10% of the SFPD force is comprised of gay and lesbian officers.

Starring Bonnie Bedelia, Nancy McKeon, and Lisa Vidal, (who ironically plays one half of ER's power dyke couple), this series has lightly touched on the topic with peripheral characters that have only been seen once or twice a year, including the main character's recently announced gay daughter.

One small problem, the entire first season was spent establishing the girl as flaky, unpopular, and decidedly heterosexual. Her sudden switch rings hollow and tops the "ploy of the season" list. Right behind that is TPTB hiring an actress associated with Outfest to take over the role as the daughter.

For more peripheral additions, the parents of another lead are reported to be a lesbian couple, although it has yet to be shown. Combine all of these with a token gay brother from the first season and you have enough to start a PFLAG group at the precinct. Unfortunately, all of the supporting queer characters in the world cannot make up for the glaring omission of a lesbian lead from the beginning.

When confronted with this legitimate concern, the show's executive producer, Deborah Joy LeVine, attempted to explain her side in the March 2002 edition of Lesbian News:

I wanted to make one of the characters a lesbian. To me it seemed like a natural choice because in many of the police stations where I have been there is usually at least one inspector who is a lesbian. I think the network was a little concerned. I have no idea what their thinking is. Lifetime is a fledgling network and is rather conservative as far as language and how far they let it go.

Besides the typical "shuffling the blame" game, one must wonder what kind of communication (or lack of) this producer has with her network? Also, the fact is that Lifetime began airing in 1984 -- if it still qualifies as a "fledgling network" nearly two decades later, then I still qualify as a teenager!

Lifetime claims to be "television for women." I think they need to amend that to "television for straight women."

The Lesbian News article, which reads more like a PR fluff piece/valentine to the disrespected dyke demographic, goes on to give saccharine testimonials by most of the stars (McKeon was conveniently called away to the set before she could give her comments) supporting the concept of a lesbian officer and how some of them actually wanted to play one. This serves only as a backhanded attempt to court favor without the genuine commitment.

Of course, there is a downside to Vidal's vibrant and realistic portrayal of the out and proud firefighter Sandy Lopez on ER. It allows The Division's producers the luxury of riding the coattails of her default dyke status from her other series and are thereby not pressured into developing their own lesbian lead. Hopefully, this will change as the show progresses into its third season but, again, I wouldn't count on it.

So, to wrap things up, in the year 2002, it is abysmal to see the lack of lesbian characters on television. Quite frankly, I'd prefer to see one on a show set in the Deep South but I have a greater chance of being struck by a meteor. The three new Bay Area based series debuting this Fall only offer a scintilla of hope but the sad fact is if we can't expect to see proper media representation of homosexuality in a San Francisco setting, where exactly can we expect to see it?