It's the beginning of The End. The end of Season 5 of The L Word, that is. And in this second-to-last episode, a lot of groundwork is laid to get us prepped for what is sure to be the shocking conclusion of the fifth season next week on Showtime.

Luckily, groundwork isn't the only thing getting laid in this episode. Bette and Jodi are splitsville, but that doesn't stop them from getting physical, and Jenny and Niki's breathtaking tryst from last week is relived in high-def when their pilfered home video resurfaces once again.

Those are just a few of the topics we discuss this week on WGN, along with pressing issues such as gun safety, pay rates for actors with speaking roles on television shows, and whether or not telling a woman "I really hope you bleed soon" is (1) honest; (2) grounds for divorce; or (3) simply an invitation for a satisfying slap of the face.

I'm very pleased to report that Dara is back and in full comedy sniper effect this week on WGN. While we love our guestbians, it's just not the same without her around. She thought she could skip out on birthday festivities by ditching us for a couple of weeks, but we celebrated her return and the anniversary of her birth in grand style. (i.e. we bought her some grocery store pastries).

A few weeks ago, we reported that Marlee Matlin will be on the new season of Dancing With the Stars.

It seemed strange to me at first — not because she's deaf, but because she just doesn't seem like the reality TV type, whatever that is — but this video makes me think she'll be pretty adorable on the show.

"I must have been drunk that morning." Heh.

If only she could keep Nancy O'Dell (or another woman with a grabbable booty) as her dance partner! But her partner on the show will be Fabian Sanchez, aka the 2006 U.S. Mambo Champion. He's not half as lovely as Jennifer Beals, which I suppose goes without saying. Here's another clip of Fabian and Marlee, this time on Entertainment Tonight. … continue reading

This week, episode 10 of The L Word qualified as A Very Special Episode for several reasons: 1.) Memories of the dearly departed Dana were evoked when the girls rode for her in the Pink Ride 2.) Alice and Tasha decided to shack up 3.) Bette and Tina got themselves busted for their illicit affair (with a nice assist from Alice) 4.) Molly took a sexual plunge with Shane and 5.) Jenny and Niki got kinky with some sex toys and made a steamy "home movie."

The only down side is that afterwards I had this little jingle rolling through my head afterwards: "Strap-on, strap-off. Strap-on, strap-off, the strapper!" Is it weird that watching Jenny and Niki's sex antics this week made me think of the theme song for the indispensable sound activated electrical gadget known as The Clapper? Yeah, I guess it is.

Anyway, while our comedy sharp-shooter Dara is still MIA, we are joined on the enchanted sofa this week by Emmy award-winning writer Liz Feldman (Ellen: The Ellen DeGeneres Show). Liz was a good sport who was all too willing to participate in an endless "athletic" montage and an ill-advised round of the party game "I Never" like the ones we saw on Episode 10 of The L Word. Unlike in The L Word, however, our episode of WGN didn't end in tears or a sex scandal in the making. (At least I hope it didn't!)

Is there such a thing as entertainment gaydar? Recently I came across an old friend on Facebook, whom I hadn’t seen in over a decade. Over the years, I’d wondered if perhaps she was gay — and once she had added me as a friend, I'll admit that I clicked over to her profile, curious to see if there would be anything about her sexual orientation there. While there wasn’t anything explicitly stated, I did see with interest that she listed The L Word as one of her favorite shows, and Brokeback Mountain and Chasing Amy as two of her favorite movies.

Now, entertainment gaydar, like any other gaydar, is based on stereotypes — and thus is bound to be somewhat unreliable. After all, there are plenty of straight people who like both The L Word and Brokeback Mountain. (And, actually, I think disliking Chasing Amy is probably a clearer sign of being a lesbian than liking it.) Nevertheless, this whole episode got me thinking about what a person’s tastes in entertainment may or may not say about her sexual orientation. And, using the popular AfterEllen.com forum thread "I’m so gay/I’m so not gay" as an inspiration, I decided to see how my tastes would stack up in the “stereotypically lesbianish” department.

To start off with the “I’m so not gay” category (hey, I may as well get the bit that will make me unpopular out of the way first):

1. I'll admit it — I don’t totally get the Tina Fey thing.

The fact that scribegrrrl, Dorothy Snarker, and Sarah Warn are all fans is enough to convince me that I must be missing something here — and who knows, maybe one day I will see the light. But I’ve seen 30 Rock, and the thing that amused me most about it was Alec Baldwin. (Who, whatever else he may or may not be, is definitively not lesbianish.)

2. I don’t watch The L Word.

The women on The L Word may be gay, but I’ve discovered that that, in and of itself, isn’t enough to make me identify with or deeply care about them. A little good writing goes an awfully long way.

3. I think Desert Hearts is a snooze-fest. … continue reading