In this Very Special Edition of She Made Me Watch This!, Lori and I discuss some of our favorite lesbian episodes and moments on American television in the last 20 years. Relive the glory days when there were actually lesbians on prime-time network TV, as we discuss (and show clips!) from lesser-known shows like Dark Angel, Once and Again and Wonderfalls, and more popular ones like Buffy, Xena, ER and The L Word.

Let us know your favorites in the comments — and look for a countdown of our least favorite lesbian TV moments in Monday's episode of Who Thought THAT Was a Good Idea? … continue reading

I like lists. I like to see what other folks call the most this or the best that. I'm often amused by the choices made when discussing the importance of why this or that didn't make the list. But the best part of reading all the lists that are swirling about in cyberspace is the chance to rip them to shreds later on.

Take this one, for example: "15 Taboo-breaking TV moments," brought to you by the folks over at EW.com. First off, I will be among those to readily admit I do not always have complete command of the English language and the grammatical rules included therein. (I'm certain our esteemed editor would be happy to share with you just how true that statement is.) [She does her thing, I tweak it and we all go home happy. — Ed.] However, I must insist that when you put together a list, your title should generally tell the reader what they — er, he or she — will be reading about.

In this case, "taboo-breaking" implies that the list includes television moments that were either controversial or the first of their kind — maybe both. One of the first openly gay characters on network television, for example.

In addition, "moments" implies something other than an entire series run. It implies individual events or episodes, at least in my world. Something like the first lesbian kiss on television, between L.A. Law lawyers C.J. Lamb and Abby Perkins. (I'm still irked that TV's first lesbian kiss didn't involve any actual lesbian characters.)

But neither Billy Crystal as Jodie Dallas nor C.J. and Abby's smooch made the grade as far as EW.com was concerned. So the appearance of one of TV's first gay characters (regardless of how you feel about the stereotypical nature in which that character was portrayed) and the first televised kiss between two women are not taboo-breaking moments? So what does make the list? … continue reading