TV

The 2013 AfterEllen Visibility Awards Winners are…

The results of the 2013 AfterEllen Visibility Awards are in and while Astrology.com would have you believe it was The Year of The Water Snake, our voting numbers painted an entirely different picture. According to AfterEllen readers, 2013 was actually The Year of Zoie Palmer. She took home not one, not two (not three, not four, not five), but six Visibility Awards this year. Add that to her #2 spot on the 2013 AfterEllen Hot 100 and suck on that, Water Snake.

Below, you will find the results of all 20 Visibility Awards categories. If you’re unfamiliar with any of the winners, be sure to check out our comprehensive Year In Review posts on Lesbian/Bi: Movies, Books, TV, Music, Poltics, Theater, and Sports.

Now, onto the winners! Favorite TV Comedy: Orange Is the New Black Netflix’s original series blew our mindgrapes in the very best way in 2013. A cast of female-centric characters of various races, ethnicities, sexualities, and body types? Welcome to the future (we hope)!

Editor’s Pick: Orange Is the New Black

The most-talked about show this year happened to be a well-written women-led dramedy starring people of color and queerness. Jodie Foster even directed an episode and there’s an out female in the writer’s room. It’s no surprise we can all agree that Orange is the new awesome. Favorite TV Drama: Lost Girl The Canadian import continued to rock our world-and SyFy’s, too!-with it’s honest portrayal of the spectrum of female sexuality and badassery. Adding three new queer characters and plenty of Bo and Lauren sexy goodness also went a long way with us.

Editor’s Pick: The Fosters

A show about lesbian moms who take in parentless children could be trite or just plain boring, but ABC Family’s show from out producers Peter Paige and Joanna Johnson gave us inspired storylines and impeccable casting choices. We haven’t seen this kind family on TV before, and now we can’t get enough. Favorite TV Actress: Zoie Palmer She’s smart, she’s funny, she’s sassy, she’s talented, she’s sexy as hell. Also, she fights with her cat on Twitter. What’s not to love?

Editor’s Pick: Tatiana Maslany

How many roles can one woman play in one episode? At least five, if you’re Tatiana Maslany. The Orphan Black star wowed us with her chameleon abilities, especially as Cosima, the queer nerd who has a thing for French girls. Favorite Lesbian/Bi Character: Lauren Lewis, Lost Girl Oh, you know, just your standard Yale-educated doctor who has done humanitarian work in the Congo, saved lives (and built bombs?) during her service time in Afghanistan, and knows more about fantastical creatures than even Hermione Granger. No big deal. (Just kidding. She’s kind of a huge deal.)

Editor’s Pick: Arizona Robbins, Grey’s Anatomy

Good characters are not always likable. In fact good characters are written to be human. Shonda Rhimes wrote a very real woman in Arizona Robbins this year when she showed she’s not without flaws, and Jessica Capshaw performed the role perfectly. Favorite Fictional Lesbian Couple: Bo and Lauren, Lost Girl It’s almost like we didn’t really understand what it meant to be a shipper until Lauren and Bo lit up our TV screens.

Editor’s Pick: Piper and Alex, Orange Is the New Black

The will they/won’t they scenario is good in any situation, but in prison? Even better. Self-obsessed Piper is reminded of her past everytime she looks at her ex, which is frequently because they’re locked in a building together. Tension mounts, and eventually Piper’s “lesbian phase” has returned with a vengeance.

Favorite Reality Series: The Voice Michelle Chamuel may have only been the runner-up on season four of The Voice, but she was the definite winner of Our Hearts. (Awww.)

Editor’s Pick: Catfish

A reality show that gives an inside look at the intersection of internet dating and real life connection, Catfish portrayed people of different colors, classes, sexualities and gender identities from Middle America. Several different queer women were involved in storylines, whether they were setting out to meet their online girlfriends, or they were Catfishing an unsuspecting person themselves. The discussions and self-realizations that came from these meet-ups were ones never before seen on mainstream television. Favorite Lesbian/Bi Reality Star: Jillian Michaels, The Biggest Loser Never stop making people’s lives better by waltzing around in spandex and hollering, Jillian! You’re such a terrifying inspiration to us all!

Editor’s Pick: Monifah (R&B Divas)

An out and proud black woman who is happy in love and trying to reignite her singing career, Monifah also let us into her difficult relationship with her daughter, who disapproves of her being a lesbian. Monifah handles it better than most, and she’s often the cool head among the hot bloods that make up the rest of the Divas. Best Movie: Blue Is the Warmest Color It was the sex scenes that made the headlines, but it was the desperate, voracious, world-bending love story between two women that made this film resonate so strongly with us.

Editor’s Pick: Blue Is the Warmest Color

A coming-of-age tale that includes a Sapphic sexual awakening, the writing was tight and the acting was superb. Had the sex scenes been cut or less publicized, we’d appreciate it just the same. Favorite Movie Actress: Jodie Foster It’s not often that a female-fronted action movie rakes in $300 million worldwide and receives a consensus of generally positive reviews from critics, but that’s exactly what Jodie’s Elysium accomplished in 2013!

Editor’s Pick: Sarah Paulson

It takes a lot to sink into a role like Mistress Mary Epps, the wife of a slave owner who repeatedly abuses a black female slave her husband takes a liking to, but Sarah Paulson is frighteningly convincing in 12 Years a Slave. From the theater to our televisions to the big screen, Sarah is a secret weapon in everything she’s part of. Best Web Series: Venice: The Series Daytime TV may have both feet in the grave, but Crystal Chappell‘s sudsy web series is still thriving!

Editor’s Pick: Little Horribles

Amy York Rubin tells it like it is in her web series of living as a lesbian writer in Los Angeles. Her epic wit, poignant musings and great guest stars had us wishing each episode was just a little bit longer.

Hottest Hookup in Film/TV: Lauren and Bo, Lost Girl Yeaaaah. Gulp. ‘Nuff said.

Editor’s Pick: Piper and Alex, Orange Is the New Black

We’re talking about the shower sex and the church sex. Talk about getting freaky. Best Music Video: “Closer” (Tegan and Sara) Tegan and Sara’s Hearthrob got a whole year’s worth of play on our iPods and we nearly burnt up YouTube watching the album’s music videos on YouTube.

Editor’s Pick: “She Keeps Me Warm” (Mary Lambert)

An insatiable ballad with an adorable love story playing out on screen, Mary Lambert’s video had everything we never knew we always wanted. It’s girl meets girl, girl gets girl, girl keeps girl warm. Aw. Best Book: The Persistence of Phosphors, Joseph Dougherty When a TV show writer/producer uses his free time to write fan fiction about the show’s lesbian couple (and publish his books on Amazon Worlds), you know you’ve got a special situation on your hands. Joseph Dougherty has given us more to swoon over than nearly any other TV writer in the last four years. His Paige and Emily novels are just icing on the cake.

Editor’s Pick: Bodies of Water, T. Greenwood

Like a less cheesy telling of The Notebook, two women fall in love during the 1950s but are separated by circumstance until a huge reveal present day. T. Greenwood’s novel is tragic in all the best ways, but also a story of romance rarely told Best Tweeter: Zoie Palmer Editor’s Pick: Evan Rachel Wood

An actress who speaks her mind, Evan Rachel Wood has used Twitter to let fans and followers know she is pro-equality, anti-paparazzi and finds censorship of female sexuality on film repulsive. She’s also uses her Twitter account to educate anyone who is attempting to question her bisexuality and praise other females every chance she gets. Favorite Lesbian/Bi Musician: Tegan and Sara All we want to get is a little bit closer, OK? All we want to know is, can you come a little closer? No? OK, can you release another album super soon?

Editor’s Pick: Angel Haze

One of the year’s hottest MCs who is also up front about identifying as pansexual, Angel Haze writes rhymes about being sexually abused, coming out of the closet and breaking up with women, all while being hailed the next big thing. We’re among her biggest fans.

Best Lesbian/Bi Ally: Sara Ramirez The Grey’s Anatomy actress has starred in more episodes of TV than any current LGBT character. 180, to be exact. And when she’s not on our televisions, she’s out in the world standing up for equality. We can’t pray away the gay, but we can pray Callie Torres will be on-screen for ten more seasons.

Editor’s Pick: Tilda Swinton

Risking imprisonment, the actress posed for a photograph holding a rainbow flag in front of Moscow’s Saint Basil’s Cathedral. She later donated more than $2,000 for the funeral of Alexei Davydov, a prominent Russian LGBT activist who died of kidney failure at 36. Some people talk, but Tilda acts. Favorite Lesbian/Bi Athlete: Megan Rapinoe This year, Rapinoe signed with Olympique Lyonnais and became the fifth American woman to play in a French Women’s Football Club championship game!

Editor’s Pick: Brittney Griner

The WNBA’s top player has spoken freely about being closeted while at Baylor and how happy she is to be herself now that she’s a professional athlete. Her Instagram selfies keep us LOLing (she sure loves to take photos of herself sleeping!) and every interview she does gives us even better insight into what it’s like to be so young but so damn good at the game. Best Coming Out Story: Jodie Foster Her heartfelt, rambling, terrified, angry, triumphant, honest coming out speech at the Golden Globes made us cry and air-punch at the same time.

Editor’s Pick: Jodie Foster

We were thrilled to hear her finally say it, and in such a public way. Favorite IRL Lesbian Couple: Ellen and Portia Duh.

Editor’s Pick: Ellen and Portia

You know you’re at the top when people are trying to bring you down. Ellen laughed off divorce rumors this year, reiterating how happy she and the wifey are together, although no one but tabloids trying to sell magazines suspected any differently. Lesbian/Bi Woman of the Year: Ellen DeGeneres Her talkshow has been renewed through 2017 and Pixar’s Finding Dory is coming our way soon. After Ellen for all eternity!

Editor’s Pick: Edie Windsor

The 84-year-old widow took on the United States Supreme Court and won for us all. DOMA was knocked down because she dared to stand up against the hypocrisy of the American government, and looked fucking fabulous doing it. We’re grateful to Edie now and forever.

What do you think about this year’s winners?

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