Last night, Jessica Day (Zooey Deschanel) returned from jury duty/maternity leave, which marks the end of Megan Fox‘s tenure on New Girl. Reagan, the aloof bisexual pharmaceutical rep, leaves town for greener pastures, with the door open for a possible return. After last week’s surprise kiss with Nick in the basement, Reagan admits that she has feelings for him, but she’s leaving town, so it doesn’t matter.
In her five-episode run, we’ve seen Reagan romance Clea DuVall and Nick, and learn about her fling with Cece. I found Megan Fox delightful in her role; she was a great deadpan foil to the loftmates’ antics, much like Cece was in the first seasons before she gleefully leapt onto the roommate crazy train.
While I enjoyed Reagan’s run on the show, there was something I enjoyed even more: a bisexual character on a network television series simply being bisexual. There was no coming out party, no protracted sexual identity crisis, no experimenting with women for a ratings boost. Reagan is a character who is comfortable in her sexuality, and who confidently dates/fucks whoever she wants.
Bisexuality comes with a lot of bullshit baggage: a lack of acceptance from the gay and straight community, an increased risk for anxiety and depression, and a near-constant misunderstanding of our sexual identity. Don’t believe me? Read the comments section of any bi-themed article (scroll down…there may be some happening on this very page!). And this confusion is no doubt fueled by portrayals of bisexual people in popular culture. Bisexual characters have been waffly and indecisive at best, and downright villainous and untrustworthy at worst. And I haven’t even mentioned former bisexual poster girl Tila Tequila. Blerg.
Like we say on AfterEllen, visibility matters. And between Reagan’s arc and the recent bisexual developments on shows like Crazy Ex-Girlfriend and The 100, bisexual characters are becoming more commonplace.
I know a lot of queers may be disappointed about Reagan’s romance with Nick, but that’s the thing about us bisexuals: sometimes we have relationships with men! Even ridiculous men who say “ham sanitizer” instead of hand sanitizer. And these relationships can be just as fulfilling and important as the ones we have with women. Bisexuals are nuanced and complex people, just like everybody else.
I guess what I’m saying is, if you love us at our Clea DuVall, then you have to love us at our Nick, Miller. Either way, we’re still here and we’re still bi. Sayonara, Sammy.
