The L Word Gen Q: S3, Episode 4

"Fuck you, Shane."

This episode is fucking bonkers. It’s called “Last to Know“ and it takes place on Halloween—a subversive choice, considering it’s almost Christmas.

Alice has been fucking Taylor the barista for 2 straight days. Taylor’s eyes are burning red because she’s been wearing the same contacts for days, but she’s too intimidated by Alice to ask for some lens water. I don’t see Alice as intimidating or particularly glamorous. She’s famous, I guess, and wears nice clothes, but her whole thing is oversharing and being zany. A more realistic tension in this relationship would be that Alice has a lot of money and Taylor does not. There are so many ways this could play out: maybe Alice always wants to go out and eat at nice restaurants, or Taylor can’t host because she lives with her mom. Mostly I just felt annoyed by Taylor in this episode.

The characterization in Gen Q has always been inconsistent, but this episode really takes the cake. Everyone is just saying and doing whatever. The vibes are especially off at Shane and Tess’s house. Not only is Tess stressed about the new bar, she’s suddenly acting super protective of Patty, her mom. She refuses to leave her alone with a new nurse and cancels romantic dinner plans with Shane. As revenge, Shane initiates another liaison with Kehlani. I hate this!!

so poignant that Tess and her mom are always at the table while Shane has to stand in the kitchen

Micah and Mirabel are headed to a children’s Halloween party to interview some trans parents about babies. These are apparently the only trans parents they know, even though Micah is a family therapist at an LGBTQ community center in the second largest city in the United States. Mirabel is wearing a pitless avocado costume that looks like it’s from Five Below. She wants Micah to be her other (pitted) half, but he refuses. Oh man, the symbolism!! My girlfriend pointed out that we know so little about Micah and Mirabel aside from their difference markers (transness, disability) and this parenting storyline feels like the writers are heaping on more diversity instead of actually developing them as characters.