Showtime’s third season of “The L Word: Generation Q, ” a continuation of the heavily-critiqued original “L Word” television series, released on Nov. 18. The original series aired from January 2004 to March 2009, featuring a group of twenty-something lesbians living in West Hollywood.
The continuation focuses on the lives of returning lesbian icons Bette Porter (Jennifer Beals), Shane McCutcheon (Katherine Moennig) and Alice Pieszecki (Leisha Hailey) in their adult lives while also introducing a new generation of more diverse queer characters into its core cast like Dani Nùñez (Arienne Mandi), Gigi Ghorbani (Sepideh Moafi), Micah Lee (Leo Sheng), Sophie Suarez (Rosanny Zayas), Angelica “Angie” Porter-Kennard (Jordan Hull) and Tess Van De Berg (Jamie Clayton).
Previously criticized for its lack of representation and intersectionality, “Generation Q” makes strides to show a wider variety of queer characters, like Micah as a trans man, Gigi as an Iranian-American lesbian, Maribel Suarez (Jillian Mercado) as a disabled woman and Natalie “Nat” Bailey (Stephanie Allynne) as a polyamorous woman.
The original “L Word” solely represented lesbians, starred a primarily white cast, collectively presented as overtly bourgeois and feminine and rejected anything that did not fit their script. “Generation Q,” in contrast, includes characters like Sarah Finley (Jacqueline Toboni), a much more masculine and awkward lesbian; she struggles financially in the overpriced world of Los Angeles, couch surfing at friends’ places and working as a personal assistant on Alice’s television show.
Queer people exist in every form and social class, yet the original “L Word” made it seem like being a lesbian was an elite experience only suitable for upper-middle-class femmes, completely erasing butch and masculine communities as if they weren’t classy enough for television.
In the first two seasons of “Generation Q,” the original characters of “L Word” seem to be mature shadows of their former selves. The show picks up after over 10 years off-screen, and Bette is running for mayor, Alice is a famous talk show host and Shane is no longer cutting hair — she is in the process of getting a divorce and buying a bar.
Season three begins after about a year’s time jump from the second season and appears to have the characters returning to the people they once were. Bette realizes she is still in love with her ex-wife, Tina Kennard (Laurel Holloman), and is determined to get her back. Their ever-infamous, intoxicating relationship was heavily explored in “The L Word,” and the two seem to be attempting to right their past wrongs without the drama, toxicity and infidelity, growing alongside their daughter who is now 18 years old and beginning college. Bette is also inserting herself back into art curating after losing her campaign, a career she was well-known for in the original series. Ivy-league educated, Bette has tackled many other facets of her career in education and politics over the course of her life, yet she always seems to return to the contemporary art world with an unmistakable fire and passion incomparable to her other career paths.
As for the other original returners, Alice is finding the freedom to explore her bisexuality that she never fully allowed herself to come to terms with in the original series. Meanwhile, Shane is in a promising relationship with her coworker Tess, but she hasn’t been known to be one for domesticated life. She begins to experience temptations, or “the itch” as Alice calls it, for one of the makeup artists on the set of Alice’s show, Ivy — played by singer Kehlani — and ends up acting on those emotions.
The main characters of “Generation Q,” Finley, Dani, Gigi, Sophie and Micah, are also struggling in their own relationships alongside the original “L Word” returners. Finley has just gotten back from rehab and is trying to readjust to life with Sophie. Dani is ready to make her relationship with Gigi more serious, but Gigi is having doubts. Micah wants to marry Maribel, but she wants a baby instead.
Aside from Kehlani, this season is also packed with other queer celebrity guest stars like Margaret Cho and Roxanne Gay, who will both be playing themselves, and Joey Lauren Adams, playing an awkward and humorous barista named Taylor. Rosanna Arquette is also returning as Cherie Jaffe, arguably Shane’s most infamous and destructive ex-girlfriend who caused a lot of drama and pain in the original series. Rosie O’Donnell, who played Tina’s financé in previous seasons, is also featured in season three despite her relationship with Tina coming to an end.
While it is impossible to predict the spectacle that will ensue as the show progresses, it is clear that relationship drama will be the primary driving force of the season. Likewise, it seems no one is safe from the tumultuous dating scene that is Los Angeles. As it continues to air, season three will grapple with love, lust and possibly finding the one.
The show is aired on television and is available for streaming on Fridays via the Showtime website and app.
Although “Generation Q” has separated itself from a lot of the criticism of the original “L Word” show, “The L Word” was an important rebuttal against the lack of lesbian representation in the media and as a whole had more substance than it was given credit for. This increased cultural visibility allowed for shows like “Generation Q” to become realized and successful. An undeniable stepping stone toward the queer media on television today, “The L Word” is perhaps the most recognizable and explicitly lesbian media to date, allowing “Generation Q” to currently thrive as an important staple of mainstream queer television.
Lillian Dunn is an Arts & Entertainment Staff Writer. She can be reached at lbdunn@uci.edu.