By Rohin Guha
So there's a sea change slowly washing over television. While we as a nation tiptoe closer to civil rights for LGBT individuals, television is starting to reflect the fact that, perhaps, not all lesbians are cut out of the same gaunt frame as Jennifer Beals' Bette Porter on "The L Word" (we will not forget, Dr. Hahn!). Nor are gay men carved from the same cookie-cutter coke-toking effete forms of the "Queer as Folk" fellas. Although the most visible change currently's happening for gay men, not women. And they're happening across cable, leaving broadcast in the dust. Let's hope the success of these bold few will open the dam gates and turn the sea change into a full-on tide.
Layton Williams. "Beautiful People" (10:30 p.m. Tuesdays, LOGO) is the best TV show you're not watching. Part "AbFab" and part "Arrested Development," it's the quintessential show about growing up gay in the '90s. And Williams' portrayal as Simon Doonan's childhood best friend Kyle – nicknamed "Kylie" for his devotion of the pop star of the same name – is top-notch. Unlike similar characters on TV, like "Ugly Betty"'s Justin, for instance, Kyle lacks a certain self-awareness that makes him refreshing. At the end of the day, his being working class, black and gay are all issues that influence his character without ever taking center stage.
Choice Moment: It's a toss-up. When Doonan introduces him in the premiere, we see Kyle dancing with a feather boa to Miss Minogue's "Confide in Me." And in another scene, he's casually strutting around school with a Spice Girls backpack strapped on.
Maulik Pancholy. As Sanjay, Nancy Botwin's openly gay, loyal pot henchman on "Weeds" (10 p.m. Mondays, Showtime), Pancholy has delicately created one of TV's most intriguing explorations in double-identity conflict. And luckily in the capable hands of show creator Jenji Kohan ("Gilmore Girls," "Will & Grace"), he's managed to do so without the heavyhanded politics that tend to come with such explorations. Bonus points for his similarly fey portrayal of Jonathan, Jack Donaghy's obsequious PA on NBC's "30 Rock."
Choice Moment: Last season, when Nancy interrogated Sanjay about the shady dealers in the back of the maternity store, he responded, "I do what I'm told by men with semiautomatic weapons. I'm a total bottom that way."
Nelsan Ellis. It's difficult to hate Lafayette on "True Blood" (9 p.m. Sundays, HBO). In season one, he seems to be the only one immune to tragedy, until he disappears at the end, emerging in season two, chained down in a prison, starved and verging on exhaustion. But despite torture, his spirit is strong and his wit remains sterling.
Choice Moment: From the first season, where Lafayette tells Sookie, "I know every man, whether straight, gay, or George ma-fuckin' Bush, is terrified of the pussy."
Haaz Sleiman. I've already been raving about Edie Falco's deadpan performance on "Nurse Jackie" (10:30 p.m. Mondays, Showtime) – so much so that I missed her acid-tongued bestie on the soap, Mohammed, a snarky gay Muslim man. And though we only see brief glimpses of Sleiman's deft portrayal of Mohammed, he does manage to steal scenes. The off-handed mention about how he slept with a married man is a bonus.
Choice Moment: In one scene, Jackie and Mohammed are laying across church pews, reflecting on the day. But she can get sappy, Mo-Mo interjects, "There would be some definite advantages to dating a man without a torso. You could carry him in your purse, he'd never leave. You could put him in the oven when he talks back. Or throw his stupid head overboard when you catch him fucking a poolboy on a cruise to celebrate your six-month anniversary that you had to pay for because he is such a narcissistic fucking asshole."
