#revised blog

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[alienidentities-f22a]

Revised Textual Analysis Blog Post- LGBTQ+

Roswell, New Mexico does a great job of including marginalized identities and social groups. As a show about fictional aliens, it provides a lot more social commentary than one might expect, on multiple different topics. For one, bisexuality and the LGBTQ+ community are thoroughly represented within the show through different levels of acceptance, pressure, and other societal factors that people within this identity category deal with. 

GIF by miasmicgf

Although some may point out the couple of perpetuated stereotypes that occasionally appear on the show, it is overall more representative and realistic than most television series we have seen popularized, and more so helps the LGBTQ+ community than harms.

One of the main love stories in Roswell, New Mexico is Michael Guerin and Alex Manes' relationship. This is already important, that the show highlights a romantic relationship that isn't heterosexual.

They met and fell in love in high school, and both came from very traumatic upbringings. Alex Manes' father is a homophobic, abusive military man who abused Alex and always made sure he knew he wouldn’t be accepted in their family if he was gay. Michael grew up in the foster care system and was separated from his two siblings Isobel and Max. He went from home to home, and many of his foster parents were also abusive.

This relationship represents many people that have to deal with their sexuality being repressed by people they are close to, love, and by others in society. The show emphasizes how Alex was bullied in high school, another common trauma many go through when trying to accept their sexuality. 

Michael was a different perspective on someone within this marginalized group. He accepted himself and Alex, and didn’t make it out to be a horrible thing like many others in their prejudiced town did. 

GIF by michaels-alex

In “Champagne Supernova” (1×11) Michael says to his brother Max, “We are literally aliens and you’re going to hold me to some outdated binary of sexuality? I’m bisexual, Max. It’s not that complicated.” This quote recognizes the dated ideas society still holds on sexuality, but it can also be seen in a different way. 

Some may say that Michael is implying that they aren’t held to these expectations because they’re aliens, and therefore he’s perpetuating the harmful idea that humans should be held to these societal expectations. However, seeing as the show implements a wide range of humans within the LGBTQ+ community, we can safely assume that’s not what was meant. 

Another way Michael and Alex subvert stereotypical expectations of sexuality is by avoiding the stereotype of feminine aspects in bisexual or gay men. Alex is in the military, and Michael works in a car shop. These jobs both contradict these stereotypes which can be limiting and harmful. 

This stereotype is further examined in McLaughlin and Rodriguez's "Identifying with a Stereotype: The Divergent Effects of Exposure to Homosexual Characters." McLaughlin and Rodriguez write "Not all homosexual males are effeminate. Nor are they all flamboyant, fashionable, emotional, or hypersexualized. Yet many people are surprised if they discover that someone who does not “seem gay” turns out to be homosexual (Rapp, 2013)." They discuss this caricaturing that can occur which reinforces harmful stereotypes such as the ones that Roswell, New Mexico avoids with Michael and Alex.

While Alex and Michael are one of the main relationships in Roswell, New Mexico, they aren't the only representation seen in the show of the LGBTQ+ community.

In "Sex and Candy" (2x6) Isobel Evans, Michael's alien sister, begins exploring her sexuality. She and Kyle Valenti, the character who bullied Alex in high school, both go to Planet 7, a LGBTQ+ bar. This scene is important because it shows a diverse group of sexualities and people are welcome, and Isobel begins to discover her bisexuality.

Roswell, New Mexico is a good example of a step forward in media representation of the LGBTQ+ community. It does this by bringing about societal awareness and acceptance by avoiding the perpetuation of harmful stereotypes as much as possible. Despite some areas for improvement, it's comparatively more representative than most other shows I've seen. I'm hoping to see continued realistic and helpful representation of marginalized identities as I watch more of this series.