And so, after what? 7? 8? 9? years I finished watching QaF. I watched S1 up to about ep 17 twice but at the time there was no more and the CD it was recorded on got damaged. Last year I started again and this time I got to S2E6 where I ran out of episodes, it took another few months to resume and another few till I watched it to the end.
Season 1 was engaging right from the pilot episode but now it feels like a prequel, it's only after it that things get real. Somehow slowly the story really gets to you and you find yourself drawn in. The whole series was very well-paced. I think S3 has to be my favourite, the finale really captured my heart but every season had its moments.
I'm not 100% happy with the ending. Not because of the failed wedding, no. In fact, the whole thing with the wedding was over the top in the first place. Also I really didn't get Justin at first being tired of Brian's whoring and then saying Brian isn't Brian when he's not whoring. Like, WTF was that? There were too many cheesy things in there, felt out of place. But overall, it was good, it felt right. I almost cried in the end, it hit me right in the feels and I wasn't expecting that.
Now let me talk about the characters.
Ted: You can't fool me. You gotta free yourself of this burden. Release it. Let it all hang out.
Brian: My mother was a frigid bitch. My father was an abusive drunk. They had a hateful marriage, which is probably why I am unwilling or unable to form a committed long-term relationship of my own. The fact that I drink like a fish, abuse drugs, and have more or less redefined promiscuity doesn't help, much. As a result, I've lost the two people in my life that mean most to me.
Brian Kinney. This man deserves his own paragraph. At first you'd think he'd be boring, one of those types that everyone falls for, who's too perfect and cliche but he's not, he's a great complex character with a through backstory and one of the very few I identify with. Which may seem odd because I'm so far from hedonism but it's what he believes, his honestly and cynicism that speak to me. He's strong, bold and unapologetic. He does what he believes in no matter how hard it is and whether people understand him or not. People get mad at him for saying cruel things but more often than not, he ends up being right. He clearly has his issues but he's dealing with them the best he can. I also love the fact that he's not some cliched dramatic fuck who has lost his faith in love after some bullshit incident that broke his heart and his promiscuity isn't a facade and a means to cover up vulnerability. He knows himself, his weaknesses and the reasons for them.
And then there's Justin. I didn't like him at first. He was just a brat. But he was a very strong one and I couldn't help but start respecting him. Then, somewhere around S3 I found myself liking him. He matured, he became more rational and his passion got focused. He went from fanboying over Brian to really loving him but he still held his values first and I think that's why Brian respected him. He actually understood Brian better than anyone did and way better than Michael.
Michael is adorable. Not very smart but adorable. You really want to protect him from the world and see him be happy more than anyone. And Hal Sparks actually seems a lot like him. Ted was just a lame character. He was adding something to the story at some points and presented a contrast as a counterpart of Brian but his storylines just kept getting more and more ridiculous with drugs and plastic surgery and whatever. Also Emmett's sugar daddies were a tad tiresome but Emmett was precious and essential in this show. I love Debbie and her overbearing relationship with Michael. It's hard to believe they're not related, they looked more than natural. I liked the Ethan storyline but it was killed off way too abruptly so it was too obvious he only served to move the Brian-Justin relationship to the next level.
I think character and character development is the show's strongest point. I am most fascinated with the way nobody's always right or wrong, everyone fucks up once in a while, and everyone can be the wise voice of reason some other time, it creates realism and balance.
I didn't watch QaF for love story. Then again, I guess nobody did. But now I think Brian and Justin's story is one of the best love stories I've seen. It's very unconventional. Not just because it's gay but because it's ever-changing, developing from a fling/crush into a mature relationship of two strong people who are free and quite different but try their best to make it work. It's romantic precisely because it's not.
That scene after the explosion was magical.
I still have this fanvideo of them that's been on my PC since 2007 or 2008 but of course back then I had no idea.
I also couldn't not watch some interviews, BTS and specials. In a way, I always regret watching those because they ruin the magic, you can never see the media the same as you did before. Most of the cast seemed absolutely happy to be on the show and thrilled with everything but Gale and Randy obviously had some mixed feelings and it was a little sad. Gale especially seems like a really private person and he did not appear for most of promotions and such. He's quiet and soft-spoken, as different from Brian Kinny as it's humanly possible. It was a little disappointing, really, but at the same time that means he's an amazing actor. Also everyone kept talking about how technical it all was and being all professional, it really ruined the mood, especially with the amazing chemistry of Brian and Justin.
Another part of QaF that I love is sсript. To me it probably comes at #2 after the characters. There was some great humour on the show but also there were some really fucking wise things in there too. I took time to collect some from the web.
QUOTES
Goodbye, Queer as Folk. I loveded you.