It's always nice when an idea you've been percolating for some time is suddenly a) in the public eye and b) collides with another, broader issue, ending up in a great confluence of blogging fuel.

To wit: what's up with gay characters not kissing on my television set?

I first had pause to think of this not while watching television, but when I went to see Valentine's Day (DON'T JUDGE ME!) with a friend; I watched it again, desperate to pass the time, on my flight back from the States this week.

If you haven't seen it, you probably won't, so it will spoil nothing for you to note that Bradley Cooper and McSteamy are in a relationship that has been on rocky ground - presumably due to McSteamy's refusal to come out (he plays an NFL star) - and finally gets back on track as the sun goes down on the titular day.

Perfect moment for a pash fest, right? WRONG!

This (soz, no embedding) is what you get:



We actually thought there was a reel missing and hollered at the projectionist. But no, upon re-watching the film on the plane, I was dismayed to discover it was not a technical difficulty, there's just no kiss!

So, when I read yesterday that Glee's Ryan Murphy had criticised the lack of gay pash-a-rama on television, specifically with regards to Modern Family, I clapped my hands with, well, glee.

Here's what he said:

"I hate it on TV shows, and there’s one show that I won’t name right now, where it’s like ‘Why aren’t these character kissing? Don’t they have a child?’ That’s ridiculous to me. I don’t understand it."

I don't understand it, either.

(For what it's worth, I do love both shows, and Modern Family has for the most part been very pro-gay. And, incidentally, Modern Family creator Steven Levitan had previously given thoughtful and rather saddening reasons for the lack of pash action.)

The television rules seem to dictate - with the obvious exceptions of shows such as Queer As Folk (der), True Blood, and Skins - that "lesbian" kisses (which are traditionally between two straight female characters, anyway)  are okay, but to see two men kiss is anathema.

What gives, television land?

Proposition 8 was just overturned, it's the 21st century, are we still so scared of gay men that to show them kissing - even two gay characters who are married and have a child! - outside of so-called niche programming might set fire to our television sets?

I wracked my brain to think of the last time I saw gay male characters represented honestly and without bombast; all I could think of was back in the eaaaaarly days of Secret Life Of Us (but even then, any pashing was part of the turmoil that Richie went through when wrestling with his blossoming sexuality) and, er, Number 96?

Please feel free to enlighten me of any other happy instances of gay characters being free to express themselves like every. other. single. character. on. television, because I'm drawing mostly blanks.

Can't we all just get our pash on?