Queer Leading Ladies

Abstract

Since the 2000s, LGBTQ characters have become more common in mainstream media such as film and television. However, some representations of LGBTQ characters may have been included to target non-LGBTQ viewers, who perceived LGBTQ characters as quirky secondary characters, rather than LGBTQ viewers, who sought accurate representations of their identities and experiences. Television representations of queer women have also become more common and diverse in the 2010s than the 2000s. This essay analyzes the representations of LGBTQ characters from both decades in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, The L Word, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, and Orange Is the New Black through a feminist perspective with a focus on how queer women are represented in their respective series.