Post by Trublu on Apr 21, 2006 13:52:30 GMT -5
I just realized that I had this bookmarked but I never posted it... this article makes me squee.
SVU's Detective Benson Attracts Lesbian Fans
SVU's Detective Benson Attracts Lesbian Fans
by Angie B, May 2004
Dick Wolf’s Law and Order franchise dominates television ratings in the US and has proven that hour-long dramas also do well in syndication: The Law and Order mothership and its spinoffs, Law and Order: Special Victims Unit (nicknamed SVU) and Law and Order: Criminal Intent, all rank in the top twenty shows on a weekly basis, even after years on the air.
Although there are no explicitly lesbian characters on any of the Law and Order shows, SVU's Detective Olivia Benson (played by Mariska Hargitay) has attracted a large lesbian following. Although the fictional New York cop is not out or even directly hinted to be gay, she is one of the few characters on TV to exhibit what are often considered to be d**e characteristics--with short hair, a leather jacket, and a gun at her hip, Olivia sits with legs apart, commanding the space around her. She is the protector of the victims who come through her department, a strong woman in a profession filled with men, and often physically or verbally dominates “perps.” Her uniform includes t-shirts, sweaters, slacks and sensible shoes – no heels, no frills, and little jewelry except for what appears to be a man’s watch.
During its five seasons, the detective has had a few unsuccessful dates with men, or ex’s have been met or discussed, but the show deliberately does not focus on the personal lives of its characters so not much more is known about her personal life. What little we have seen of Olivia’s romantic life has led us to believe she's straight, but the fact that those references are few and far between makes it easier for viewers to speculate about the character’s sexuality.
Co-Executive Producer Ted Kotcheff referenced this in the season one dvd interviews. “We tried to give Mariska a boyfriend. Never worked, and I don’t know why. We didn’t want Mariska to have a boyfriend. We didn’t want Benson to have a boyfriend." The audience, he maintains, made it clear they didn't want Benson to have a boyfriend. While the producers might not understand why a strong androgynous female character works better without a boyfriend, we do.
SVU has had a handful of gay-related episodes, including the groundbreaking “Lowdown” this season, which tackled the issue of African American men who do not consider themselves gay but have sex with other men. Another one, Episode 4.21 (“Fallacy”) dealt with a transgendered MTF named Cheryl Avery (played by The L Word’s Katherine Moennig), who killed someone under threat of being outed. Despite her guilt, both Detective Benson and Assistant District Attorney Alexandra Cabot (Stephanie March) tried to help Cheryl work through an inflexible justice system.
When Benson's partner Detective Elliot Stabler (Christopher Meloni) appeared uncomfortable with Cheryl's gender, Benson confronted him with the statement, “Sounds like you’ve got a problem.”
Episode 5.8 (“Abomination”) saw the murder of a gay man by his lover's actively homophobic father (referred to as "Dr Homophobe" in the episode). It's the father and anti-gay groups who were portrayed as wackos, and the surviving boyfriend pitched in a sympathetic and positive light.
At one point after an inappropriate comment by the more conservative Stabler, Benson responded with, "Oh, so you chose to be heterosexual?" (other times, however, Stabler has been very supportive of gay people).
But with the number of SVU episodes dealing with gay men, it seems odd that in five seasons, no lesbian or bisexual women have been featured characters.
It may be an indication of how far we need to go in the portrayal of lesbians and bisexual women on television that viewers get excited about a character like Benson despite no clear evidence that she's gay. In the case of SVU, producers and stars are most certainly aware of their gay and lesbian fans and the impression that Detective Benson may be a lesbian. On a 2003 appearance on Late Night with Conan O’Brien, Hargitay told this story.
As she alludes to above, Hargitay is persistantly rumored to be a lesbian herself, despite statements from her to the contrary. In the online SVU fandom, the line between discussion of Detective Benson and the actress who plays her is often blurred; a “Mariska Hargitay Debate Club” was even formed to deal with the topic of Hargitay's public proclamations of heterosexuality and perceived discomfort with her character’s ambiguous sexual orientation. A story circulated widely that Hargitay requested a boyfriend for her character in season five, but the veracity of that rumor is not known; regardless, Olivia did not get a boyfriend in Season 5.
Rumors aside, Hargitay and Meloni both attended the 2004 GLAAD awards as presenters, and Hargitay has become active in rape survivor groups in the New York City area, recognizing that her character (who is the product of a rape) is also an important symbol to real-life victims of sex crimes.
Despite the controversy and ambiguety, the SVU fandom is only growing in popularly among lesbians. Online fan fiction pairing Benson with ADA Alexandra Cabot has reached almost 200 stories, across at least 30 websites and mailing lists with sections devoted to the examination and expansion of the show’s subtext.
Whatever Hargitay or the producers believe about Benson's sexuality, in lieu of few other “soft butch” characters on our television screens, Olivia's attitude and androgyny will likely continue to make her appealing to lesbian and bisexual viewers for a long time to come.
SVU's Detective Benson Attracts Lesbian Fans
SVU's Detective Benson Attracts Lesbian Fans
by Angie B, May 2004
Dick Wolf’s Law and Order franchise dominates television ratings in the US and has proven that hour-long dramas also do well in syndication: The Law and Order mothership and its spinoffs, Law and Order: Special Victims Unit (nicknamed SVU) and Law and Order: Criminal Intent, all rank in the top twenty shows on a weekly basis, even after years on the air.
Although there are no explicitly lesbian characters on any of the Law and Order shows, SVU's Detective Olivia Benson (played by Mariska Hargitay) has attracted a large lesbian following. Although the fictional New York cop is not out or even directly hinted to be gay, she is one of the few characters on TV to exhibit what are often considered to be d**e characteristics--with short hair, a leather jacket, and a gun at her hip, Olivia sits with legs apart, commanding the space around her. She is the protector of the victims who come through her department, a strong woman in a profession filled with men, and often physically or verbally dominates “perps.” Her uniform includes t-shirts, sweaters, slacks and sensible shoes – no heels, no frills, and little jewelry except for what appears to be a man’s watch.
During its five seasons, the detective has had a few unsuccessful dates with men, or ex’s have been met or discussed, but the show deliberately does not focus on the personal lives of its characters so not much more is known about her personal life. What little we have seen of Olivia’s romantic life has led us to believe she's straight, but the fact that those references are few and far between makes it easier for viewers to speculate about the character’s sexuality.
Co-Executive Producer Ted Kotcheff referenced this in the season one dvd interviews. “We tried to give Mariska a boyfriend. Never worked, and I don’t know why. We didn’t want Mariska to have a boyfriend. We didn’t want Benson to have a boyfriend." The audience, he maintains, made it clear they didn't want Benson to have a boyfriend. While the producers might not understand why a strong androgynous female character works better without a boyfriend, we do.
SVU has had a handful of gay-related episodes, including the groundbreaking “Lowdown” this season, which tackled the issue of African American men who do not consider themselves gay but have sex with other men. Another one, Episode 4.21 (“Fallacy”) dealt with a transgendered MTF named Cheryl Avery (played by The L Word’s Katherine Moennig), who killed someone under threat of being outed. Despite her guilt, both Detective Benson and Assistant District Attorney Alexandra Cabot (Stephanie March) tried to help Cheryl work through an inflexible justice system.
When Benson's partner Detective Elliot Stabler (Christopher Meloni) appeared uncomfortable with Cheryl's gender, Benson confronted him with the statement, “Sounds like you’ve got a problem.”
Episode 5.8 (“Abomination”) saw the murder of a gay man by his lover's actively homophobic father (referred to as "Dr Homophobe" in the episode). It's the father and anti-gay groups who were portrayed as wackos, and the surviving boyfriend pitched in a sympathetic and positive light.
At one point after an inappropriate comment by the more conservative Stabler, Benson responded with, "Oh, so you chose to be heterosexual?" (other times, however, Stabler has been very supportive of gay people).
But with the number of SVU episodes dealing with gay men, it seems odd that in five seasons, no lesbian or bisexual women have been featured characters.
It may be an indication of how far we need to go in the portrayal of lesbians and bisexual women on television that viewers get excited about a character like Benson despite no clear evidence that she's gay. In the case of SVU, producers and stars are most certainly aware of their gay and lesbian fans and the impression that Detective Benson may be a lesbian. On a 2003 appearance on Late Night with Conan O’Brien, Hargitay told this story.
MARISKA: A week ago, I'm walking down Seventh Ave. I am with my boyfriend, and he’s got his arm right here [around hip]…. Nobody recognizes me, and all of a sudden this guy yells, and he goes, “Oh my god! Oh my god!” And I go, “What?” You know, I thought someone had been hurt, and I turn around, and he goes, “Damn! I thought you were a lesbian!”
CONAN: Really? Because of your character on the show?
MARISKA: Yes, everyone thinks that, and I don't know why. [smiles and throws up her hands]
As she alludes to above, Hargitay is persistantly rumored to be a lesbian herself, despite statements from her to the contrary. In the online SVU fandom, the line between discussion of Detective Benson and the actress who plays her is often blurred; a “Mariska Hargitay Debate Club” was even formed to deal with the topic of Hargitay's public proclamations of heterosexuality and perceived discomfort with her character’s ambiguous sexual orientation. A story circulated widely that Hargitay requested a boyfriend for her character in season five, but the veracity of that rumor is not known; regardless, Olivia did not get a boyfriend in Season 5.
Rumors aside, Hargitay and Meloni both attended the 2004 GLAAD awards as presenters, and Hargitay has become active in rape survivor groups in the New York City area, recognizing that her character (who is the product of a rape) is also an important symbol to real-life victims of sex crimes.
Despite the controversy and ambiguety, the SVU fandom is only growing in popularly among lesbians. Online fan fiction pairing Benson with ADA Alexandra Cabot has reached almost 200 stories, across at least 30 websites and mailing lists with sections devoted to the examination and expansion of the show’s subtext.
Whatever Hargitay or the producers believe about Benson's sexuality, in lieu of few other “soft butch” characters on our television screens, Olivia's attitude and androgyny will likely continue to make her appealing to lesbian and bisexual viewers for a long time to come.