[Queer as Folk Recap w/ Joe Lipsett] Sacrilege Ends Season One on an Incredible Note

Each week Joe and Terry discuss the most recent episode of Peacock’s reboot of Queer as Folk, alternating between our respective sites. 

Missed a Review? Episode 1 / 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 7

Spoilers follow for episode 8 “Sacrilege”: Bussey throws a transformative party to reclaim Babylon; Mingus performs again; Bussey, Brodie, Ruthie, Shar and Brenda make decisions that will change the course of their lives.

TERRY

Queer as Folk ends its first season balancing a lot of plots and teasing character revelations, Joe, all while giving us a solid exorcism-by-lip synch, demolition, and so much more. It’s a overfilled helping of melodrama that ends a season that began with queer trauma on an ecstatic note of queer love and resilience.The series has fulfilled the trailer’s promise of queer resilence and hope, even as this finale added some complexities to the relationships and left a few unresolved. 

It also made me cry…at least three times. 

In a way, “Sacrilege” was a mirror episode of episode one “Babylon”. It begins with Brodie (Devin Way), back at the BLM-tatted white boy’s house, having gotten really drunk and thinking he could “fill one hole by filling another hole.” And when the character only known as Fuccboi (Caleb Spivak) tries to console him, telling him (in a round about way) that fucking a white boy is self-care, Brodie snaps back, “eating your ass isn’t self care. It’s rock bottom.” Cue Jack Cole Jordan (Benito Skinner)’s entrance, stage left. Because of course he’s in a relationship with the BLM White Boy. Rock bottom, indeed.

The action picks up with Bussey (Armand Fields) standing outside of Babylon with Brodie and asking him to cosign the loan because her credit is shit and his family is rich and white. This gets in the way of Brodie’s plans to leave New Orleans for good and weighs on him all episode. 

Speaking of weighing on someone, Mingus (Fin Argus) gets an email about HIV meds and what to expect while taking them as he waits to tell his working mom Judy (Juliette Lewis) about his performance at Babylon that night. He’s still unable to tell her he’s HIV positive and that, like Brodie’s decision, weighs on him. 

Meanwhile, Shar (CG) and Ruthie (Jesse James Keitel) are having a moment as a couple who, for once, are both fulfilling their parental responsibilities. Ruthie talks about how good it feels to finally be present while Shar is dodging texts from Brenda (Kim Cattrall), who makes a huge surprise coming out/divorce party later the day thanks to the way Shar made her feel at the club. While neither Shar nor Ruthie believe in the institution of marriage, Shar suggests they get married. 

This is a huge red flag moment because it’s coming out of a place of regret from Shar and not from a desire to actually be married. It feels like a last ditch effort to keep hold of their family and try to put another block between Shar and Brenda. 

Overall, “Sacrilege” gives us plenty of meaty storylines and some intense situations that must be resolved, but a few of the other stories get left behind. One of the more muted storylines belongs to Julian (Ryan O’Connell) and Noah (Johnny Sibilly). Outside of a few awkward encounters with Brodie, we’re still kind of in the same limbo that we’ve been in since Brodie discovered that Noah slept with Daddius (Chris Renfro), as well as Julian. A couple people want Julian to apologize to Brodie and Brodie seems to have come to terms with Noah’s relationship with Julian, telling him, “just be good to my brother, okay?” But otherwise, it’s a rather empty story for the pair. 

Another plotline that gets left in the dust somewhat is the romance between Marvin (Eric Graise) and Ali (Sachin Bhatt). After Ali dumped Marvin, Marvin’s been a grumpy gus and when Ali attempts to rekindle a relationship, Marvin tells him to fuck off…then gets mad Ali isn’t fighting for him. So he does and they’re back together, I guess. 

But honestly I’m okay with those two stories getting put aside because the meat of “Sacrilege” was so enthralling to watch. I want to particularly focus on the fantastic drag performance by Mingus, set to the Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ titular song “Sacrilege.” The song speaks entirely to Mingus’s relationship with Brodie (it’s also one of my favorite songs of theirs), with lyrics like “Fallen for a guy, fell down from the sky / Halo round his head / Feathers in a bid … It’s sacrilege, sacrilege, sacrilege, sacrilege, you say” all while Mingus dances along, dressed as an angel. 

The idea of a fallen angel mixed with sex is a potent image, one that Queer as Folk capitalizes on with flashbacks of Mingus, in front of a shot Brodie and flanked by angel wings. At first, I wasn’t as enamored with this performance when compared to Mingus’s introduction to drag, but as they continue, stripping off the angel costume and eventually the wig, it becomes a transcendental experience; an exorcism via lip synch that ends with Mingus collapsing on the stage, being held by the man who saved his life. 

This moment turns into one of intense pain, pleasure and strength as the Yeah Yeah Yeahs music blares into its gospel-influenced chants of “Sacrilege, sacrilege, sacrilege you say!” as the crowd dances, kisses, strips clothes, swings sledge hammers, and bashing the shit out of Babylon. It’s a montage of ecstatic joy and anger; sex, violence, destruction and creation all set to the beautiful and moving song. And it ends on a rebellious moment of Brodie seeing Ghost Daddius standing by the fallen disco ball, holding up a middle finger. You might have hurt us but we’re going to persevere, it says. 

What a moment, Joe. And a reminder that Queer as Folk needs to be renewed. 

But there’s a lot of other stuff to dig into here, Joe. I am curious if you were as moved by this moment in Babylon as I was. We also get some more drama in the Ruthie/Shar/Brenda love triangle and I’m curious what you thought about this plotline, from Brenda’s coming out party to their scenes at Babylon and beyond? 

Mingus, meanwhile, gets his moment with his mom…did this scene make you cry (like it did me)? How did this storyline go for you this episode? And, finally, did you gasp when Brodie talks about going to Manchester and shows a picture of Nathan Maloney (Charlie Hunnan)??

JOE

I definitely laughed at the two very obvious nods to the previous iterations of this property (the other is the opening credits of dancing go-go boys from the US version that is playing on Brodie’s TV at the top of the episode). It’s a knowing wink from showrunner Stephen Dunn (who also directs) to the creators who came before him.

Now you warned me in advance that the episode made you emotional and, while I didn’t cry at Mingus and Judy, the ecstatic dance sequence at Babylon absolutely got me. It’s everything you mentioned: a whirlwind of emotions that feels like liberation by the end of the sequence.

I also love how the dancing is intermixed with destruction: that universal desire to tear it all down in order to begin something new. It’s thematically appropriate considering what Brodie & Ruthie and Brenda & Shar ultimately do to their relationships.

I think we’re on the same page that overall this first season of Queer as Folk has struggled to balance its narrative priorities. That’s certainly the case here. As you observed, several storylines are underserved (Noah & Julian) or just plain undercooked (Marvin and Ali), effectively sidelining characters the show has deemed secondary in order to prioritize others. I don’t mind…unless this is the end of the road for the series, in which case I’ll be incredibly frustrated. 

We needed at least two more episodes this season and the show absolutely deserves a second one.

If anything this greediness is a testament to what Dunn and his creative team have achieved. We’ve mentioned Genera+ion a few times and I think the comparison is apt because both of these incredibly queer shows are about the power of community. Both shows also managed to pack an emotional arc/wallop in a condensed amount of time, often in ways that other shows can’t…or simply don’t bother to. 

Call me biased, but queer shows by queer creators just hit differently. The problem is that this means they may not connect with larger audiences and leave them vulnerable for cancellation. We’ve already lost Genera+ion. Will we lose Queer as Folk too? 

Obviously we both hope not, if only because this final episode makes it clear just how many stories are left to explore. And I’m not just talking about the relationship cliffhangers with Ruthie & Brodie and Shar & Brenda (though I’m curious to see what life is like for both new couples when the liquor and the thunder and lightning wear off). 

No, we need to see more about how Mingus’ new reality - both drag and HIV - change his world (or don’t, as his progressive “coming out positive” scene with Judy demonstrates). And we deserve to see more of the hot, messy and sexy relationships with our disabled characters, Julian and Marvin. 

Hell, I even want to learn more about side characters like Mingus’ friend Jake (Brandon Gilpin), who initially stalks off when he learns Mingus lied about their HIV diagnosis, only to return with a plethora of chips from the vending machine. What’s his story? And what’s Bussey’s HIV+ partner like? What does Babylon 2.0 look like? I need to know!

The other reason I’m such a needy bitch is because Queer as Folk feels like a balm on the open wound of real (queer) life, Terry. During the course of the season, we’ve literally seen the politics surrounding trans and women’s rights implode in the United States. So yes, I’m living for my complicated, fucked up New Orleans babies because these are the kinds of stories that we need right now.

But now I’m just getting messy myself. Let me circle back to the ridiculousness that is Brenda and her extravagant, stupid coming out party. 

This character is so fucking extra she’s nearly a caricature, but in the hands of Kim Cattrall (who arrives with built-in goodwill thanks to her legacy), Brenda is absolutely divine. What’s fascinating is quickly our feelings about Brenda can change. At the party, she’s basically a cartoon parody (honestly, watching the flag drop behind her reminded me of the performative rebranding we see from companies at the start of every June). Contrast that to her final scene with Shar when they kiss outside Babylon. I was absolutely dreading the inevitable discovery, but I was 100% rooting for that kiss. 

That’s Queer as Folk’s power, Terry: taking us from sublime ridiculousness to dread and yearning only a few scenes later.

But back to you: what do you hope for from the second season we demand Peacock give us? Are there characters or plot lines you would have liked more time with this season? And what is your grade for S01?

TERRY  

“Messy” is a word we’ve used a number of times while writing about Queer as Folk (I did a word search: this is the 14th use of it). We’ve described the characters as messy, and the same can be said about the narrative.

 It hasn’t been perfect, but in its imperfections Queer as Folk has succeeded far more than I anticipated. It’d be an injustice not to renew this show because, frankly, it’s been a comfort watching it and existing in a world where straight people are few and far between. It’s like a trip to Fire Island…without the rich white entitled abs that come with it. So for the second season that, at this point I’m just actively attempting to will into existence, I want to see the drama unravel between Shar, Brenda, Ruthie and Brodie. Brenda has been an unexpected joy in these last few episodes and I was genuinely surprised that the narrative would go down the Shar/Brenda path that it did. And when you factor in the other sides of this square with Ruthie and Brodie, the drama is just too juicy to ignore. 

Speaking of which, I want to see Brodie become less mopey and more active in his community. I had a moment in the finale where I was curious if we’d get a Brodie in Manchester storyline or if Russell T Davies was planning a spinoff, of sorts, having Brodie as a UK transplant in a British redo of the series…but seeing him with Ruthie paid off a simmering tension that has subtly lingered under the surface. 

Honestly, I just want more, Joe. 

So even though Queer as Folk was a messy bitch of a show (Counter: 16) and some of the plots didn’t always work for me or felt a bit too tropey, I still have to assign an A- to the season as a whole. 

What about you? What are you hoping for from a second season (again: willing it into existence) and what is your final grade for this season?

JOE

As someone who is covering a similarly messy (17) and highly enjoyable show that no one appears to be watching (AppleTV’s Physical), I could see a potential S02 of QAF adopting one of that show’s tactics: a minor time jump. 

We’ve already seen it between the pilot and the second episode (which Dunn and co. used to bypass the post-Babylon grieving), and it would be interesting to see that same approach applied to these new relationships. You don’t break up new parents with a (surrogate) mother and adopted son without plans to explore that drama, but how interesting would it be to catch up three months after this all went down?

Aside from that, I’d like to see more of Julian and Noah’s relationship. They drew the short straw in terms of screen time in the finale, but just because their storyline is less conventionally dramatic doesn’t make them less interesting in my mind. I want to see how they negotiate Julian’s new gig as a flight attendant, and how Noah settles into domesticity.  

But most of all, I never, EVER want to see Chris Renfro on this show again unless it’s in a flashback. Ghost Daddius, you have been banished!

Oh, and one final request: how about a single lesbian or bisexual woman? We could use a few more female characters on the show, if we’re being honest.

But in reality, it’s all small critiques. I’m with you, Terry: S01 of Queer As Folk deserves an A- and a season two renewal STAT.