10 Gayest Things I Have Saved On TiVo

Two snaps up for DVR

by j. brotherlove

Gotta love digital video recorders (DVR), popularized by TiVo (although they may be moving a little slow when it comes to innovation). Once you get the hang of it, there really isn’t a reason to shun social interaction in favor of staying home to catch your favorite show (unless you really want to). Just set your DVR of choice to record all the goodies and then catch them when life slows down.

The problem I have though, is I save the damn shows and never delete the ones I really like (despite owning a DVD recorder). For shits and giggles, here are 10 of the gayest things I have saved on TiVo.

Brother To Brother
As I wrote before, I really liked this independent film tying together the life of a young, gay painter with that of an older Harlem Rennaissance writer. There was some dissent over the amount of interacial coupling (and numerous other complaints by folk like Rod) but I found the story unique, touching and believable in its depiction of sexuality. Most importantly, the film introduced me to Anthony Mackie.

The Click List: Best in Short Film
LOGO has turned out to be one of my favorite television stations. Their short film series, The Click List, has some good gems. I first saw the short “Dani and Alice” at a film festival. Essentially, it’s a well-made and unapologetic look at a tumultuous lesbian relationship. I’d like to see more of this dramatic storytelling.

My Wife And Kids
In the two-part episode, “Bahamas”, Jr. ditches wife Vanessa and their new baby to find some fun on the island. He finds a playmate in Dave who, unbeknownst to Jr., is a member of the Gay Men’s Water Polo Team. Dave is played by the gorgeous soap-hunk Marcus Patrick, seen in Half & Half and the upcoming DIrty Laundry. There are plenty of scenes of Patrick in skimpy shorts having a good time with Jr.

Noah’s Arc
Despite my many criticisms of Noah’s Arc, I saved all the episodes from Season 1. I’ll have to see what extras the DVD collection will have to decide if it’s worth buying. Season 2 begins August 9 and shows promise with appearances by Keith Hamilton Cobb, Raz B and my babydady, Rockmond Dunbar.

Oprah Winfrey
Lately, Oprah has been getting ding’d by the hip hop community (something I find ironic) and Kathy Griffin (hilariously so). But Oprah’s lowpoint for me was the sensationally-titled episode: “Author Terry McMillan Confronts Her Gay Ex-Husband”. McMillan and Jonathon Plummer (her “gay ex-husband”) bickered for an hour with Oprah instigating the madness from beginning to end.

The Real World: Philadelphia
I didn’t realize until the Philadelphia season that I had outgrown The Real World. In one of the earlier episodes (“Bed-Swapping Begins”), Shavonda and Landon’s flirtation builds. That’s like, a requirement on the show so, who cares. I saved this episode solely to watch Karamo walking around with a towel hanging off his ass.

Rome
Overall, HBO’s Rome was boring to me. However, in the episode “Egeria”, Atia pretends to makeup to Sevilla by sending her a well-hung servent as a gift. It’s rare that American televison serves up full frontal male nudity. Better yet, the scene yields the quote: “Large penis is always welcome.”

She Hate Me
Initially, you may not find a film about a man who gets paid to have sex and impregnate women to be especialy gay-oriented. Sure, the women he sires are lesbians but there isn’t much more commentary on homosexuality other than that. Like most of Spike Lee’s films, She Hate Me is uneven and unfocused. However, there are a few scenes in which Anthony Mackie showcases his er, assets. Nuff said.

Six Feet Under
Six Feet Under bears the distinction of being the only show that made me sob when it went off the air. In the episode “Back to the Garden”, Rico comes home early to see if wife Vanessa is cheating on him with her hunky cousin Ramon (played by Ricardo Antonio Chavira). He walks in to catch Ramon delivering poundage to another guy. Now, that is great television!

Ski Trip
As a genre, black gay film still has some hurdles to overcome in the quality department (writing, acting, production). Of the lot, Ski Trip, Maurice Jamal’s over-the-top film about a group of New York gay friends who go on a weekend getaway, is one of my favorites. There are questionable spots in Ski Trip but overall, it’s very entertaining and has the nerve to have some good twists hidden in it.

*snapping right with you for DVR* I tell ya, DVR has revolutionized all of my bad TV-watching. :) Once you have it, it’s kind of hard to imagine NOT having it. (I mean, come on, fast-forwarding past commercials…?)

And well “She Hate Me”…that movie. It is indeed, a car wreck. A car wreck that I would leave burning on the side of of the road. LOL