So I had some truly incomprehensible conversations recently with people who firmly believe that Heated Rivalry is Russian propaganda -- because the (Canadian) show depicts a queer Russian man as sympathetic? I guess?? -- and while that was obviously a bugfuck weird opinion to have, it did inspire me to think more about the timeline of the show (as pulled from the timeline I put together) vs. the timeline of modern Russian legislation targeting the queer population. (I didn't realize these were Christmas colors until halfway thru making this; I didn't do that on purpose.)
1922/1926 - the Bolshevik Revolution decriminalizes homosexuality.
1933 - Joseph Stalin recriminalizes homosexuality, coinciding with a rise in imperialistic leanings. The Holodomor famine is inflicted on Ukraine by the USSR, and over the next forty years or so, the Soviet Union annexes, invades, and/or occupies most of Eastern and Central Europe, as well as establishing satellite states in places like Finland, Afghanistan, Mongolia, Yugoslavia, and China.
1993 - After the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, a new criminal code is adopted in the Russian federation; homosexuality decriminalized and gay prisoners released.
1999 - homosexuality is declassified as a mental illness in Russian Federation.
2000 - Putin comes to power as president of the Russian Federation and brings in sweeping attitudes of "traditional values" and Russian imperialism.
2006 - first attempted Pride Parade in Moscow results in violent clashes. First region in Russian Federation passes ban on "homosexual propaganda."
December 2008 - First Prospect Cup. Shane and Ilya meet. Russia/Ilya wins.
June 2009 - NHL draft in Los Angeles. Ilya drafted first, Shane drafted second. They have that intense stareoff in the hotel gym.
Dec 2009 - 2nd Prospect Cup held in Ottawa. Shane/Canada wins.
March 2010 - Russia fined by European Court of Human Rights because many Russian cities refuse to allow Pride parades.
June 2010 - Shane and Ilya shoot a commercial together (that Ilya set up) in Toronto. Shower scene, then first sex in Shaneâs hotel room.
Jan or Feb 2011 - All-Star game in Nashville. *Scott Hunter sees all* Second sex in Ilyaâs hotel room, they makes a plan for fucking at Shaneâs apartment in 2 weeks after a game in Montreal.
Feb 2011 - game in Montreal canceled because of inclement weather.
May 2011 - NHL awards in Las Vegas, *Scott Hunter sees all* Shane wins Rookie of the Year award. Shane and Ilya kiss on rooftop, Ilya goes back to Russia for summer.
2011-2012 - more regions in the Russian Federation pass legislation prohibited open discussion of homosexuality and public events such as Pride.
2012 - "Advocacy group Immigration Equality said that in the last two years, it won more gay and lesbian asylum cases for Russians [...] than from any other country besides Jamaica."
Summer 2011-Fall 2013 - Shane and Ilya text back and forth and play against each other but do not hook up.
June 2013 - Russian Federation passes a federal law banning: "Propaganda of non-traditional sexual relations among minors, manifested in the distribution of information aimed at forming non-traditional sexual orientations, the attraction of non-traditional sexual relations, distorted conceptions of the social equality of traditional and non-traditional sexual relations among minors, or imposing information on non-traditional sexual relations which evoke interest in these kinds of relations."
Oct 2013 - game in Montreal. Sexting before the game. Shane/Montreal wins. Ilya goes to Shaneâs apartment, first actual fucking.
Dec 2013 - federal law passed allowing media regulator to block websites calling for public protest in wake of anti-gay law.
Feb 2014 - Sochi Olympics. Russia/Ilya gets knocked out early. Ilya isnât responding to Shaneâs texts, rebuffs him when Shane tries to see how heâs doing. Shane/Canada win.
Mar 2014 - Russian Federation illegally annexes Crimea, a part of Ukraine. Nationalism grips the country: hate crimes against LGBT+ individuals and other minorities skyrocket.
Apr 2014 - Montreal/Shane get knocked out of the playoffs early, Boston/Ilya win Stanley Cup.
May 2014 - NHL awards in Las Vegas, Ilya wins MVP of the year. Bathroom scene, then Shane goes to Ilyaâs room for "no kiss" sex.
Summer 2014-Summer 2016 - montage, Shane and Ilya hooking up and playing hockey.
May 2015 - Federal law prohibits "undesirable organizations" from operating within Russia. The list includes many LGBT rights organizations.
October 2016 - tuna melts, Shane and Ilya miscommunicate and crash out. Shane starts dating Rose, they see each other at the club, and Shane breaks up with Rose, all before the end of the year. Shane had a busy autumn.
Feb 2017-present - anti-gay purges carried out in Chechnya. Gay men and women are kidnapped, tortured, imprisoned, and killed.
I'm not saying that Ilya doesn't have other reasons for reacting this way, especially his self-loathing and fear of intimacy, but there are people like them being purged in his country while they are having this conversation. This context matters! His behavior is a reflection of the horrific shit that is unfolding in Russia!
We see this also in his behavior towards Sasha, his former lover, back in 2014. Sasha comments that Ilya used to be more adventurous; a casual viewer might read this strictly as Ilya being less interested in sex with anyone who isn't Shane, but recall that in scenes after this we see him hooking up with women casually. He specifically turns down sex with a man.
The last time Ilya and Sasha hooked up, apparently prior to 2010, Russia was a very different country. In 2014, when Sasha appears, the anti-"homosexual propaganda" law had just been passed six months ago. I believe that it's important to consider this context when viewing Ilya's character and his decisions, both with Shane and with Sasha.
Anyway, I've spent too long on this. Support queer Russians trying to change their country and support queer Russians trying to escape their country. Fuck anyone who supports Putin and his authoritarian, homophobic regime.
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