Ciara

As a queer woman I am so happy that Heated Rivalry is getting so much attention, is so popular and so loved. However, as a wlw member of the lgbtqia+ community I am enraged. We are used to not having representation. In every show we get with a lesbian or a wlw couple they both die, the show gets cancelled after 3 episodes or it’s created solely for the male gaze. While I often joke about queerbait and two characters in a show being lesbians (when it’s not canon), I do think it’s a bigger issue than I sometimes realize. The fact that Heated Rivalry is now getting so much attention is of course good. I haven't seen Heated Rivalry personally, so this is not an attack on the show specifically. Nevertheless, it is very clear to me that if Heated Rivalry was a show with two women, it would not even come close to the popularity that Heated Rivalry is experiencing right now.   Why would a lesbian show or a wlw show never reach the same number of audiences? The sad answer to this is: women.   The largest audience for a show like Heated Rivalry right now is 1. the queer community and 2. Straight women. Straight women love men in their everyday lives so it is logical they would watch a show that is about men, even if they are gay. A lesbian show would not attract the same type of attention with straight men because they would simply be there for the “sexiness”. I’m not saying all straight men or women are like this because I know there are definitely exceptions, however it is statistically undeniable that lesbian and wlw shows get less recognition and engagement. Take for example The Hunting Wives, a lesbian-ish show that came out in August of 2025. Even though this show had a lot of cheating on husbands with women (something I would consider very specific to the male gaze), it got low(er) views than Heated Rivalry. Also considering that Heated Rivalry came out in the end of 2025.   I believe that sometimes writers are just scared to create lesbian characters. I usually joke about things like Beca and Chloe from Pitch Perfect being gay or Deborah and Ava from Hacks being secret lovers, but a part of me does believe and wishes that there could have been a storyline like that. We have been underrepresented for many many years, and I finally want a show like Heated Rivalry that goes viral and ends well for us lesbians.    

Sarah Janneh, wat. een. vrouw! Vandaag was ik voor het eerst naar Brabo Leone, de theatervoorstelling van Sarah Janneh. I know, I know, ik had al veel eerder moeten gaan., maar wat is deze show goed zeg. De voorstelling gaat over cultuur en identiteit in Sarah haar leven. Vanaf de seconde dat Sarah begint met zingen, tot het laatste woord dat ze uitspreekt, heeft ze je in een houdgreep. Je aandacht is volledig bij haar en het ruime uur tovert ze om naar wat voelt als 3 seconden. Vanaf de eerste toon die door de theaterzaal galmt staan de haren op je armen overeind, en dat gaat niet meer weg. Gedurende de hele voorstelling ga je door een rollercoaster heen (zo zegt Sarah zelf ook dat het leven een rollercoaster is). De tranen rollen over je wangen, de lach komt recht uit je hart en je hele lichaam voelt de muziek die Sarah overbrengt. Ik heb vaak geluisterd naar clips van Sarah die zingt op sociale media of naar haar nummers die op Spotify staan, maar niks. NIKS. Kwam zo goed over als live. Ze heeft zó veel bereik met haar stem en zó ontzettend veel emotie die ze zoals geen andere kan overbrengen. Je voelt haar muziek binnenkomen tot aan je tenen en blijft over haar verhaal nadenken. De show heeft emotionele thema's, verlies en rouw staan centraal, maar vanwege de gebalanceerde emotie en humor wordt het niet een zielige- of een "medelijden" voorstelling. Als Sarah iets verteld blijft het hangen, woorden worden mooier en je kippenvel krijg je weer als je er op terug denkt. Sarah heeft een stem die iedereen raakt, het maakt niet uit wie je bent of wat je doet. Je hoeft zelfs niet eens te resoneren met de dingen waarover Sarah zingt. Sarah Janneh haar zang is zo speciaal, haar stem is er echt een als van geen andere en ik gun het iedereen om deze live te zien. Het heelt iets in je wat je niet wist dat kon helen.

Okay, I finished this show today and Oh My God. The first thing I did was of course looking up edits on tiktok, only to find that a lot of people were hating on the show???? HELLO? Did we watch the same thing? I know that some people were expecting it to be exactly like Derry Girls because Lisa McGee wrote it and it's a (Northern) Ireland based show. But that's no reason to hate on it when it was clearly not a show that was pure comedy? Look it was funny and all but I continued watching because of the excitement, the murder mystery and the fact that you could not stop watching it because you would miss a clue. I've also seen a lot of people saying that they got bored and my question is how exactly did you get bored? There's so many details and while the plot flows in a way that is quite an obvious plotline it works so well. I also personally really liked the Derry Girls hints in the show and using a lot of the same actors but that's just my opinion. I really like McGee her writing so I would 100% recommend this to anyone who is still in doubt!!

In May 2025 I was in New York City, visiting family. Trump was already president and had been doing questionable things, but it wasn’t as bad as the current state of the country. I remember walking around NY and thinking: this is one of the most educated states in the US, and it is also one of the few democratic states in the US. What does that tell you? But clearly that doesn’t tell them enough. Because so many people would rather have a convicted felon in charge of their country instead of a black woman. It seems that finally people are starting to gather some sense. It took the murder on innocent people to cause this reaction, and maybe the reaction was only there because white people started to get affected as well, but hey, at least there was some sort of reaction. Finally people are starting to think about the consequences of their country. But why now? Why not earlier? I mean even I remember the exact way I found out Kamala Harris had lost. I was on my way to school and had never felt so defeated in public transport before. We had an event at school for my English class that was supposed to be an “election afterparty” but it became more of a “election funeral”. Somehow it seems that people in Europe are more affected by something happening in the US than they are invested in their own country. We are all sensing patterns and realizing that this looks an awful lot like some of Europe’s history but the citizens of the US? Well some of them still support ICE. Whilst I’m writing this I’m getting more aggressive by the minute. When I’m scrolling on social media I see hope, a tiny glimpse of hope and revolution amongst our generation. If only Kamala Harris was president. I have never felt such hope as when she was campaigning. Conversing with people about her and what she was planning on doing was my life for 3 months. Arguing with people on social media, telling them why they should vote for her, convincing them, even begging them to vote for her, just because I found -and still find it- it so important. But I know there’s people that still “support ICE, just not the way they are doing it” or some bullshit like that. Because that is exactly what it is. BULLSHIT. They are murdering people in broad daylight and you still support them? Even if you don’t support them right now, why would you even support them in the first place? ICE agents deport people. PEOPLE. I guess some of the US inhabitants do not understand that every single person deported is a human, with a beating heart, a thinking brain and the same red blood as you and I have. I have seen firsthand how easy it is to get sucked into rabbit holes and conspiracy theories, but there is absolutely no excuse for supporting Trump or voting for him. People that are saying they regret their vote for Trump will have to live with that choice for the rest of their lives. They will continue living knowing they voted for a paedophile, a felon, a racist, a misogynist and an awful human being in general, and for what? Cheaper egg prices? Well you didn’t even get those, so hope it was worth it.. I have no clue on how to take action against this. Against all that is happening in the world right now, so I’m voicing my opinions this way. I am telling everybody that sees this to stand up, whether you are from the US or not, stand up for what is unjust. In any way. It does not matter how, as long as it happens.

The flower that stays The one that lasts It will always be there No matter its past The future in front of it Delicate but tough Will it open up Or will it give up It endures the winter To bloom in the spring Its perseverance Is what makes it interesting How it feels so deeply For everyone Paying attention Giving recognition It's best when its with others A ray of sunshine Filling up the room It won't ever be mine That's okay though I'll admire from afar It's beauty recognizable From wherever you are