Gayest Episode Ever

"Stand by Your Man" (February 16, 1989) This might well be the last time we're discussing a one-off gay episode done by a mainstream sitcom. Dear John's popularity burned bright but quickly, and early in its first season it threw a new character into the mix who was not only gay but also gay. Cleavon Little actually won an Emmy for this performance, and it's deserved, even if some of his antics read a little dated in 2026. We have episode transcripts courtesy of Sarah Neal. Our logo was designed by Rob Wilson. This episode's art was designed by Ian O'Phelan. Sound cues for this podcast were composed by Meika Grimm.

This is a rerun of an episode that originally aired in 2019. "Jennifer: The Movie" (October 29, 1983) We're celebrating both Halloween and week two of our celebration of Ann Jillian with an episode about how the 1983 NBC series Jennifer Slept Here is both so very weird and also a little gay boy's fantasy — because it pairs an awkward boy with glamorous ghost, and that's secretly what every little gay boy wishes he had to guide him through his awkward years. This is peak 80s, but also it has one of the best sitcom themes ever, regardless of decade.

"The Offspring" (March 12, 1990) Yeah, we finally did an hourlong — and if you're surprised that we picked Star Trek: The Next Generation, then you are probably unaware how many fans of GEE are also huge Star Trek nerds. We're joined by friend Mike Gizienski, who knows more about the Star Trek franchise than we do, to discuss the episode with Data's daughter Lal, which isn't especially any of the letters in LBGTQ but manages to tread into each of their territories. Trust us, it's a great episode of TV even if you don't know the difference between an Andorian and a J'naii. We have episode transcripts courtesy of Sarah Neal. Our logo was designed by Rob Wilson. This episode's art was designed by Ian O'Phelan. Sound cues for this podcast were composed by Meika Grimm.

Heads up! This is a rerun of an episode that originally aired in 2019. We're putting a few of our favorite episodes in the off-weeks of our final season. "I Never Ate for My Father" (October 2, 1991) When Robbie Sinclair fails to kill his first live prey, he begins to wonder if he might be more herbivorously oriented — and that fits in really well with this episode's extensive use of vegetarianism as a metaphor for homosexuality. (But also drug use and communism, because America.)

"The Gay Caballeros" (February 19, 1996) Full disclosure: We didn't come here to say nice things about Debra Messing. What we will say is that she's forever trapped in sitcom mode, to the point that the laffer that preceded the gay one has her essentially playing an identical character. What's more? Ned, who is supposedly straight, really reads like a gay character. For these reasons and more, this explicitly gay episode gives this podcast a lot to discuss. We have episode transcripts courtesy of Sarah Neal. Our logo was designed by Rob Wilson. This episode's art was designed by Ian O'Phelan. Sound cues for this podcast were composed by Meika Grimm.

"You Go to My Head" (October 1, 1974) We're kicking off our final season by discussing what's arguably the most important sitcom that we haven't profiled yet: Happy Days. Technically, Happy Days never did an episode, but what's surprising is how close this one gets, with actual lines spoken including "I'm in the closet" and "Do you prefer dick?" We have episode transcripts courtesy of Sarah Neal. Our logo was designed by Rob Wilson. This episode's art was designed by Ian O'Phelan. Sound cues for this podcast were composed by Meika Grimm.

Yes, we're wrapping up the podcast. Is it Heated Rivalry's fault? Kinda! We had a really good go, but after a lot of conversations about this, we have decided that we will end Gayest Episode Ever with one last ten-episode season. The below episodes will be going live every other week (in the way new episodes have appeared in the feed in the last year), so we're going to be around for some time yet, but this is the plan for the last run of GEE. And if you're disappointed or surprised, please let us know. But in this mini-ep we do get into the reason why we've come to that decision. The schedule for the final season (order TBD) Happy Days S2E4 "You Go to My Head" Ned and Stacey S1E19 "Gay Caballeros" Dear John S1E13 "Stand by Your Man" Married… With Children S3E21 "Life's a Beach" Duckman S3E2 "Forbidden Fruit" Oh Grow Up (episode TBD) Gay Disney shorts Cheers S11E26 "One for the Road" Batman: TAS S2E11 "Baby Doll" Frasier S1E24 "My Dinner With Niles"

"A Night Alone Together: Usagi in Danger" (August 17, 1996) In our fourth look at Sailor Moon, we're discussing the final season, which features the Sailor Stars. Canonically, they're female superheroes who magically become boys in order to remain in disguise, and as a result some Sailor Moon fans consider them to be trans-coded or metaphorically transgender. It's not really for us to say one way or another, but there's enough discussion about how to discuss these characters' gender that it made sense to cover this episode. Will it be the last? Sailor Moon, previously: The Cartoons That Made Us Gay: Sailor Moon Sailor Moon Meets a Lesbian Couple Sailor Moon Meets a Beguiling Genderfluid Villain Also listen to the complete run of The Cartoons That Made Us Gay on the GEE Patreon!

"Ellen's First Christmess" (December 17, 2001) Yes, we're closing 2025 with a lump of coal rather than a sugarplum fairy. Believe it or not, Ellen Degeneres had a second sitcom between her first one and her reign as the iron-fisted queen of daytime. It's mostly lost in the shuffle today, but we're taking a look at her Christmas episode to point out how she chose to shut up about her sexuality this time around. Was it worth it? No. See you in hell, 2025. We have episode transcripts courtesy of Sarah Neal. Our logo was designed by Rob Wilson. This episode's art was designed by Ian O'Phelan. Sound cues for this podcast were composed by Meika Grimm.

"The Artist" (December 19, 1987) Over the years, we've shared a lot of laughs with the girls on the laini, but our journey with the four horniest seniors in the history of Miami has come to an end, as "The Artist" is the final gay episode of The Golden Girls that we have much to say about. It's a slight episode, in terms of gay rep, but it actually has a lot to say about the show and the way gay men relate to it, we'd rager. Links what Drew discusses: Drew on Super Mario Moment podcast (video and audio) Drew on Cinema Oblivia Drew on Call Me By Your Game Drew on What a Cartoon

"More Like Skanksgiving" (November 20, 2012) Here you have it: the one other gay-themed Thanksgiving episode of a sitcom. Three seasons in, this one reveals heretofore-unheard canon that the Happy Endings characters exist as they do solely as a result of MTV's The Real World — and that Max things he might have been the first gay person on TV. Meanwhile, no one is remarking how Jane's 2002 raver outfit is one of the more explicitly bisexual things she's ever done on this show, and we at one point meet her ex-girlfriend. Listen to our previous Happy Endings episode, and if this one isn't Thanksgiving enough for you, check out our Bob's Burgers bi Thanksgiving extravaganza. We have episode transcripts courtesy of Sarah Neal. Our logo was designed by Rob Wilson. This episode's art was designed by Ian O'Phelan. Sound cues for this podcast were composed by Meika Grimm.

"The Ruptured Duck" (October 10, 1961) On the surface, The Many Loves of Dobie Gillis tells the story of a teen boy who falls in love with every girl except Zelda Gilroy, who pines for him hopelessly. All of this is complicated by the fact that the Sheila Keuhl, the actor who played Zelda was in real life a gay woman who ultimately lost out on getting her own spinoff because she didn't fit the idea for what a leading lady was in the early 1960s. But Keuhl got the last laugh IRL, and Zelda Gilroy's queer adjacent legacy lives on in Velma from Scooby-Doo. We have episode transcripts courtesy of Sarah Neal. Our logo was designed by Rob Wilson. This episode's art was designed by Ian O'Phelan. Sound cues for this podcast were composed by Meika Grimm.

“Werking Mom” (November 18, 2018) Yes, The Simpsons did a drag episode, and you might be interested to know that the idea did not originate with “Hey, let’s do one about RuPaul’s Drag Race.” In fact, co-writer Carolyn Omine provided some background info, including how the surprising success of drag queens in the Tupperware sales market ultimately resulted in both Marg and Homer donning drag, and we say this is a great example of how latter-day Simpsons can bend with the times. Our blue duck has become a swan! Listen to all our previous Simpsons episodes here. We have episode transcripts courtesy of Sarah Neal. Our logo was designed by Rob Wilson. This episode’s art was designed by Ian O’Phelan. Sound cues for this podcast were composed by Meika Grimm.

“The Neighbors” (September 14, 1985) “Victor / Vicki-toria” (February 14, 1987) “The Bad Seed” (November 7, 1987) Ignore whatever you might have heard about Small Wonder and focus instead on how the show spotlighted Vicki (a.k.a. V.I.C.I), a kid who was labeled as different just for acting the only way she knew. As a result of being defiantly resistant to social norms, Vicki has become iconic to all sorts of 80s kids also failed to fit in, and in this episode, we’ll make the argument for the ways she speaks to queer audiences. Tiffany Brissette, you should have been a star. Works cited (among others): This Yahoo! Entertainment retrospective The Mike & Juliet Show cast reunion

“Truth and Consequences” (September 29, 1997) Though it didn’t even get a chance to finish out its second season, Fired Up was one of the rare Must See TV sitcoms to feature two female leads. What’s more, the recurring gay character, Shannon (played by Mark Davis), is unusual in that he’s out, confident and going about his life in a way you just didn’t see on other NBC shows of this era. What’s even odder is that his traditionally masculine dad (Jonathan Banks) loves his son and supports his career as a drag performer. Can we thank Arleen Sorkin for this? See the photo of Mark Davis looking hunky as hell here. See all the episodes of Fired Up – including the ones that didn’t air on NBC — on archive.org.

It may not be news to listeners of this podcast, but the Looney Tunes cartoons can be very gay. In celebration of the nearly 800 shorts being hosted on Tubi, Drew, Glen and returning guest Tony Rodriguez look at some of our favorites that also lend themselves to a queer reading. And no, it’s not all Bugs Bunny in Drag. In fact, we probably didn’t pick the drag moments you’re expecting. But no worries: There is zero Tweety content in this episode. (The search function on the desktop version of Tubi sucks, so you will have to settle for mostly non-Tubi links. Oh well, we tried.) 1. To Hare Is Human: https://archive.org/details/to-hare-is-human 2. Ride Him, Bosko https://archive.org/details/reb11452 3. Hare Trimmed: https://archive.org/details/hare-trimmed-1953-restored 4. Two Gophers from Texas: https://vimeo.com/1074846138 5. What’s Up, Doc?: https://vimeo.com/75457120 6. I Love to Singa: https://tubitv.com/tv-shows/200243359/s01-e08-mr-mrs-is-the-name-i-love-to-singa-porky-of-the-northwoods 7. Hillbilly Hare: https://archive.org/details/looney.-tunes.-s-1950-e-19.-hillbilly.-hare.-720p.-blu-ray.h-264.-aac-ma-g-chamele-0n

"Siskel & Ebert & Jay & Alice" (March 12, 1995) Finally, we get around to discussing one of our more formative comedic experiences, and it’s one shared more or less exclusively by elder millennials: The Critic, which somehow managed to be both more grown up and more juvenile than The Simpsons. In this episode, we discuss how the two seasons of this cult favorite repeatedly insinuated that the title character was gay, and how and episode guest-starring Siskel and Ebert manages to be the gayest episode of all. The Mr. President episode of our bonus series The Fox Files is free to listen to on Patreon, even if you're not pledging money! Listen to Talking Simpsons discuss Capitol Critters so you don’t have to watch it yourself. And listen to us guest on Talking Simpsons to discuss the other Al Jean & Mike Reiss effort, Teen Angel.

“Honeymoon Hotel” (February 22, 1977) You innocent TV Land watchers may not have suspected that there was anything queer about Laverne & Shirley, a show about two women who share an apartment and work at a brewery. Sure, they’re boy crazy, but also there’s this episode where they scam their way into a bridal suite and downtown Milwaukee’s finest hotel. Here to help us unpack the sapphic undertones is the final girl herself, Stacie Ponder! Also: Ghosts! Farrah Fawcett! And Rosie O’Donnell! Listen to Stacie’s new podcast, Final Girl After Dark, as well as her watchthrough of the entire Twin Peaks franchise, The Detective and the Log Lady. Listen to the What a Cartoon episode about Laverne & Shirley in the Army… if you dare! Listen to the Monday Afternoon Movie episode with Natalie Lander. And click here to watch the SNL sketch Drew mentions with Rosie O’Donnell, Penny Marshall and Whitney Houston.

“Terry Unmarried” (February 20, 2011) The second season of the Family Guy spinoff makes the surprising decision to have Terry, Cleveland’s womanizing coworker buddy, come out as not straight. And while that’s good, it’s sort of weird how no one ever suggests that he might be bisexual. This retcon underscores problems with bi representation in media, but we’re also going to talk about how during the four years it was on Fox, The Cleveland Show was one of the only black sitcoms on broadcast TV… for better or for worse. Please note: This is the one and only time this podcast will discuss Auntie Momma. Listen to the first episode of our new bonus series, The Fox Files, on Patreon. Also listen to the latest installment of The Cartoons That Made Us Gay, on the "Beware the Creeper" episode of Batman.

“A Kiss Is Still a Kiss” (December 3, 1987) We’re supporters of Shelley Long on this podcast, but in advocating for the Diane years of Cheers, we’ve overlooked the Rebecca years. As such, we’re bringing Jonathan Bradley Welch back in to speak about what works well during the back half of the show. In a lot of ways, Kirstie Alley saved Cheers, but does what she became IRL affect how we should feel about her heyday? Well, it’s complicated, but we’ll talk you through our feelings on the subject. We have episode transcripts courtesy of Sarah Neal. Our logo was designed by Rob Wilson. This episode’s art was designed by Ian O’Phelan. Sound cues for this podcast were composed by Meika Grimm.