Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Gratuitous Kiss

On a recent episode of the new TV series FlashForward, there was a scene where two women kissed. It was known that they were lesbians. I read today that some people found the kissing scene "gratuitous." Why would anyone think such a scene was unwarranted? Why is it okay to show a male and female kissing, but not two females kissing? Why is one acceptable and the other is not?

I also read today where some active members of the LDS Church have decided they will no longer watch FlashForward because of the female-female kissing scene.

This is bugging the heck out of me today, so I thought I'd vent about it here on my blog.

Tell me … Would you honestly stop watching a TV series because of one scene?

And what is so horrendous about showing two women kissing?

Please leave a comment. Your thoughts would be most appreciated.

3 comments:

Mrs. Walker said...

I'll bite. But only because I know you'll appreciate my honesty. :)

As a parent, I want to keep my home open to good feelings, and being a person who believes that homosexuality is not a positive lifestyle, I don't want to bring that into my home. Just as I wouldn't want anything overly sexual in my home (this includes movies with nudity, etc.), I wouldn't want homosexual "activity" (as in, kissing, making out, etc.) in my home. I don't believe it brings the feelings that I want into my home.

Many people have stopped watching Big Love, Law & Order, and several other television series because of one scene showing sacred LDS ordinances. I don't think it's so far off to stop watching something because you don't like it's substance. I actually applaud it.

If we are not the gatekeepers to our home, then who is? We are responsible for our children and the things that they see, and I'm not sure I'd want to expose my son to 2 women kissing (or men, for that matter).

What's so wrong about 2 women kissing? Well, it goes against what I fundamentally believe, for one thing. I don't believe that God intended same sex companionship in that way, and I don't want to expose my children to that having them think that it is "normal".

I think that TV has started going too far in what they feel is "reality". Law & Order has started showing some incredibly graphic scenes in order to be "real", but the truth is that we don't see someone get stabbed in the neck with a ball point pen and then the proceeding blood shooting out of their neck in our every day lives. Heck, I'm not sure I'll EVER see that. So why am I being shown this on a weekly basis as something that's "real". That's not my reality. I believe that you can portray what is happening without being graphic. You can allude to people having sex without showing it on screen. You can portray death without having it be gruesome and violent. And you can portray a relationship without physical intimacy, especially those that some may find offensive.

I applaud those that stop watching shows because of something they find offensive. It's much more productive than just whining about it. Good for them for actually taking some action.

Nicole said...

It would be a little awkward for me, but I wouldn't turn it off. I don't get as offended by sensual acts as I do by profanity. But that's just me.

Stephanie said...

I stopped watching t.v. entirely (except for a few clips here and there on the internet). There was just a whole lot more that I didn't want to watch than I did want to watch. I don't particularly enjoy watching heterosexual couples enjoying a "gratuitous" kiss either. I would probably turn it off, too.