Through its first 20 episodes, ABC comedy The Real O’Neals has tackled everything from gay nomenclature to the “right” time to come out and the terrors of online dating, all with the burgeoning sensitivity and sense of humor of a show coming into its own. In a world where LGBT acceptance has improved, yet the paucity of LGBT leads on shows telling LGBT stories remains frustrating, The Real O’Neals has been doing important, subversive work showing what it’s like to be a gay teenager through the prism of a family comedy structure.
An example of such occurred in last week’s episode “The Real Match,” where an unexpected hole on the St. Barklay’s wrestling roster causes Jimmy to recruit Kenny to the team. Kenny unexpectedly wins as a result of his love for West Side Story and immediately becomes a Big Deal at school, given that he’s their first-ever openly gay athlete and they’re decidedly progressive for a Catholic high school. But when time comes for another meet, Kenny is faced with the first bit of real discrimination since he came out; an opposing team, having heard his story about being an openly gay athlete, refuses to wrestle against him, thereby forfeiting the match.
Coming out hasn’t been easy for Kenny, with it occurring simultaneously with his parents’ separation, his continued flailing trying to find a gay tribe of his own, and his eagerness to embrace this new life in contrast with a home situation not exactly amenable to spreading his wings. Yet he’s been fairly insulated when it comes to homophobia, since the worst he’s had to deal with thus far is an ignorant mother and even then, Eileen has been making baby steps toward understanding (and accepting) her son’s truth. So coming face to face with this world of hatred and bigotry that can manifest itself in non-violent (yet still intensely painful) ways has to be jarring for him, as it is for every LGBT person who comes from a positive, accepting household, and forces such a genial show into uncomfortable (and very specific) emotional territory.
And out of that uncomfortable territory came possibly the most touching moment of the series thus far, as Jimmy stands up for his brother and forfeits his own match, thereby undoing his shot at an undefeated record. Not only does this reinforce the bond between the brothers, not only does it give slightly dim Jimmy a moment of deep wisdom, it’s an extremely hopeful response to something ugly. If discrimination is confronted head on and not something people look away from, pretending it’s not happening because it’s not directly impacting them, it can be pushed back into the shadows where it belongs, if not eventually eradicated. What it takes for this world to improve from the terrible darkness it’s been consumed in for the better part of 2016 is people in positions of social power (e.g. guys like Jimmy, a star athlete and popular guy in his social group) calling out moments like this for what they are. It is important to see that this type of behavior is not okay; it’s important to show that homophobia comes in forms other than violent bullying, name calling, and hate crimes. Most importantly, The Real O’Neals continuing to show that coming out doesn’t have to be such a scary thing, that you can still have your family by your side to help you deal with those who might not understand you, demonstrates just how truly special a show it is.
The Real O’Neals airs tonight at 9:30 on ABC.
