Check out the trailer for the upcoming Ellen Degeneres-produced sitcom about a single lesbian mom, One Big Happy! Here are my initial thoughts on the show.
In the NBC show, premiering March 17, Lizzie (Elisha Cuthbert) is a single lesbian whose best friend is single guy Luke (Nick Zano). They’ve agreed to have a baby together, but haven’t had any luck so far. Lo and behold, Lizzie finally gets pregnant just as Luke meets Prudence (Kelly Brook), whom he quickly marries, casting doubt on his commitment to Lizzie and the child.
My initial take, which is pretty much the same as it was when the show was first announced:
- I can’t deny the street cred of either Ellen or fellow Executive Producer Liz Feldman, either as comedic whizzes or as lesbians. The show couldn’t be in better hands.
- Ellen recently downplayed the “lesbian” content of the show, saying, “There’s so much to this show, so I don’t focus on that. I just look at it as a funny show,” as After Ellen reported. Still, as the first six seconds of the trailer make clear, it doesn’t seem that the lesbian content will be avoided, either. I’m hopeful they’ll strike a good balance between creating a realistic-seeming lesbian life, where not every moment is about BEING A LESBIAN, and not avoiding the actual differences that a lesbian of her race, class, and geographic location would face.
- I remain leery of the whole “pregnant lesbian” theme (see Sarah Warn’s post at After Ellen a decade ago, and my own on the theme of lesbians trying to get pregnant). I’d much rather watch a show about lesbian moms raising their kids — which is what makes ABC Family’s The Fosters so refreshing. Maybe, however, they’ll get to the raising part if the show goes into multiple seasons, as with the gay dads on ABC’s Modern Family.
- Pregnancy aside, I hope they avoid other tired plotlines about LGBTQ parents and show us some fresh and new angles on our families. Having Lezzie be a single mom is a good start.
- I’m a little disappointed that at the end of the trailer, the promo shot in front of the NBC logo has Luke in front. I know—it’s a comedy about a trio, so any of them could have taken that position (and maybe Lizzie will in future photos). I’m just tired of women’s marginalization in media generally, and wish they’d led with Lizzie, or had all three characters side by side.