Hats off to Grey’s Anatomy for handling a character’s coming-out scene as an afterthought rather than an after-school special. Guy’s guy Joe the bartender (who bears no small resemblance to Ken Hudson Campbell, aka the Lust character from “Herman’s Head”) arrives at Izzie’s Thanksgiving celebration with his hot Asian boy toy in tow, and is met at the door by high-strung Cristina (Sandra Oh).
Joe: “Hi. This is my…boyfriend.”
Cristina: “Whatever. You got any liquor?”
That’s it. No fanfare, no soul-searching, no agonizing over just the right moment to drop the bomb. Just a slightly overweight, hetero-looking guy casually revealing that women don’t float his boat. Joe and Cristina might has well have been discussing the weather, for all the gravity of their conversation.
Kudos to the writers for recognizing that there doesn’t have to be a “very special episode” for every gay character on television. And extra props for instead emphasizing another issue that is all too real for many Americans, gay and straight alike: the importance of having alcohol on hand during the holidays.
