The LGBTQIA-community

[Tugger]

I was appalled to hear this news. Britain may be broken but at least we are accepting of LGBT+

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-47769964

[Rawhide Kid]

If you are not already, you have to watch the Doom Patrol show.
The 8th episode is about Danny the street, a gender queer non-binary sentient street running from the Department of Normalcy.
You will also have an heart-breaking karaoke moment.
And 90's RomCom clichés.

[Silvermoth]

Ha, that sounds pretty good. I just finished watching the umbrella academy, loved Klaus so much

[Silvermoth]

Is anyone else watching Special? It’s a really cute new series about a gay man and how he dates and lives with a disability. It’s so sweet. I’ve been wondering when we will see the next queer as folk and I feel like this might be it

[MasterOfMagnetism]

Is anyone else watching Special? It’s a really cute new series about a gay man and how he dates and lives with a disability. It’s so sweet. I’ve been wondering when we will see the next queer as folk and I feel like this might be it

I really enjoyed Special and I usually don't care for sentimental rom-com style stories like that, looking forward to season 2. Apparently there's also going to be a revival of Tales Of The City coming to Netflix as well. I'm not super interested in it but it does have Murray Bartlett in it, so I might check it out just for him.

[zinderel]

Magic the Gathering's new novel War of the Spark (by Greg Weisman, of TV's GARGOYLES and YOUNG JUSTICE fame) confirms a long held theory about a popular Planeswalker. Ral Zarek, Viceroy of the Izzet League (a collection of mad scientists, gleefully impulsive 'researchers' and attention-span-deficient inventors working together under the aegis and leadership of a brilliant dragon) is gay, and his partner, Tomik, is in the Orzhov Syndicate (basically if the Mafia took over the Catholic Church).

Same sex romance in a card game!? A relationship that crosses strict guild lines?! The world MUST be ending!

[Silvermoth]

That sounds really cool! I wasn’t aware of that. I might have to check it out!

[Enigma]

I've dabbled in MtG, but I read one novel and really enjoyed it, even if I had had no background at all. I'm quite tempted to try and pick more up - worth it?

Also, on Thursday, I will be explaining to one of my lab groups about my future transition. Pretty damned nervous! My lab manager already knows and she said that everybody thinks I'm gay anyway and they still invite me for coffee, so I'm at least halfway sure that it will be fine :P

[Silvermoth]

Best of luck Enigma! Please feel free to come back and tell us how you went. I’ll be hoping for the best for you

[zinderel]

Most of the MtG novels have been...sub par. They stopped publishing them because they were so poorly received. But since the current set is the end of a several-year-storyline, and they got Greg Weisman to write, I'm looking forward to reading the book!

The two characters each have cards representing them (Ral Zarek, being a Planeswalker, has a few cards he appears in), and in them, Ral can be seen wearing a strip of white cloth from his partner's robes around one wrist, and Tomik wears strips of red and blue - Ral's colors - around his wrists in his card art.

What's even better is, this isnt the first gay couple in MtG canon. In one of the Commander supplements, one of the decks was led by Tiro and Kyanios of Meletis, a pair of warrior kings from the Theros setting (Greco-Roman aesthetic, with togas and such). They were legendary warriors who chose to put aside constant warfare and build a kingdom together. A kingdom that lasted until the current setting, and is a paragon of culture, art, martial excellence and trade akin to Athens of old. Not only that, but they were an interracial couple, and the art shows them standing together. If you look close enough, one has his fingers playing with the short hairs on the back of the other's neck, affectionately.

Meletis.EDHREC.jpg

It's pretty great to see that, even though they are not the focus of the story, Wizards is sticking to their commitment to present a diverse world with someone for everyone to feel a connection to.

[Enigma]

So, I came out to both of my lab groups last Thursday, and it went absolutely fine. I've barely been in the lab since then though due to working from home and then being ill all of this week, so not enough interaction to gauge the response. It seems to be business as usual though, which is basically perfect. It's essentially public knowledge now, so I don't have to worry about people finding out, which is one less thing to stress about. It's still such a long damned time before I can transition, but hey ho, one step at a time I guess. I just need to keep myself in one piece until then

[Silvermoth]

That’s great to hear Enigma, I’m so glad it went well. I found when I came out people sort of suspected already and life just continued for them. Best of luck with the next step when you’re ready

[CellarDweller]

Congrats on your coming out, Enigma!

[Enigma]

Thanks It would seem that people didn't expect that I was trans beforehand, but somebody did mention that looking back, a few things make sense. Including, to my absolute horror, that apparently I'm awful at make-up removal

[Silvermoth]

Haha oh well everyone has to start somewhere