LGBTQ+ characters are still important in today's world. Although LGBTQ+ rights have advanced much further in the last few decades, there is more to be done. LGBTW+ representations help the public how to understand other groups' sexuality. These representations normalize LGBTQ+ people and remove the stigma and taboo from these categories. More so, they portray the normal everyday life of LGBTQ+ characters, showing the similarities and differences between heteronormative couplings and LGBTQ+ ones.
As more LGBTQ+ characters see the limelight on television, their stories become part of the culture, for the better. As more LGBTQ+ people come out proudly, television will continue to champion their stories.
Raymond And Kevin (Brooklyn Nine-Nine)
Raymond and Kevin are a married professional couple in the city of New York. Captain Raymond Holt of the 99th Precinct was New York City's first openly gay black captain. Beginning his career in the 80s, Raymond suffered tremendous discrimination for both his race and sexuality.
Raymond and Kevin are portrayed as a couple in love, with very many things in common, including their love of intellectual pursuits, arts, and fine dining. Holt is also the founder of AAGLNYCPA (The African American Gay And Lesbian New York City Policeman's Association).
Titus And Mikey (Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt)
Titus is Mikey's first boyfriend after Mikey comes out as gay. Titus is originally hesitant to date Mikey because he is scared of the connection he feels with the Italian construction worker. After Lilian's meddling, the two begin a relationship that makes Titus very happy. However, when Titus realizes that he is Mikey's first and only boyfriend, he breaks up with Mikey, gifting Mikey the freedom to enjoy life as an openly gay man.
Titus' plan ultimately works, because Mikey decides that he still wants to be with Titus. The two get married at the end of the series.
Greg And Terry (American Dad!)
Greg and Terry are the overtly gay, musical-singing, and dancing local news anchors in Langley Falls. Unfortunately for Terry, when he finally comes out to his father, Tank Bates, Tank refuses to accept his son's sexuality and cuts Terry out of his life. Although their middle-class life seems perfect on the inside, when Roger pretends to be their new Russian adopted son, he learns that Greg is a perfectionist, putting his husband and daughter under too much pressure. Eventually, Terry abandons Greg and their baby.
American Dad portrays the pitfalls of homosexual couplings are just the same as those of a heteronormative coupling. In an earlier episode, when Terry finds out that Greg is a Republican, this also almost breaks up their relationship.
Charles And Rudy (Archer)
Despite knowing Fidel Castro's stance on homosexuality, the money-loving Charles and Rudy still choose to work for Castro for a big payday. Selfish and self-obsessed, Charles and Rudy manage to stay together thanks to their love of money and drugs.
Obviously, they are bad news for everyone they come in contact with, but the couple knows how to take care of each other, and look after each others' needs. They are represented as smart, capable, highly-skilled spies. Too bad that they use their skills for criminal activity.
Susan And Cheryl (Good Luck Charlie)
Disney's first lesbian couple, Susan and Cheryl, are the parents of Charlie's friend, Taylor. They only appear in one episode but are portrayed as a happy couple and dutiful parents to Taylor.
A few months before the series aired, a Disney spokesperson said of the show: "This particular storyline was developed under the consultancy of child development experts and community advisors. Like all Disney Channel programming, it was developed to be relevant to kids and families around the world and to reflect themes of diversity and inclusiveness."
Carmen And Nick (It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia)
Carmen is first introduced on the show when Mac tells her that he doesn't want his friends to know he is seeing a "tranny". Mac is virulently anti-LGBTQ+ because he is ashamed of being gay. Despite this, Mac's gayness is the one thing the gang takes seriously, hoping that Mac can finally find the courage to come out.
Carmen, on the other hand, is the opposite of Mac. She is proud of herself and has no problem getting her gender reassignment surgery to become a woman. She marries Nick and pays Dee to carry their baby, much to the sadness of a rejected Mac.
Erin And Liz (Grace And Frankie)
Barry's best friend from college, Erin approaches Barry about providing his sperm so that she and her partner, Liz, can have a child. Erin tells Barry that is was a well-thought-out decision, and Barry is such an upstanding citizen, they would be honored to father his child.
Erin in particular is shown to be a vibrant, fun-loving professional woman who settled down in her post-college years. The couple represents a shift towards the normativity of gay couples on screen, proving that a couple does not have to be heterosexual to be considered 'normal' in modern society.
Sol And Robert (Grace And Frankie)
Another gay couple on Grace And Frankie, Sol and Robert began their relationship by cheating on their respective wives with each other. Their children condemn their 20-year-long affair, telling them that just because they are gay doesn't make it right. When an attractive gay friend turns up to see Sol, he tells the couple that gay men in relationships are never loyal, and seek outside romances with the knowledge of their partners.
The couple's marriage counselor also advises the couple to take this approach, but Sol and Robert decide it is not for them.
Carol And Susan (Friends)
Like Sol and Robert, Carol also settled into a heterosexual marriage before figuring out that she was a lesbian. Like Sol and Robert, she also cheated on Ross with who would later become her gay spouse. While Carol and Susan's relationship started off on a rocky patch, the two soon marry and parent Carol and Ross' child, Ben.
Carol works as a sixth-grade teacher in a portrayal that breaks negative stereotypes about LGBTQ+ sexual depravity. Carol and Susan are very happy. and audiences watch them provide a loving and supportive home for Ben.
Ilana And + (Broad City)
Ilana Wexler is a polyamorous young New Yorker who finds she has too much love to give to ever commit to one person. Throughout the series, audiences watch Ilana deal with multiple sexual partners.
She also shares her polyamory with her two best friends, Jamie and Abbi, who would prefer that she maintain the platonic boundaries of their relationships. Nonetheless, Ilana matures as the series progresses. She tries to have a monogamous relationship but decides she would be better as a polyamorous woman. She also learns to respect her friends' boundaries, while learning more about her own sexual pleasure.