Will & Grace, More Harm Than Good?

With the final episodes on the near horizon, I thought I would revisit a topic that I had previously discussed for a media journal assignment in my essay writing class during my senior year at Mount. I know I have the paper laying around in one of the many binders in my apartment. Rather than bore you with all the overly drawn out rhetoric that I probably just used to meet the page requirement, I will just discuss the main points since it seems vital now as the show comes to close after an eight year run.

There has always been a debate surrounding whether the show has helped or caused damage with regards to its treatment of the homosexual culture in mainstream America. It seems that those not directly influenced or having previously had much exposure to the gay culture applauded themselves for tuning in and actually liking the show. They felt as if they were accepting the culture because they could laugh at Jack's flamboyancy or Will's anal organizational skills.

Although Right-Winged Christian Conservatives objected at first, they soon simmered down a little when they saw that the show was not going to tackle serious matters such as marriage, disease or child raising (well, at least not until the fifth season, anyway). As Will and Jack jumped from meaningless relationship to meaningless relationship, even traditionalists were starting to no longer see the show as a threat since it was mocking the gay culture in so many ways as opposed to defending it. However, this trend of overly stereotyping was starting to anger the homosexual culture that had such high hopes for a groundbreaking sitcom showcased on Must See Tv time slotted directly after the currently most viewed show in America.

I have to admit, I watch the show week after week. I even look forward to it! Alot of my friends watch it and we can all get a good laugh out of Karen's pill popping antics and Jack's spastic dance moves yet when you really dare to look under the superficial layers, I can see why the liberally minded feel a bit slighted. For one, the show has failed to have either Jack or Will in a serious long term relationship. Most of their romances are based on heated, physical affairs that quickly burn out. This point was grossly mocked in this current season when Grace hastily married Will's boyfriend just so he could stay in the United States a little longer. That show in particular managed to make a mockery out of the sanctity of marriage and the seriousness of homosexual relationships considering that Will had only known his beau for about two weeks.

Yes, Will and Grace has had a good run and provided me and many with alot of laughs over almost a decade. However, I think that aside from over-the-top comedy and physical humor, the show takes a lower ranking when it comes to holding a socially ground breaking status.