Alien In a Top Hat

The Get Down is a Netflix original musical drama taking place in the South Bronx in the 70's and shows the rise of hip-hop through the lives of a group of teenagers who aspire to mark their place in the world through music. It's also, simply put, one of my favorite shows ever.
So I wanted to talk about the representation in this show, as it portrays sexuality in such a refreshing and beautiful way.

So, let's talk about Marcus Kipling, a.k.a Dizzee. He's the artist of the group and is known for doing graffiti art under the tag name of Rumi 411. But Rumi 411 isn't just a tag name to Dizzee. He's a character, an alien in a top hat, who wants to go to the opera but knows that even though he's in a suit and a top hat, he'll never fit in or be accepted. This is a metaphor for how Dizzee feels in society, as a bisexual black man.

credit to @Claarrraaaa on weheartit.com

Throughout the show, we see Dizzee discover his sexuality and more openly express it, as well as find love. This starts when Dizzee meets Thor, a fellow graffiti artist who genuinely likes him and his work. This is new to Dizzee, who's only ever been called weird. Thor later invites Dizzee to a club, where he sees a drag show and many different people who are loud and proud of who they are.

credit to http://themalfoymanor.co.vu/post/154294979294

From here, Dizzee and Thor share their first kiss. 

credit to http://themalfoymanor.co.vu/post/154294979294

And from there, they begin dating. The part I wanted to focus on though, is how non-sexualized their relationship is. Their scenes together focus on their love for each other, and is portrayed in intimate ways.

                                credit to https://www.out.com/television/2017/4/18/lets-revisit-jaden-smiths-beautiful-frustrating-gay-storyline-get-down

Their scenes together are mainly isolated from the world, as they both aren't out to their families. This makes each scene feel safe and beautiful.

There's a tendency for shows to make LGBT people the butt of their jokes. It's really comforting to me as an LGBT viewer to see that this show's writers were delicate with each of their scenes, and the result was a beautiful relationship between two teenagers in love in the South Bronx in the 70's.

Love in chaos.

Good-bi for now,
Nelly