The preview for this weeks Blade teased a kiss between Krista (Jill Wagner) and Chase (Jessica Gower). In celebration of that possibility, I thought now would be a good time to touch on other girl-girl kisses in our television history. Sometimes they are to make a statement. Sometimes they are a ploy to grab ratings. And every once in a while, it's just a natural part of the story. Here are the five that come to mind first for me. Roseanne (Roseanne Barr) and Sharon (Mariel Hemingway) - Roseanne
This was an important moment in television. At the time, there was no L-Word, and two girls kissing was still a very controversial thing. Roseanne has her faults, to be sure, but standing up to the network to get this episode on the air is something to be proud of.
Ally (Calista Flockhart) and Ling (Lucy Liu) - Ally McBeal
This one strikes me as somewhat the opposite of the Roseanne kiss. There was much less statement, and much more ratings grabbing sensationalism in this lip-lock. In that regard, it worked very well. Of course, the gang over at Ally McBeal had plenty of practice. Along with Ling, Ally also kissed Georgia (Courtney Thorne-Smith) and Elaine (Jane Krokowski). But if I have to pick one, it's Ling every time. And yes, I was an Ally McBeal fan.
Willow (Alyson Hannigan) and Tara (Amber Benson) - Buffy The Vampire Slayer
Stretching a bit, because it's not just one moment, but I have to have Willow and Tara on the list because of the way Joss Whedon handled their relationship. It was never played for the sensational ratings grab and it was never about the show adding gay characters. It was just the natural progression of the story and Whedon always dealt with it in a very real way. As real as you can get when you are talking about witches living on a hellmouth anyway.
Inara (Morena Baccarin) and The Councilor (Katherine Kendall) - Firefly
I don't know if Joss makes the list twice because I am a big fan of his television work, or because of the way he writes women. A little of both perhaps. Either way, when the Councilor came calling on Inara, all aboard Serenity were a bit taken aback. Unfortunately for them, they weren't privy to the scene in Inara's shuttle that we were. It's a tiny little scene that doesn't really factor in to the overall "War Stories" plot, but it does give us a little glimpse at Inara with her guard down. Either that, or I was taken in by Inara as much as the Councilor was. Along with the two beautiful women kissing, this pairing is also notable because it was the setup to one of the classic Jayne lines in the series. "I'll be in my bunk."
Billie (Tiffani Thiessen) and Sara (Jaime Pressly) - Fastlane
Another entry that was played hard for ratings, and managed to deliver a moment Kelly Kapowski fans had been waiting years for. Taking a page out of Ally's play book, the week leading up to this kiss you couldn't watch FOX without being hit over the head by the promo. Yeah, it was cheap, but if you can think of a girl-girl kiss from television that features two more beautiful women, I'd love to hear about it.
Celebrate the 4th by watching television!
Stargate Atlantis season five - An early look
Saving Grace season two: An early look
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)
9-06-2006 @ 11:33AM
Akbar Fazil said...
How about the one episode of DS9 where Dax kissed a fellow female Trill who was a new host for a symbiont that Dax was married to a few life times ago. That one was awesome. IIRC, aired around the same time as the Rosanne kiss so it could be a contender for the first.
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9-06-2006 @ 11:41AM
Brett said...
An excellent addition to the list Akbar. I was never a faithful follower of DS9, so that one is completely off my radar, but I am certainly familiar with Dax.
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9-06-2006 @ 11:49AM
CygnusTM said...
Pre-dating the Roseanne kiss by a few years was the original bombshell lesbian kiss on LA Law between C.J. Lamb (Amanda Donohoe) and Abby Perkins (Michele Green). It caused quite an uproar.
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9-06-2006 @ 11:50AM
SJ said...
How about providing video links to these kisses?
What about the Ellen kiss? That was a big moment in TV history.
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9-06-2006 @ 12:15PM
Allen said...
Of course, the most notable girl on girl kiss in entertainment would probably be Rock Hudson and Linda Evans in Dynasty.
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9-06-2006 @ 12:18PM
CygnusTM said...
The LA Law kiss is here.
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9-06-2006 @ 12:19PM
CygnusTM said...
The URL got stripped out.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=mBxWpgOifWE
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9-06-2006 @ 12:21PM
Brett said...
Aw, C.J. and Abby. Of course! That's what me slapping my forehead looks like in text. :D Man, we need more Michelle Greene on our TV. Less of the recent guest spots and more series roles.
SJ, I did consider Ellen, but I don't exactly recall the kiss. I remember the episode being a huge deal, and Laura Dern, but not the kiss. Certainly a good addition though. And if you click the titles to kisses 2, 3, 4, and 5, they will take you to the YouTube video.
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9-06-2006 @ 12:48PM
mklopez said...
I digg this story!
http://www.digg.com/television/The_five_most_memorable_girls_kissing_girls_TV_scenes
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9-06-2006 @ 1:37PM
RevJonathan said...
I think I speak for males everywhere when I say thank you for this article.
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9-06-2006 @ 3:13PM
SJ said...
Oh my bad. I guess I was a bit too excited...usually you guys post the videos inside the blog.
And RevJonathan, I agree with you.
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9-06-2006 @ 3:26PM
anon3803 said...
For everyone's viewing pleasure:
DS9 Dax Kiss
http://youtube.com/watch?v=2u_rPON7aLE
Fastlane kiss
http://youtube.com/watch?v=rjs7fR14Mhg
Ally-Ling Kiss
http://youtube.com/watch?v=Qt3uoigHTSw
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9-06-2006 @ 4:01PM
Ashley Boyd said...
Personally my favourite Willow & Tara kiss is from the end of Entropy;
"Can we just skip it? Can you just be kissing me now?"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GBnXf0EQMbE
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9-06-2006 @ 4:14PM
wayne said...
This is the greatest artical ive ever seen =). They all kicked ass
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9-06-2006 @ 4:45PM
Johnny said...
And people say there is nothing good on TV.
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9-07-2006 @ 12:01PM
Rosalita said...
Fun list, but now how about the The Five best Guys Kissing Guys? I did search to see if this list has aleady been done, couldn't find it. If it has been done, my apologies for the repeat request (unless it needs updating? :-) and the link would be great. Thanks!
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9-07-2006 @ 12:23PM
Keith McDuffee said...
Guys, the links are already in the post.
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9-07-2006 @ 2:48PM
MM said...
Tiffani Thiessen and Jaime Pressly might have been played purely for the ratings, but I have to commend the actresses for actually committing to the roles (and also, Kim Newton who wrote the episode and was a lesbian.) We were fooled that they were actually into each other and not two hot straight girls who just happened to be kissing. Proof of that is that lesbians loved it as much as the guys did. ;)
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9-07-2006 @ 3:55PM
Todd said...
This is insane - the Youtube video of the Ally / Ling kiss is flagged as 18-years-old and older only, requiring registration.
That aired on broadcast tv - wtf?
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9-08-2006 @ 1:36AM
Shiai said...
I've always liked how Joss Whedon cloak and daggered the first Willow and Tara kiss past the WB's S&P censors, by slipping it in unexpectedly (but with perfect appropriateness) into the episode called "The Body," then moving on and acting as if nothing happened. Clever chap, that boy.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=n9MPQ1N6jUk
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