A Gay Year In Review
The 'Best of 2024' Awards
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2024 is about to come to a close – can you believe it? We had another great year here at Paging Dr. Lesbian, and I hope you had as much fun thinking deep, gay thoughts as I did. For my final (free) post of the year, I’m rounding up all the lesbian and queer pop culture moments that made an impact in 2024. Feel like you missed out on all the cool stuff from this year? Have no fear, Dr. Lesbian is here.
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And, as a reminder, my first post in 2025 will be my fourth annual Ask Me Anything, where readers can ask me any questions they have about pop culture or whatever else they want and I will answer them (within reason). You can ask me anonymous questions here, or leave your Qs in the comments below. Happy holigays!
Best Queer Movies
In 2024, queers got sweaty. Love Lies Bleeding gave us a visceral, neon-tinged lesbian romance set in the 1980s. Challengers proved that tennis is basically sex, and that bisexual men love churros. Backspot was the queer cheerleading movie of our dreams (no offense to Eliza Dushku in Bring It On.) Rez Ball gifted us a queer basketball coach and a rousing sports story.
In Janet Planet, we got an intimate look at a queer girl and her inscrutable mother. My Old Ass showed us a new kind of bisexual Gen Z story. In Fancy Dance, we learned about queer mothers and aunties, and how great Lily Gladstone looks in a button-up. I Saw The TV Glow gave us a fantastical trans allegory and one of the best soundtracks of the year. In Problemista, Julio Torres let us have a glimpse into his beautifully strange mind. Alexandra Swarens showed us that all holidays are worth celebrating in The Holiday Club. (For more holiday films, check out my exhaustive list of lesbian Christmas movies.)
Let’s not forget about documentaries. Will & Harper was a beautiful story about two old friends supporting one another. In Chasing Chasing Amy, Sav Rodgers explored his relationship to the divisive queer film and came to some conclusions about his own identity in the process. In Fanatical: The Catfishing of Tegan and Sara, the lesbian duo investigate the difference between a fan and a stalker and consider how scary the internet can be.
Best Queer TV Shows
Somebody Somewhere continued to be one of the best shows on television, and it stuck the landing of its (sadly) final season. Agatha All Along captured a massive sapphic fanbase that should have Marvel on alert. Arcane gave us an animated lesbian sex scene and a happy ending where fans thought there wouldn’t be one. House of Dragon surprised fans with a lesbian kiss, and viewers couldn’t get enough of the queer angst. Sophia Bush made Grey’s Anatomy even gayer with her guest appearance, and the show got a new lesbian couple.
Under The Bridge was brutal and tragic, and amidst it all, gave us a heart-wrenching lesbian romance between Lily Gladstone and Riley Keough. Heartstopper was filled with sugary sweetness and made viewers everywhere get teary. Bodkin gave us a mean Irish lesbian, even though the lead character was trying to be true crime Ted Lasso. Robert and Michelle King delivered another winner with Elsbeth, which featured plenty of queer guest stars and characters.
The Real Housewives of New York doubled the amount of lesbians in its most recent season with the addition of Racquel Chevremont. We were blessed with lesbian dating drama in the UK’s I Kissed A Girl, and some of us learned the word “Masseria” for the first time. The CBS series Tracker is very Straight and Normal but features a lesbian couple as Justin Hartley’s work besties – let’s celebrate that!
Best Sapphic Anthems
Chappell Roan broke everyone’s brains with “Good Luck Babe,” the first-ever smash hit about compulsory heterosexuality. I know this song was on many of your Spotify Wrapped lists – don’t lie! Maren Morris came out as bisexual and made a great song with MUNA called “Push Me Over.” Speaking of MUNA, Katie Gavin had us all verklempt with her first solo album, but especially the song “Inconsolable.” Who among us hasn’t felt like a baby lizard? Billie Eilish reminded us she’s a baby gay this year with her R-rated song “Lunch” and her horny feature on the Charli XCX track “Guess.” She is cringe, but she is free.
Kehlani put out a powerful political statement with her pro-Palestinian video for the song “Next 2 U,” and the track is pretty great too. Indie rocker Torres linked up with the smallest member of boygenius, Julien Baker, for the delightful track “Sugar In The Tank.” In another iconic example of two queens coming together to maximize their joint slay, Megan Thee Stallion and Reneé Rapp collaborated on the Mean Girls-inspired song “Not My Fault.” It’s impossible to pick a single Doechii song to include here, so just go watch her incredible Tiny Desk Concert.
Emo bisexual Soccer Mommy returned this year with a confident new album – dig her track “Driver.” Clairo got somber and introspective – what’s new? – with “Sexy to Someone.” Adrianne Lenker gave us sad gay cowboy with “Vampire Empire.” Arooj Aftab delivered a song as sultry and smooth as the title drink in “Whiskey.” St. Vincent channeled James Bond on the symphonic track “Violent Times” off her evocative, sharply rendered album All Born Screaming. Philly punk rockers Mannequin Pussy gave us something to scream and head-bang to with “I Got Heaven.” Despite industry plant accusations, you can’t deny how good art school rockers The Last Dinner Party and their lead single “Nothing Matters” are.
Best Queer Books
Love was in the air this year – let’s start with 2024’s best romance novels. None were better than Everyone I Kissed Since You Got Famous by Mae Marvel, which is the story of a celebrity and her former best friend by way of Taylor Swift’s “Tis The Damn Season.” The yearning is strong with this one. Anita Kelly’s How You Get The Girl follows a woman who starts working with her celebrity crush – a former college basketball star. I’ll Get Back To You by Becca Grischow tells the story of a woman trying to figure out what she wants to do with her life while juggling a complicated fake dating romance. Here We Go Again by Alison Cochrun follows a lesbian road trip but is also about preparing for death and learning to grieve – an impressive balancing act if I’ve ever seen one.
At Her Service by Amy Spalding depicts a Wildfang-clad wee lesbian and a hot bartender. Get this: Here for the Wrong Reasons by Lydia Wang and Annabel Paulsen follows two women who fall in love while appearing on The Bachelor, and it’s written by two women who fell in love while writing the book. Finally, beloved romance novelist Casey McQuiston set out to write a book that could undeniably be called a bisexual love story, and they succeeded in that task with the mouth-watering treat that is The Pairing.
Now for the books that are spooky or out of this world. In Johanna van Veen’s My Darling Dreadful Thing, gothic horror takes on a ghostly, queer dimension. In Feast While You Can by Onjuli Datta and Mikaella Clements, a primordial monster tries to take on a smartass lesbian – who do you think wins? Freddie Kölsch’s Now, Conjurers is a supernatural high school story à la The Craft, but even more gay, if you can believe that. You may have heard of this year’s It Novel, The Book of Love by Kelly Link, but I’m here to tell you it’s just as good as everyone says. Fans of Buffy or other teen supernatural fare should sink their teeth into this one.
Here are a few titles that resist categorization. Temim Futcher’s City of Laughter tells a story about queer Jewish identity and finding one’s roots. Private Rites by Julia Armfield – who also wrote the excellent Our Wives Under The Sea – follows three queer sisters dealing with climate change and complicated family history. All Fours by Miranda July, another one of this year’s hottest books, tracks an unhinged protagonist and her sexual exploits. Kimberly King Parsons’ We Were The Universe is about how you can be grieving and extremely horny at the same time.
Let’s make our way over to non-fiction. One of my academic heroes, Judith Butler, published a book called Who’s Afraid of Gender?, which is all about the ideology of anti-gender (and particularly anti-trans) movements. Maggie Nelson’s Like Love is yet another tender and thought-provoking collection from one of our greatest living thinkers. Jenn Shapland’s My Autobiography of Carson McCullers: A Memoir is as much a deep dive into McCullers’ life as it is about the author’s imagined relationship with her. In Sex with a Brain Injury: On Concussion and Recovery, Annie Liontas explores bodies, healing, and intimacy. In her book A Place of Our Own, June Thomas details the spaces that shaped a generation of queer women. In Lesbian Love Story, Amelia Possanza hunts through the archives to find historical lesbian romances that help illuminate the queer present. Finally, in The Rainbow Age of Television, Shayna Maci Warner tracks the emergence of queer and trans people on television and what that means for the industry today.
The Lesbian of The Year award goes to…
….Chappell Roan. There’s no other answer but this one. Few artists have been as influential as Roan this year, lesbian or not. From her Tiny Desk Concert to her Coachella set to her smash hit “Good Luck Babe,” Roan’s rise this summer has been meteoric. For her queer fans, this success feels not only vindicating but empowering. Though she’s been the subject of debate and controversy in recent months, her fans have remained devoted. It’s hard to truly understand Roan’s impact unless you’ve been to one of her shows or been in a room filled with lesbians and queer folks when one of her songs comes on – I’ve truly never seen anything like it. Long Live Lesbians.
Best Lesbian Couples
2024 has brought us many blessings in the form of queer and lesbian couples. First thing’s first: babies! Brittney Griner and her wife Cherelle welcomed their son Bash back in July. After delighting the world by kissing on stage at Coachella, Brazilian superstar Ludmilla and her wife Brunna Gonçalves announced they are expecting a baby while playing a show. Sam Kerr and Kristie Mewis revealed their future soccer mom status with a pregnancy announcement of their own. Ashlyn Harris continued to date Sophia Bush, while her ex Ali Kriger finally announced her new beau: Scottish footballer Jen Beattie. Tobin Heath and Christen Press finally confirmed their relationship after 8 years together, though most of us have known for ages. Brazilian soccer legend Marta got engaged to American soccer player Carrie Lawrence. Canadian Hockey stars Marie-Philip Poulin and Laura Stacey shared their love story with the world.
Chloë Grace Moretz and gf Kate Harrison continued to delight sapphics everywhere, and Moretz confirmed she is queer for the first time. Fabiola Valentín and Mariana Varela, also known as Miss Puerto Rico and Miss Argentina, celebrated two years of marriage last month. RHONY star and power dyke Jenna Lyons continued acting gay with her girlfriend (fiancé?) Cass Bird on Instagram. Abbi Jacobson and Jodi Balfour got married in 2023 but shared the pics from their wedding this year. Reneé Rapp and Towa Bird canoodled on stage all summer long and confirmed they are aware people think they look like Bette and Tina from The L Word.
Best Lesbian Drama (and Other Goings-On)
Former wives Ashlyn Harris and Ali Krieger couldn’t help stoking the lesbian drama of their divorce while making thinly veiled statements about it on social media and in interviews. JoJo Siwa got a new tattoo that should win the award for ugliest lesbian tattoo of all time. Shannon Beveridge finally had her ex Fletcher on her podcast to talk about their breakup and the fallout – including the controversial song “Becky’s So Hot.” Speaking of Becky, the subject of that song, Shannon’s other ex, Becky Missal, decided to tell her side of the story on a different podcast. But let’s not forget the most dramatic breakup of the year: influencers Anjali Chakra and Sufi Malik, who called off their engagements because Sufi cheated just weeks before the wedding.
Halloween was pretty gay this year – what with all the “i hate gay halloween” memes – but no one did it better than the couple who dressed up as Chappell Roan and a passenger seat. We can’t say goodbye to 2024 without saying a prayer for the twink who fell through the skylight at the Clairo Shade party. And, in case you missed the most heartwarming tale of the year: here’s the story of the elementary school kids who named a building after their butch janitor. See you on the flipside!
Starting off with a buff-looking Jodie Foster, a woman I've had a celebrity crush on for like 25 years...YES PLEASE!!!