It’s been over a decade since we saw Bette Porter, Shane McCutcheon, and Alice Pieszecki. Honestly, a lot has changed in Los Angeles since then. The original series was groundbreaking, sure, but it also had some... let's call them "dated" takes on identity and community. When The L Word: Generation Q Season 1 dropped in late 2019, it wasn't just a nostalgia trip. It was a complete overhaul.
Moving the action from the familiar (and now very expensive) West Hollywood to the slightly more "hip" Silver Lake was a choice. A deliberate one. The show basically tried to bridge the gap between the old guard—those of us who remember the "The Chart"—and a new, more diverse group of queer people living through the complexities of the 2020s.
What Really Happened in the First Season?
The core of the show still rests on the shoulders of the original trio. Bette is running for Mayor of Los Angeles. It makes sense, right? She was always the one who wanted to control everything. But her campaign gets messy fast when a man accuses her of having an affair with his wife. Classic Bette. She’s still "outrunning her feelings," as the show puts it.
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Meanwhile, Alice has actually made it. She has a successful daytime talk show. She’s dating Nat, but things get weird when Nat’s ex-wife, Gigi, enters the picture. They try the whole throuple thing. It’s messy. It’s very "L Word."
Then there’s Shane. She rolls back into town on a private jet, looking as cool as ever, but she’s hiding a failing marriage to a woman named Quiara. She ends up buying a bar and naming it "Dana’s" after our dearly departed Dana Fairbanks. It’s a gut-punch of a tribute that fans really felt.
The New Class: Who are these people?
The "Generation Q" part of the title refers to the younger group:
- Dani Nùñez: A high-powered PR exec who ends up working for Bette. She’s engaged to Sophie.
- Sophie Suarez: A producer on Alice’s show. She’s the heart of the group, but she gets caught in a massive cheating scandal.
- Sarah Finley: Everyone just calls her Finley. She’s a chaotic, charming mess who works for Alice and lives in Shane’s spare room.
- Micah Lee: An adjunct professor and therapist who is a trans man. His story involves falling for a neighbor named José, which ends in a pretty wild cliffhanger.
Why the Season 1 Finale Left Everyone Screaming
The finale, titled "Lapse in Judgement," was a lot. The election night drama for Bette didn't go the way most people expected. She lost. It was a crushing moment, seeing the ever-composed Bette Porter defeated. But it gave us one of the best scenes of the season: Bette and her daughter Angie (now a teenager and brilliantly played by Jordan Hull) hiking and just screaming into the void. It felt real.
The biggest talking point, though, was the airport cliffhanger.
Sophie had cheated on Dani with Finley. It was a classic "L Word" disaster. At the end of the episode, Dani is at the gate waiting to fly to Hawaii to elope. At the same time, Finley is at another gate, ready to leave for Missouri. We see Sophie running through the terminal, but the screen cuts to black before we see which gate she chooses. People were heated about this.
What the Show Got Right (and Wrong)
Honestly, the show did a much better job with representation this time around. Having trans characters played by trans actors—like Leo Sheng as Micah and Brian Michael Smith as Pierce—was a huge step up from the original run's mistakes.
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But some things felt rushed. The timeline was dizzying. One minute people are meeting, the next they’re in deep, life-altering relationships. And the "throuple" storyline with Alice, Nat, and Gigi? It was fascinating, but it felt like the writers didn't quite know how to stick the landing.
Wait, what about Jenny?
If you were wondering if they’d address the elephant in the room—Jenny Schecter’s death—they did. Sort of. It’s mentioned that she died by suicide in Bette’s pool. It was a quick way to close that chapter, though many fans still have theories about what actually happened.
Actionable Insights for Fans and New Viewers
If you're diving into the series now, here is how to get the most out of the experience:
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- Watch the Original First (If You Can): You don't have to, but the emotional payoff of seeing Shane open "Dana's" or Bette and Tina (who makes a guest appearance) together won't hit the same without it.
- Pay Attention to the Background: The show is packed with cameos from queer icons like Roxane Gay and Megan Rapinoe.
- Don't Get Too Attached to the Couples: It's a soap opera at heart. If they're happy in episode 2, they’re probably breaking up by episode 5.
- Follow the Fashion: The costume design for Bette and Dani specifically is top-tier "power lesbian" aesthetic. It's basically a masterclass in tailoring.
The L Word: Generation Q Season 1 succeeded in making the brand relevant again. It wasn't perfect, but it captured that specific, messy, beautiful energy of queer life in a way that very few shows do.