A review by bxtskr
Hi Honey, I'm Homo!: Sitcoms, Specials, and the Queering of American Culture by Matt Baume

emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted reflective relaxing fast-paced

5.0

Rarely is there such a timely, melodic, and astute critique of television that rings as true as this collection does.  We are in a cultural moment that seeks to erase queer histories, seeking to make “gay” something no longer allowed in polite society. “Hi Honey, I’m Homo!” reminds us that even when we couldn’t be open on TV, we were still there: behind the scenes and in front of the screens. Fundamentally, the message that rings through is that we have always been here and we always will be.

As a younger millennial, a majority of the shows detailed in the collection were before my time (and all aired before I came out publicly for the first time in 2016) and I deeply appreciated the cultural/economic/industry context that Baumé so effortlessly weaves in.

I’m infatuated with this collection and I could listen to the audiobook narrator for hours. The section about “Cheers!” even allowed me to have a deeply important conversation with my GenX mother about queerness and depictions on TV.

I’m so thankful for books like these and authors like Baumé that remind us so enjoyably that queer people belong and how we’ve fought for our rights beyond the political sphere