ABC Family's original show The Fosters concluded its second season on March 23, 2015. If you haven't watched the show yet... YOU ARE MISSING OUT! Created by Bradley Bredeweg and Peter Paige and executively produced by Jennifer Lopez, the show is a mix of drama, comedy, family issues, social issues and most of all love.
The show revolves around a lesbian couple (Teri Polo and Sherri Saum) parenting a mix of foster, adoptive, and biological children. (Jake T. Austin, Hayden Byerly, David Lambert, Maia Mitchell, & Cierra Ramirez)
The shows begins with introducing us to Callie and Jude Jacobs (Mitchell & Byerly), two children stuck in the foster system who have given up hope on finding a real family. That is until they meet Stef Foster and Lena Adams (Polo & Saum) who invite the Jacob siblings into their home where this amazing journey begins.
Here is the part where I give away some spoilers... so if you aren't caught up yet, please go onto Netflix, Hulu+, Amazon Prime, or the ABC Family website and do that now!
Lets talk about some of the important LGBTQ issues it has addressed.
LGBT PARENTING & MARRIAGE
The show revolves around a lesbian couple (Teri Polo and Sherri Saum) parenting a mix of foster, adoptive, and biological children. (Jake T. Austin, Hayden Byerly, David Lambert, Maia Mitchell, & Cierra Ramirez)
The shows begins with introducing us to Callie and Jude Jacobs (Mitchell & Byerly), two children stuck in the foster system who have given up hope on finding a real family. That is until they meet Stef Foster and Lena Adams (Polo & Saum) who invite the Jacob siblings into their home where this amazing journey begins.
Here is the part where I give away some spoilers... so if you aren't caught up yet, please go onto Netflix, Hulu+, Amazon Prime, or the ABC Family website and do that now!
Lets talk about some of the important LGBTQ issues it has addressed.
LGBT PARENTING & MARRIAGE
One of the great things about this show is that it doesn't focus on the fact that two women are parenting these kids. Stef and Lena are a normal couple. I mean sure, them being a lesbian couple has been brought up a few times but the show doesn't dwell on it. It lets the audience know and see that these women are AMAZING moms and that most of the characters involved in the show see that and don't make it an issue.
Season 1A ends with the marriage of Stef and Lena. The episodes involving the engagement and wedding were both so eloquently written that you can forget that some states don't have the same laws as California. Since the wedding, Stef and Lena have been a married couple. They've had fights, make-ups, and normal marriage drama.
Season 1A ends with the marriage of Stef and Lena. The episodes involving the engagement and wedding were both so eloquently written that you can forget that some states don't have the same laws as California. Since the wedding, Stef and Lena have been a married couple. They've had fights, make-ups, and normal marriage drama.
LGBTQ ACCEPTANCE
The show has introduced us to some of the best LGBTQ characters to ever grace television.
Stef and Lena both had prejudice to face with their parents in the series. Stef's father played a big role in the first season with trying to support and accept his daughter. Same with Lena's parents. The good thing is that we got to see both of these characters parents grow to eventually accepted that they can't change their daughters because love is love.
When the season 1B introduced us to Girls United, a group home for troubled teen girls, we got introduced to Cole. (Played by Tom Phelan) Cole is a trans character who is living in this group home because the courts don't recognize his rights and still consider him a girl because that what he was born as. Thank goodness for Rosie O'Donnell's character Rita Hendricks who helps Cole to move into a LGBT group home during season 2. Cole's character is important though because we got to see a real trans person on our tv go through the struggles that many teen trans people go through, such as using street hormones to try and transition and most imprtantly societies reactions to trans people. Which is a big deal since other show *cough Glee cough* have shown us trans characters. and turned them into a joke, which is horrible.
Now lets talk about everyone's new favorite ship... Jonnor. (Jude Adams Foster and Connor Stevens)
Stef and Lena both had prejudice to face with their parents in the series. Stef's father played a big role in the first season with trying to support and accept his daughter. Same with Lena's parents. The good thing is that we got to see both of these characters parents grow to eventually accepted that they can't change their daughters because love is love.
When the season 1B introduced us to Girls United, a group home for troubled teen girls, we got introduced to Cole. (Played by Tom Phelan) Cole is a trans character who is living in this group home because the courts don't recognize his rights and still consider him a girl because that what he was born as. Thank goodness for Rosie O'Donnell's character Rita Hendricks who helps Cole to move into a LGBT group home during season 2. Cole's character is important though because we got to see a real trans person on our tv go through the struggles that many teen trans people go through, such as using street hormones to try and transition and most imprtantly societies reactions to trans people. Which is a big deal since other show *cough Glee cough* have shown us trans characters. and turned them into a joke, which is horrible.
Now lets talk about everyone's new favorite ship... Jonnor. (Jude Adams Foster and Connor Stevens)
What can I say about Jonnor? Umm... It's adorable!
The great thing about Jonnor is that the creators and producers didn't just rush into the storyline of these boys questioning their sexuality, they let it build ever since the characters first met in season 1. Another important factor is that the creators let the actors (Hayden and Gavin) discover who they are and who they like in their own lives before throwing these characters into this storyline. The simple fact that the creators wanted their actors to be comfortable is a huge deal. What other show do you know of that has done that?
And then there is that HISTORY MAKING kiss. This show single handedly made history with this storyline... the youngest same-sex kiss to be shown on television! Its also important that because of this show and this storyline, young gay kids can see that it is ok to question your sexuality and that it is perfectly normal. Young LGBT kids can see their own lives being played out every week on a show that takes a storyline like this seriously.
Jonnor got to explore the journey from innocent friendship to innocent crush to innocent relationship.
I cannot wait to see what season 3 brings for Jonnor!
The great thing about Jonnor is that the creators and producers didn't just rush into the storyline of these boys questioning their sexuality, they let it build ever since the characters first met in season 1. Another important factor is that the creators let the actors (Hayden and Gavin) discover who they are and who they like in their own lives before throwing these characters into this storyline. The simple fact that the creators wanted their actors to be comfortable is a huge deal. What other show do you know of that has done that?
And then there is that HISTORY MAKING kiss. This show single handedly made history with this storyline... the youngest same-sex kiss to be shown on television! Its also important that because of this show and this storyline, young gay kids can see that it is ok to question your sexuality and that it is perfectly normal. Young LGBT kids can see their own lives being played out every week on a show that takes a storyline like this seriously.
Jonnor got to explore the journey from innocent friendship to innocent crush to innocent relationship.
I cannot wait to see what season 3 brings for Jonnor!
The Fosters season 3 premieres June 2015 on ABC Family!