Ok, I’ve been thinking about Lucy Liu’s casting, and I have two cents to add. 

All whining about “but Watson’s supposed to be a MAN!” aside, I think the think that most irks me about the hate is the complaining that they’re going to make her a love interest, either because they don’t want it to be a love story at all (and of course when a man and a woman work together, it’s GOING to be a love story), or because they want it to be a love story, but they want it to be between two dudes.

What I just realized is that I’ve been here before. Not with Sherlock Holmes, but with an even older text: Hamlet.

Two of my favorite adaptations of Hamlet are Asta Nielsen’s Hamlet (1920) and Fodor’s Hamlet (2007). These adaptations have something in common: Hamlet and Horatio get together. They have intentional sexual tension throughout, and they kiss as Hamlet is dying.

Unfortunately, both of the relationships are heterosexual. But here’s why it’s interesting: in Asta Nielsen’s Hamlet, Hamlet is female. In Fodor’s Hamlet, Horatio is female. It’s not about one character or the other being female, it’s about the relationship being heterosexual and therefore facilitating a romance. But the fact that it doesn’t matter which character is female is telling. What that says is that the relationship between the characters is romantic in a way that isn’t dependent on gender. Am I angry as hell that we haven’t had a (filmed) male/male Hamlet/Horatio yet? Yes!! But people are acknowledging that it’s possible for these two characters (that are, in the original canon, male!) to be in a romantic relationship.

So when you complain about Lucy Liu’s Watson being female and therefore a love interest, what you’re really saying is that you want it to be two dudes. And that is perfectly valid. But if nothing else, you should be excited about the fact that, yeah, Watson is Holmes’ love interest!! They would be taking these characters, who are both male in their source material, and presenting an interpretation of their relationship that is romantic. And I think that is exciting.

9 notes
posted 2 months ago
  1. yumtumbl reblogged this from dontcrosscross and added:
    pretty much agree with everything you’ve said, but there’s a niggle...express (bear with...
  2. this-mortal-coil reblogged this from dontcrosscross
  3. ohhhvienna reblogged this from dontcrosscross and added:
    the part where I know...play Sherlock as not ace. That’s the one line I do not like
  4. kivitasku said: I read about a theatre production where they did Hamlet/Horatio for reals. But that’s not much use to us now…
  5. nissanissas said: sherlock holmes is working off the same archetypes as hamlet tbh.
  6. dontcrosscross posted this

with gay porn and musical numbers*




Cross. 18. INFP. Human disaster. My patronus is the NONONONO cat. I like my men like I like my coffee: I'm a tea drinker.
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