They are smart, gifted, they save people (and sometimes the world as well), fight the evil and they are also lesbians*! In the last few years there have been several sci-fi and fantasy TV series where the producers were not afraid to make heroines of their lesbian* characters or let their heroines be lesbian* - who were also allowed to fall in love on screen. All of the above in a way that being gay was not at all the most exciting part of these characters. So here we list some protagonists from recent or running TV shows - selected in a strictly subjective way.
Cosima & Delphine - Orphan Black
A recently ended Canadian sci-fi about human clones put high focus on diversity, so it’s no wonder one of the main characters, Cosima - a biology student - was a lesbian. Furthermore, her “with or without her” relationship with the scientist Delphine became the main love storyline.
Even though the show is filled with action, Cosima is usually left out of the actual troubles, still, her character is one of the most important one in the show. Her mission is to find the cure for the deadly disease of the clones (initially with Delphine’s help).
She has one of the key lines in the show, when she is asked if she is gay the answer is: sexuality is not the most important thing about her. The whole show was written in the mindset that it is the most natural thing in the world to be lesbian, bisexual, gay or transgendered.
Shaw & Root - Person of Interest
The base storyline of Person of Interest is that there is a computer program, an artificial intelligence, “the Machine’. From day to day, episode to episode this system gives the unique identity code of people who are in danger or who are dangerous to others based on different data and information. Shaw and Root are part of a small group who try to save these people from others or themselves.
Sarah Shahi (aka Carmen from the L Word) is playing a lesbian character again in this American science fiction series. We can state that the character of Shaw, an emotionless, kind of a psychopath killer suits her - who eventually starts to show some emotions. Shaw and the crazy hacker, Root - who by the way has feelings for the ‘Machine’, too - are playing and teasing each other practically from their first scene together. However, tragic things have to happen for them to be able to express how they feel about each other.
Bo & Lauren - Lost Girl
In favor of not having only sci-fi shows on the list, here’s a Canadian fantasy with Bo as the main character. Bo is a bisexual supernatural being called a succubus, who feeds on sexual energy: her injuries heal with having sex and she can make anybody do anything with her touch solely. Her uniqueness comes from her being the only one who is not committed to any clans of the Faes (based on the story it is the collective name of the various strange creatures living with humans), so she fights the evil on her own way.
Even though the show is filled with supernatural creatures some of whom she engages in a close relationship with, the doctor who examines her at the beginning of the show impresses her the most. We can feel it from the first moment that sooner or later something will happen between Bo and Lauren. During the 5 seasons of the show they both go through a lot but their story is a happy end. And, by the way, they also save the world in the meantime.
Alex & Maggie - Supergirl
The American show about a flying superheroine - yes, the similarity in the name to Superman is not a coincidence, he is her cousin - is not afraid to have a lesbian character. Supergirl’s (Kara’s) foster-sister, secret agent Alex meets an out lesbian* policewoman, Maggie, who also specialises in aliens. Thanks to her, Alex also comes out eventually. Both the coming out scene and the scene where she talks to Kara are very touching.
Even though Maggie first refused to date Alex, because she didn’t want to be with someone who just realised she was gay, screenwriters soon hooked them up. The second season ended with a wedding in plan: after saving the world Maggie proposed to Alex who said yes. Since then season 3 is on, where we learn more about their relationship, but we don’t want to spoil the show (even more), go watch it!
Clarke & Lexa - The 100
The 100 is a TV show set in a post-apocalyptic world, where 100 juveniles are sent to the Earth from space to find out if they can live there 100 years after the nuclear war. It turns out immediately that the answer is yes, but there are already other people living on the Earth.
Alliance between the “Newcomers” and “Grounders“ is quite difficult at the beginning. Clarke, the informal leader of the “newcomers” and Lexa, the leader of Grounders on the other hand are getting along quite well, but it takes some time to see them hook up. Not long after this, Lexa dies a very pointless death (which of course caused a huge disappointment amongst the fans). Their story doesn’t end here though: Lexa, even though dead, helps Clarke to defeat an evil artificial intelligence, hence they save the world together.
+ Willow and Kennedy - Buffy the vampire slayer
There is another TV show that aired long before, but cannot be missed from our list about lesbian* heroines of sci-fi and fantasy shows. Buffy the vampire slayer, aired in 1997 was pioneer in so many ways. One of the main characters of the show, Willow turned out to be a lesbian in a later season, when she fell in love with another witch, Tara. After the death of Tara, Willow was struggling to find herself, but eventually she hooked up with another girl, Kennedy.
Their love scene was the first lesbian sex scene shown on national TV in the US. This was back in 2003. Fortunately since then we could watch many more sex scenes (maybe one day we list them for you).
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As we mentioned at the beginning of the article, our list is not complete, there could be some other characters or shows that you miss from here. Feel free to share your other favorite sci-fi or fantasy dream couples with us!
Translated by Zsófi Bártfai
