As part of my best of all time series, I’m sharing a list of the best queer TV shows of all time. This list is a mix of shows with incredible representation that holds up still, and shows with problematic representation that was nevertheless groundbreaking at the time. Perhaps more aptly named “most important queer tv shows” this list is designed to give people a list of what shows are firmly in the queer canon for one reason or another.
Strong disclaimer that this list only includes shows I’ve actually watched, and is clearly influenced by my own lived experiences and preferences! The plan is to update this annually during pride month to allow for a living, breathing, ever changing document to the best queer television.
15. Broad City
Seasons: 5
Air Date: 2014—2019
I deeply love Broad City. Abbi Jacobson and Ilana Glazer took their webseries to Comedy Central and made a delightful queer stoner buddy TV show for the ages. Abbi is queer in real life, and Ilana’s character is queer on the show—the perfect combo! Everything about this show is incredibly gay. It’s perfection.
14. Yellowjackets
Seasons: 2
Air Date: 2021—
Yellowjackets is a dual timeline ensemble show that takes us between a group of high school soccer players stranded in the woods and their adult counterparts (many of whom have a child of their own). The lesbian romance is one of the central parts of the show and it gives breathing room for the gay male minor storyline as well. Even the “straight” characters are somehow incredibly queercoded!
13. Girls5Eva
Seasons: 3
Air Date: 2021—
There may only be one queer character in this ensemble show, but she is given her chance to date and be sexual at least at the level (if not moreso) than the straight characters. Girls5Eva follows an early 2000s girl band that reunites as adults to go back on tour. Gloria, the queer woman, was closeted in their initial go around but is now out and proud and given a chance to explore what being a “queer icon” actually is.
12. Baby Reindeer
Seasons: 1
Air Date: 2024
I’m going to put the trigger warning right at the front of this mini-review! This is an incredibly dark show about a man who is stalked and abused both sexually and emotionally. That being said, it was a beautifully done limited series that made me sob multiple times and will surely win awards. Over the course of the show, the main character comes to terms with his bisexuality while dating a trans woman; this situation was given room to breathe and both characters were able to show their complexity.
11. Modern Family
Seasons: 11
Air Date: 2009—2020
I know this show gets some well-deserved flack now about its portrayal of stereotypes that are borne from the inherent sexism and homophobia of many of the characters and/or writers. However, to not have it on this list would discount how important it was to the normalization of gay marriage and queer couples at the time. Cam and Mitch came into our homes in 2009—six years before gay marriage was legalized—and showed the everyday American that it’s possible to be happy and have a gay family. Modern Family is last on this list because of how few queer people actually existed in the ensemble cast, but it still deserves to be here for the way it showed me and other young queers and their families that it’s possible to have kids and still marry the person you love.
10. Batwoman
Seasons: 3
Air Date: 2019—2022
If there’s one show that got cancelled far before it deserved to, it’s Batwoman. This CW show started out starring Ruby Rose as a lesbian Batwoman, and a couple of seasons in transitioned to star Javicia Leslie. As someone who is not a big Ruby Rose fan, the Rose seasons are still good but the Leslie seasons are delightful. Everyone is gay on this show, and I love that CW didn’t shy away from casting real life queer people for their role of lesbian superhero. If you’re a fan of superhero shows or are just here for the between-fight-scenes gay drama, you absolutely need to watch this show.
9. Hacks
Seasons: 3
Air Date: 2021—
There is no better show about a codependent toxic age gap friendship than Hacks. It’s a laugh out loud funny series about a young writer named Ava who is forced to write jokes for an aging comic named Deborah. They fight, they make each other better, and they maybe even will fall in love. Of course, the actual reason this show is on the list is because Ava is bisexual and does date a woman throughout the series.
8. Sense8
Seasons: 2
Air Date: 2015—2017
I found Sense8 well after it came to an end, but I’m so glad I did find it. this supernatural show about people whose brains are connected stars a lesbian trans woman (Jamie Clayton) who is literally having strap on sex in the first scene of the show. Given that the series was written by the Wachowski sisters, it’s unsurprising that there was such nuanced transgender representation. There are also gay male characters, and due to the mental connection of the characters, more than one “orgy” ensue. This was most definitely cancelled far before it should have been—thanks to Netflix’s distaste for sapphic women on screen as well as the remarkably high per episode budget— but it was given a final movie-length episode to wrap up thanks to the persistence of fans.
7. Glamorous
Seasons: 1
Air Date: 2023—
While this is certainly one of the more low-profile shows on the list, it made up for it in just how unapologetically queer it is. Glamorous follows Marco Mejia, a young person working for a fashion brand under Madolyn Addison (Kim Cattrall). Nearly everyone except Madolyn Addison is gay and at least season 1 does a great job of addressing gender nonconformity in a way that feels real.
6. Sex Education
Seasons: 3
Air Date: 2019—2023
While the true main character of this show is straight, the central premise and the surrounding cast make this worthy of being on a queer show list. A high school boy navigates having a sex therapist for a mother and starts giving sex education to his classmates, leading to a series of hijinks. His best friend is a Black gay boy who finds both bullying and love. In more recent seasons, Sex Education introduced a nonbinary character and tended to focus more on the queer character’s storylines in general.
5. The L Word
Seasons: 6
Air Date: 2004—2009
Oh, The L Word. Where do I begin? Showtime debuted this ensemble cast about (primarily rich, white) lesbians in 2004, and (primarily white) queer women became obsessed. This is a cultural touchstone for sapphic people everywhere, and its soap opera level portrayal of queer relationships leads to lots of sexy fun. However, there is a lack of nuance in the portrayal of interracial relationships and Black and hispanic people at all, which the reboot, Generation Q, attempted to correct and yet still struggled with. Most egregious is the representation of trans people on this show. The series regular trans character was bullied by his peers and given terrible and transphobic plot lines by the writers, and anther minor trans character was persistently misgendered by the most beloved character of the entire franchise. This makes it a rough watch back, but its impact on sapphic culture cannot be underestimated.
4. Heartstopper
Seasons: 1
Air Date: 2022—
Everyone has surely heard of Heartstopper by now, given the way it took over social media and Netflix’s “Most popular” section for weeks. This British high school show centers around two gay boys who are slowly falling in love. While many critics have talked about how “frilly and fun” this show is (likely because of the pretty colors used) it’s actually a lot darker, focusing on bullying, coming out narratives, and coming to terms with your true self. The rest of the cast includes a trans girl and a lesbian couple!
3. Orange is the New Black
Seasons: 7
Air Date: 2013—2019
Orange is the New Black revolutionized television in more ways than one. This show was Netflix’s first big hit, and when it dropped the first season of episodes everyone was taken off guard. The show quite literally opens up with a lesbian sex scene! Following its immense popularity, OITNB became the longest running show starring lesbians of all time. While the latter seasons take a dark turn and drop off in quality, the first few seasons are some of the best television I’ve ever seen. This ensemble cast is made up of nearly all women, and primarily gay (or gay for the stay) women as they navigate the prison system and its many flaws.
2. A League of Their Own
Seasons: 1
Air Date: 2022
While this show got cancelled far too early, even in one season it was able to make an incredible impact. It’s so rare to see a show with an ensemble cast where everyone is gay that represents a diverse population of queer people. Based on the book and movie of the same name, A League of Their Own is about the World War II women’s baseball teams, and doesn’t shy away from the gayness of the players in the league. It’s clearly made for queer people, and I love how much care they put into everyones storylines. The Black, butch, visibly queer cast get just as much attention and development as the white femme ones do, despite the original fictional accounts not giving them much to work with.
1. Pose
Seasons: 3
Air Date: 2018—2021
Pose is about the early 90s ballroom scene in New York City, starring primarily Black trans women and Black cis gay men. This was one of the most emotional, beautiful, incredibly done shows I have ever watched, and I’m thinking about watching again. The creators brilliantly balanced lighthearted and fun storylines such as the ballroom competitions between house mothers with the much darker homelessness and AIDs crisis that many of these characters faced. This is a must watch show for anyone, queer or otherwise.
What are your favorite queer TV shows of all time?
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