In the 1990's, television was still coming to terms with how to incorporate gay characters. If the characters' sexuality wasn't a main point of the show—e.g. Will and Grace—you had to watch closely for the hint of a relationship. A longing glance, a lingering hand-hold, or a close friendship were often subtexts for something more.
Well, it's 2016, and words like "hint" and "subtext" are no longer needed. Which means reboots (yes, another reboot!) like the one for Xena: Warrior Princess will no longer need to hide, say, a lesbian relationship between its main character and her apprentice.
NBC has ordered a pilot for a new Xena series, and creator Javier Grillo-Marxuach says he will not hold back.
"Xena will be a very different show made for very different reasons," Grillo-Marxuach said in a Tumblr Q&A. "There is no reason to bring back Xena if it is not there for the purpose of fully exploring a relationship that could only be shown subtextually in first-run syndication in the 1990s. It will also express my view of the world—which is only further informed by what is happening right now— and is not too difficult to know what that is if you do some digging."
This is pretty cool news! Well, not necessarily the reboot. We already have too many of those. BUT: We also already have many shoes exploring heterosexual relationships. In fact, almost every TV show only explores heterosexual relationships. Exploring positive gay relationships—while defeating mythical monsters in an action-based setting—is novel in itself.
In fact, we should probably bring back every show from the 90s and remove the subtext. I, for one, totally want to see Joey and Chandler get it on.