Cucumber

My exposure to the work of Russell T Davies has been quite limited, as I never watched a lot of his stuff from years past. I watched Cucumber out of interest, as it did seem like a large 'event', although I did not watch the supporting shows of Banana or Tofu (I think the former followed minor characters and the latter was more of a discussion show around the issues). Set within the Manchester gay community, we follow older Henry as a series of moments see him and his long-term partner breaking up, and him living with a small group of much, much younger (and adventurous) gay men.

From the start the show has a lot of energy, with plenty of colorful characters, excessive language, dialogue, and of course full-frontal male nudity. To some this will be enough to put them off whereas if the show had straight characters and female nudity, they would not be. I was unsure how I felt about this element of the show for some time – was it the fact that I saw this as 'alternative' the issue that meant the sexual material seemed like an issue? For me personally it was not, but for sure the show's obsession with sex was a barrier in and of itself. Perhaps it is my distance from this community that meant it felt over-the-top and a little tiresome in its constant sexual energy, however it remains that it did feel this way.

It is a shame because there are some real people in here, and the show is really driven by Franklin's performance as Henry. Too often he is thrown around in the sea of sex, with its fast edits, its boundless energy, and polished presentation. However at times the script gives him space to be a person within this world, and in those moments his performances works really well. It is a shame that the same was not said for the others and too many just felt like easy caricatures without any fleshing out. Even those characters which have more to work with, they still don't really manage to fight their way through the energy and bustle to make a mark.

It is a shame, because I did also quite enjoy elements of the energy, sex, and sense of lifestyle. However it does feel like these elements were always first and foremost on the agenda, and it always seems like the characters and moments of genuine feeling just came about for the purpose of having a frame for all of the main material, not the other way round.

It's refreshing to find anything these days that's centered around a mature gay man. It is totally relatable, in that the characters include a realistic range of ages, personalities, and cultural and life experiences. It's funny, it's relevant, it's true to life, and the plot takes many twists and turns, as well as some unexpected events. So happy to find a series, a movie, - anything - that has "grown up" and is past the self discovery, or coming out, phase of the gay male experience! The character of Henry is beautifully written, acted, and portrayed, as are all the main cast of characters. I loved it!

A friend advised me to watch this series because it was supposed to be about my life. As a gay man in my early fifties I was kind of unsure if I wanted to see this, a story about a man my age dealing with my issues. Well, I just finished the last episode and I must admit that I highly enjoyed "Cucumber".

Best part of Cucumber is the great script, mostly funny, sometimes dramatic. In my opinion all important themes of gay life for a middle aged man are presented. Also the uneasy thing of the division of roles in male gay relationships and sex, who's the top and who's the bottom? Who gives and who receives? Who penetrates and who is being penetrated? Decades ago this wasn't an issue at all. I had long term relationships and I never discussed that with my boyfriends. We were happy being together. Nowadays gays want to know if you're a top or bottom. The same clarity as between a man and a woman? If you can't or wont define yourself you're going to miss sexual opportunities. In porn movies roles are defined, and so it should be in our lives. Whether or not straight rules are the same for gay sex, it's a fact that this old fashioned view on sex is now mainstream in the gay community. The tragedy about all this is that it has been scientifically proved that most gay man are in fact bottoms. So everybody is looking for a top and two bottoms don't even think about falling in love or being sexual. Oh well, everybody has to do what they must do, but I don't believe in this division.

Cucumber has many more great themes, but this was the most striking for me.

Cucumber is compared with that other gay series called "Looking". Looking was nicely shot and superbly styled but Cucumber dives much deeper and seriously in taboos like gay male sexual intercourse, loneliness, age gaps, career and work, narcissism, bi-curious youth, race and social media.

The main character, Henry, is as unapologetic as it gets. He couldn't care less about what others think of him, and doesn't crave approval at all. At least, that's what he projects and how he'd describe himself. The whole series is like that. Daring and totally unafraid to be offensive (and this will be very offensive to some) Cucumber is an extraordinarily raw and honest look at gay sexuality in an over-sexualized world. A world where the bad one and the victim aren't necessarily who you think, at first. A very worthwhile journey.

This show is widely criticized for its stereotypical portrayal of gay characters as over-sexed, immature, sleazy and shallow. I could not agree more - the main character (as well as almost everyone on the show) is unlikeable for exactly those reasons. Nevertheless, I feel that the show (just like any other morality tale, which Cucumber basically is) uses its anti-hero to convey a message that is, in its core, a warning. What we see throughout the show, are characters who are unable to truly bond and in a desperate calling for closeness (or is it regaining lost youth, at least for some?) chase after random sex. This chase usually leads them to pathetic begging or self-commodification which, in this fictional universe, is seen as something inescapable and "normal"( like in the subplot with the video- mogul nephew). In effect, their hunger to be loved (via sexual intercourse) leads one of the characters to his death, the other to a existence of vacuous survival and endless desire. The plight of the elder generation is mirrored in the story lines of the young (in Cucumber as well as in its spin- off, Banana), who don't even consider forming any kind of durable bond, let alone expressing any kind of basic human concern (as personified in the truly repulsive character of walking "emptiness behind a pretty face" Freddie.) What I see as emblematic scene of the show is when the protagonist suggests creating a 60'-style commune, only to be met with incomprehension and laughter. The sense of togetherness that once prevailed within the gay culture has been dismantled (is it because of the embracement by the majority culture?),the social interactions take place within a strictly competitive market. Or is it a battleground?

All of this might be lost on some due to the strong comic nature of the show, but to me, the light over-tone of the whole thing only makes the tragedy more approachable to general audience.