Ep 7 "It's Raining Men" is one of Season 2's more emotionally resonant entries: a case that grapples with both love and fear, and the heavy cost of silence. 7.5/10.
Jeff Kern is more than a victim... he is a symbol of resistance, speaking out about AIDS in an era of shame and secrecy, even at great personal cost. The flashbacks to 1983 are beautifully painful, with big fears hidden behind closeted doors, family disownment, and social ostracism.
Artie, his partner, becomes the heart of the episode - his need for truth and recognition grounding the narrative and pushing Rush and Valens to dig through decades of denial.
The performances are solid: Jeff's courage, Paul's internal torment, Rush's empathy, Valens's support... they all work together to show how love, fear, and prejudice intertwined. The script does a nice job of avoiding overstatement; the emotional beats hit honestly without falling into melodrama. The music choices amplify the tension and the sighs between the lines.
If there's a weakness, it's that some revelations feel a bit on-the-nose: the closeted brother, the disowned son, the threatened outings are familiar tropes by now. But because they're handled with care, "It's Raining Men" mostly sidesteps cliché and delivers a powerful story of truth, redemption, and grief.
