Pose (Season 2)

Pose took us all for an exciting ride during it’s premiere in 2018 on FX as we followed the amazing Blanca and House Evangelista through it’s journey to success and recognition. Taking place in New York in the 1980’s, we’re exposed to Ball Culture and the underground reality of what the LGBTQ+ community had to survive through to stay above water.

We’re introduced to Blanca in the first episode at the beginning of her battle to be acknowledged an treated as equal by everyone surrounding her even those in the LGBTQ+ community. She takes us down the rabbit hole to experience ball culture, how families were built for kids exiled from their homes for being who they are, and how people in this community would bend and twist for acceptance, love, and recognition in this world. She makes her rounds and creates her family dubbed The House of Evanglista, and helps all of her children find comfort in who they are to chase the dreams she knows they can achieve.

After Blanca won Mother of the Year at the end of Season 1 there was no question season 2 would come with just as much fierceness at the first. They started the season off with the battle against HIV/AIDS and watching how it’s ripping the underground LGBTQ+ community apart. We even see Blanca is the middle of her battle and how the fight of her life is getting more intense as the days pass. She’s determined now more than ever to push her children into success and teach them to conquer their fears. Courage isn’t the absence of fear but rather the decision to move forward even though that fear exists and Blanca is walking proof that fear should never stop you from sprinting after your goals.

Pose is applauded for it’s undeniably courageous plot and the opportunity for anyone within the LGBTQ+ community to shine in roles meant written and scripted for them. I can’t begin to imagine the controversial topics and risqué battles Pose will tackle on Season 2 but I know it’s coming back with a vengeance after killing the game in Season 1.

The premiere puts the HIV/AIDS epidemic at the forefront in discussion for this season and we see the characters begin to fight each other as they continue to fight the world set against destroying this community. Angel challenges the status quo and auditions for a new faces modeling competition; Pray Tell joins the fight against AIDS with Act Up to increase the LGBTQ+ community’s probability of beating the disease; Blanca quits her job when challenged to choose working a shift over supporting her family and community in a protest to save the lives of those hanging on for dear life; Madonna releases Vogue and gives positive light to the LGBTQ+ community providing encouragement to live in their truth unapologetically; and we experience a lot of death and the domino affects it has in the community as it unfolds and takes too many lives too soon.

The bar has definitely been set and I cannot wait to see what gems MJ Rodriguez, Indya Moore, Billy Porter, and the rest of the cast have in store for us in this beautifully sculpted and generous view into the world of of these amazing people and the lives they live everyday. If you haven’t checked out Pose yet, Season 1 is now streaming on Netflix and join in on the watch Tuesday’s at 10pm only on FX. The cast is amazing and, if you love theater, the script and acting give a feel of theater on screen. It’s innovative, colorful, and encouraging for everybody no matter the walk of life and should be celebrated for it’s cinematic brilliance.

Remember…

Silence = Death
- Act Up

Season Premiere Date: June 11, 2019
Where I watched: FX - Verizon Fios