The Bisexual looks at the difference of dating men and women from the perspective of a person who finds herself doing both.
It’s an honest look at the last taboo, bisexuality and what it means to refuse to compromise on what you want.
A reminder to leave denim mini-skirts and biphobia back in 2005.
What happened last week? Leila had a terrible day at work and an even worse night, until she goes to her friend Tanya’s houseboat and they end up having sex. However, the pain is still not over as the pair get into a fight, and by the end of the episode, it seems that Leila has no one left to turn to.
The storyline jumps back to 2005, where student Leila meets Deniz for the first time in a bar, while their friends make out with guys and ignore them.
Sadly, it’s not a case of BFFs at first sight, because when Leila tries to empathise at the bar, Deniz shuts her down, orders a drink for her and her boyfriend, Jamie, and leaves. Ouch!
Leila calls her parents, clearly feeling isolated so far from home, but they don’t pick up, so she forces herself to go back to the bar and try to make conversation with Deniz.
Leila: Why does everyone here say “mate”, when what they really mean is “go fuck yourself”?
Deniz still wants to avoid Leila, but Jamie hears an American accent and asks Leila what state she’s from, prompting Leila to explain that she attends a women’s college in Massachusetts. On hearing the words “women’s college”, Jamie immediately asks if there are “many lesbians there”, something that clearly irks the closeted Deniz, but Leila responds that they’re “LUGs; lesbians until graduation”. He awkwardly questions Leila’s sexuality, before Deniz abruptly leaves. Jamie doesn’t seem concerned enough to follow her, but he does quickly abandon Leila.
The following day, Jamie meets Leila in the bar again and starts to complain about Deniz, but when Leila kisses him, he backs away immediately and crosses his fingers that Deniz didn’t spot them. Clearly, Leila found him attractive, indicating that she might have been willing to embrace her bisexuality back then, potentially saving years in the closet.
Coming Out
In the next scene, Deniz has joined the pair and the subject changes to Leila’s sexuality. Jamie asks if Leila’s parents were “gutted” when she came out and Deniz asks what her relationship with her parents is like, probably because Deniz would like to be able to come out to her parents.
Leila: They treat me like I’m a mentally unstable homeless man that they’re housing for the holiday season. Like, they’re super polite, but also quite distant and scared.
Jamie seems more interested in the mechanics of lesbian sex, asking what actually happens in the bedroom, but Deniz shuts his questions down, thankfully. When Jamie heads to the bathroom, Deniz blurts out that she thinks she might be gay and that Leila’s the “only lesbian [she’s] ever met”, so Leila suggests getting out of the bar.
The pair wind up walking the streets with Leila explaining to Deniz, what its like to be a lesbian and that while it’s still tough, it’s worth being true to yourself. Deniz says that she doesn’t want to come out in case she finds a guy she really fancies, even though that hasn’t happened yet. She then asks Leila if she’s even fancied a guy and Leila denies it. Oh Leila, why?
Deniz: I’ve never met someone who was like me before, who doesn’t like boys.
Lesbian Networking
Leila leads Deniz to a lesbian event that she Googled, but it’s not a party. In fact, it’s a networking event for lesbian businesswomen called “Women on Top”. Even though Leila and Deniz are clearly not dressed for a business event, the woman at the front allows them to sign up as members.
Deniz explains that she’s not giving her address because she lives with her parents and the receptionist responds with “discretion is key, but so is self-acceptance”. It’s good advice, but not what Deniz needs right now, so she tries to leave. Thankfully, Leila stops her, saying that while this isn’t what they expected, there is booze and “dykes”, so they can still have fun if they try.
While Deniz is enjoying hanging out with lesbians for the first time, Leila’s attention is caught by Sadie, who has just quit her job – her boss was a “dick piece-of-shit” – and wants the company name removed from her badge. Leila saves her with a Sharpie, to the annoyance of the receptionist, and tries to talk with Sadie, but Sadie isn’t having it.
Finally, Sadie admits that her girlfriend-who-isn’t-her-girlfriend Ester signed her up for this event, which is the only reason she’s even there. After a couple of drinks, Leila and Sadie sneak off to talk and it’s all going well until Ester steals Sadie away for a few minutes before she has to leave for her burlesque class.
Once Esther has left, Sadie, who’s had too much to drink, starts an argument with the woman taking care of the VIP section, which also drags in the receptionist and Leila. While the bouncer and the receptionist are trying to make Sadie leave, Leila throws red wine over Sadie causing her to burst into fits of laughter.
Leila takes Sadie home to dry off, change into something clean, and listen to Leila’s million-dollar ideas, including a watch that tracks how many steps you’ve taken, which Sadie turns down flat, and a camera that can tell you where to buy clothes from a photo of the item.
Soon enough, Sadie asks Leila why she wanted to come to London to study and it turns out that the answer is British singer Lily Allen, something that greatly amuses Sadie. The pair then settle down to watch Trainspotting, something we know that they watched on their first date.
The show then cuts to the present day, where we see a countdown to the launch of Leila and Sadie’s app, Mine!, which allows you to shop from a photo of an outfit…well, the FitBit was already taken. This prompts Leila to go see Sadie and apologise, which quickly leads to the pair having sex on the kitchen floor. Does this mean that they’re back together?
So, what’s going to happen in the finale next week? Are Leila and Sadie back together for good? What’s going to happen about the IVF? Guess we just have to wait and see.