Rob Frydlewicz: "Queer as Folk" Begets "The L Word", January 18, 2004

Buoyed by the success of Queer as Folk, which debuted at the end of 2000, Showtime produced a one-hour drama about a group of lesbian friends and lovers called The L Word that premiered on January 18, 2004.

Except for their same-sex themes the two series were very different:

• Queer as Folk took place in Rust Belt Pittsburgh, The L Word was set in sunny and trendy Los Angeles/West Hollywood.

• The L Word had more name actresses: Jennifer Beals, Pam Grier, Marlee Matlin and Cybil Shepherd. QAF had one, Sharon Gless.

• QAF had a lesbian couple (Lindsay & Melanie) but The L Word incorporated very little about the lives of gay men into its storylines.

• The L Word ran for 6 seasons, one more than QAF. However, Queer as Folk aired 13 more episodes (83 vs. 70).

After The L Word concluded in March 2009 Showtime aired a reality series that came out in the summer of 2010 called The Real L Word.

For more like this, Rob also has a blog called ZeitGayst <comments />