eerieindiana | Everyday Heterosexism on Eerie, Indiana's slash potential

froodle posting in

Israeli actor Omri Katz played J.R.'s son on Dallas (seen here hugging his gay-vague nanny, played by Christopher Atkins), and a scientist's son zapped into a world of sentient dinosaurs in Adventures in Dinosaur City. But he's probably most famous for the gay-vague classic Eerie Indiana (1991-92).

It lasted for only 17 episodes (plus an eight-episode spin-off starring Daniel Clark), but it is still remembered and discussed by fans. One of the first of the teen-paranormal series of the 1990s, it drew on Twin Peaks (1990-1991) to depict a small town with an overarching mystery to be solved, with minor mysteries along the way.

Marshall Teller (Omri) moves with his parents to a small town in Indiana where weird things happen. Tupperware containers keep you alive forever. Time stops. ATMs aren't what they seem. There's a tornado every year on the same date.

A world full of bizarre events, where everyone has a secret agenda and nothing is what it seems? That's the life of every kid, of course, but it also reflects the journey of gay boys as they try to negotiate the mine-field of adult heterosexism, the constant "What girl do you like?" and "You'll meet a girl someday."

Marshall pairs up with local kid Simon Holmes (11-year old Justin Shenkarow) to investigate. They are often assisted by mysterious grayhaired boy, who has no name and no memory of his past, but calls himself Dash X (16-year old Jason Marsden, right). But more often he has a hidden agenda of his own.

There were few girl-crazy plotlines -- neither Simon nor Dash X so much as glances at a girl -- but there's lots of captures and daring rescues. However, Marshall remains just a close friend with Simon, while he is quite obviously attracted to the infuriating, mysterious, powerful yet somehow vulnerable Dash X. If they had more time, the two might have fallen in love. Unfortunately, the series ended before they could unravel the mystery or develop the homoromance, leaving viewers with more questions than answers

After the excellent "things are not what they seem" Pleasantville (1993), the Halloween comedy Hocus Pocus (1993), and a tv movie, Omri Katz moved to Israel, where he appeared occasionally in short films (which sometimes feature nudity), including the gay-themed Journey into Night (2002). He now works as a hairdresser in Los Angeles.

Justin Shenkarow remains an actor and producer with credits in Home Improvement, Picket Fences, W.I.T.C.H., and Aliens in America.

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From:

deifire

while he is quite obviously attracted to the infuriating, mysterious, powerful yet somehow vulnerable Dash X. If they had more time, the two might have fallen in love

Obviously.

The subtext is real.

Alas, I am a bit more cynical about what you could get away with on kids' TV in the early '90s even if the untimely cancellation hadn't happened. But that is why we have fic.

From:

froodle

Yeah, i doubt it would have been more than just subtext and maybe, MAYBE, some innuendo at the very most.

But hes still totally right tho.

From:

deifire

I just remember how long it took Willow & Tara to even get to kiss onscreen, and that was several years later, and they were in college and a different time slot.

If heterosexual, married Edgar & Marilyn in the car on Halloween was pushing the limits for NBC at 7:30...

I would totally have settled for innuendo, though!

From:

froodle

Also girls, which even nowareway more ok to see kissing on telly than guys.

I remember being really unsure as to whether tara and willow were actually a couple in canon or if it was just me seeing subtext, because the show was so fucking coy about it. I was really relieved when it finally happened because AT LAST it cleared it up for me.

From:

deifire

Yes! It didn't help that with one thing and another I ended up missing or watching a lot of season 4 episodes out of order, so I was depending on the Internet for information and...well, the Internet tends to watch all TV with slash goggles firmly in place.

It didn't help that all the subtlety there was contrasting with the explicitness of say Buffy/Riley and Anya/Xander.

Even after it was confirmed, I had a hard time figuring out if they were actually meant to be a couple yet in any particular episode.

With Dash/Mars, there was too much stacked against them: they're guys, the show was aimed at a younger demographic, it was a slightly earlier time...I don't know if the fact that one half of the pairing was of indeterminate age and species would have even had the chance to enter into it...

From:

froodle

the Internet tends to watch all TV with slash goggles firmly in place.

Yup,i was very disappointed at my first taste of Supernatural because of how homoerotic the internet told me Sam and Dean were, and i just... i didnt see it. Or at least, not to the extent i was expecting. But i think the internet had made me expect onscree samesex kisses between brothers and in hindsight that was... probably not gonna happen on the WB.

Ugh, Riley. Oh god i just remembered the ep thatwas him and buffy havimg sex, like literally thatwas the whole episode. So much unnecessary Riley.

From:

deifire

The one I am really glad I didn't research on the 'net before seeing the show was Gravity Falls. I would have expected a way different relationship between both sets of twins. And between Dipper and Bill Cipher.

And, yeah. Still not a Riley fan.

From:

froodle

And i would have been very confused by the fact that Bill Cipher turned out to be... a triangle. Just... what? How? Why? Who's looking at him and going, yeah, porn for that one eyed triangle please? Apparently EVERYONE!

From:

deifire

Yeah, I remember when I first found all the Bill/Dipper fic and was just...huh. Never before have I so completely failed to guess the juggernaut ship in a given fandom.

From:

froodle

And it's HUGE, like it just vastly outstrips any other kind of fic for Gravity Falls and... but he doesn't generally have a body... and he's a triangle... what... bipper... what...

I also wouldn't have recognised him based on the fanart, because he's always anime!Draco with a tophat.

I've not seen the latest Star Wars movie, but I know Kylo Ren and that ginger guy are like a super popular pairing (thanks Tumblr) and evey time they come up Mike's like THAT GUY IS BARELY IN THE FILM WHAT!!

I think there should be a rule that intros to any media are written by people who haven't seen the media and have just seen the fandom. Because it would be hilarious an not resemble reality at all.

From:

deifire

Between discovering the fic and catching up to whatever the current episode was, I kept expecting there would be an episode where we would we finally get to meet human!Bill...nope.

It's kind of glorious the way fandom has created a romantic lead out of a shout-y floating triangle.

And, yes, I totally think that should be a rule! The Force Awakens would be a lot of Kylo and Hux having sex all over Starkiller Base. When Kylo isn't busy tweeting about how much he hates his dad. Meanwhile, a polyamorous triad consisting of a ex-stormtrooper, an X-wing pilot, and a Jedi who is sometimes prone to using the Force inappropriately...

I wonder what Eerie looks like as seen through the fandom. Probably like something that has a lot more Dash in it. And a bigger special effects budget. And is occasionally shown only on HBO.

From:

froodle

It's kind of glorious the way fandom has created a romantic lead out of a shout-y floating triangle.

Right there, that is the internet in one sentence.

Also omfg you just reminded me of the emo kylo ren twitter. Like I said, I haven't even seen the film but I was having dnner wih my bro a while back and he was reading them and I was in stitches.

Oh, fandom!Eerie overview totally has Dash as the main character. Also, lots of angst. Like, way more and more obvious angst. Also cursing. Also Devon/MElanie/Mars threesomes.