- a
=< ——=——
+

__AGOLDEN AGE
LLY
BAD BROMANCE?

By Jacey Gibb, Editor-in-chief
Photo by Maria Asselin-Roy

R* by nature and nearly impossible to encapsulate
into words, the bromance is a remarkable thing.
Defined by the social bible Urban Dictionary as, “the
complicated love and affection shared by two straight
males,” a bromance can hit you like a brain aneurism:
suddenly and without warning; no one plans on having
one, yet sometimes it just happens.

As wholesome as a bromance may sound, platonic
male friendships are often bogged down by gender
stereotypes and niche interests; the instances of true
male companionship are as celebrated as they are
scrutinized. But before I dive into an analysis of modern
portrayals of bromances, I suppose we should ask what
is really meant when we say two guys are in a bromance.
What special leap lies between simply being friends and
engaging in a full-on bromance?

There has never been a shortage of close male

: friendships on television. In contrast, an Entertainment
: Weekly essay titled “Where are all the female friendships :
: on TV?” explored the question of what happened to the
: golden-age of girl-on-girl friendships a la shows like Sex:
: and the City and I Love Lucy. While the piece overlooked :
: many full-fledged and prominent female friendships

: populating the television landscape, its reproach of the

: unevenness between male and female friendships helps
: demonstrate just how strong the bromance sector is.

: From the years where Friends’ Chandler and Joey were

: the roommate combo every guy aspired to, to present

: day BFFs like Community’s Troy and Abed (who shall

: henceforth be known as the friendship that launched a

: thousand GIFs). Even this article’s title comes from the

: definitive bromance anthem “Guy Love,” a Scrubs ballad
: between two male best friends about, you guessed it,

: their unexplainable connection. There’s no shortage for
: inspiration on what a bromance should be, but that’s

: also one of the issues; for every accurate and honest :
representation of what real male friendships are, there’sa :

: bromance that crosses the line as homophobic.

So how is it that a depiction of something as

: genuine as a bromance can be viewed as offensive? The
: discrimination is in the details, as a lot of behaviour

displayed in these friendships inevitably leads to queer

: jokes. Even the aforementioned “Guy Love” can’t steer
: clear of these skewed expectations surrounding two guys !
: being close friends. “It’s like I married my best friend,”
: Zach Braff leads, before Donald Faison follows up with
: a “but ina totally manly way.” At the implication of gay
: marriage from Braff’s character, there comes an added
: clarification.

There’s no denying that the whole bromance culture

has at least one foot in homophobia. Take another

: instance from the television show Seinfeld, where Jerry:
: worries about a new friend coming on too strong after he :
: asks Jerry to help him move. Jerry is immediately taken
: back, worried that the friendship is moving too quick fo
: comfort. “He wants me to help him move... I don't feel

right about it. I mean, I hardly know the guy. That’s a