Saturday, June 28, 2025

LGBTQ+ Pride Month: Show: Overcompensating

 Overcompensating is a show currently streaming on Amazon Prime. 

The main character, Benny, is a closeted guy in his first year of college. 

Benny goes to great lengths to conceal his sexual orientation. 

Confession: I haven't finished the season. I have two more episodes. 

But I wanted to blog about it, especially after the blog post about Sally Ride. 

Isn't it so sad that in 2025 we have to have a show about a young person in the closet? 

Benny goes through so much torment, as he navigates attempting to join a fraternity, crushing on a classmate, dealing with his older sister and her boyfriend being at the same school, and developing a close friendship with a gal pal that he tries to date. He also struggles with family expectations and his identity as a high school jock. 

I'm not sure that I can recommend Overcompensating. 

Part of the problem is that I'm a middle-aged woman watching a raunchy show about a group of young people that don't know how to communicate with each other. 

I don't dislike it. 

But definitely the target audience is younger. 

It has a 93% Rotten Tomatoes score, so people like it. 

Maybe the appeal is that it is often over the top. 

Also, the nostalgia factor - many of us remember how hard we used to try to fit in, before we realized how important it is to be ourselves. 

There's nudity, a lot of sexual situations, and a lot of foul language in Overcompensating - but there's also real emotion and heart too. 

It's an ensemble cast, and all of them are struggling and finding their way, not just Benny.

Maybe I like it better than I thought I did. 

librarianintx 

No comments: