If you’re reading this, it’s more than likely you’ve seen both The L Word and The L Word: Generation Q. You’re sick of scrolling through the LGBTQ+ section of Netflix and finding nothing new, and you just want something good. It can be hard to come across genuinely great and thoughtful lesbian media. For starters, there is simply not a lot out there, and when you factor in poor quality and inauthenticity, it doesn’t leave you with many options.
The shows in this list cover themes of gentrification, addiction, coming of age, true crime, and more, so there’s something for everyone here. To be clear, the characters mentioned are not all strictly lesbians. It would be impossible to use one word to describe the diverse range of identities covered here, which includes characters who are lesbian, bisexual, queer, and non-binary. Unfortunately, in true underrated queer media style, some of these were unfairly canceled because of a lack of viewership. But you’ll still be grateful that you discovered these gems in spite of some premature endings. These shows are high quality, span a variety of genres, and aren’t the typical recommendations. So, here is our list of the best-kept secrets of lesbian TV.
Update December 2, 2023: This article has been updated by Gargi Chatterjee with even more underrated lesbian television series that are worth checking out and where you can stream each title.
1 Vida
Vida is the story of two sisters, Lyn and Emma, returning to their childhood home in LA following the death of their mother. They then discover that their mother had secretly been married to a woman and was running a financially troubled bar for "girls like us." The sisters, who were mostly estranged through their adulthood, try to find their familiarity in the face of adversity and overcome all problems together while also juggling their love lives and identities.
Why You Should Watch It
Vida features a plethora of LGBTQ+ Latinx characters, with Emma's romantic entanglements with women being the main focus. One love interest is played by Roberta Colindrez from the new A League of Their Own series. The show's inclusion of multiple butch women is incredibly refreshing and important in this landscape where the media shies away from portraying gender-non-conforming characters. The show is a great mix of family drama and queer identity which makes it quite unique.
Stream on Hulu
2 First Kill
If you want a dose of supernatural along with your queer coming-of-age teen drama, then First Kill is where you will find it. It tells the story of two girls, Juliette, a legacy vampire, and Calliope, a monster-hunter, both of whom have to make their first kills to be accepted into their families. But things get a little complicated when the two of them start to develop romantic feelings for one another and start questioning their families' traditions.
Why You Should Watch It
The show is a fast-paced supernatural drama with a gripping storyline and amazing characters. The main characters and their struggle to juggle love and their duty towards their family also add a good touch to the series. The love story between the two girls is also charming, and their internal struggles are very realistic. If you are a fan of teen dramas, you should give this show a try.
Stream on Netflix
3 Feel Good
Feel Good chronicles comedian Mae's journey with addiction. The show explores the ways that Mae's addictive personality affects their romantic relationship with George, played by Charlotte Ritchie. Balancing between comedy and poignancy, Feel Good feels intimate and real without sacrificing entertainment value. The second season also touches on Mae's gender identity and the way that it interacts with their complicated romance with George.
Why You Should Watch It
Overall, the series manages to provide a realistic image of the complex issues that it presents while maintaining a positive outlook upon its close. It also touches upon issues that closeted-homosexual people face while preparing to come out to their friends and family while also showing us how difficult living a normal life can be for a recovering addict who is also struggling with their identity. Mae and George's struggles are realistic and powerful, which a lot of queer-identifying people can relate to.
Stream on Netflix
4 I'm Not Okay With This
Based on Charles Forsman's graphic novel of the same name, I'm Not Okay With This is a black comedy, coming-of-age drama that centers around a teenage girl named Sydney who has two revelations: one, that she is attracted to girls and two, she has telekinetic powers. The series follows her struggles to accept both parts of her identity while also facing problems of love and friendship.
Why You Should Watch It
I'm Not Okay With This is different from most teen dramas. With its very awkward and socially inept protagonist, and a supernatural power that she often cannot control, the series starts to take quite a dark turn while also maintaining its air of comedy. Sydney, who has a crush on her best friend, is also a very realistic LGBTQ+ character who a lot of young queer people will be able to relate to.
Stream on Netflix
5 Dickinson
Dickinson
- Release Date
- 2019-00-00
- Cast
- Hailee Steinfeld , Toby Huss , Jane Krakowski
- Main Genre
- Drama
- Seasons
- 3
Apple TV's Dickinson is a creative imagining of poet Emily Dickinson's life in the 1800s. Before you dismiss it as a stuffy period drama, you might want to give it a chance. Featuring dialogue using modern-day vocabulary and an electronic soundtrack, it's definitely not the usual fare. Much of the show's three-season span is preoccupied with Emily's romantic relationship with her childhood friend, Sue Gilbert.
Why You Should Watch It
Dickinson makes Emily's poetry more accessible and grounded by contextualizing it in both real and fabricated events. Evidently much more than a typical biopic, it is also a visual feast, including hallucinations of Death played by Wiz Khalifa. Hailee Steinfeld did a fantastic job playing Dickinson. The show, even though unrealistic in many ways, manages to provide us with a realistic depiction of how life for queer women used to be back then while also remaining funny and relevant in today's time.
Stream on AppleTV
6 Teenage Bounty Hunters
Teenage Bounty Hunters tells the story of fraternal twin sisters Sterling and Blair Wesley, who aside from being high-school students, also become bounty hunters to pay for the repairs of their father's truck. Other than being a really fun story of these two badass sisters who solve mysteries and chase bad guys together, it also shows us the twins' personal lives revolving around their school, family, and romantic relationships. Star student Sterling finds herself attracted to her long-term nemesis turned friend, a girl named April, and the two of them start a relationship, but drama keeps happening around the sisters, which proves to be a problem for them.
Why You Should Watch It
Even though the series focuses more on the bounty hunting part, it also shows viewers the normal teenager life the girls struggle to have. Even though Sterling and April's relationship is quite rocky from the beginning, it is also endearing to watch them come to term with their feelings for each other. The series is really fast-paced and is an interesting take on the teenage drama genre, blending it with a thriller.
Stream on Netflix
7 The Bisexual
Despite starring and being written and directed by Desiree Akhavan, this series really flew under the radar. You might recognize Akhavan from her film adaptation of the novel The Miseducation of Cameron Post starring Chloë Grace Moretz. The show follows Leila, played by Akhavan, as she breaks up with her long-term girlfriend, Sadie, in order to try out having relationships with men. The Bisexual is so short that any further plot details will give away too much of the show.
Why You Should Watch It
Being quick-witted and with only six episodes, the series flies by and leaves you wanting more. It is funny in unexpected ways and still manages to be modern and raw in a way that a lot of people can relate to multiple characters in the series. Even in six short episodes, the comedy-drama was able to give the characters true depth and touch upon issues of not only sexual and gender orientation but also codependency, family, and friendship.
Stream on Hulu
8 Mine
If you are a fan of K-dramas, then you might want to give the 2021 series Mine a try. The show tells the story of high-society women and how their lives are often controlled by their circumstances. This is a story of them breaking out of these norms and taking back what is theirs. The series is full of empowering messages and is also the first K-drama that has a lesbian lead character. Seo Hee-soo a former popular actress and Kim Seo-hyung, the daughter-in-law of a high-class family struggle with their love story while staying in unhappy marriages due to society.
Why You Should Watch It
Mine gives the audience a look into the high society of Korea and how women are often oppressed in these families. It is an empowering tale of women taking back control of their own lives and living their truth. The fact that the central character of the show is a queer woman who is in love with another high-society woman is just the cherry on top.
Stream on Netflix
9 Mindhunter
In a change of pace, Netflix's Mindhunter follows a team of FBI agents in the 1970s who are tasked with interviewing serial killers in order to solve open cases. Created by David Fincher, the plot is based on true events, but avoids the exploitation that sometimes comes with sensationalized portrayals of true crime. Dr. Wendy Carr is a psychologist who joins the team. Even though the series mostly focuses on the two main characters, Holden Ford and Bill Tench, and their journey across prisons to catalog different types of murderers, it also focuses on other issues, one of them being the difficulties Carr faces being a closeted lesbian in the 70's.
Why You Should Watch It
Even though the show takes place in a period setting, the conflicts Dr. Wendy Carr faces working as a queer woman in a male-dominated workforce are still prevalent today. The show is also one of David Fincher's finest collaborations with Netflix. The show offers valuable insight into the lives of the two FBI agents and Dr. Carr who try to take the help of behavioral science to change the way serial murder cases were solved forever. It is one of the most thrilling shows you can find on Netflix, and some of the scenes where the officers interview the convicts are downright bone-chilling.
Stream on Netflix
10 Betty
The show Betty is inspired by the movie Skate Kitchen; it follows a group of young women skateboarders in New York City. The girls meet at an all-girls "skate sesh" thrown by two characters, Kirt and Janay. Kirt and another skater, Honeybear, are lesbian and unlabeled, respectively. With the rest of the characters sporting loose, fluid identities, the show touches upon various less-discussed gender and sexual non-binaries.
Why You Should Watch It
The show is a gold mine for anyone looking for charming, relatable, and queer coming-of-age stories. Even though it is a comedy series, it is surprisingly forthcoming with issues faced by women and queer-identifying people face in the skating community, which is dominated by men. The show has two seasons and was nominated for the Gotham Award. The show manages to be effortlessly cool and empowering while discussing important issues of society.
Stream on Max
11 Heartbreak High
The 2022 Australian teenage coming-of-age series Heartbreak High is a soft reboot of the 1994 drama of the same name. The new Heartbreak High brings in colorful characters and a lot of high-school teenage drama that make it really entertaining. One of the central characters of the series is an autistic lesbian student named Quinni. Her love story with another girl named Sasha is one of the most interesting side plots of the series. There are quite a few other queer and non-binary characters in the show.
Why You Should Watch It
Heartbreak High begins with a map detailing all of Hartley High School's students' sexual exploits coming to light and stirring drama among students and teachers. The series does not only talk about different sexual and gender identities but also brings to light the importance of proper sexual education for high school students. The characters all have their own quirks and charms, and it is really fun to see their journey as they come to terms with their identities as well as their pasts.
Stream on Netflix
12 Lip Service
Based in Glasgow, Lip Service is the closest thing the UK has to its own version of The L Word. It depicts Frankie, Cat, and Tess and their dating lives. Following successfully in The L Word's footsteps, the show is full of hook-ups, drama, and secrets. It's profoundly entertaining and provides perfect melodramatic goodness.
Why You Should Watch It
Lip Services has a colorful cast of characters that make for great comedy and drama. The series is less about being realistic about the struggles of LGBTQ+ people and more about their complicated dating lives and shared histories. If you want an entertaining show to watch after you finish The L Word, then Lip Service is the best follow-up TV show for you.
Stream on Roku, Tubi, Pluto TV
13 Tales of the City
Tales of the City is the 2019 sequel to the 1993 miniseries of the same name. The ensemble cast features characters from all across the LGBTQ+ spectrum. The show is centered around Anna Madrigal, a trans woman who houses several queer people in her apartment complex. Talking to The Guardian, star and producer of the show Laura Linney mentions that all of the writers and directors on the show are queer. This means there is maximum authenticity to the stories being told.
Why You Should Watch It
It's wonderful to watch a story that is vibrant and exciting and evidently told with love. Based on Armistead Maupin's Tales of the City novels, the story is colorful and filled with interesting characters with their own rich stories. If you are a fan of the original 1993 series and its following sequels, then you might want to give this series a try as it will fill you with nostalgia. The story is an amalgamation of different types of love and how they help us overcome all of life's difficulties.
Stream on Netflix