The L Word: 22 years on, the sexy lesbian series remains a cornerstone for modern sapphic culture

‘It’s impossible to exist even on the periphery of lesbian culture and not know the show’s core references’. Pictured: Leisha Hailey as Alice and Katherine Moennig as Shane in The L Word (2004). Photograph: PictureLux/The Hollywood Archive/Alamy

I recently posted a simple question on Instagram: “Attention queer people in my phone: what is your relationship to The L Word?”

A few people responded with names of the characters: Bette, Shane, Dana. Others lamented over storylines that should have been: Kit was supposed to be a leather dyke journalist but apparently they wrote it out; why did they let Alice and Tasha stay together for so long? Many gleefully commented on the amount of sex the show has. One well-meaning gay man said it takes him a while to say The L Word in a relationship, then he immediately realised I was talking about the TV show and retracted his statement. Overwhelmingly, however, was the variation on one take: It’s so terrible and I love it so much.