Élite: Queer Youth & TV’s Evil Bisexuals Trope
This article contains spoilers for season 1 and 2 of Élite.
Have you watched Élite on Netflix? It’s a wonderfully soapy teen drama fully of aggressively glamorous Spanish young people playing sixteen year olds at a prestigious school for the wealthy. It’s like if the kids from Skins had Gossip Girl money. Oh, and one of them did a murder.
It’s a romp of a show and one that is addictively enjoyable. Its approach to queerness is more developed than some teen shows, building on the advancements made by those that came before it and mirrors the changing times. There is a central gay couple and, in the first season, a throuple that showcases a kind of sexual fluidity.
Yet, Élite still manages to take a few digs at the only character for whom bisexual would be the correct label — a topic that is discussed more in season two. We essentially have another example of the evil bisexual on TV trope and it makes me feel a little less positively about Élite.
When You Know, You Know — Tricky Tropes
I’ll admit that even as someone who has used bisexual to describe themselves for almost 15 years now, I haven’t always been very good at noticing when a show, book or film uses bi-ness in a problematic way. Which isn’t to say that it hasn’t affected me or been internalised, rather that it has been so intrinsic and pervasive that it has been normalised in my consumption.
This is partially because problematic, in terms of representation, is a new-ish concept to me. I’ve also become more discerning about the content I consuming in the latter half of my 20s. I was so happy to see anything queer or remotely outside of the straight view prior to that, that I didn’t even think to critique what was being produced.
I loved Queer as Folk (US) and delighted in watching it, not really stopping to ask why there didn’t seem to be any bi men in the series and few people of colour. I thought the Marissa and Alex romance in The O.C. was great and although I do see the bi representation now, I didn’t name it then. I loved Maxxie in Skins and didn’t care that the actor who played him, Mitch Hewer, wasn’t queer. I didn’t even really register that Tony was exhibiting some bi-ness when he tried to romance Maxxie, partially because he wasn’t a character that I related to. Though if I think about it now, had this been a pursued storyline, Tony would have likely fallen in to the evil bi trope.
Every Character Is Likeable To Someone
Élite is one of those shows where you don’t have to like the characters, at least that feels like what a mature (read: non-teen) audience might say. Most of the characters come from a huge amount of privilege and flaunt it. They toy with one another and managed to succeed in school, sports, whatever their passion is. They don’t cry out as sympathetic.
Undoubtedly, there are characters in Élite that one can root for. The teen audience that the show is primarily targeted at will find characters and actors to adore; just as I did back when I was a teen. Young people consuming that show however will definitely stan certain characters and ship pairings. Discussing the merits and issues of stan and ship culture is really a whole topic in itself.
Within Élite, there are characters I really like and root for, like Omar and Ander, more the former than the latter, and Nadia, Marina. There are a lot of characters though who are entertaining but not ones that I connect with. Polo is one of them, and he’s one of the few characters on a show who has really talked about being bi — though he doesn’t exactly pick the label so much as muse that it would apply to him were he to choose a way to identify.
It’s at this point that you have to remember that these characters are sixteen year olds and so still developing their sense of self. Which I guess is a good loophole for the writers so they can explore each character in expected and unexpected ways.
I Don’t Know How To Feel About Polo (As A Character)
Polo is one of the inner circle at the elite school. He feels smug and superior and uses his power in a quiet, subversive way, which is what makes his girlfriend of 4 years, Carla, such a good match for him. They scheme and plot, often using sex as the intermediary in their bargaining and play. It is through this exploration of sex as a tool and a pleasure, that Polo and Carla end up in a throuple situation with Christian.
Now, Christian isn’t what I would consider a bisexual character as I don’t think he would identify that way. Like a whole host of straight men, and I say this from experience, there is the capacity for same-sex attraction and hooking up, but for them it is situational and doesn’t really impact on their overall sense of identity. Hence, they still identify as heterosexual.
As you’d expect from a soapy teen drama, the throuple doens’t work out perfectly. Carla starts to favour Christian, which makes Polo jealous. During one fight between the two, Carla tells Polo that he probably prefers men to women. It’s an attack that is aimed at hurting him by invalidating their romantic and sexual relationship. She’s trying to tell him that’s he’s not into her enough, which for a bi+ person is a familiar attack, one that is focused on quantifying queer attraction. Certainly, there is nothing wrong with having more of an attraction one gender identity over another, but when that is used as a weapon, aimed at a bi character, it’s a bit grating.
That was all in season 1 and it seemed a bit throwaway so I didn’t settle on it too much. Then at the end of the season it was revealed that Polo killed Marina in a fit of rage. So, now we have the only character who was even passingly referred to as bi as the big villain. Season 2 built on this, giving us a scene where Ander, now out as gay, and Guzman, openly straight, talk about sexuality with Polo and this is when he surmises that he supposes he must be bi as that is the identity that most closely matches his actions/wants. Polo has a non-romantic hook up with Ander and begins a flirtation with a new student during season two, showing through actions that Polo’s bi-ness continues to be present.
Season 2 doubles down on Polo being bi, while also making his murderous streak this piece of self destructive trauma. So can we celebrate the conversations around his sexuality while also recognising that he’s an example of another evil bisexual?
Perhaps that is over simplifying the storyline. The idea of second chances is focused on Polo and Cayetana, the new student he begins a romantic relationship with, both of whom wants/need a fresh start. Polo clearly feels that what he’s done, kill Marina, is a mistake. He is shown to be suffering for what he’s done and is remorseful…mostly. I think I just wish he wasn’t the only bi character and so the bi+ representation in the show wasn’t focused on only him.
A Question For You, Dear Reader…
Did it bother you that Polo was another evil bi character? Did you notice that or have I been the one to put those pieces into place? (Sorry) Let me know your thoughts or any others you have on Élite!
