Queer Culture Catch-Up

A corporate podcast and a science fiction novel among Bear’s latest recommendations?

Plus a short film on Ukraine, “Girlfriends” by Emily Zhou and I Put A Spell On You Broadway fundraiser

By S. Bear Bergman

Drag Race

‘RuPaul’s Drag Race UK’ Season 5, Episode 4 power ranking: Masters of their craft

An unexpected three-way win has us carefully considering the ranking this week

By Kevin O’Keeffe

Drag Race

‘RuPaul’s Drag Race UK’ Season 5, Episode 4 recap: You like money? Wear a wig

The queens take inspiration from RuPaul’s MasterClass for a new take on the panel challenge

By Kevin O’Keeffe

Identity

Connecting generations of femmes

Twenty years after the publication of “Brazen Femme,” a new podcast reflects on the anthology, and femme identity then and now

By Sid Drmay

Queer Ink

Two-Spirit artists explore gender, culture through Indigenous tattoos

When it comes to traditional Indigenous tattoos, Two-Spirit artists are “genderqueering the practice”

By Julia Peterson

Drag Race

‘Canada’s Drag Race’ Season 4 cast announced

Eleven contestants vie to be the new Queen of the North

By Gordon Bowness

Queer Ink

Gender-affirming tattooing can bring post-op euphoria

From realistic nipple tattoos to artistic expression, top surgery can provide an affirming tattoo canvas

By Baxstar Jonmarie Ferguson

TV & Film

‘Dicks’ will make you gasp

REVIEW: Megan Mullally and Nathan Lane lead an all-star cast to irreverent heights in “Dicks: The Musical”

By Barry Levitt

TV & Film

‘How to Fail as a Popstar’ asks us to make space for failure

The series follows Vivek Shraya’s desire to become “brown Madonna” and grapples with “what happens when a star isn’t born”

By Hina Imam

Books

Bejewelled and beguiled: meet businessman and philanthropist Salah Bachir

His new star-studded memoir dishes deflection and reflection in equal measure

By Chris Dupuis

Drag Race

‘RuPaul’s Drag Race UK’ Season 5, Episode 3 power ranking: Checking the charts

Which girl group will have the song of the autumn?

By Kevin O’Keeffe

Drag Race

‘RuPaul’s Drag Race UK’ Season 5, Episode 3 recap: Bop to the top

This season’s version of the girl groups challenge sees a five-on-four matchup

By Kevin O’Keeffe

Sports

By banning Pride Tape and theme nights, the NHL refuses to do the bare minimum

OPINION: By ceding so much ground to a small minority of players, the NHL shows where its true priorities lie

By Katelyn Burns

Books

In ‘Love and Money, Sex and Death,’ McKenzie Wark writes to the people who shaped her

Renowned trans academic McKenzie Wark blends memory, theory, fiction and myth in new memoir

By Misha Pensato

Queer Ink

Erotic tattoos offer queer clients a way to mix pleasure and purpose

For queer tattoo artists and customers alike, erotic designs can be a powerful way to affirm identities and show strength amid an increasingly hostile political climate

By Adam Rhodes

TV & Film

Pedro Almodóvar’s ‘Strange Way of Life’ answers a question ‘Brokeback Mountain’ asked 18 years ago

REVIEW: With restrained performances and über design, Almodóvar’s new short film finally lets two gay cowboys ride off into a Technicolor sunset

By Christos Tsirbas

Identity

Sufjan Stevens and the complexity of coming out

OPINION: Reaction to Stevens’s tragic tribute to his late partner shows the nuance of queer life in the spotlight

By Mel Woods

TV & Film

The sweet radicalism of Mr. Dressup, the Canadian Mister Rogers

REVIEW: Beloved kids show had a surprising queer heart

By S. Bear Bergman