If you’re a fan of MTV’s Faking It, then Shane is probably your fave character. He’s bitchy but kind, nosy and intrusive but always with the best of intentions, and stylish to a fault. Whether they want him to or not, he’s always trying to fix his friends’ relationships, even as he fouls up his own. In other words, he’s the best/worst GBF on the planet, and in honor of Shane, YE took a look back at some other GBF’s of recent pop culture history for our top 10 coolest gay best friends list!!! Some are still on screens, some are throwbacks, but all still hold a fabulous place in our hearts!
Shane, Faking It
Our perennial fave! I mean, god, look at that style and that sass! And the great thing about Shane as a character is that, unlike a lot of other (older) characters on this list, Shane has been out and proud to us as viewers since day one, as opposed older shows with characters who are “straight” initially, then dating one of the main characters, only to discover along the way that he/she may have confused sexual feelings. Right off the bat, Shane knows who he is, we know who he is, and there’s no talking him out of it.
Willow, Buffy The Vampire Slayer
For years Willow was Buffy’s trusty sidekick, the Robin to her vamp slaying Batman. And she even dated a dude werewolf for a bit, but somewhere along the way, Willow became out and proud, dating fellow Wicaan Tara, but always always always fighting the big bad by Buffy’s side. Willow is Buffy’s ride-0r-die! (Except for that one season where Willow was the big bad, but ya know, nobody is perfect!)
Patrick, Perks of Being a Wallflower
We WISH Patrick was our real life BFF/GBF. Whether it’s him with Sam dancing the night away to Dexy’s Midnight Runners or Patrick and Charlie bonding over Rocky Horror, he’s always the most dynamic and charismatic best friend. But don’t be fooled, his treasure chest of witty retorts only mask a deeper sadness at the struggle of being out in high school in the early 90’s.
Kurt, Glee
The quintessential GBF, the GaGa to Rachel’s Barbra, the cheese to her macaroni. Kurt was always around for fashion advice as well as made for a banging duet partner. But just because he was Rachel’s GBF doesn’t mean he was simply a second banana. Kurt had a rich development as a character all his own including losses in life and love and a beautifully sweet romance with Darren Cris’s Blaine.
Damian, Mean Girls
Back when being plastic (re: BASIC) was still in and being quirky wasn’t cool yet, Damian and Janice brought potential plastic Cadie to the goth side and made those basic B’s see the error of their pink ways. He made too gay to function very functional indeed in a film that ended the era of prizing blond bimboness and ushered in the era that values uniqueness and ambition.
Christian, Clueless
Cher Horowitz doesn’t date high school guys because they’re all so blah and greasy. Saggy shorts and baseball caps? As if!!! Along comes fabulous Christian, a modern day James Dean, and she’s a smitten kitten. Until her bff Dionne brings to light a fact clueless Cher had somehow overlooked: Christian isn’t in to Cher because she’s not his, ahem, type. But after Cher realizes her glaring oversight, the two become besties for life and the trendiest shopping buddies in town.
Walt, The Carrie Diaries
Before grown up Carrie had a Stanford, she had a high school Walter. Like Christian above, Walt initially dates female characters before coming clean with himself about his feelings for the same sex, so he’s no out and proud Shane, but hey, it was technically the 80’s, so we’ll give the CW a pass on this one.
Jack McPhee, Dawson’s Creek
Before there were BFF’s Jack and Jen (above), there was Jack and Joey the couple, and much like the above characters, an initially “straight” came out on Dawson’s Creek after dating the female leads and questioning their sexuality. But after all the dust settles after Jack’s coming to terms with his sexuality, there’s no better and stronger friend pairing on the show than Jack and Jen, BFF’s for life. He even adopts her child in the tearjerking series finale.
Brenna, Chasing Life
In the recently cancelled ABC Family drama Chasing Life, Brenna is April’s sister, dealing with April’s cancer diagnosis and struggle. Brenna is our leading lady’s rock and partner in crime throughout her health crises. But within all that, Brenna has her own struggle, the struggle to come out as bisexual to older and more traditional members of her family, even in 2015. Proof positive that while it does get better, it’s never easy, and all of our LGBTQ family and friends need our support and acceptance.
Griffin, Secret Life of the American Teenager
Openly gay, Griffin is Ashley’s GBF, and on a show that pushed boundaries with its plots and characters, the character of Griffin has the distinction of being a character like Faking It’s Shane who is out without any to do about his sexuality, and without first dating a female lead, leading him on a questioning exploration of his sexuality. Good for you, ABC Family.
