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akademiskacademic quarterkvarterFlirting with the LawAlla IvanchikovaFlirting with the Law: Lip Service (2010)Commissioned by BBC3 Channel, Lip Service – the first season of aminiseries created by Harriet Braun – provides an even better, morevivid example of the subculture’s changing relationship with thenormative. Broadcast in the UK in the Fall of 2010 and disseminatedworldwide by its fans via youtube, the show quickly became one ofthe most successful and most widely discussed events of the year.Lip Service takes place in Glasgow and is a gritty, funny, entertainingBritish drama that focuses on the lives of a group of young lesbianwomen. Harriet Braun claims subcultural authenticity (she statesthat she wants to create an authentic representation of lesbian sexuality),and rather than adapting to mainstream conventions, seeksto universalize subcultural styles. The reviewers of Lip Service drewcomparison with The L Word series produced in the United States;however, the show departs from its American prototype in a numberof ways.The appeal of the new series is that it is driven by characters ratherthan by a political agenda. The main characters of the show strugglewith a variety of issues, such as trying to get their careers started,negotiating friendship and love, surviving a breakup, or starting anew relationship. One matter that they do not struggle with is beinggay – homosexuality is never addressed as a political issue and issimply a fact of life for these characters. The central storyline followsCat (Laura Fraser) who tries to get her life back together after havingher heart broken by her ex-girlfriend Frankie (Ruta Gedmintas) – anangst-driven charismatic photographer. Just as Cat seems to haverecovered enough emotionally to start dating again, Frankie comesback into her life to pursue her once more.Like Paul in The Kids, Frankie is a citation. Glamorized by thecinematic apparatus, Frankie is visually reminiscent of Shane (aniconic character from The L Word) and structurally resembles theoutlaw figure. Promiscuity, defiance, and disregard for conventionalmorality and manners situate Frankie neatly within the parametersdemarcated by the transgression narrative. Although not acriminal herself, Frankie maintains proximity to the criminal world,typical of the outlaw figure. For instance, she spends the entire seriestrying to uncover the secret of her past only to find out that herlong lost biological mother had been implicated in a murder, whichlead her to abandon Frankie, and that her biological brother is aVolume03 168