Gale
As I said in my previous entry, I'm going to share my experience of the convention in the upcoming days. But I want to talk about Gale now.
The convention was great and the cast was fantastic and we all had fun, even if Gale was not there. For those of you who were worried the cast might be bothered by fans about Gale's absence or that the convention would be tainted, rest assured that didn't happen. The convention was fantastic and the cast received so much love I think it might last them for years.
But I can't and don't want to say I never thought about Gale or told myself "damn, it would have fantastic if he'd share this or that moment with us". This happened in particular for me when I did the Meet&Greet and CityLunch with Sharon and Randy, which were originally supposed to be with Gale&Randy. I've always loved Sharon and after meeting her upclose I can only say I love her even more now. But of course there was a bit of sadness at the thought of what it could have been if Gale had been there. The other moments in which I particularly felt sad he was not there, were during the moments the cast was all together on stage. Especially in the end, I was a little sad that Gale could not experience the love with which we embraced the cast. The convention ended with such a big, long, loud applause and I think there were no dry eyes in the house. Sharon and Michelle were clearly tearing up and the emotions were evident on all of the actors' faces. Even Randy, who sometimes has looked a bit "cold" about the QAF experience in the past, looked touched by how much this fandom still loves the show and cares about it and is grateful to the actors for bringing it to life. I think Gale deserved to feel that love too, because as Sharon very rightly pointed out, Gale and his character were a major part of this show. I guess there was a bit of shift there for me, from being sad for myself to being sad for him, because Sharon really insisted during the CityWalk that Gale DID want to be there and did all he could to make it happen. In particular, she pointed out that those people who think Gale never intended to really attend to begin with are absolutely wrong. And I remember that after news broke out that Gale was not attending, quite a few people hinted that the convention wasn't really a Gale thing. Well, you were wrong.
What makes me feel better about that is that I'm pretty sure Scott took a picture or a video of the applause and cheering and even standing ovation we dedicated to Gale when Sharon talked about him during the last Q&A. I think he sent it to Gale right that moment and I think he was hoping to get maybe a reply he could deliver to us. That didn't happen, but I love the idea that thanks to Scott, Gale can still know how much this fandom adores him, even if he couldn't be there in person. Also, he will be given the book that was put together with fans' contributions especially for him. Each actor received one, during the Meet&Greet. I was at the Meet&Greet with Peter and Scott when they were given theirs and Scott was also given Gale's book and asked to deliver it to him, which I'm sure he will do.
Back to Sharon, she also said that she risked to miss the convention too because of her series, and she was only lucky that her character wasn't in the script of the episode being filmed these days. She said that when she thought she could not make it either, they talked about the possibility of doing a video conference with both Gale and her, but it just wasn't possible, I think she said because it was too expensive. Anyway, another confirmation that Gale does care.
The last thing I want to share right now (maybe later more things will come to me, when I'm less tired...) is what Sharon said about the job that kept Gale from attending the convention. She defined it, and I'm literally quoting her words, a "huge part ". Now I cannot know what Sharon would consider huge, but personally, I felt very excited when I heard that. I think all of us are waiting for Gale to get a role that can really make him shine as his talent deserves and as Queer As Folk gave him the chance to.
The convention was great and the cast was fantastic and we all had fun, even if Gale was not there. For those of you who were worried the cast might be bothered by fans about Gale's absence or that the convention would be tainted, rest assured that didn't happen. The convention was fantastic and the cast received so much love I think it might last them for years.
But I can't and don't want to say I never thought about Gale or told myself "damn, it would have fantastic if he'd share this or that moment with us". This happened in particular for me when I did the Meet&Greet and CityLunch with Sharon and Randy, which were originally supposed to be with Gale&Randy. I've always loved Sharon and after meeting her upclose I can only say I love her even more now. But of course there was a bit of sadness at the thought of what it could have been if Gale had been there. The other moments in which I particularly felt sad he was not there, were during the moments the cast was all together on stage. Especially in the end, I was a little sad that Gale could not experience the love with which we embraced the cast. The convention ended with such a big, long, loud applause and I think there were no dry eyes in the house. Sharon and Michelle were clearly tearing up and the emotions were evident on all of the actors' faces. Even Randy, who sometimes has looked a bit "cold" about the QAF experience in the past, looked touched by how much this fandom still loves the show and cares about it and is grateful to the actors for bringing it to life. I think Gale deserved to feel that love too, because as Sharon very rightly pointed out, Gale and his character were a major part of this show. I guess there was a bit of shift there for me, from being sad for myself to being sad for him, because Sharon really insisted during the CityWalk that Gale DID want to be there and did all he could to make it happen. In particular, she pointed out that those people who think Gale never intended to really attend to begin with are absolutely wrong. And I remember that after news broke out that Gale was not attending, quite a few people hinted that the convention wasn't really a Gale thing. Well, you were wrong.
What makes me feel better about that is that I'm pretty sure Scott took a picture or a video of the applause and cheering and even standing ovation we dedicated to Gale when Sharon talked about him during the last Q&A. I think he sent it to Gale right that moment and I think he was hoping to get maybe a reply he could deliver to us. That didn't happen, but I love the idea that thanks to Scott, Gale can still know how much this fandom adores him, even if he couldn't be there in person. Also, he will be given the book that was put together with fans' contributions especially for him. Each actor received one, during the Meet&Greet. I was at the Meet&Greet with Peter and Scott when they were given theirs and Scott was also given Gale's book and asked to deliver it to him, which I'm sure he will do.
Back to Sharon, she also said that she risked to miss the convention too because of her series, and she was only lucky that her character wasn't in the script of the episode being filmed these days. She said that when she thought she could not make it either, they talked about the possibility of doing a video conference with both Gale and her, but it just wasn't possible, I think she said because it was too expensive. Anyway, another confirmation that Gale does care.
The last thing I want to share right now (maybe later more things will come to me, when I'm less tired...) is what Sharon said about the job that kept Gale from attending the convention. She defined it, and I'm literally quoting her words, a "huge part ". Now I cannot know what Sharon would consider huge, but personally, I felt very excited when I heard that. I think all of us are waiting for Gale to get a role that can really make him shine as his talent deserves and as Queer As Folk gave him the chance to.