Yes, this is a series about a sexual predator and murderer, but bear with me. Bo may be a special snowflake super powered woman who can kill people with a kiss, but this series has a lot of surprising things to offer.One: Bo is succubus who feeds off people through sexual contact, but she was raised without any knowledge of fae. She might literally be a sexual predator, but what victims she has definitely consent to touch, if not force themselves on people, and a huge amount of the first season is about Bo’s effort to embrace her sexuality in ways that don’t harm herself and others–sexual powers and her plain old normal libido. Consent is a huge underlying theme, as is the transformative effect of Bo suddenly finding people who can consent to, and survive, her appetites.
Two: Clearly sex is a central theme of this show, but it also features one of the healthiest, sex positive representations I’ve seen since Lucifer. (Lost Girl came out first, but I saw Lucifer first.) Bo is bisexual and biromatic. Her attraction to women is allowed to be its own thing, not a nice perk for the men. She has fully developed female relationships, both romantic and platonic, with just as many complications and highlights as her hetero relations.
At times healthy, consensual, and honest open relationships are also portrayed in a satisfyingly ethical way.
Three: The secondary characters are pretty awesome too.
Token human, Kenzi is probably the best character in the series. She is happy to point out (and be unimpressed by) Bo’s super specialness. While she is the token human, she’s not helpless, often saving the fae from others, and from themselves when their pretentious streaks flare up.
Hale is my second favorite character, a male siren who works with the ultra male, primal beast shifter, Dyson, protecting humans and fae from each other. Hale is an entitled rich boy archetype who, just like the alpha male archetype (Dyson) is trying to use his influence and strengths for inclusiveness and the health of the community.
The side characters have their own plot arcs and developments, and don’t just frame Bo, they heavily contribute to her character growth.
Four: In addition to the representation of positive sexuality are on going themes of buck tradition and living with integrity. Bo refuses to choose sides between Dark Fae and Light Fae. While this brushes on “she’s the exception to all the rules” it then veers hard away from plots where either side is trying to woo her. Bo and Kenzie defiantly work for and against both sides, fighting for compassion, respect, and integrity outside of toeing the party lines.
Five, and circling back to the beginning: While many episodes in the first season focus on Bo and Kenzi’s plight as amateur detectives, the season plot comes down to a battle between Bo and he sexual predatory nature. The big bad is another succubus who has no moral concept of consent (like much of the fae) and embraces her full powers to supersede others’ wills with her own desires. She justifies it with both “I was given this powerful gift for a reason” and “I was abused by men, therefore I am enslaving them so they don’t hurt me.”
Lost Girl season one has quips, action, spice, mystery, and fairy tale elements, but it also emphasizes that tradition is a stupid reason to do things, your wants and needs never entitle you to victimize others, and that highly sexual relationships can be healthy, as long as consent and honesty are also main pillars or your morality.
Contains: violence, implied sexual violence, language, sexual talk and situations, veiled sex scenes