19 reviews
If you are looking for a fresh and bittersweet lesbian series, well, this is the show to watch.
Lip Service can be compare to famous series like TLW but at the end its not the same, it has more than that.
Well done sex and love scenes, the characters are struggling a lot with self inner problems and life.
If you got to see this first season of Lip Service you sure want to wait until the next one.
The character of Frankie is so seductive and mysterious that makes you want to see trough her shocking "look" with those incredible beautiful eyes.
I cant help it, i just love the British accent, so there's another reason to see it.
Lip Service can be compare to famous series like TLW but at the end its not the same, it has more than that.
Well done sex and love scenes, the characters are struggling a lot with self inner problems and life.
If you got to see this first season of Lip Service you sure want to wait until the next one.
The character of Frankie is so seductive and mysterious that makes you want to see trough her shocking "look" with those incredible beautiful eyes.
I cant help it, i just love the British accent, so there's another reason to see it.
- Tat-me-not
- Aug 14, 2012
- Permalink
- cheekygal88
- May 26, 2012
- Permalink
I missed this great series the first time around!!..must have been ill !!.. This show and its story is very believable. The characters are normal do average type jobs and they are like your real life friends. Obviously there are some similarities with The L Word. The number of "friends the problems some characters have, but thats where it ends. It is a stand alone series and does itself justice. Emma Button is hilarious..and Heather Peace is very sexy. Frankie is just plain deranged !, yet you still want to mother her and take care of herself!! All in all its a great hours viewing and i personally cant wait for season 2..
In the first episode of Lip Service, you'll notice a great deal of self-conscious dialog about political correctness -- what not to call people, how not to characterize them -- that suggests the writers are regurgitating their research and/or being didactic. At that moment, you might wonder whether you ought to keep watching.
But at the same time, the acting and characterization offer a connection to a group of friends whose real-life counterparts are often low-key and underrepresented, partly to allow for survival and a minimum of harassment.
So if you're like me, you'll so want to know and spend time with those characters that you'll keep watching. And if you do, you'll find the verbalized clichés become fewer from the second episode on, and the writing keeps getting better.
Some critics have complained of an absence of "butch lesbians" in the series, which they say favors the "lipstick" kind, but I think they're wrong. I wonder whether the people who say that understand what television representation is or what the culture really involves. First of all, not everyone is the same; some deliberately androgynous female wooers do wear lipstick (sometimes rock stars can be better role models than, say, truck drivers for a player -- if you doubt it, ask Joan Jett). Second, the figures whom one recognizes from real life, and who are often called butch by the very people who desire them, seem lovingly represented on this show -- though, like characters on all TV shows, they are of course conventionally attractive. That's only to be expected on any show: Heather Peace might have broad shoulders, but she also has an angelic face.
As in The L Word and many novels like *The Well of Loneliness* by Radcliffe Hall and others by Ann Bannon, the butch types often seem haunted and emotional behind self-restraint. One of them, Frankie, must come to terms with her life as she tries to care for the woman she loves in the way in which she herself was not cared for. The damage has just as much to do with prejudice, and others' rejection of her as a person, as it does the aftermath of childhood. Perhaps you can relate.
I was very happy to see butch women represented in Lip Service by two of the main characters, just as I was to see classically feminine characters suffer for being themselves as well. You feel for them, but you also understand that it's better to understand pain than overlook it.
There are infinite variations and additions to archetypes in any community of individuals, as anyone with an imagination will have guessed. But I would support any TV show that presented *any* of the wonderful lesbians I've met in real life, so that everyone can have the chance to love and admire them. Lip Service seems to present them to the general public without insulting the demographic it represents. I did find the show titillating as its creators intended — "let's excite our gay audience in a way that also excites straight viewers" — but I see that as a way to introduce the idea of shows like this, so that women in relationships that exclude men — even when they aren't gorgeous and in their 20s and 30s — can become accepted and included more often in mainstream shows over time.
Pity there were only two seasons. I'd have loved to see a third.
But at the same time, the acting and characterization offer a connection to a group of friends whose real-life counterparts are often low-key and underrepresented, partly to allow for survival and a minimum of harassment.
So if you're like me, you'll so want to know and spend time with those characters that you'll keep watching. And if you do, you'll find the verbalized clichés become fewer from the second episode on, and the writing keeps getting better.
Some critics have complained of an absence of "butch lesbians" in the series, which they say favors the "lipstick" kind, but I think they're wrong. I wonder whether the people who say that understand what television representation is or what the culture really involves. First of all, not everyone is the same; some deliberately androgynous female wooers do wear lipstick (sometimes rock stars can be better role models than, say, truck drivers for a player -- if you doubt it, ask Joan Jett). Second, the figures whom one recognizes from real life, and who are often called butch by the very people who desire them, seem lovingly represented on this show -- though, like characters on all TV shows, they are of course conventionally attractive. That's only to be expected on any show: Heather Peace might have broad shoulders, but she also has an angelic face.
As in The L Word and many novels like *The Well of Loneliness* by Radcliffe Hall and others by Ann Bannon, the butch types often seem haunted and emotional behind self-restraint. One of them, Frankie, must come to terms with her life as she tries to care for the woman she loves in the way in which she herself was not cared for. The damage has just as much to do with prejudice, and others' rejection of her as a person, as it does the aftermath of childhood. Perhaps you can relate.
I was very happy to see butch women represented in Lip Service by two of the main characters, just as I was to see classically feminine characters suffer for being themselves as well. You feel for them, but you also understand that it's better to understand pain than overlook it.
There are infinite variations and additions to archetypes in any community of individuals, as anyone with an imagination will have guessed. But I would support any TV show that presented *any* of the wonderful lesbians I've met in real life, so that everyone can have the chance to love and admire them. Lip Service seems to present them to the general public without insulting the demographic it represents. I did find the show titillating as its creators intended — "let's excite our gay audience in a way that also excites straight viewers" — but I see that as a way to introduce the idea of shows like this, so that women in relationships that exclude men — even when they aren't gorgeous and in their 20s and 30s — can become accepted and included more often in mainstream shows over time.
Pity there were only two seasons. I'd have loved to see a third.
- jneedleman
- Mar 30, 2013
- Permalink
I loved This series ... The cast the development of the characters ... The sorry lines ... It's the best series ! Why did they Cancle It in the middle Of Nowhere ? Bring it back !!! I just watched it on TubiTV and it's amazing !!! Loved it .. Cried laughed etc... Very well written and an actual show not just soft porn ... Loved it in every sense ... I couldn't wait to see the next episode and was lost When it ended ... Please bring it back ? Maybe it was ahead of its time !? I want To see more and find out how they all get on and there are to many loose ends to leave us like this ... Please bring it back ... Maybe try America ? I couldn't get enough ...
- bound-nico
- Apr 30, 2016
- Permalink
- moov_e_c_er
- Jun 21, 2022
- Permalink
Just seen my first episode, and as a mere man, I thought it was great! Superb acting, great music, it was moody, gritty, filmed in a fly on the wall "cinema verite'" way. It deserves a much greater audience; the scenes of a sexual nature are filmed with tact and discretion that shows the passion without too much gynecological detail (quite a challenge!). I can't wait to see more episodes of this thoughtful,insightful, appealing series. There have been so many references to male gay friendship, yet until "The L Word" and now "Lip Service it has been undercover. Lip service is an intelligent, and well thought out drama series that deserves a award, and better publicity.
- stephenph-2
- May 12, 2012
- Permalink
- venisefillies
- May 8, 2016
- Permalink
- anne-every-12-302691
- Aug 10, 2019
- Permalink
Rewatching this in 2024. Still holds up. Season One was great but season two was a little lackluster.
Probably started when they lost 3 of the 5 original cast (Cat, Frankie, and Jay) Bringing in more of Sam and the addition of Lexy was awesome. But (there's always a but) it very quickly became the Sadie show. Nothing against the actress, but the character was shallow, boring, and I was completely uninterested.
Heather Peace turned in an excellent performance.
Actors are great. Writing is good. Glasgow is a beautiful city so visit it if you can. There is a lack of Glaswegian accents here though.
Probably started when they lost 3 of the 5 original cast (Cat, Frankie, and Jay) Bringing in more of Sam and the addition of Lexy was awesome. But (there's always a but) it very quickly became the Sadie show. Nothing against the actress, but the character was shallow, boring, and I was completely uninterested.
Heather Peace turned in an excellent performance.
Actors are great. Writing is good. Glasgow is a beautiful city so visit it if you can. There is a lack of Glaswegian accents here though.
- nybnkjyvjm
- Nov 5, 2024
- Permalink
This is a great show. The first series/season, while not ground breaking, is very enjoyable. With an attractive, talented cast and lots of sex, what's not to like? I was hooked by the end of it. It was the second series that really blew me away. It deepened my respect for the writer, actors and production team, as I feel it was very brave of them to take it in the direction they did, and the acting was superb. It's an entirely different animal from the first season though, so I can understand why the show lost viewers. Still, I think they did a good job balancing out the intensity of the main story line. Hopefully there will be a third series.
- valinvancouver
- Aug 29, 2012
- Permalink
- hollymcaird
- May 28, 2015
- Permalink
- ingrid-504-516883
- Oct 15, 2012
- Permalink
As good as this is, it ultimately only confirms they lesbians are selfish and promiscuous.!I hate to say it but the main characters are so driven by desire nobody else matters. Great city shots. Superb acting and dialogue.
- mcjensen-05924
- Apr 25, 2020
- Permalink
I liked it very much, except one thing. In all of the main charcters there's actually only two sweaties. I wanted to hear some real Glasgow accents. It might as well have been filmed in any city in England, for the amount of local Glasgow accents we got to listen to. Bring in old Rab C Nesbitt!!! Lol.
I recommend though, well worth watching.
I recommend though, well worth watching.
- xmal-18747
- Sep 5, 2021
- Permalink
In season 2, I felt writing is very disconnected after Sam became a much more prominent character. The strengths of Lip Service in season 1 tended to be in the group/friendship scenes like "Friends".
The acting from the actress who play Sam is so bad that I have to skip all her scenes. There are no chemistry between Sam and Lexy and their sex scene is too awkward to look at. Other actress gave the strong acting though.
This show had great potential but the writing and the acting ruined it. I heard the rating is not strong this season so maybe there won't be season 3. If it has season 3, I hope writing gets improved.
The acting from the actress who play Sam is so bad that I have to skip all her scenes. There are no chemistry between Sam and Lexy and their sex scene is too awkward to look at. Other actress gave the strong acting though.
This show had great potential but the writing and the acting ruined it. I heard the rating is not strong this season so maybe there won't be season 3. If it has season 3, I hope writing gets improved.