Ginger Ale as a Metaphor for Sexuality
And, the meaning of other beverages in Heated Rivalry
FEB 05, 2026
Film makers use visual cues in their films to convey a story or thought that is not shared through dialogue or blocking. In place of inner monologues in written form like a novel or poem, screenwriters and directors resort to other methods to allow us a peek inside of a character’s mind.
In the previous article we discussed how a lighter that suddenly works, when it didn’t previously, after two characters, Ilya and Shane, touch means there is a spark of interest between them. This spark goes beyond the usual “Hi. Nice to meet you. We realize we’re equals in this hockey sport. Let’s not kill each other on the ice”. It’s more on the lines of “I have mad respect for you on the ice. You’re hot. I want to know what those lips taste like.”
We didn’t discuss the metaphors of fire in the last article beyond that first spark of the lighter because the article would have gone off on a tangent and I wanted to keep that article about smoking cigarettes only. But, there is fire in this show many times. I believe that’s a metaphor discovery you can attempt on your own. (However, if you’re dying for me to write about it, just let me know in the comments.)
The now household-name, Jacob Tierney, used a very specific beverage, Ginger Ale, to convey a message about Shane Hollander in the show Heated Rivalry. There is a general rule of thumb that when an object, idea or number is mentioned or shown three or more times in a film, the audience should take notice. That thing or word or phrase will lead us to more information about the story the filmmakers are truly trying to convey. We need to examine every scene it’s mentioned in or seen on film if we want to get to the bottom of the subtext puzzle.
Considering you’re still here, I’m guessing you are interested in Heated Rivalry beyond the feel good tingles you get from watching it. If not, stop reading and go watch “The Cottage” episode again. Don’t waste your time here. Or, do. That’s up to you.
You might know off the top of your head how many times Ginger Ale was discussed or shown in Heated Rivalry. I don’t.
The number of times usually doesn’t matter (beyond the 3 times we see it to tell us it’s important). What matters is what that thing, in this case Ginger Ale, represents and that it consistently represents that idea every time.
When is Ginger Ale first brought up or shown on film? I spy it in “Olympians” episode 1 at the 43 minute mark at Hayden’s house for dinner. Now, nothing in that scene just jumps out at us and screams this is what Ginger Ale is!!!! There are clues to what dinner at the Pike’s house means for Shane prior to that scene but the meaning of that dinner was definitely not something I caught right away. We will revisit that scene in another article. But, for now the hunt for the meaning of Ginger Ale continues.
The next time Ginger Ale is mentioned, correct me if I’m wrong, is in the “Olympians” episode 2 around the 26:40 time stamp where Shane comes over to the Pike’s house again to watch the last game of the playoffs. Jackie Pike greets him at the door with a big hug. Shane hands her the wine and she looks down at it saying “What am I supposed to do with this?” Shane responds “I don’t know. My mom told me to bring it.” She chuckles and says off-handedly “There’s Ginger Ale in the fridge.” If the captain of your husband’s team is coming over and has a special drink, somebody better buy it and stock it in the refrigerator.
This makes total sense in the text. The text is what we see with our eyes and what the basic story is in front of us through the dialogue, camera shots, blocking, music selection and more lays out for us. Shane’s favorite drink is Ginger Ale. People that know him will have it available for him when he visits their home. He probably doesn’t prefer wine and his friends know it. This is what the text is telling us.
Unlike the subtext which can be as small as the flame on that lighter conveying the message of wanting or it can be as big as a completely different story underneath the story we see on film. So, what is the story of Ginger Ale telling us?
Why does Jackie even say anything about Ginger Ale in the dialogue? Shane brought wine. Bringing wine to someone’s house is not unusual. It’s customary to bring a small gift when you are an invited guest. Maybe even a little bit more expected if you’re the captain AND possibly the highest paid player on the team. It shows respect to the host and a nice dose of team spirit. But, this isn’t real life. Shane’s not a real person at a real house. (I heard that same sad sigh when I broke it to you that Ilya wasn’t a real person. I’m sorry.) Why have Ginger Ale again at the Pike’s house? Why does Shane bring wine when he doesn’t even want it? Also, did anyone catch the weird dialogue there?
Something has to be going on in the subtext, the meaning or idea, under the text.
In her shock that Shane brought wine, Jackie is slightly rude to him by laughing at his gift. We could think they have known each other for years and have a close enough relationship where Jackie can get away with joking with him in this manner. But, what average adult in Canada would look at the gift the most honored guest of the group brought to their house and say “What am I supposed to do with this?” They wouldn’t. So, why in the world would she say that beyond just the light jab? There must be a reason so we really should pay attention to that whole scene in the foyer.
Shane’s response pulls us back to normalcy in “I don’t know. My mom told me to bring it.” We know Shane doesn’t always know what is appropriate in these situations. He’s not always sure how to act socially and relied on his mom to help him out. It’s clear his team mates and Jackie don’t care about that and he’s a welcome as well as a happily greeted guest with a chorus of “CAP! CAP! CAP!” when he is announced. (That is until a worried mom shushes them all about a napping toddler.) Shane had to get advice from his mom about what to bring and he’s not worried about what Jackie will think with that admission. Though, it’s clearly not his drink of choice but that comment is such a Shane thing to say we quickly look over the slight from Jackie. Thankfully someone stocked Ginger Ale for him.
If you’re still lost about this whole metaphor by this point, I would be too. What is important is that we know Shane likes Ginger Ale in the text, his friends know that and there is more Ginger Ales to be seen later in the series to figure this all out.
Sometimes Shane is mocked for his Ginger Ale preference or it’s not even available to him at all. But, there is one other person who freely and willingly gives Shane Ginger Ale: Ilya. This is where I think some people forget that Jackie, and the Pikes in general, have Ginger Ale on tap for Shane whenever he is around. Ilya is not the only person offering it to him.
So, whatever Ginger Ale is to Shane, Ilya wants him to have it and so do the Pikes. Ilya wants Shane to feel comfortable by offering him his drink of choice, going so far as to ask if the Ginger Ale is cold enough for Shane in the Tuna Melt scene of the “Rose” episode 4.
Picture from: https://heated-rivalry.com/heated-rivalry-season-one/
This is about when my subtext spidey sense starts tingling and I can feel the thread of some idea crocheting itself into a metaphor scarf one stitch at a time. If the love interest of this show always has Ginger Ale available for Shane even in his hotel room, we should really take note.
If we weren’t insanely interested in subtext, I think we could stop here and say that Ginger Ale is Shane. Cassandra Moran on Instagram created a wonderful visual presenting a Ginger-Ale-as-Shane metaphor. At very early stages of the series release and before I might have gone off the deep end with this subtext journey, I was on board with this metaphor. Although her theory already has a flaw in just within the graphic. We’ll explore more about why Ginger-Ale-as-Shane metaphor doesn’t quite work.
She mentions that Ilya is the only person who gives Shane Ginger Ale but we know that to not be true: the Pike’s give him Ginger Ale whenever he wants it. Understand that my intention is not to dump on Cassandra’s theory here. I just don’t agree with it. She puts out amazing content about Heated Rivalry (and other popular shows); It’s worth taking a look at her page.
So, if Ginger Ale isn’t just Shane we need to look at more evidence from each scene to get to the truth.
We forge on.
Enter Scott Hunter at the MLH awards in “Rookies” episode 1 around the 43:50 mark. The film makers want us to see from Shane’s perspective that he is looking for someone in the room. By this time, it’s not too difficult to know who. And, that someone special is nowhere in sight. While Shane is scanning the crowd we see him take a sip of something. Scott says to Shane “That better be just Ginger Ale, Rook.” Shane, “Uh, it is Mr. Hunter. I wouldn’t dare indulge in front of you.” Awkward Shane, real awkward. Shane is drinking Ginger Ale here. This bar gave it to him. But, we didn’t see him order the drink and it hangs around the idea of looking for Ilya.
Scott, in the meantime, orders something alcoholic in nature from the bar, maybe a whiskey (I don’t know. I don’t drink often and never really anything like that.), and ALSO offers that Shane and some others take some shots. There is some light banter about Ilya being somehow connected more to Shane than just rivals that rattles Shane. But, we’re to believe the mention of Ilya is to also include him in the next scene which is a slew of hockey bros knocking back shots with an order up for another round. No wonder he is close to drunk when he finds Ilya on the terrace later.
So, he’s drinking Ginger Ale looking for Ilya while he also gets slightly mocked for his relationship with Ilya by Scott. Scott is talking about Ilya while Shane takes mini sips of Ginger Ale through that tiny straw. Looking for and talking about Ilya happen during tiny straw sips of Ginger Ale.
Then, Shane starts drinking shots with no more mention of Ilya OR with Ilya along for the taking of those shots. What a strange thing for Scott to say about Ginger Ale AND Ilya. Why those questions together at that moment in time? Why the absence of Ilya while he’s drinking hard liquor with the hockey bros?
After writing up this scene just now, it should have been glaringly obvious to me what Ginger Ale is but I promise you I didn’t figure it out from this scene. This next scene is what did it for me.
Didn’t Shane ask for Ginger Ale in the second restaurant scene with his parents? Go back and watch it in episode 4, it’s about half-way through the episode. Shane’s parents, Yuna and David, each order a glass of Chablis. Shane asks for Ginger Ale. The waiter offers sparkling water instead of Ginger Ale which is not available at this restaurant. Yuna says “I’m sure you could have a glass of wine.” To which he replies “No, I can’t. Not during the season.” He’s quite annoyed here. He did just maybe break up with his long-time secret hookup when it got too serious in the Tuna Melt scene before. A guy just really wants his Ginger Ale…..
This is an instance when Ginger Ale is not an option. But, why?
The next time we hear mention of Ginger Ale is in the bar just a few minutes later in the episode. Can we all take a moment to appreciate that bartender? Jacob Tierny knew what he was doing there. Shane should have noticed that bartender flirting with him blasting him with that million dollar smile. But, this is Shane and he’s clueless. (Wait, rewatch this scene instead of the restaurant scene with his parents because well, that bartender and that smile. Swoon. This IS a series based on a romance novel after all. There is bound to be radiant people in it.)
Anyways, it is important for us to help unravel this metaphor that the bartender is presented in a certain way. That bartender is very gay-coded. He’s beautiful and in a less structured outfit than most straight men wear.
Yes, yes. I’m making generalizations that apply to real people. Men of any sexuality can wear whatever they want to express themselves in any way. But, a visual storyteller like a filmmaker has to use a character’s mannerisms, costume and dialogue to convey what is important for us to know about them. In this case, that bartender is gay.
Let’s remember these are fictional characters. If the bartender was in a graphic tee, poorly fitted jeans, an old baseball cap, didn’t basically ogle Shane but was supposed to be gay, how would we know? We wouldn’t. He’s gay. Or, at least gay enough to check Shane out. ‘Queer’ may be a more appropriate word here depending on your mileage because we don’t know this character at all other than he wouldn’t mind a night with one of the most eligible bachelors in town.
Sorry, we got off track there. Or, did we? Shane asks for a Ginger Ale again here and even though they have it, the bartender kind of laughs at his request. Why would one of the most famous hockey players in town want a simple Ginger Ale when he can have anything at the bar? Trying to ascertain what is appropriate in this situation Shane backpeddles and orders a beer instead.
We haven’t yet talked about Shane’s autism. I don’t have plans to write about it because while it is important to his character motivations and how he moves through and perceives the world, I’ve not found that it affects the subtext. If there is evidence that it does, I will address it more in depth later. We’ll just move forward knowing that is a part of his character and we see it in the text.
As someone who is neurotypical, that I know of, I will defer to others more expert in autism to speak on it. Check out this women who discusses it briefly. If there are more voices you’ve found helpful understanding his motivations based on his autism, please feel free to drop them in the comments below.
I do just want to say that this whole project I’m undertaking is a huge hyper-fixation and along the lines of a semi-info dump. So, make of that what you will. We probably shouldn’t discuss how many of my family members I believe are undiagnosed with autism but I digress.
Back to Shane’s ordering fumble. Shane orders a beer and that bartender gives it to him ‘on the house’ without even accepting the tip. There’s that massive grin again. The bartender just can’t help that one of the hottest hockey players (we mentioned ‘famous’ and ‘eligible’ already) just ordered a beer from him but denied Shane the Ginger Ale. I think that guy will be grinning all night just from that interaction. He’s definitely into Shane.
Does anyone else notice the bartender’s body language towards Shane after he picks up the beer and takes a sip? That bartender is drinking up every bit of Shane while Shane is in his presence. Any sane gay man at this point might offer a potential love interest their phone number but the bartender does not. Nor does the bartender ask if Shane will be around when he finishes his shift. Those are pretty common pick-up techniques in the modern dating world. Considering how shocked he is that Shane is at the bar and we see how generous the bartender is here, I would expect an offer to meet later would be the next line from smiley smilersens. But, he doesn’t make a move on Shane.
They chat a bit more because Shane doesn’t seem to know where to go and when it’s acceptable to walk away from this encounter. Shane seems to be thinking “Do I say ‘thanks’? ‘Bye’? Do I just walk away? Not sure, so let’s talk about the obvious elephant in the room that is the movie stars mingling among us.”
The almost too attentive bartender drops the fact that Rose Landry is in the crowd. He says it like Shane should know her; Almost like we should know her. Shane’s reaction indicates that not only does he know her but he’s impressed that she is at the bar. The “I might need another one” line indicates that he’s interested in meeting her but couldn’t possibly muster up the courage to approach her completely sober.
Think about the bar again, why would Shane take the beer even though he wanted Ginger Ale when earlier he didn’t drink wine with his parents? This isn’t a personal choice where he prefers beer over wine. It could be that Shane just didn’t know how to read that situation so he went with the more socially acceptable choice. But, I think this is a choice by the film makers to tell us something else. I think we can assume these two scenes happen on the same day because he wears the same outfit to both the restaurant lunch with his parents and the restaurant he was invited to by his friend JJ.
Something started to click at this point. In most of these scenes Ginger Ale is found in contrast to other drinks that are usually alcohol in nature. My friends and I started to come up with something more nuanced and more inclusive to all of the other drinks in the show along with Ginger Ale that gets us past the Ginger-Ale-is-Shane metaphor.
In the “I Believe in Sunshine” episode 5 at the very end when the Hollanders are watching the play offs, David hands Yuna a glass of wine. What is happening in their world at that moment that is entirely unexpected? Jaws on the floor, eyes glued to the events happening on the TV screen in front of them, nary one of them expected (or, even us watching them watch this scene unfold)?
Picture from: https://heated-rivalry.com/heated-rivalry-season-one/
Scott Hunter just won the World Cup. One of the highest honors a seasoned hockey player could ever win. There was no one there to celebrate with him until he brought down a fan from the crowd and kissed HIM on the ice. He kissed a man… on the ice… having just won the World Cup after years of chasing this dream. This is absolutely unexpected and unheard of in the MLH, the fictional hockey association, in Heated Rivalry. And, there is Yuna holding (not drinking) a glass of wine.
The MLH was a change from the book by Rachel Reid where she used the term ‘NHL’. But due to copyright issues the production company, Crave, changed the league name to MLH. We are to understand as an audience it is the same league with the same toxic masculinity and homophobia oozing out of every pore. Remember that ‘No Smoking’ sign from the first article? Yeah. No gay sex in hockey. That is not allowed.
Except here we are watching this scene, clutching our hearts, holding our breath and absolutely punching the air with excitement over these two men kissing in such a way that leaves no room for question what that kiss means. And, the kiss in front of the arena, the league and the whole world doesn’t just mean a kiss. They definitely know each other much than just a kiss on the lips. (Did anyone check to see if that ‘No Smoking’ sign was still up?) There is definitely gay sex happening in hockey now.
Ginger Ale is specifically homosexuality, and since half of this story is about Shane, it really means his homosexuality. And, that is different from the Ginger-Ale-is-Shane metaphor.
Ilya willingly gives Shane Ginger Ale whenever he wants it and without judgment. When has Ilya ever judged Shane for his sexual preference? When has he ever asked Shane to deny his sexuality? Never. Shane is always the cautious one even once reminding Ilya they can’t talk about their first time they had sex to anyone after the commercial they filmed together.
While the Pike’s don’t know about Shane’s homosexuality, we can predict how they will feel about Shane when he does come out to them. They will willingly accept Shane for who he is, caring little that he is attracted to men and not women. Hayden does joke around about Lily in Boston but notice he never asks about details. Hayden respects Shane and his privacy and will respect this about him too.
Remember that line from Jackie “What am I supposed to do with this?” when Shane hands her the wine? Wine, and more generally alcohol, is heterosexuality, maybe even compulsory heterosexuality. Let’s hold off on vodka though. That is its own special Russian category.
We can now go back through each scene to check that Ginger Ale represents homosexuality, Shane’s homosexuality, and that alcohol represents heterosexuality (minus vodka).
Yuna prods Shane to drink wine at the restaurant. But, he just wants Ginger Ale. In other words, Shane’s parents prod him to engage in some heterosexuality by meeting a princess at the tennis match in London and seeing where that takes him. Unfortunately, Ginger Ale is unavailable. Shane just broke up with Ilya and not only can he not have Ilya, or this homosexual relationship, his parents don’t even pick up on the fact that he most definitely is not interested in a Swedish princess (by encouraging him to drink wine). He’s not interested in the princess because he refuses that wine.
Let’s think about the scene where Shane wins Rookie of the Year. Scott Hunter engages in that funny dialogue with Shane about Ginger Ale and in the next breath asks about Ilya. So, does Scott know about Shane and Ilya at this point? If Ginger Ale represents Shane’s homosexuality and Scott just verified Shane was in fact drinking Ginger Ale, what do you think? Well, Scott does engage with Shane multiple times throughout the show about Ilya specifically. (Me thinks he knows.)
But, wait. Scott and Shane start drinking alcohol with all of those hockey bros. Why? Well, drinking alcohol means heterosexuality so Shane drinks up. It’s possible Shane doesn’t really know what his sexuality is at this moment, he is still quite young and Ilya was only one man. Maybe he is running from reality trying to ignore his sexuality that he can’t deny or he is drinking to convince himself and his hockey pals of his heterosexuality.
Drinking Ginger Ale does not inherently indicate to anyone in his world he is gay. Nor does drinking alcohol mark you as straight in his world. But, it does tell us, the audience, what is going on in Shane’s mind at that time. He definitely doesn’t want anyone to suspect he’s anything but straight. Shots it is. Did anyone see where he put his Ginger Ale?
When million-watt-smile-bartender asks Shane if he really wants Ginger Ale, what do you think he is really asking about? Well, if Ginger Ale means Shane’s homosexuality, Shane is asking to have some of that homosexuality because that is part of Shane. In the timeline of events, this is years after the Rookie of the Year award. He’s had more stolen moments with Ilya than he can count but he did just call it quits with Ilya. So, he’s likely figured out his sexuality by now and doesn’t mind asking a clearly gay-coded character for some more of that homosexuality.
In response, the bartender says “Shane Hollander can have whatever he wants here” which means the bartender gives Shane the opportunity to love whoever he wants, this is Canada after all. The Canadian government legalized same-sex marriage in 2005, nearly 10 years before the USA.
But, honestly, that bartender is thinking “Really?! You?! Gay? No, no way. You’re that famous hockey player. There’s no way anyone, much less you, can be gay in hockey. That’s absurd.” So the bartender hands Shane a beer (heterosexuality) and not Ginger Ale (homosexuality) because the bartender can’t even believe it.
Shane states that he prefers men (“Do you have any Ginger Ale”) but this gay-coded character can’t even imagine that this hockey player prefers men. Despite that fact that Canada is an open and free country for homosexuals, society has conditioned even gay men to reject the idea that there could be gay hockey players. Yay … toxic masculinity … and the trappings of patriarchy … yay. Remember how the bartender didn’t ask Shane for his number or offer his own for a future meet up?
And, let’s remember what the bartender offers Shane next, the chance to meet Rose Landry, not himself or Miles, Rose’s very gay actor friend who is starring in the same film, mind you. Technically we don’t see Miles in that restaurant but by alerting Shane that a highly eligible bachelorette (not bachelor) is around and Shane should go find her without mention of any equally suitable man is the last nail in the coffin to the bartender’s assumption about Shane’s sexuality. The bartender thinks Shane is straight even if Shane just told him he wasn’t. Tsk tsk. What a gas lighter.
So Shane takes his beer with him, admitting he might need a second beer. We see him next socializing with JJ and some other people (actors, other hockey players, does it matter? Not really.).
Did you see how he drank that beer? Who drinks beer like that? This could be seen as just a dude not knowing how to use his body, despite knowing how to play hockey better than anyone in the world, the socially awkward guy that he is.
Hudson Williams, the actor who is cast as Shane Hollander, commented in interviews that he plays Shane like a boxy robot. What I think is really happening here is Shane is trying to fake his heterosexuality to himself (and the world) and he’s miserable drinking that beer (heterosexuality) down.
He just broke up with Ilya. He has to move on and find some woman who he can find attractive and exciting because none really have up to this point. He is telling himself he has to forget this Russian man because it will never work in his world. He can’t really go looking for another boyfriend, or male sexual partner, because that could end in disaster so his only option is to find a woman. What a miserable future he’s faced with.
The moment we see Shane trying to escape this crowd, clearly overstimulated and in need of a quiet space, he lands himself in a booth in front of Rose Landry herself. Escaping that space to me is Shane’s way of removing himself from social pressures he feels about his sexuality. But, he can’t even escape those pressures because he’s faced with the one woman that could be perfect for him to lose himself in and cover for something he’s increasingly finding it difficult to deny. It would be so easy to be with her.
She is the whole package. She’s a gorgeous, kind, easy to talk to, smart, rich, famous, and a highly sought after actor probably inundated with offers by male suitors constantly. And, apparently, his fan. She even knows that he’s playing tomorrow night, including which opposing team he’s against.
What must a closeted, probably in denial, gay man do? Easy - Date Rose. She’s literally perfect for him and they would be seen by the public as the IT couple.
He does still have that beer at the table. That beer is front and center on that table for us to see which he sips at least three times during their dialogue. And, can we assume she’s not drinking water in that delicate wine glass? This would be a completely different scene if she was drinking Ginger Ale though. Ha.
Why do I hear you screaming at me ‘But, the bar at the All-Star Game!! They’re drinking beers at that bar!!’ Yes, they are. And, what are they trying to exude? In front of dozens of hockey players across the MLH, their families and other regular guests at this hotel, they can’t just drink Ginger Ale. They can’t just announce they’re not straight. They have to drink beer, heterosexuality, as a cover. I’m not sure it worked considering how intensely they were looking at each other and checking each other out. But, it was a valiant effort no less. Not only that, these beers convey to us, the audience, what they are trying to say to the world: “We are straight and just hockey pals.”
Picture from: https://heated-rivalry.com/heated-rivalry-season-one/
The shape of those bottles has me chuckling though. They’re chugging down some heterosexuality but their lips are touching something very phallic in shape. Both of them are drinking from the same shape. We are all thinking the same thing. Right?....Right?!
Can I give you a small task? Find another scene in Heated Rivalry in which two extras drink beers out of a similarly shaped bottle. Their intentional synchronicity astounds me. Think about the sequence of events happening around that quick shot. The type of beer is irrelevant such that I know the All-Star Weekend beer is Corona but I have no idea what these beers are at this moment.
What do those characters (and the world they exist in) expect to see? What do we expect to see? Who is on screen driving the narrative? Why would those bottles be important there? And, after the conclusion of the scene, do we see those bottles again?
On your nth rewatch with Heated Rivalry (I promise I’m not judging you.) test the theory of alcohol-equals-heterosexuality metaphor to see if it holds.
Next up, vodka. Or, is it just good Russian vodka?
This is the one exception to the alcohol-equals-heterosexuality metaphor and it almost broke me. Most of the time metaphors in film are consistent and inform us of a specific idea. Wine, beer, and other hard liquor all inform us that the message portrayed on screen at that moment is heterosexuality. Ginger Ale is homosexuality. And, then there is vodka and it just doesn’t fit that metaphor. But, it IS consistently shown around Ilya. So, we’ll have to make this one exception.
It’s possible that fans easily settled on the Ginger-Ale-is-Shane metaphor because I think good Russian vodka IS Ilya. It doesn’t represent anything else other than this handsome Russian hockey player with blue eyes who’s scared of loons.
Ilya drinks beer on screen to lie to his world that he is heterosexual when he is not. But what else does he drink? Water, wine, vodka, shots with Svetlana and something at the cottage that could be several different options (or nothing at all).
This is a good time to ask when does something NOT happen? Ilya never drinks Ginger Ale does he? It’s because he’s “Not all of the way gay.” Ginger Ale represents all-of-the-way-gay. Absolutely 100% gay with no wiggle room outside of Shane’s minor foray with Rose. Because Ilya is bisexual.
The first time Ilya drinks vodka is in the hotel room with Shane in the “Olympians” episode 2. He states “This is a good hotel. Really nice vodka. Is hard to find in America.” Looking at each line we can see that Ilya is, in fact, in a good hotel, he is thereally nice vodka, or Russian man, and that kind of vodka, or Russian man, is hard to find in America. So, nice (or good) vodka is Ilya.
We all know that vodka originated in Russia, right? Maybe Poland. Somewhere in that area. They both claim it. I have no allegiance to either enough to take a side. The filmmakers are stating that vodka comes from Russia because Ilya comes from Russia. And, it is a staple beverage in Russia. That’s all we need to know. I’m sorry if you are Polish and disagree. Be mad at the filmmakers. I didn’t make that rule. They did.
We might question the filmmakers’ motivations here behind those lines he states in the hotel room: “This is a good hotel. Really nice vodka. Is hard to find in America.” We could read that this Canadian show is taking a stance on the politics of Russian relations with the Western World and that Westerners perceive all of its people as bad because they are a product of their corrupt government. But, I don’t think that’s what’s happening here.
This is a political show in that the filmmaker’s take is that human rights include a world where queer people can live openly and freely, and, we know that is not the case in Russia. We see slights about Russia, the country, during the Olympics in “Hunter” episode 3 and great things aren’t happening in the scenes with Alexei along with the other events happening there.
However, I don’t think the show’s message is to paint a wide brush that all people from Russia are bad, in which Ilya is one of the few good ones. Could I be wrong? Absolutely. But, to me this show reads, let’s point out that Russia has an issue with homophobia rather than everything about Russia is bad and there are only a few Russians that are good people. Because, yuck, if that is the case.
In terms of vodka, clearly there is good vodka and sub-par vodka. I don’t know the difference. (Ask someone else about it.) And, I honestly don’t know anything about the vodka shown in the series despite my efforts. But, I imagine they are high quality varieties to get the point across. Ilya is “really nice vodka” or, a more appropriate phrase for this metaphor, “one of the good ones”. Also, there are sometimes sub-par vodka, or sub-par men. Ilya is not a sub-par man.
We know Ilya is the good variety because, among other things, he is not homophobic. He is kind (maybe not in this Las Vegas scene). Eventually he loves Shane and treats him well. He tries to do the best for his family and tries never to let his hockey team down. He is a really good man that happens to be Russian.
In a more obvious visual cue that basically knocks us over the head that good Russian vodka is Ilya, Ilya in Moscow, after the death of his father, propositions Shane over the phone. Ilya props his phone against an indiscernible dark bottle but just in the foreground we see a bottle of Russian vodka. We also see a glass of clear liquid in a tumbler that looks like something to drink vodka from that he is probably drinking. What he is drinking is probably good Russian vodka. (Someone correct me if I’m wrong.)
We can’t forget the scene at the cottage where David offers Ilya vodka. David says to Shane while he’s pouring Ilya a glass of vodka from a blue bottle, “And, there weren’t any nice men in Montreal?” Shane doesn’t know and doesn’t really care because he has a nice Russian he found in North America right next to him that checks all of his boxes and more. And that blue bottle is somewhat reminiscent of a Russian’s blue eyes sitting at that table.
Remember that line from the very beginning: “This is a good hotel. Really nice vodka. Is hard to find in America.” This is the first line about vodka in the show.
After a sip, Ilya hums with “That’s good vodka.” David responds, “Thanks, I try to buy the Russian stuff.” Those constellations of words are seen together again with Ilya: good, nice, vodka, Russian. And, this is the last line about vodka in the show. Good Russian vodka is Ilya. Nice bookend lines that tell us who Ilya really is from start to finish. He is a good man who happens to be Russian.
Now, I do know about that very beer colored drink they are sharing at the cottage alongside the burgers. But, like some other beverages in the series, its origin is ambiguous in nature. There is no label on the drink, no specific shaped bottle or glass to visually tell us what they are drinking. Honestly, it could be carbonated apple juice. The color of the liquid looks like apple juice but it has bubbles like it is carbonated. Carbonated apple juice isn’t a popular drink in North America but it is in some countries in Europe. But, can we really tell either way?
This is an instance where the filmmakers had to give the characters something to drink or it would be weird. Any good summer barbecue with burgers would have a drink, probably beer. But, identifying it specifically as beer would poke holes in the message of alcohol-is-heterosexuality. I think we’re not supposed to know exactly what that drink is other than it’s just a drink. If they wanted us to know it was beer, why pour into glasses like that? Just drink it from the bottle. Then we would have visual confirmation it is beer.
There is actually another scene at Yuna’s and David’s cottage where the four of them are holding identical mugs that might have a hot beverage in them. But, we don’t know what the drink is. There are no tea bag strings hanging down the side of the mugs. No one says, “Thanks for the coffee”. So, sometimes a drink is just a drink in this show and it doesn’t have a meaning. I’m going to guess the instances where we can discern what the drink is supposed to be, it is important for us to know and take meaning from its existence in the shot.
What do you think? Does Ginger-Ale-is-Shane work now? Or, looking at how Ginger Ale is in competition with other drinks helps us see that Ginger-Ale-is-homosexuality? Now knowing that informs us of what the other drinks represent.
Not only does Ginger Ale allow us to understand more about Shane, the other drinks on the show also tell a story. They give us more information about how characters are feeling, what they’re hiding or offering, what others expect of them or who they are at their core.
For the next article, we’ll talk about mirrors. But, I really can’t wait to discuss other ideas that haven’t been talked about before (at least from what I see).
If you are starting to think about subtext, is there anything that you’ve noticed you want me to discuss? Here is one big caveat to that: there will be articles that will have to come before certain ideas can be outlined. I wouldn’t be able to explain one concept without the basic knowledge of several previous (yet to be written) articles. Otherwise, the article will be 5,324 pages long. So, know that if you request a topic, I very much might have to write two or three articles to lay the foundation to get to your specific idea.
Also, there are a few more things I’m trying to work out. Maybe you have figured them out.
Well, are we all enjoying the cottage yet? I know I am.