Series / Fellow Travelers

A Showtime adaptation of the 2007 novel starring Matt Bomer and Jonathan Bailey. It premiered on October 29, 2023.^note Although subscribers of Paramount+ could watch the pilot two days early.

In the early 1950s, Hawkins Fuller and Timothy Laughlin, two closeted gay men, become lovers as the Red Scare rages. They face struggles not only with each other and themselves, but also society in general over the decades.

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Tropes:

• The '50s: The Flashbacks in episodes 1-5 are set in 1952-1954, while episode 8's transpire in 1957. The past sequences in episode 6 that revolve around the early stage of Hawk and Lucy's marriage must have occurred in the mid-1950s, but the exact year isn't specified.
• The '60s: 1968 is the setting of most of the past scenes in episode 6.
• The '70s: Episode 7's Flashbacks unfold in May 1979.
• The '80s: The present scenes take place in 1986, and the Dénouement is in 1987.
• Adaptational Sexuality: In the novel, Mary is straight, but her TV counterpart is a lesbian.
• Adaptation Expansion: In the novel, the past scenes end in 1957, and Hawk and Tim never see each other again after that year. On the show, they continue to meet in 1968, 1979 and 1986.
• Affectionate Nickname:
  • Hawkins is nicknamed "Hawk" by all the people close to him.
  • Timothy's social circle addresses him by his diminutive "Tim."
  • Hawk calls his Second Love Tim "Skippy" and "my boy."
  • Hawk refers to his First Love Kenneth as "Kenny."
  • Hawk uses "sweetheart" for his wife Lucy, his daughter Kimberly, and one of his granddaughters.
• Age-Gap Romance: Although the exact ages of Hawk and Tim aren't stated on-screen, the audience can deduce there's approximately a decade between them. (In Real Life, Matt Bomer is 10.5 years older than Jonathan Bailey.) In 1952, Hawk appears to be in his mid-30s, is a World War II veteran, and has already established a career working for Senator Smith. Tim is a university graduate seeking a job, so he's in his early-to-mid 20s. Hawk's Affectionate Nickname for Tim is "my boy" because it emphasizes the latter's youth. When they spend a weekend together at Rehoboth Beach, Tim suggests that he can pretend to be Hawk's cousin, but Hawk disagrees and insists that Tim needs to act as his nephew in order to be more convincing (the implication being that people would notice the age difference).
• Alas, Poor Villain: The inscription on Roy Cohn's panel on the AIDS Memorial Quilt ("Coward. Bully. Victim.") is a downplayed example.
• The Alcoholic: After his son's death, Hawk becomes a drunkard. Among other incidents, he ruined his daughter's baby shower by knocking over the gift table because he was so inebriated. It had gotten so out of control that his wife Lucy gave him an ultimatum: seek treatment for his drinking or live somewhere else. Hawk chose to leave home and stay on Fire Island where he can indulge in substance abuse. His friend Rafael is concerned about his deteriorating health and confides to Tim that he needs to see a doctor. When Hawk vomits in the bathroom, Craig explains to Tim that he has developed gastritis due to the alcohol.
• All Gays are Promiscuous:
  • Played Straight with Hawk, who's promiscuous and does Gay Cruising for one-night stands at public washrooms or gay bars. This habit continues when he's in his late 60s in 1986. He informs a doctor that he has sex with men 3 or 4 times a year, and it's never the same man twice if he can help it.
  • Lampshaded by Marcus when he tells Tim that he and Hawk "prefer sex without emotional entanglements."
  • Averted with the monogamist Tim and discussed in episode 3. He disagrees with Hawk's statement that they hide who they sleep with and that everyone has something to hide, because "it's not who we sleep with, it's who we love." He wants nothing more than to have a normal romantic relationship with Hawk.
• All Take and No Give:
  • Hawk is the Taker and Tim is the Giver in their romance; the power imbalance stems from their Lover and Beloved dynamic. Tim desires to be in a committed relationship with Hawk despite the grave legal and social difficulties LGBT+ people face during the homophobic 1950s, but Hawk continually insists that their romance must remain casual. Hawk plans to marry Lucy to be his beard, and the mere idea of this is extremely upsetting to Tim. During a Christmastime tryst, Tim gives Hawk a brand new tie as a Christmas gift, yet Hawk hadn't thought of getting anything for his boyfriend even though he did purchase a stunning silver bracelet set with emeralds for Lucy. (Although Tim is thrilled by the expensive — but pre-owned — monogrammed cufflinks etched with Hawk's initials that the latter hands to him after rummaging through his closet, it doesn't change the fact that Hawk didn't consider buying a Christmas present for Tim.) Hawk doesn't offer emotional support to Tim when the latter needs it, even though Hawk expects Tim to comfort him when he's in distress. Tim often expresses his love for Hawk, but the latter never says "I love you" in return.
    • Subverted at the end of their relationship in 1986, when Hawk lets Tim go at the latter's request. Even though Hawk desperately wants to stay with Tim, he finally puts Tim's needs over his own desires. Also, Hawk is not angry or unhappy when he learns that Tim slightly deceived him, and is planning to use the gala invite that Hawk wrangled for them to stage a direct action with Marcus, Frankie, Jerome, and others. Even Hawk's decision not to say "I love you" in that moment was for Tim's sake. Tim let Hawk know that he'd found peace and had no regrets about their relationship, and asks Hawk to make letting go of their relationship easy for him, so Hawk's decision to not verbally affirm his love for Tim in that moment was ultimately a loving and selfless gesture. (And he does affirm his love for Tim in another way, by kissing him in public for the first time before they part ways.)
    • Played with in episode 6. While it does go against Tim's wishes, Hawk's desperation to keep Tim out of prison is understandable and not entirely selfish.
  • Lucy and Hawk's marriage as well. Like many 1950s-era housewives, Lucy sacrifices her own feelings, dignity, and self-respect in order to make her husband as comfortable as possible.
• Anachronic Order: The story constantly jumps back and forth between the past and the present.
• And Starring: The opening credits (plus the end credits of episode 1) have "And Allison Williams".
• Arc Words: "Beyond measure."
• Armoured Closet Gay: It's made clear Roy Cohn is a closeted gay man, who's also pushing an effort to fire LGBT+ people with federal jobs as blackmail threats by communist agents, and "deviants" unsuited for employment. Later on, Hawk gets evidence that Joseph McCarthy himself, who'd started this push against LGBT+ employees, had paid for sex with a man.
• Attractive Bent-Gender: In episode 4, Drag Queen Frankie performs "Santa Baby" while wearing a strapless gown and Sitting Sexy on a Piano. Later, in Frankie's apartment, Marcus very much enjoys the view when Frankie takes off the gown and walks across the room in a strapless bra, girdle, and garter belt.
• Bad Liar: Hawk and Cohn have remarked that Tim is awful at lying.
  • At a Rehoboth Beach restaurant, Tim poses as Hawk's nephew, and after the waiter leaves, Hawk warns his lover that he's overacting.
    Hawk: Don't overdo it, Skippy. You're not a convincing liar.
  • Cohn suspects that Tim may be a spy for Senator Smith, and he inquires about the origin of the envelope that Tim handed to Schine.
    Cohn: Thank you for the package, by the way. The one you gave to Mr. Schine around Christmastime, the one with the... interesting materials. Just curious. Where'd you get it?
    Tim: Uh, somebody left it on my desk.
    Cohn: Oh, kid. You're a terrible liar. You should work on that.
  • Tim later reports to Hawk about his confrontation with Cohn.
    Hawk: Did Cohn ask about the envelope?
    Tim: I said someone left it on my desk.
    Hawk: What? That's not plausible, is it? Why would he put it on your desk when Schine's office is ten steps away?
    Tim: I guess I don't lie as easily as you do.
    Hawk: Then you won't survive.
    Tim: It's funny. Cohn said more or less the same thing.
• The Beard: Many gays and lesbians maintain straight relationships to cover themselves, including marriages.
  • Hawk marries Lucy Smith to make her his (unwitting) beard (though she learns soon enough).
  • Caroline, Mary's ex-girlfriend, moves back to Ohio and gets married. Presumably her husband is also an unwitting beard.
• Beta Couple: The secondary romantic relationship is between Marcus and Frankie.
• Betty and Veronica:
  • On Fire Island, Tim is the responsible Betty and Craig is the hard-partying Veronica who are both rivals for Hawk's affection. (The dynamic is played with a bit halfway through the episode when Tim snorts cocaine, goes dancing with Hawk and his housemates at a club Where Everybody Knows Your Flame, initiates a physical altercation with Craig, and participates in a threesome with Hawk and Craig.)
  • In 1957, as Hawk's male mistress, Tim is the Veronica to housewife Lucy's Betty.
• Bite of Affection: Tim does this to Hawk's shoulder as they have sex (with Tim penetrating Hawk) in 1957. Shortly after, Lucy notices the massive love bite under the neckline of Hawk's undershirt.
• Bittersweet Ending:
  • By 1987, Tim is dead and Jerome is HIV positive. However, Tim fought until the very end; Marcus and Frankie are still together and very happy with each other and the family they formed with Jerome; Lucy divorces (or at least separates from) Hawk because she knows she deserves to be happier than he can make her; and at the very end, Hawk and his daughter Kimberly visit Tim's panel in the AIDS Memorial Quilt, and he tearfully reveals to her that Tim was "the man I loved."
  • Mary's story as well: in 1986, she is a congresswoman and is implied to be in a long-term relationship with a woman named Phyllis. But episode 8 confirms that she regrets not fighting for her relationship with Caroline, and wonders what would have happened if she had.
• Blackmail:
  • Hawk has Tim give Cohn the material relating to McCarthy having sex with a man. Cohn uses this so McCarthy won't simply drop him to save himself as the Schine matter drags them all down.
  • Senator Smith is blackmailed over his son having gotten arrested when he's caught having sex with a man. His opponents threaten to expose this if he doesn't resign from his office. Smith shoots himself rather than comply.
• Book Burning: Senator Smith is disturbed that librarians across Western Europe are burning books about communism (or at least contain communist leanings) only seven years after the end of World War II.
  Smith: McCarthy is sending Cohn and his sidekick to Europe to expose commie influence in our overseas libraries. In anticipation of their visit, librarians have started burning books. Now, that remind you of anything?
• Bridal Carry:
  • In the fourth episode, when Hawk and Tim spend time together before Christmas, the former lifts the latter bridal-style and then carries him to the bed in Hawk's apartment. Although Hawk has never told Tim that he loves him, this gesture plainly demonstrates his romantic affection for his lover.
  • In the eighth episode, there's a brief shot of Hawk holding Tim in a bridal carry when they enter Frankie's house to pick up the tuxedo Tim will wear at a fundraising gala. Hawk's action is more practical than romantic this time around because Tim is dying of AIDS and has trouble walking, but it nonetheless displays that he cares immensely for his ex-boyfriend.
• Broken Pedestal: In the early 1950s, millions of American Catholics regard Senator Joseph McCarthy as a saint, including Tim, who is initially very enthusiastic about working for his hero. However, over time, Tim notices the underhanded strategies that his employer and his team use to combat communism, which violate Tim's principles. He quits the job a couple of years later after he becomes disillusioned with the dark side of McCarthyism. Despite recognizing McCarthy's faults, Tim still feels some sadness after his former boss passes away.
  Hawk: So, tell me what's bothering you. You can't be grieving for Tail Gunner Joe.
  Tim: At the end, I saw McCarthy for what he was. A rabble rouser, demagogue. (sighs) So why do I feel like I've lost someone?
  Hawk: Because you knew him. And you're a decent person.
  Tim: He believed in something. He had ideals. And even if they were misguided, he held them with passion. I used to have passion like that.
• Burn Baby Burn: In the sixth episode, after Lucy reads without permission a letter that Tim wrote to Hawk, she burns it out of jealousy because she hates the fact that her husband loves a man more than her. As a consequence, Hawk never knew of the letter's existence.
• The Caretaker:
  • In 1986, Maggie cares for her dying brother Tim.
  • In 1968, Marcus looks after his ailing and elderly father.
• Casual Kink: Hawk and Tim's lovemaking feature elements of BDSM, with the former as the dominant partner while the latter is the submissive. Hawk likes to order Tim to do things like remove and fold clothing during foreplay, sit on his lap, never break eye contact, etc. Hawk refers to his younger lover as "my boy" (which indicates that Tim is subordinate to Hawk) and demands that Tim declares that he belongs to him as if he's Hawk's Property of Love (e.g. "I am [your boy]!" and "I belong to Hawkins Fuller"). After an argument in episode 3, Hawk slaps Tim twice in the face (at the latter's request) and then bounds Tim's hands with his own tie before initiating rough sex, with Tim being nude whereas Hawk is almost fully dressed.
• The Chanteuse: Stormé DeLarverie defies the traditional femme fatale version of this trope with her gender-nonconforming variation: a Butch Lesbian and drag king who sings Torch Songs at the Cozy Corner.
• Christmas Episode: Episode 4 takes place shortly before and during Christmas.
• Closet Gay: All gays and lesbians who appear on the show in the 1950s are closeted due to the homophobia which they face, with the threat of being outed ever-present as it could ruin their lives.
• Club Kid: The younger gay men whom Hawk hangs out with on Fire Island fit into this largely from what's seen. Several of them are Camp Gay, they take cocaine frequently, have casual sex often, and dance at a club. Tim also briefly gets into the drug use and dancing when he's there.
• Coming-Out Story: After suffering from Gayngst for most of his life, Tim finally accepts his true self and embraces his homosexuality in the '70s after he earns a counseling degree. He even comes out to his conservative Catholic relatives, which is a big deal for him because in the past, he was afraid of becoming the next "designated hopeless sinner of the family."
  Tim: Got my counseling degree and decided to live a completely honest life.
  Hawk: Completely?
  Tim: Out of the closet. Even to my family.
  Hawk: Did they call in an exorcist?
  (both chuckle)
  Tim: I'm sure my mother prays every day for my eternal soul. But I'm happy. More or less.
• Commonality Connection: When they meet for the first time, Tim is able to relate to Jackson in a way that Hawk cannot because they both feel lost and struggle with trying to find their place in the world.
  Tim: Where would you go?
  Jackson: Anywhere. Like the hobos who ride the trains. I just want to get away from here. Sounds stupid, but—
  Tim: No, no, it doesn't. Sometimes it's hard to know where we belong.
• Confessional:
  • At the end of episode 2, the Catholic Tim confesses his sin of having sex with a man.
    Tim: Bless me, Father, for I have sinned. It has been four months since my last confession.
    Priest: And what do you wish to confess?
    Tim: I've had carnal relations with a man.
    Priest: Are you truly sorry for this sin?
    Tim: Yes.
  • In episode 6, Tim is in the army when he confesses to Father Lawrence that he's in love with a man.
    Tim: Forgive me, Father, for I have sinned. I have indulged in impure thoughts. I can't stop them.
    Father Lawrence: Of a sexual nature?
    Tim: Yes. I'm in love with someone I can't have. I can't stop thinking about him.
    Father Lawrence: Am I to understand that you have feelings for another man?
    Tim: Yes.
    Father Lawrence: Are you aware that the Church views this as a mortal sin?
    Tim: I am. But I don't know how love can be a sin.
    Father Lawrence: Are you willing to give this love to God as a gift?
    Tim: I can try.
• Consummate Liar: Hawk lies as easily as he breathes. He deceives everyone around him, including his own family. He's so exceptional at it that he can beat a polygraph test administered by the government.
• Corrupt the Cutie: Hawk's influence on Tim is a downplayed example. After they've been seeing each other for a few weeks, Tim kisses Hawk's feet and performs oral sex on him in order to get Hawk to take him to Joe Alsop's party; it seems unlikely that Tim would've plied anyone with transactional sexual favors prior to meeting Hawk. After Hawk's marriage, he and Tim have an extramarital affair which lasts for a few months in 1957 and continues on and off for the rest of Tim's life; this is a far cry from earlier in the series, when Tim joined the military to try to extricate himself from Hawk's life after Hawk and Lucy got engaged.
• Crazy Cat Lady: Lampshaded by Mary in episode 8 when she imagines what her life would've been like if she stayed with Caroline.
  Mary: I wonder sometimes, when it all happened, if I had offered to leave D.C. with her and find some cottage somewhere. We could have been those two eccentric old ladies that all the busybodies in town whisper about. The one with all the cats and no husbands.
• Crushing Handshake: Hawk is irate at Dave Holm's disrespectful treatment of Tim, so Hawk takes advantage of Dave's ignorance about AIDS (the latter believes you can catch it through touch) by clenching the homophobe's hand in a death grip while mentioning that he was physically close to Tim.
  Hawk: (shakes Dave's hand tighly) Just to be clear...
  Dave: (in pain) What the fuck?
  Hawk: Tim isn't Lucy's friend. (pulls Dave forward and whispers in his ear) He's my friend. He just got out of the hospital. I was there with him the whole time. I climbed into his bed and held him.
• Cure Your Gays: After Leonard is arrested for commission of obscene and indecent acts (i.e. Gay Cruising), Hawk admits him to a facility that claims to cure homosexuality with a combination of aversion and shock therapy.
• Daddy's Girl: Lampshaded in episode 7 when Hawk recalls that his daughter Kimberly used to look up to him: "I was always her hero." Lucy also brings up while chatting with Kimberly, "You and your father were so close."
• Defrosting Ice Queen: Inverted with Lucy, who develops from a warm, open-hearted, slightly naïve young woman who is deeply in love with Hawk, to a chilly Stepford Smiler after decades of neglect and romantic disappointment from her husband.
• Deliberate Values Dissonance:
  • The series highlights not only homophobia in the 1950s, which was pervasive and forced LGBT+ people to stay hidden, but also institutionalized racism and how McCarthyism destroyed many lives in the anti-communist persecution.
  • Even Senator Smith, who was relatively progressive for a U.S. senator in The '50s, is a homophobe and (strongly implied to be) a philanderer.
• Desperately Looking for a Purpose in Life: Tim goes through several causes during his life searching for purpose. Initially, he is a right-wing Catholic who supports anti-communism and is an aide for US Senator Joseph McCarthy at the height of his infamous campaign. Tim grows disillusioned because McCarthyism grows to include purging closeted LGBT+ employees from federal agencies (like him) and he sees how excessive McCarthy's tactics really are. Then, after serving in the US Army, he follows left-wing priest Father Lawrence, joins a Catholic seminary, and later becomes a protestor against The Vietnam War, which gets him imprisoned for destroying draft cards. After 1.5 years in jail, Tim is released and he's inspired by Frankie, so in the '70s, he works as a clinical social worker at a non-profit agency in San Francisco that helps the gay and lesbian community. By 1986, Tim has become an activist for gay rights and AIDS sufferers like himself as he battles against the disease.
• Destructive Romance: Although Hawk genuinely loves Tim, their relationship is an Unequal Pairing (specifically Lover and Beloved), and Hawk manipulates (and on one occasion, outright mistreats) his younger lover throughout their romance. Some examples of how Hawk holds the power in their relationship and controls Tim include:
  • The job Hawk finds for Tim at the State Department comes with an ulterior motive: Hawk wants a spy in Senator Joseph McCarthy's office. Although Tim is fiercely devoted to the anti-communist cause, Hawk is taking advantage of the fact that Tim feels obligated to return the favor of getting the opportunity to work for his hero (which would never happen without Hawk's influence), so Tim passes information about his boss, Roy Cohn and David Schine to Hawk. Falling in love with Hawk and being seduced by him further cements Tim's loyalty to his boyfriend even though it's detrimental to McCarthy's team.
  • When the Lavender Scare begins, Hawk seeks comfort from Tim by going to the latter's apartment and requesting to be held, which Tim agrees to do. However, when Tim seeks emotional support from his boyfriend after he quits his job due to becoming disenchanted with McCarthyism, Hawk decides in that moment to break Tim's heart by announcing that he's going to ask Lucy Smith to marry him. This event marks the first breakup in their romance, and Tim is so hurt that he enlists in the US Army because he thinks that's the best way for him to get over Hawk.
  • A few years later in 1957, a married Hawk seduces Tim again and uses him as his Gender-Inverted mistress for a period of time (either a few weeks or a few months). For Tim, this is a step down from what they've shared before because he now must accept being "the other man" when he used to be Hawk's primary romantic and sexual partner, but he assures Hawk with "I promise I won't be any trouble. I don't have any expectations." However, once Hawk realizes that Tim will become his colleague if Tim's job application to the Refugee Relief Office is accepted (Tim's daily proximity would threaten the stability of Hawk's marriage and impeding fatherhood), Hawk betrays his beloved by reporting him to the M Unit for being a homosexual, which results in Tim being permanently excluded from federal employment. Their mutual friend Mary discloses to Tim that he had "become inconvenient" to Hawk. Tim is so devastated by his lover's betrayal that he refuses to have any contact with Hawk for 11 years.
  • In 1986, Hawk finally acknowledges in his old age that he was a bad boyfriend to Tim.
    Hawk: A long time ago, I did something to hurt you. And I think, even being in your life hurt you in some way.
• Disappointed in You: Hawk is ashamed at his son Jackson for stealing a gold pocket watch.
  Hawk: You've really disappointed me, Jackson.
  Jackson: What else is new?
• Domestic Abuse: In 1979, an enraged Hawk strangles his lover Craig while roaring "I will fucking kill you!" when he discovers that the latter had looked through his photo album without his permission and removed the picture of Hawk's deceased son Jackson from its pocket. (Hawk intended to keep this a secret from Craig.) Fortunately, Tim is able to stop Hawk after several seconds, which allows Craig to get away.
• Double Entendre:
  • In the pilot, because Hawk is attracted to Tim, his final line during their conversation at the park bench is laced with a sexual innuendo.
    Tim: I should leave soon anyway. It's noon Mass at St. Joseph's.
    Hawk: Perfect. (leans closer to Tim and whispers) I'll spend the afternoon picturing you kneeling in prayer.
  • In the fourth episode, Hawk learns that Tim will attend a very important meeting with Senator Joseph McCarthy, Roy Cohn and John Adams (the Army's lawyer), and he tells his lover "My boy's coming up in the world" while fondling Tim's erect penis through his pants. Hawk then playfully adds "Speaking of coming up" before removing Tim's pants and underwear.
  • In the sixth episode, Hawk shows Tim his hunting cabin. Tim had previously used the word "hunting" to refer to Hawk's Gay Cruising in episode 5, so what they really mean in this scene is that Hawk seduces men for one-night stands at his cabin.
    Hawk: This is Daddy's hunting cabin.
    Tim: Where you do your hunting.
    Hawk: I manage to bag a buck every now and then.
• Double Meaning:
  • When Hawk returns to Washington, D.C. after visiting his estranged father at their family home, he goes straight to Tim's apartment. Tim asks "Where have you been?", and Hawk answers "Doesn't matter. I'm home now." For Hawk, his lover Tim is his home, much more so than the house he grew up in or his own apartment in the city.
  • While dictating a fake breakup letter that Tim must jot down and then send to Mary in order save her career while she's under suspicion by the government for being a lesbian, the first half of it actually reflect Hawk's true feelings for Tim.
    Hawk: "I fell for you the first moment I laid eyes on you. Right away, I was taken by your beauty, but I was won over by your mind. To touch you, to feel your body against mine brought me more happiness than you could ever know. I know you love me. And my feelings for you are deep. But I've always known we have no real future together."
• Double-Meaning Title: The episode title "White Nights" refers to both the White Night riots and Hawk and his friends snorting cocaine while partying at night on Fire Island.
• Drag Queen: Frankie is a drag queen in the 1950s, but stops performing by the late '60s. Real life drag king Stormé DeLarverie is a minor character and Frankie's friend at the time.
• Driven to Suicide:
  • "Your Nuts Roasting on an Open Fire" opens with a gay employee killing himself by walking into traffic as he's about to be outed and ruined. It's also mentioned there's an average of one suicide each week among fired government employees due to this.
  • Senator Smith shoots himself rather than resign when he's told his son's arrest on a "morals charge" for having sex with a man will be exposed if he won't, while leaving a suicide note that denounces McCarthyism.
  • Tim accuses Hawk of this in episode 7, even if Hawk is going about it via substance abuse and recklessness rather than more direct methods.
• Drowning My Sorrows: After losing his son, Hawk goes to Fire Island where he uses cocaine, drinks heavily and has sex with a much younger boyfriend as a means of coping.
• Due to the Dead:
  • A military funeral is held for Senator Smith after he commits suicide. His mourners include his family and Hawk.
  • Three examples for Harvey Milk in episode 7. First, there are the White Night riots, an outpouring of grief and rage over the light sentence that Dan White received for the murders of Milk and George Moscone. Then, at midnight on May 22, 1979, after the White Night riots and the retaliatory attack on the Elephant Walk bar in the Castro by the SFPD, Frankie raises a toast "To Harvey" while standing on Castro Street with Marcus, Jerome, and others, all of whom echo the sentiment. Finally, Frankie, Jerome, and Tim participate in a candlelight vigil in Milk and Moscone's honor at the end of the episode.
  • In 1957, thousands of onlookers gather outside of St. Matthew's Cathedral to watch Senator Joseph McCarthy's coffin being carried to the hearse. Tim and Miss Addison are in the crowd while Roy Cohn and McCarthy's widow Jean walk behind the coffin.
  • In 1987, Hawk finds Roy Cohn's panel and Tim's panel in the AIDS Memorial Quilt. He also finally divulges to his daughter Kimberly that Tim was "the man I loved."
• Embarrassing Middle Name: Although Hawk is willing to reveal his middle name to Tim, he refuses to talk about it any further.
  Tim: "Hawkins Z. Fuller." I'd love to know what the "Z" stands for.
  Hawk: Zebadiah
  Tim: Zebadiah?
  Hawk: Don't start.
• Erotic Eating: In 1957, Tim stares seductively at Hawk while purposely drinking milk in such a way that it spills from his mouth and drips from his chin. Hawk is so aroused by the sight of this that he licks the milk from Tim's neck and chin, and then kisses him.
• Europeans Are Kinky:
  • Discussed in episode 2 when Lucy confirms after a trip to Europe that the men there are very forward with their amorous advances compared to American men in the 1950s.
    Hawk: The men in Europe are much bolder. So I hear.
    Lucy: You've heard correctly.
  • According to Hawk, Europeans are a lot less judgemental about homosexuality than Americans.
    Tim: Do you like it this way? Your life like this?
    Hawk: (sighs) I'll keep plugging away for another five years or so. Just until I get posted overseas [to Europe]. Fewer eyes on you over there. When they call me back, I'll quit. Buy a villa. Someplace on the water with a nice view. Where I can eat what I want and fuck who I want without anyone giving a damn.
• Fan Disservice: While most of the sex scenes in the show are intended to appeal to the audience, the threesome in episode 7 is uncomfortable to watch for many reasons. Tim and Craig clearly do not want to kiss each other, and only do so with Hawk's strong encouragement, because they are both besotted with him. Hawk's increasing desperation and emotional turmoil also become apparent in this scene as he begs Tim to "do this for me." The sex abruptly ends when Hawk notices that Craig went through his photo album and took out a picture of his late son Jackson. Tim has to intervene as Hawk throttles and berates Craig.
• Fanservice Extra:
  • The Title Sequence is a montage of archival photos from the 1950s which feature real gay men from the era or shots of models aimed at them who are often good-looking, well-toned and bare-chested.
  • Many male background characters are gay men who get shown at least with their shirts off, or in some cases entirely nude from the front. They are mostly young, handsome and muscular.
• Female Gaze: Hawk and Tim share numerous explicit sex scenes that are titillating for viewers who find Guy on Guy Is Hot. In addition to the camera's focus on the couple's shirtless/nude forms, there's armpit-licking, thrusting during anal sex (with a close-up of the "giving" partner's body), toe-sucking, and bare ass-grabbing, plus they slow dance while naked. These are rare sights with a gay couple in a Hollywood production, as the industry typically veers towards But Not Too Gay depictions.
• First Love:
  • Kenny was Hawk's 11th grade classmate and tennis partner, and he was the first person Hawk had developed romantic feelings for. Hawk keeps a Tragic Keepsake of his beloved in the form of a paperweight that Kenny gave to him while they were on their senior trip. When Hawk stops by his family's home, he goes to his old bedroom to take out a tennis trophy that he and Kenny had won, and he reminisces about their time together.
  • Hawk is Tim's first and only love.
    Tim: I have loved you my whole life. I've never loved anyone but you. You were my great, consuming love.
• Flirtatious Smack on the Ass: Tim playfully does this to Hawk as the latter runs into the Atlantic Ocean carrying the former over his shoulder.
• Forbidden Love: Homosexuality was a crime during The '50s and The '60s in America ^note the sole exception in this time period is the state of Illinois, which decriminalized same-sex sexual activity in 1961, so all same-sex couples were breaking the law simply by being together. Because of this, Hawk and Tim, Marcus and Frankie, and Mary and Caroline are closeted and must keep their relationship a secret.
• Foil:
  • Hawk and Marcus are this for one another. They are both conventionally handsome and normatively masculine closeted gay men in The '50s; both are also World War II combat veterans. They were also Friends with Benefits at some point in the past; one of the reasons this arrangement didn't last is that they are too similar to be compatible in bed. There are, however, a few key differences between them as well. As a Black man in the mid-to-late twentieth century, Marcus experiences professional barriers and discrimination that Hawk, as a straight-passing white man, has never had to contend with. Additionally, Hawk chooses to marry a woman and stay in the closet, relegating his relationship with Tim to an extramarital affair. By contrast, Marcus eventually starts living his life as an openly gay man, and in 1986 is cohabitating with his gender-nonconforming lover Frankie and their surrogate son Jerome.
    Hawk: You're prettier when you smile.
    Marcus: Fuck you.
    Hawk: Guess we could go another round, we'd have the same argument.
    Both: I don't bottom.
  • Hawk and Mary also serve as foils for each other. Both betray their lovers to the M unit in order to protect their own careers; both experience shame and regret about this decision. However, Mary ultimately accomplishes her professional goals and becomes a congresswoman; Hawk fails to achieve his professional goals, and never actually goes to Italy for his foreign posting.
• Forced Out of the Closet: This is the threat hanging over every LGBT+ person in the early 1950s as the Lavender Scare to get them all fired from the US government has begun. It means not only a loss of employment but social ruin in the homophobic era. One man, after being outed, attempts suicide. Some even out others they know to save themselves, either as scapegoats or making deals with the government investigators so they can resign quietly in return.
• Freeze-Frame Bonus:
  • In the fourth episode, eagled-eyed viewers will notice that Hawk wears the tie that Tim gave to him as a Christmas present during his lie detector test and the Christmas party he attends later.
  • The second time Mary and Tim meet for lunch in episode 8, her earrings are maple leaves (the national symbol of Canada), which is a subtle nod from the wardrobe department that the series was filmed in Canada (Toronto, more precisely).
• Gayborhood:
  • The 1979 Flashbacks focus heavily on the Castro district in San Francisco following the high-profile murders of Mayor George Moscone and Supervisor Harvey Milk (who had represented the area for the city council). Milk was openly gay, and then as now the Castro is inhabited mostly by LGBT+ people. Marcus, Frankie and Tim are living there.
  • Fire Island is also shown, a well-known gay vacation spot, where Hawk's been staying after losing his son, and Tim visits him there.
• Gay Conservative: Tim is a gay Republican who supports McCarthy and works for him initially, while McCarthy's support of purging LGBT+ employees from federal jobs threatens him as well. As a result, Tim gradually grows out of his former political beliefs.
• Gay Cruising: Hawk is shown hooking up with a man he doesn't know while in a public restroom during the 1950s, and also says the Nomad tavern serves this purpose. In 1986, he also goes to a gay leather bar for the same reason, though his cruising gets aborted as the man he hits on wants Hawk to be the bottom. Hawk is also a top, so he stops things.
• Gaydar: The agents at the M Unit make employees accused of being gay do things like simply walk across the room, since apparently it's believed gays will walk differently, in a way that gives them away. Hawk, who's gay but quite masculine, easily passes and scoffs at the test, stating even his mother could pass.
• Gay Euphemism: When Miss Addison sees Tim for the first time, she assumes he's gay and says to Mary, "Hmm, he seems very artistic."
• Gayngst: Tim, who's Catholic, is pretty torn about being gay and acting on his sexuality. He wavers between abandoning Catholicism as it feels right to be with his male lover, then later confessing what he did while claiming he's truly become repentant. His guilt and shame over his love (and lust) for Hawk worsens after he enters seminary.
• Gayngst-Induced Suicide: Gay people who are Forced Out of the Closet by the Lavender Scare purges frequently kill themselves in the early 1950s. At the time, being outed generally meant social ruin. This is shown at the start of "Your Nuts Roasting on an Open Fire", in which it's mentioned that there's an average of one suicide per week.
• Good Adultery, Bad Adultery:
  • Deconstructed in Hawk and Lucy's marriage. While Hawk's status as a closeted gay man and relationship with Tim are both portrayed sympathetically, his lies are clearly taking a toll on his family. It is also probably worth noting that he cheats on Lucy with many, many men (not just Tim) over the course of their marriage. Similarly, Lucy's kiss (and possible affair) with their married neighbor is very understandable given the circumstances, but it's presented as a sign of her sadness and dissatisfaction with the way her life has turned out, and does not seem to bring her much true happiness or fulfillment.
  • Republican fundraiser Dave Holm is a quintessential Bad Adulterer. In addition to being a serial philanderer who is apparently in the habit of cheating on his wife with women young enough to be his daughters, he is also a Hypocrite and a homophobe who believes that sexually active gay men deserve to contract HIV and die of AIDS.
• Good-Looking Privates:
  • While it's not explicitly stated, it's evident that Hawk finds Corporal Laughlin very alluring in his military uniform because he subtly suggests that Tim can thank him with sex after Hawk recommends Tim for a job at the Refugee Relief Office. Tim insists "That's not what I meant" and later walks away, but the audience gets the sense that Hawk intends to seduce him regardless.
  • During the actual seduction later in the episode, Hawk is extremely turned on by the maturity Tim has gained while serving in the army.
    Hawk: (husky tone) The Army made a man out of my Skippy.
    Tim: Yeah, it did.
    Hawk: (kisses Tim on his mouth, neck and shoulder) He's all grown up now.
    Tim: I am.
    Hawk: (holds Tim's face and whispers in his ear) I want you to fuck me.
• Gratuitous French: In episode 4, when Lucy advises her brother to slow down his drinking, Leonard responds, "Au contraire ^note "On the contrary", dear sister. I'm just getting started."
• Green-Eyed Monster:
  • Even though Hawk himself has never been monogamous, he is very displeased to hear that Tim kissed another man at the Nomad bar.
  • They would both deny it, but Tim and Craig are clearly both jealous of one another's relationship with Hawk. They even come to blows at one point.
• The Grunting Orgasm:
  • During Christmastime, Hawk performs fellatio on Tim, and the latter grunts when he orgasms.
  • In 1957, Tim is the "giving" partner when he and Hawk are engaged in anal sex, and the former muffles his orgasm by biting and sucking on the latter's shoulder while groaning in pleasure.
• Has a Type:
  • Hawk falls in love with men who are sweet, which is how he describes both his First Love Kenny and his Second Love Tim.
  • Tim's type seems to be "older men in positions of authority." He lost his virginity to a Catholic priest who was also one of his professors at Fordham University. In his early twenties, Tim falls in love with Hawk, who is in his early-to-mid thirties, works for the State Department, and has enough clout to get Tim a job in Joseph McCarthy's office. (Tim also did not seem entirely disinterested in the older man who kissed him in the Nomad bar bathroom at Rehoboth Beach.)
  • Averted in episode 3 when Frankie notes that he is not Marcus's usual type. ("I'm not exactly like the studs you used to leave the bar with.")
• Hates Their Parent:
  • Hawk loathes his homophobic father, who is not only disgusted that his son is gay, but even demands an apology for being this way. Not surprisingly, they're estranged.
  • Jackson divulges to Tim that he hates his father Hawk.
• Heartbeat Soundtrack: When Hawk measures his heart rate thrice in episode 4, the sound of his heartbeats becomes louder than the Background Music.
• The Hedonist: On Fire Island, Hawk revels in booze, drugs, parties and sex.
• Historical Domain Character: Senator Joseph McCarthy, Roy Cohn and David Schine are supporting characters who appear in the 1950s sequences. Robert F. Kennedy, Stormé DeLarverie, Joe Alsop and Cleve Jones are minor characters. (Episode 7 also includes archival footage of Harvey Milk, Anita Bryant, and Dianne Feinstein.)
• Holding Hands: In 1986, Tim reaches for Hawk's hand and holds it when they're standing outside of the venue of the fundraising gala. This is the first (and last) time they join hands in a romantic manner in public.
• Hollywood Atheist: Hawk seems to be an atheist based on his comment that he doesn't vote because he believes it's pointless, and then adds, "And I feel pretty much the same way about God." When Tim discloses that he stopped attending mass at church, Hawk replies, "Well, that's progress." He later asserts that "Hell's a fantasy, Skippy. So is heaven, the Trinity, democracy, and the holy war against communism. Grand ideas that just get people killed."
• Hypocrite:
  • Hawk has never been monogamous with anyone, including Tim. However, he is deeply jealous when he finds out that Tim kissed another man at the Nomad bar. This is followed by violent foreplay and rough sex during which Hawk repeatedly asks "Who do you belong to?" (and makes Tim affirm that "I belong to Hawkins Fuller!").
  • Tim is judgmental of Hawk for being a bad husband. Tim is also Hawk's longest and most important extramarital affair.
• Ignored Epiphany: After a two-month-long bender on Fire Island, culminating in an aborted threesome with Tim and Craig, Hawk finally acknowledges his grief about his son Jackson's death and breaks down sobbing in Tim's arms. Later, Hawk tells Tim about Jackson's addiction, blaming himself for his son's struggles and eventual death. Tim assures Hawk that while Hawk did lie to his family about his sexual orientation, his love for his son was real. The next morning, as he prepares to leave, Tim tells Rafael that he thinks Hawk will "do better, or try at least" after what he and Hawk shared the previous night. He then walks downstairs to find Hawk snorting cocaine off the breakfast table.
• I Kiss Your Foot: In episode 1, Tim wants Hawk to take him to a Georgetown party full of "important people." Hawk asks how much Tim wants to go; in response (and with Hawk's encouragement), Tim kisses the sole of Hawk's foot and sucks his toes before performing oral sex on him. This pleases Hawk enough that he takes Tim to the party.
  Tim: I'm your boy, right? And your boy wants to go to the party.
  Hawk: How much does he want to go?
• The Immodest Orgasm:
  • During their first sexual encounter, Hawk gives Tim a handjob, and the latter moans so loudly that the former has to cover his lover's mouth with his hand so that the other residents of the apartment building won't hear Tim's orgasm. Hawk then notes, "That was nice, Skippy, but you need a radio." The next time Hawk comes over to Tim's place, he brings a radio; it's playing music while they're engaged in anal sex, which drowns out Tim's cries of pleasure.
  • The first time Tim visits Hawk's apartment, the former performs oral sex on the latter, and Hawk exclaims, "Oh! Oh yeah! Oh! Oh Jesus!" before the scene cuts.
  • Hawk is the "receiving" partner when he and Tim have anal sex in 1957, and he moans noisily, "Oh! Oh shit! Oh God!"
• In-Series Nickname:
  • Hawk often refers to Joseph McCarthy as "Tail Gunner Joe."
  • According to Cohn, Senator Smith is known as "Whining Wesley" and "Sanctimonious Smith" among his opponents.
• Interplay of Sex and Violence: In the third episode, a lover's spat between Hawk and Tim directly fuels the heated make-up sex which immediately follows. The mild BDSM aspects of their relationship are heightened slightly in this particular sexual encounter. Tim initiates foreplay by requesting that Hawk slap him twice, to which the latter complies. After commanding Tim to strip off his clothing, Hawk ties his boyfriend's hands and then shoves him down on to the bed. Hawk sodomizes Tim without any preparation, so the latter yelps in pain, but Tim remains an eager sub because he obeys his dom's order to repeatedly proclaim that he's Hawk's Property of Love with "I belong to Hawkins Fuller."
• It's All About Me: Tim and Lucy have observed that Hawk is selfish and self-absorbed.
  • In episode 1, Tim becomes upset when he realizes that Hawk cares only about himself.
    Tim: I don't know how you do it. Caring only about what you want. What gives you pleasure at any given moment.
  • In episode 6, Lucy is incensed when she discovers that her husband Hawk is harboring Tim, a fugitive, at his hunting cabin (a crime Hawk can be arrested and jailed for), and therefore prioritizing his ex-lover over his family.
    Lucy: Are you the only one who matters?
    Hawk: What?
    Lucy: Your children are here, I'm here. How dare you bring that man into our lives?
    Hawk: Look, it doesn't mean anything—
    Lucy: Don't insult my intelligence, he's on the run from the law.
    Hawk: He's not a criminal, he's an activist—
    Lucy: He's wanted by the police, and you helped him hide, Hawk! Do you know what you've risked?! All we've built together, your career, my life, our children's lives!
  • In episode 7, Tim is furious that his heart-to-heart conversation with Hawk ended up being meaningless because the latter continues to self-destruct through drugs and alcohol.
    Tim: If you want to die, go on, fucking die. Your wife and your daughter have already buried a son and a brother, and they're gonna have to bury you. But you don't care because you're so fucking selfish!
• Jerkass Realization: Hawk has one after his selfish and self-destructive behavior in episode 7 induces Tim to finally give up on him and cut ties for good.
• Karma Houdini: Lampshaded with regards to Hawk. Throughout the series, many people, including Hawk himself, refer to Hawk as "bulletproof." In the series finale, when he finds out that Hawk is HIV-negative, Marcus comments that Hawk is "still bulletproof" in a disbelieving tone. Marcus is stunned by that fact that it still seems like only people besides Hawk ever experience the negative consequences of Hawk's actions; Hawk does not appear to disagree with this assessment. The trope is ultimately subverted, however. By the end of the series, Hawk is divorced from Lucy, and never actually went to Italy for the foreign diplomatic posting he'd spent his entire career working toward. He has also outlived his First Love Kenny, his son Jackson, and Tim, who was the love of his life. He is clearly still heartbroken over all of these losses, and particularly over Tim, in 1987. It also seems like the one relationship he truly has left is with his daughter Kimberly, proving that Hawk was never as bulletproof as he believed himself to be.
• Karma Houdini Warranty: For several decades, Hawk experiences no negative consequences for his mistreatment of Tim and Lucy (plus Eddie, Leonard, and Craig). In fact, he lives extremely comfortably for thirty years largely thanks to Lucy's inheritance and sleeps with men (including Tim) on the side while Lucy looks the other way. But Hawk's actions finally catch up with him in 1986, when Lucy and Tim both end their relationships with him for good. By 1987, Hawk is divorced, mourning Tim's death, and has permanently given up on his dream of moving to Italy. It is strongly implied that apart from his relationship with his daughter, Hawk is completely alone in the world.
• Late Coming Out:
  • Tim is in his 40s when he decides to live as an openly gay man.
  • In his mid-to-late 60s, Hawk kisses Tim in public for the first and last time, right after letting a homophobic acquaintance know that he spent the previous night holding Tim in his hospital bed. In the Dénouement of the show, set in 1987, Hawk and his daughter Kimberly visit the AIDS Memorial Quilt together, and he tells her that Tim was "the man I loved."
• Like a Son to Me:
  • Leonard is jealous of Hawk because Leonard's father Senator Smith treats Hawk more like a son than his own flesh-and-blood. Smith acknowledges that this is true.
    Smith: This will be good for you, son.
    Leonard: Son? (scoffs) I stopped being your son the day [Hawk] showed up. The sad orphan, the tennis star. A goddamn war hero for Christ's sake. The son you thought you deserved. Your son. I never had a chance.
    Smith: He's right, Hawk. You took his place. And I let you do it.
  • Some time after Jerome's estrangement from his parents, he moves into Marcus and Frankie's spare room. The three of them become one another's Family of Choice.
• Likes Older Men:
  • Tim is attracted to older men. When he was a college student at Fordham University, he slept with a Catholic priest who was on the faculty. A few years later, he fell in love with Hawk, who is roughly ten years his senior.
  • At a San Francisco gay bar in 1986, a young man in his 20s hits on Hawk (who's in his late 60s and is attractive for his age) with "Hey Dad, lookin' good," and lets him know that he's available for sex after he's done with his current date. Hawk declines his offer because the guy doesn't take the AIDS epidemic seriously, and thus it's too risky to bed someone who likely doesn't practice safe sex.
• Lingerie Scene: After Frankie performs "Santa Baby" in drag at the Cozy Corner in episode 4, he and Marcus are alone in the former's apartment. Frankie strips down to his 1950s lingerie as they talk, leading to a tender and heated moment between them. Later, Frankie keeps the lingerie on as he and Marcus make love.
• Lipstick Lesbian: The lesbians are mostly feminine as was expected for women in the 1950s, with long hair, wearing dresses and maintaining demure manners. Mary is the prime example in the series.
• The Loins Sleep Tonight: While living on Fire Island, Hawk sometimes has trouble getting it up because of the copious amount of alcohol and drugs in his system; his lover Craig comments on this twice.
• Love at First Sight: Early in the series premiere, Hawk is captivated by Tim, a Pretty Boy, when he first notices the young man on election night. Episode 2 confirms that Hawk was struck by Cupid's arrow.
  Hawk: I fell for you the first moment I laid eyes on you. Right away, I was taken by your beauty.
• Love Confessor: Hawk never says "I love you" to Tim in person, but he admits to Marcus in episode 4 that when the interrogator asked him if he has ever loved a man, he pictured Tim. In 1987, Kimberly refers to Tim as Hawk's friend, but he corrects her: "He wasn't my friend. He was the man I loved."
• Lover and Beloved: Hawk teaches his younger lover Tim about the political intrigue that occurs around Capitol Hill, and he also introduces Tim to gay bars as part of the latter's "education," as Hawk calls it. He even sounds paternal in episode 5 when he utters to Tim "I didn't raise my boy to be a soldier."
• Love Triangle:
  • Hawk is married to Lucy, but his true love is Tim. Because Tim and Lucy are in love with Hawk, they're naturally jealous of each other. Tim views Lucy as being more fortunate than him because he and Hawk were together only a handful of times since the latter's marriage. However, Lucy doesn't regard herself as the "winner" in this "competition" over Hawk because she's aware that her husband doesn't desire her like he desires Tim.
    Lucy: You mean something to my husband. I suppose I had to see you so I would know.
    Tim: Know?
    Lucy: How much you mean to him.
    Tim: My time with Hawk was rushed, with years in between. You had him most of his life.
    Lucy: But you were always there. I could never get away from you.
    Tim: It's not a contest.
    Lucy: Of course it is. It always has been.
  • Another triangle occurs between Hawk, Craig and Tim on Fire Island. Hawk is involved in a casual relationship with Craig while simultaneously trying to reignite things with Tim. Craig (and to some extent Hawk) initially view Tim in 1979 as a judgmental wet blanket. Things get more nebulous when Tim does drugs, goes dancing, and participates in an attempted threesome with Hawk and Craig. Ultimately, both love triangles end with all involved parties breaking it off with Hawk.
• Male Frontal Nudity:
  • Eddie's penis is visible while he's facing his bathroom mirror after having sex with Hawk.
  • There are multiple, prolonged shots of Hawk's lover Craig fully nude in the 1979 segment, including one where his genitals are in full, head-on view.
  • Also in 1979, an unnamed gay background character is briefly shown naked from the front in the woods on Fire Island.
• Man Hug:
  • At the hunting cabin, Hawk comforts Tim with a hug when the latter is distressed over the fact that he could spend a dozen years in jail for destroying federal property (specifically breaking into government offices to burn draft cards for The Vietnam War) among other felony charges. Their embrace becomes more sensual when Hawk whispers "I've missed you, Skippy" and then kisses Tim's neck — likely his intention is to initiate foreplay — but Tim tells him to stop and pulls away.
  • Two days before Frankie moves to San Francisco, Marcus requests a kiss goodbye, but Frankie turns him down and gives him a goodbye hug instead.
• Manly Tears:
  • In 1957, Tim sheds tears when he learns from Mary that it was Hawk who reported him as being a homosexual to the M Unit, which means Tim is prohibited from government work for the rest of his life.
  • In 1979, a broken-hearted Hawk weeps about his dead son while Tim holds him.
  • In 1986, Hawk becomes teary-eyed after he kisses Tim in public for the first and last time.
  • In 1987, Hawk cries when he sees Tim's panel on the AIDS Memorial Quilt.
• Masculine–Feminine Gay Couple:
  • Straight Gay man Marcus and Drag Queen Frankie date in the early 1950s.
  • Jokingly invoked by Tim when he and Hawk are at a fancy fundraising gala while attired in tuxedos. Although they're both Straight Gays, Tim is a Pretty Boy while Hawk is Tall, Dark, and Handsome, so Tim recognizes that some people who see them together might assume that he's the "feminine" partner.
    Tim: It feels like we're on a date.
    Hawk: I should warn you, I may make a pass.
    Tim: A girl can hope, can't she?
• Miniseries: It's a series limited to eight episodes.
• Mission from God: Many people firmly believe that the anti-communist crusade is one, which includes Tim at first, and thus back McCarthy no matter what tactics he uses.
• Mistaken for Gay: Inverted in episode 2 when Tim mistakenly thinks Mary is straight and worries that she might be developing romantic feelings for him. She's actually a closeted lesbian with a girlfriend.
• The Mistress: Played with in Hawk and Tim's relationship. Immediately after Hawk tells Tim that he plans to ask Lucy Smith to marry him, Tim enlists in the army because he is determined not to become the male equivalent of a mistress for Hawk. However, in spite of his attempts to cut ties with Hawk and move on with his life, Tim remains in love with Hawk, and falls into bed with him every time they see each other in the ensuing decades. On more than one occasion, Tim laments his own inability to say no to Hawk.
  • More than once, Hawk explicitly suggests a "mistress" type of arrangement to Tim. In episode 6, he asks Tim to stay at his hunting cabin over the winter, with Hawk visiting "when I can." In episode 7, he offers to sign his house on Fire Island over to Tim, and proposes they could meet there a few times a year and "make up for lost time." Episode 8 reveals that for a few weeks (or possibly a few months) in 1957, Hawk and Tim did have this sort of arrangement, complete with a furnished house in D.C. where they would meet for sex whenever it's convenient.
• Momma's Boy: Hawk keeps in touch with his mother, but is estranged from his homophobic father. On his deathbed, Hawk's dad tells him it was a mistake that he allowed his wife to "make you a mama's boy."
• Mood Whiplash: A threesome between Hawk, Tim, and Hawk's lover Craig in 1979 quickly turns to Hawk suffocating Craig, and then Hawk having a sobbing breakdown over his dead son after he's restrained by Tim.
• Mr. Fanservice: Hawk and Tim are portrayed by handsome actors with muscular physiques, and their naked bodies leave very little to the imagination during the couple's sex scenes which are subjected to the Female Gaze.
• No Celebrities Were Harmed: Senator Wesley Smith (D-Pennsylvania) was obviously inspired by Lester Hunt (D-Wyoming). Both are opponents of Joseph McCarthy, although Hunt wasn't on the same committee. Like Hunt, Smith shoots himself in his office after he gets blackmailed into giving up his seat over his son's "morals" arrest, although the exact details differ a bit.
• No Full Name Given: Miss Addison's given name is never mentioned.
• Non-Standard Kiss: Towards the end of their Christmastime rendezvous, Hawk briefly performs an Eskimo kiss◊ (i.e. rubbing their noses together) on Tim.
• Nuclear Family: The Fuller family consists of a father (Hawk, a war hero), a mother (Lucy, a housewife), a son (Jackson), and a daughter (Kimberly). They live in a beautiful house in a suburb outside of Washington, D.C., and they also have a lovely cottage in the Pennsylvanian countryside ^note the police cruiser that picks up Tim has "State Police Pennsylvania" on the door. Although they appear to be the stereotype of a picture perfect white American family in the 1960s, they're actually dysfunctional beneath the surface. Hawk and Lucy's marriage is fundamentally an unhappy one because it's based on a lie — he's a gay man pretending to be straight, and she only discovered this after they tied the knot. As a result, they cheat on each other to meet their own "needs"; Hawk occasionally does Gay Cruising, while Lucy has an affair with their mutual friend (a married man) because Hawk doesn't make love to her as often as she'd like. Jackson frequently argues with his sister and his parents (especially his father), and he copes by smoking cigarettes and taking drugs like LSD — he's 11 years old, so the damage to his health will be far greater on a child than an adult.
• Official Couple: The primary romantic relationship is between Hawk and Tim.
• Only-Child Syndrome: It's implied the reason why Hawk is incredibly self-centered is because he's an only child.
  Mrs. Fuller: And I'm tired of my siblings. Always the same complaints. Aren't you grateful I didn't burden you with any?
  Hawk: Eternally.
• Outcast Refuge: Fire Island Pines is a haven for gay men, a tourist destination where they're free to be themselves in public without the scrutiny of a homophobic society. Rafael calls it a "gay paradise."
• Outliving One's Offspring: Hawk and Lucy outlive their son Jackson, who died in his early 20s of a heroin overdose in October 1978^note according to the card Tim sent Hawk to offer his condolences.
• Out of the Closet, Into the Fire: Jerome, a gay teen in San Francisco during the 1979 segment, came out to his family. As a result, he was beaten by his father and had to leave home, resulting in him being homeless.
• Over-the-Shoulder Carry: At a Fire Island beach, Hawk lifts Tim over his shoulder and then carries him until they fall into the water.
• Parental Hypocrisy: Hawk lies all the time, yet he rebukes his son Jackson for being dishonest. Jackson is aware that his father keeps secrets from the family.
  Hawk: I don't like being lied to.
  Jackson: That's funny.
• Parental Substitute: Because Hawk is estranged from his father, Senator Smith is a father figure to him.
• Period Piece: The series spans The '50s, The '60s, The '70s and The '80s.
• Pink Means Feminine: While pregnant, Lucy (a traditional 1950s housewife) wears a pink maternity dress where the top half has a floral print of pink roses, and she also accessorizes with pink earrings.
• Police Brutality:
  • When the D.C. Police raid gay clubs or hookup spots, they beat people with their batons for no reason, obviously just due to homophobia.
  • During the White Night riots in San Francisco in 1979, the police remove their badges so they can't be identified when savagely beating both the protestors and bar patrons who weren't involved in the riot.
• Pretty Boy: Tim has large, expressive doe eyes with long, thick eyelashes that enhance his boyishness and naiveté. Hawk thinks he's cute because he describes Tim as "That adorable Catholic boy from Staten Island." Through a Double Meaning dictation, Hawk indirectly admits to him that he felt Love at First Sight when they first met: "I fell for you the first moment I laid eyes on you. Right away, I was taken by your beauty."
• Property of Love: Tim spends much of his early relationship with Hawk as an eager supplicant to the latter. He willingly sucks Hawk's toes, requests that Hawk slap him as foreplay, and responds very enthusiastically to Hawk's desire to hurt and humiliate him in bed, declaring "I am [your boy]!" and "I belong to Hawkins Fuller!" Over a year into their relationship, Hawk performs oral sex on Tim for what is implied to be the first time, even though Tim has performed oral sex on Hawk many times by that point. Tim is also delighted by a gift of cufflinks with Hawk's initials on them, which are a symbolic "branding" of Tim as Hawk's property. More than once, Tim explicitly compares his feelings about Hawk to his feelings about God. In 1986, after a great deal of maturation and character development, Tim still makes this comparison.
  • As a direct point of comparison, Tim actually seems very pleased when Hawk seethes with barely-contained jealousy when Tim discloses that he kissed another man during their trip to Rehoboth Beach in 1953; decades later on Fire Island, Tim is very displeased when Hawk seems unbothered by his (incorrect) belief that Tim went home with someone else.
• Really Gets Around: Hawk has been cheating on Lucy since the beginning of their courtship and throughout their marriage. By his own admission, Hawk sleeps with with three or four men per year. If we take his word for it, then over the course of his marriage, he has had at least 96 one-night stands, in addition to two somewhat longer affairs (Andrew the contractor, and Craig on Fire Island). And that's even before we get to his long-term connection with Tim, which predates his marriage and has continued over the decades. (This relatively conservative estimate totals to 99 extramarital sexual partners over the course of his marriage.) Hawk did Gay Cruising more often before his wedding (he explains to Tim in episode 6 that his way of honoring his vow to Lucy is "By lowering my zipper only occasionally"), so the number of men that he has hooked up with since he became sexually active in the 11th grade is well over 100 (and 200 is plausible).
• "The Reason You Suck" Speech: Tim tells Hawk off for how irresponsibly he's acting in 1979, drinking so much he endangers his life after losing his son. He reminds Hawk that his wife and daughter can't lose him, too.
• Red Scare: The series is set in the early 1950s during the Flashback sequences, with the second Red Scare ongoing, while Joseph McCarthy is a supporting character.
• Rightly Self-Righteous: On Fire Island, Hawk accuses Tim of being sanctimonious.
  Hawk: Do you want to know what I see in Craig? He doesn't judge me.
  Tim: I don't.
  Hawk: You are nothing but judgment. You always were. Saint Tim, the fucking holy.
  Tim: Where are you going now, The Meat Rack?
  Hawk: We locals call it The Rack. Yeah, I might end up there. I'm sure you don't want to come, considering what a fucking self-righteous bore you've turned into.
• Romantic Candlelit Dinner: On Fire Island, Hawk cooks dinner for Tim and they eat their meal in front of the fireplace while sitting next to the coffee table which is lit by two candles. Hawk is attempting to rekindle their romance, although Tim rejects his ex-lover's advances because he has just started a relationship with a man named Arthur and doesn't want to cheat on his new boyfriend.
• Scars Are Forever:
  • There's a large scar on Hawk's back that he got while fighting the Nazis during World War II. Tim inquires about it in episode 3.
    Tim: (caresses the scar) How'd you get this?
    Hawk: Italy. I led a squad of four men in the push to liberate Velletri. We got pinned down by a Krupp K5. It's a heavy railway gun with a 70-foot-long barrel. The Krauts had two of 'em pointed at us. When they fired the K5, you could count the seconds after the boom to know when it was gonna hit. We all took a piece of it. By the time they got to us, two of my men were dead.
    Tim: Was it bad? The wound.
    Hawk: I needed a couple of surgeries.
  • A deep groove runs along Cohn's nose which was caused by a (presumably) botched cosmetic surgery when he was only a toddler.
    Cohn: (talking to himself) Thanks for this, Ma. I was a year old and I wasn't pretty enough. You had to fix my nose? You fixed it all right.
• Screw This, I'm Outta Here: In episode 7, two of Hawk's lovers do this in the space of twelve hours.
  • After Hawk castigates and chokes Craig, the latter flees the bedroom completely naked, saying "Fucking asshole! Fuck this."
  • The next morning, Tim believes he got through to Hawk, only to find the latter downstairs doing cocaine. Tim leaves after giving Hawk a blistering "The Reason You Suck" Speech, declaring that he has wasted his life on him.
• Second Love: Tim is the second person Hawk has fallen in love with.
• Secret Relationship: Institutionalized homophobia in the USA during The '50s and The '60s forces same-sex couples to conceal their romance from the public, which includes Hawk and Tim, Marcus and Frankie, and Mary and Caroline. The consequences are dire if they're outed; they could face a prison term, immediate termination of their employment, and social ruin.
• Seme: Tall, Dark, and Handsome Hawk is a traditionally masculine war hero who almost always tops while having sex with men. There are only two exceptions throughout his adulthood: he gives his Pretty Boy lover Tim fellatio in episode 4 (Tim's surprised because he knows Hawk's preference), and he bottoms for Tim during anal sex in episode 8. Hawk's father had once caught him "on your knees for that boy Kenny" when Hawk was in the 11th grade, but since he was a teenager exploring his sexuality, it's likely he hadn't developed a preference yet.
• Sexual Euphemism: Hawk alludes to his promiscuity when he informs Mary, "I have trouble finishing a book before I want to start another."
• Shipper on Deck: Senator Smith hopes that his daughter Lucy will marry Hawk one day.
  Lucy: You know [my dad] has plans for us.
  Hawk: He only drops a hint about it several times a week.
• Shout-Out:
  • When Hawk sees Schine for the first time, he asks Marcus, "Who's the Randolph Scott-type sitting next to Cohn?"
  • The novel Tim gives to Hawk as a thank you gift is Look Homeward, Angel by Thomas Wolfe.
  • Marcus is a fan of Langston Hughes.
  • Marcus boasts to Frankie, "Don't you know I'm supposed to be the Jackie Robinson of journalism?"
  • Freddie Mercury's "The Great Pretender" plays during the end credits of episode 3.
  • Hawk quips to Tim, "Are you cheating on the Bible with Gandhi?"
  • Mary discusses The Catcher in the Rye with Tim.
    Mary: Have you read The Catcher in the Rye?
    Tim: (shakes his head no) Mm-mm.
    Mary: There's a line in it. Something like, "If a kid wants to grab for the gold ring, you have to let him do it. If they fall, they fall."
    Tim: What's the gold ring?
    Mary: I don't know if Salinger would agree, but I think it's love.
  • Tim and Hawk name-drop a few musicians when the former glances through the latter's record collection.
    Tim: (holds an album) Charles Mingus.
    Hawk: Yeah, Lucy hates jazz. It's Brahms or Cole Porter at our house. Although I suspect, when I'm not home, she puts on that Elvis character.
  • While Hawk and Tim slow dance in the buff, "I Look at You" by Johnny Mathis provides the romantic ambience on Hawk's record player.
• Shower of Angst: Tim, a Catholic in seminary, takes a shower at Hawk's hunting cabin while agonizing over his love for Hawk, and he goes from standing to sitting in the stall because he feels burdened by the emotional weight.
  Tim: (talking to himself) Father, why do I always fail? Why do I always give in? Why is my love for You never enough? Father, why is it never enough? It's never enough.
• The Show of the Books: It's based on the book of the same name.
• Sitting Sexy on a Piano: Frankie sits on the piano at the Cozy Corner while performing "Santa Baby" in a strapless, Christmas-themed gown.
• The Smurfette Principle: Lucy is the sole major female character in the story, and her actress Allison Williams is the lone woman in the main cast.
• Starbucks Skin Scale: In the seventh episode, Frankie states the obvious to his boyfriend Marcus (who are both African Americans): "You are a big, chocolate gay man."
• Starts with a Suicide: "Your Nuts Roasting on an Open Fire" starts as a gay employee reels out of the State Department's M Unit (which investigated gays since they were viewed as security risks) then walks right into traffic to kill himself, as being outed in the early 1950s was generally a social death sentence.
• Stepford Smiler: Lucy as well as her mother Helen. After Lucy's marriage to Hawk, they both figure out that he cheats on her with men in pretty short order. It is strongly implied that Lucy's father was a cheater as well. Ultimately subverted with Lucy in the series finale when she decides she's had enough and tells Hawk that she is leaving him.
• Straight Gay: The gays are mostly indistinguishable from straight men in how they act. It would be foolish to do anything else, given being outed could result in being fired at best. Some of them, however, will act more camp or are even drag queens in private.
• Suddenly Shouting: Hawk is normally self-controlled, so he rarely has an outburst, but when he sees his son Jackson eating dinner with his bare hand instead of utensils, Hawk snaps at this display of bad manners and yells "ENOUGH!" while slamming the table, which startles his family.
• Surprisingly Realistic Outcome: Tim and Lucy have both loved Hawk very deeply and shared a great deal with him. But after more than three decades of being disappointed by him, they both ultimately decide to end their relationships with him for good in 1986.
• Survivor Guilt: It is implied that Hawk and Marcus both feel this about the fact that they are HIV-negative in 1986. Marcus's guilt is exacerbated by the fact that his surrogate son Jerome is HIV-positive; Hawk's guilt is exacerbated by the fact that the love of his life, Tim, is dying of AIDS.
• Suspiciously Apropos Music: At the benefit gala in "Make It Easy", the house band sings a cover of "I Can Dream About You " by Dan Hartman. The title line of the song ("I can dream about you if I can't hold you tonight") features prominently in the sound mix while Tim and Hawk look adoringly at each other, hinting that the previous night when Hawk slept in Tim's hospital bed would be the last time they share the same bed together, since Tim ends their relationship later that night.
• Suspiciously Specific Denial: Hawk's insistence during his HIV screening that he is the active participant in sex "always" hints that there may have been an exception. This switch in his and Tim's dynamic is ultimately seen in the pair's final sex scene, in episode 8.
• Tall, Dark, and Handsome: The dark-haired Hawk is blessed with the classic '50s matinée idol good looks, and it's no wonder that Tim finds him irresistible. If Hawk wasn't working for the State Department, he'd fit right in among the Hollywood stars of the era. According to Senator Smith, Hawk is regarded as one of the most eligible bachelors in Washington, D.C..
• Tattooed Crook: Tim is a convicted felon who has a tattoo of a cross with barbed wire on his right arm that he got while in prison.
• They're Called "Personal Issues" for a Reason: Hawk doesn't speak about his family to his friends on Fire Island, and he's especially secretive about the passing of his son Jackson.
  Tim: Does he ever talk about Jackson?
  Craig: Who?
  Tim: His son.
  Craig: Hawk doesn't talk about his family. I think he keeps some photos somewhere.
  Tim: Jackson died about six months ago. Heroin overdose. You didn't know?
  Craig: Of course I knew.
• Three-Way Sex: Subverted. Hawk tries to draw Tim into a threesome with him and Craig, Hawk's boyfriend. Tim goes along reluctantly at first, but Hawk stops before Tim can fully join in.
• Title Drop:
  • The show's title is spoken near the beginning of the series premiere.
    McCarthy: We have a new president! One who doesn't want party-line thinkers or fellow travelers.
  • In "Bulletproof":
    Hawk: I have a Bronze Star. In case you hadn't noticed, I'm bulletproof.
  • In "Hit Me":
    Tim: You want me to be rough trade? Hit me.
  • In "Promise You Won't Write":
    Tim: Hawk, promise you won't write.
  • In "Beyond Measure":
    Tim: It's like we say in seminary, beyond measure.
  • In "Make it Easy":
    Tim: Go home, Hawk. Please. Make it easy for me.
• Title-Only Opening: Unlike the other episodes, the pilot lacks a Title Sequence; there's only a black screen with "Fellow Travelers" in white font.
• Title, Please!: The episodes don't include their titles.
• Tragic AIDS Story: In 1986, Tim is dying from AIDS when Hawk wants to reconnect before it's too late. As it's the time of the AIDS crisis, this is a threat all gay men are facing, and it hangs over the 1980s sequences and is explicitly discussed multiple times.
• Tragic Keepsake:
  • Hawk keeps a paperweight that was a gift from his First Love Kenny that the latter bought during their senior trip. Kenny died during World War II.
  • The same paperweight also becomes a tragic keepsake representing Hawk and his Second Love Tim's relationship. In 1957, as Tim sleeps in the love nest Hawk furnished for them, Hawk leaves the paperweight next to Tim and whispers "I'm sorry" before reporting Tim to the M Unit for being gay and getting him permanently banned from working for the federal government. Tim keeps the paperweight until 29 years later, when he is "organizing his life" and sends it back to Hawk. The penultimate scene of the show ends with Hawk contemplating the paperweight that is now a memento of both of his lost loves.
• Transparent Closet:
  • Hawk's father is well aware that he's gay and is ashamed of it, wanting an apology from him over this when he's dying. He remarks that Hawk wasn't good at concealing his sexual orientation because he had to endure rumors about his homosexual son.
  • Miss Addison suspects that Hawk and Tim are a couple after she reads the dedication the latter wrote in a book he gave to the former ("Mr. Fuller, thank you for everything. You're wonderful."), and she reports Hawk as a possible homosexual to the M Unit in episode 4. At Senator Joseph McCarthy's funeral, she spots Tim in the crowd, approaches him, and exclaims "Cocksucker!" to his face.
  • Hawk's wife Lucy, unbeknownst to him at first, learned he was gay in the mid-1950s when she once accidentally intercepted a letter his ex-boyfriend Tim sent him. This, along with their sex life being less than regular, tipped her off that she'd been The Beard to him.
  • Hawk's daughter Kimberly also realizes when she's a young adult that he's gay by discovering his relationship with Tim.
  • According to Kimberly, Hawk's son Jackson referred to Tim as Hawk's "special friend," suggesting that Jackson also figured out the nature of his dad's relationship with Tim at some point.
• Twofer Token Minority: Marcus, Frankie and Jerome are gay African Americans. The Butch Lesbian and drag king Stormé DeLarverie, a real historical figure from the era, is also a minor black character (Frankie's friends with her).
• Uke: Pretty Boy Tim, though still a Straight Gay, is a somewhat shyer, gentler man than his Tall, Dark, and Handsome lover Hawk, and nearly always bottoms when they have sex.
• Voiceover Letter: When Lucy reads Tim's letter to Hawk in episode 6, it's Tim's voice that's narrating his own message.
  "Dear Hawk, I went into the Army to get away from you. I thought time and distance would help. But it hasn't. Hawk, I still love you. But I'm hoping to find something else. Maybe a deeper faith someday. Tim."
• Vow of Celibacy: As Hawk points out in 1968, Tim's status as a seminarian does not require this. Tim tries to adhere to it anyway. (Later in the episode, Hawk and Tim lie down in bed and masturbate together, but without touching one another, presumably because this does not technically break Tim's self-imposed vow of celibacy. Tim is still filled with shame and regret afterward.)
• What Happened to the Mouse?: Leonard Smith is not seen, heard from, or mentioned again after episode 5.
• Where Everybody Knows Your Flame:
  • Hawk introduces Tim to an underground LGBT+ night club called the Cozy Corner in Washington, D.C. at which drag acts are performed, with an alarm light that is set to go off in the event of police raids.
  • Hawk later takes Tim to the Nomad tavern at Rehoboth Beach, a notorious gay hangout.
  • There's a club on Fire Island where Hawk, his housemates, and Tim go dancing in 1979.
  • Hawk cruises at another gay bar, one catering to leathermen, much later in 1986.
• Wholesome Crossdresser: Frankie is a gay drag queen, while Real Life lesbian drag king Stormé DeLarverie is a minor character and friend of his. Both are nice, sympathetic people.
• Writers Cannot Do Math: Shortly before Christmas 1953, Hawk informs Fred Traband that he has worked at the State Department since 1948 and specifies "That's four years and ten months." However, the latter statement means that his employment began in February 1949, and not in 1948 like he claims.

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