Glamorous Trash: A Celebrity Memoir Podcast

Episode: "Heated Rivalry: A Hot, Hot TV Book Club Discourse"
Date: January 9, 2026
Host: Chelsea Devantez
Guests: Kenzie, Julia Washington, Rodrick “Rod” Flucas

Episode Overview

This episode of Glamorous Trash takes a deep dive into the buzziest TV romance of the season: Heated Rivalry, a Canadian hockey drama centered on two closeted rival players and their years-long situationship. Host Chelsea Devantez and her panel—Sapphic content correspondent Kenzie, romance bookseller Julia Washington, and TV executive Rod Flucas—unpack why the series has rapidly gained cult status and what its runaway success says about the evolving appetite for nuanced queer romance onscreen.

The conversation covers:

• What sets Heated Rivalry apart in both adaptation quality and cultural impact
• The emotional and philosophical heart of its romance
• The wider cultural "second fantasy" of seeing good, specific romance TV made for underserved audiences
• Challenging, thorny questions about gender, representation, and industry double standards

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Series Highlights

(11:26 – 24:00)

• Mastery of Slow-Burn Storytelling: The panel is united in awe at the show’s use of sexual and emotional tension:

  • Kenzie highlights the Vegas bathroom scene for encapsulating the intimacy, vulnerability, and messy, doomed love at the story’s core:

    “Hudson never lets a teardrop. But they're there the entire time. The stakes have never been higher... you also know that they are weak for each other. It's the most incredible, vulnerable thing... It's hot. It's also devastating." (12:12)

  • Rod spotlights Episode 5 and Ilya’s Russian monologue:

    “That is one of the best episodes of television that I have seen this year... Ilia has been the rock, the stone face. This is our first time really getting to see that Ilya is down bad for Shane." (13:44 – 14:40)

  • The music cues (Moonlight Sonata, “sunshine” monologues) add emotional resonance to already powerful scenes.

• Sex as Storytelling, Not Just Smut:

  • Julia appreciates the show’s “sex-before-love” trope, noting that it draws viewers into the characters’ growing vulnerability and is “the dream, because it is because a woman wrote a man.” (19:07 – 20:27)
  • Chelsea distinguishes genuine, story-integral sex from disposable “smut”:

    “I never seen shit like that. I didn't see that on Bridgerton... it’s about so much more. However, the sex was so hot... the consent is part of the horniness. God, I wish we could have more of this.” (22:12; 24:02)

Notable Quotes

• Kenzie (on the bathroom scene):

  “I've seen men yell, okay, totally fine, boring. Been there, done that. But then you watch that melt... it’s a masterclass in storytelling.” (13:27)

• Julia (on adaptation quality):

  “Probably the best romance adaptation we've ever seen. Jacob Tierney saw that there's a fan base, respected the fan base, brought in a new fan base... He honors the books.” (04:25)

2. Why Do We Love Their Love?

(28:49 – 37:17)

• Gender Dynamics & Safe Fantasy:
  • Chelsea and Kenzie discuss how seeing vulnerable masculinity, free from power imbalances typical of hetero or even other queer pairings, feels “freeing and inspiring” for viewers who've been shaped by the patriarchy.

    “Watching men whose emotional intelligence has been stunted by the patriarchy feel safe enough to be vulnerable makes women feel safe enough to be vulnerable.” — Kenzie’s DM (08:28)

• Emotional Ping-Pong & Yearning:
  • Rod finds the authenticity in the show’s depiction of closet relationships both satisfying and deeply genuine, especially for queer viewers who see their real experiences echoed:

    “They're having sex like pros, but like, they can't have conversations... to see this sort of slow burn... was so satisfying but also just felt so genuine.” (32:38)

  • Julia pinpoints the power of “micro-moments"—tiny, authentic gestures that form the real foundation of intimacy:

    “They're showing us this is how you grow into being safe, loved and wanted... it's a non verbal action that feels so comforting, so intimate and like, I see you, I understand you, I hear you." (28:49 – 30:26)

3. The Second Fantasy: Industry, Fandom, and the Power of Specificity

(38:35 – 46:28)

• Demand for Specific, High-Quality Storytelling:
  • Chelsea names the “second fantasy” the show fulfills—audiences’ hunger for nuanced, well-made TV that reflects their lives and desires:

    “People really want good, specific television shows. And we want romance and we want good art... We will all show up. We will make you the most popular show within seconds.” (39:28)

  • The runaway success of the show is not “luck,” but the inevitable result of giving neglected audiences exactly what they want—proved by the numbers and engagement.

    “Anyone looking at the data, anyone with a fucking brain... The fact that Crave was willing to put in $2 and 36 days to make this show and everyone showed up with their craft—actors, writers, everyone—everyone showed up to make something excellent.” (39:28 – 40:48)

• Casting Unknowns & Trusting the Audience:
  • Rod calls out Hollywood’s obsession with “names,” arguing for the power of casting talented unknowns and letting singular artistic voices shine:

    “This show is an embarrassment to the Hollywood studio system... Find talented people, get a great story, and lean in.” (43:28 – 44:08)

  • Art, they stress, is made by “singular minds with singular vision,” not by corporate committees.

    “Art is not made by a board of directors. It’s not made by money at the top.” — Kenzie (45:11)

4. Thorny Questions: Gender, Genre, and Industry Double Standards

(47:14 – 61:19)

• Why No Lesbian or Hetero Equivalent?

  • All agree: it's not for lack of trying, but because stories about women are met with industry skepticism and suffer from cultural baggage about objectification and the impact of patriarchy.

    “There is fully this mistrust and disinterest in what women are interested in. And that goes for straight women as well as queer women.” — Kenzie (47:26)

• Market Realities:

  • Julia (as bookseller): Sapphic romance is harder to sell—audiences show a clear appetite for “boy/boy” pairings over queer women, for complex, possibly internalized reasons.

    “Sapphic just doesn't fly off the shelf at our bookstore... There’s more guy on guy than there is Sapphic.” (49:33 – 50:30)

• Taboo, Objectification, and What Women Want:

  • Rod notes that seeing men objectified and seeing a taboo (gay male sex) honestly depicted is key:

    “Man on man is so much more taboo... women want to see men objectified... men's objectification of women is inherently just a little bit darker.” (50:42)

• Showrunner Jacob Tierney’s Viral Quote:

  • On why “what pleases women” is so rarely made:

    "As a culture, there is so little interest taken in what pleases women, what interests women. And I think sexually, especially, because people are afraid of it... this is only counterintuitive because of the general lack of interest we take culturally in anything that women like." (54:08)

• Organic Hype or PR Machine?

  • Panel agrees the show's viral success began with grassroots fan edits and TikTok romance fans before PR and press caught up.

    “No one was talking about the show until episode three... it was fan edits on TikTok is what I started seeing first... And then all of a sudden, it's GQ, they're naked, they're everywhere." — Kenzie (56:11)

  • Julia: “The power of the romance girlies—book fans know how to rally a story into the spotlight." (56:59)

• Does IP Still Matter?

  • Strong consensus: Book fandom and BookTok turbocharged the show, but even with fumbled book supply, romance audiences can single-handedly propel a show to mass attention. (58:19)

• Consent is Sexy:

  • Explicit discussions about sexual dynamics, power, and consent ran throughout, with the panel praising the show for integrating consent as part of its erotic tension.

    “That's also a huge thing that's so hot about the show: consent is really hot... It could be a part of the play." — Kenzie (60:24)
    “If any consent course is ever taught... just watch that show. And yet you've learned consent. It's the hottest thing you've ever..." — Chelsea (60:45)

Notable Quotes & Moments

• Julia, summing up adaptation’s magic:

  "Every time you read a romance novel... you have this situation where these men are vulnerable. They self-reflect. There's a reason why women are feral for book boyfriends: Because they are safe men written by women." (10:02)

• Kenzie, on why the show resonates:

  "The power of the show has simply come down to feeling freeing and feeling free is sexy and inspiring. It's hot to see what love can be like in an innately balanced relationship." (08:28)

Key Timestamps for Important Segments

• [11:26] – Series Highlights: Vegas bathroom scene, Russian monologue, sex-as-storytelling
• [28:49] – Why Do We Love Their Love? Chemistry, micro-moments, gendered fantasy
• [38:35] – The Second Fantasy: Cultural and industry impact, Hollywood’s missed opportunities
• [47:14] – Thorny Questions: Gender, genre, why not more lesbian or hetero equivalents
• [54:08] – Jacob Tierney on cultural disinterest in what pleases women
• [56:11] – Viral Success: Fan edits/TikTok vs. “official” PR
• [60:24] – The power of consent, desire, and safe objectification in queer romance

Final Thoughts

• Heated Rivalry is not just a successful gay romance: it’s a case study in the kind of smart, emotionally complex storytelling audiences are desperate for—and will show up en masse to support.
• The show’s success defies industry excuses about audiences, casting, or genre, proving that specificity and care in storytelling win every time.
• The episode’s panel delivers rich, funny, and sometimes raw insights—both personal and cultural—about why this particular story, adaptation, and cast moved so many so deeply, and what it portends for the future of romance, TV, and representation.

For more, follow the panelists at their links and check out the show notes for book recommendations and further reading.