How does a low-budget show about closeted hockey players become a revolutionary moment that leads to collective mania and lowkey psychosis?
My friend KP — social media wizard, editorial content strategist, and fellow queer human — and I both got completely possessed by a show called Heated Rivalry three weeks ago. It's about two professional hockey players (one gay, one bi) who've been secretly involved for nearly a decade. They can't come out. Their careers would be over. For Ilya, being Russian, it could literally be dangerous. Yet the chemistry between them cannot be denied or stopped. So much so, it’s taken the world by storm.
Instead of this being just another fandom fad moment, it feels... revolutionary?
It’s a raw, vulnerable, messy kind of queer love we rarely see on screen. The kind that makes you remember what yearning feels like. The kind that invites you back into your body instead of letting you escape from your life.
Today, we get into: why this show hits like crack cocaine, the difference between performing and living vulnerability, how queer representation is shifting, how to turn fandom and parasocial relationships into real life connection, and why being a "little freak" might actually be resistance to fascism.
This episode is for: anyone who's ever been possessed by a piece of media, people navigating their queer identity, fans of romance novels or fan fiction, anyone who needs permission to yearn, the bisexuals (hi).
Spoiler warning: We discuss Heated Rivalry through episode 5.
KP is an editorial content strategist hell-bent on ensuring the weirdos inherit the earth by taking up more space online. They believe liberation is for all, capitalism sucks, and only we can save us. When you show up as your weirdest, wackiest self online, it's easier to make money, build community, and have fun with it. KP is a 30-year-old Pisces sun, Libra rising, married queer person who loves talking about social media, gender, and why being a little freak is actually revolutionary practice.
Let KP build your editorial content world: https://www.jupitercontent.co/
Where you can keep hanging out with KP: Instagram | Threads | Substack