Over the course of six episodes, HBO's Half a Man has proven itself to be one of the boldest series of the year. Focusing on the toxic relationship between Niall Kennedy (Mitchell Robertson, Jamie Bell) and his pseudo-stepbrother Ruben Pallister (Stuart Campbell, Richard Gadd), the series takes risks, exploring themes of shame and homosexuality in a way many other shows avoid. Drawn to each other, despite Niall's shrewdness and Ruben's violent tendencies, a spark ignites between them that quickly ignites and begins to devastate both their lives.
Gadd, the series' creator and star, who won an Emmy for his Netflix series "Baby Reindeer," is fascinated by the impact of toxic masculinity on male relationships. However, the show suffers from an obvious problem common to many shows centered on white queer characters: "Half Man" doesn't explore the intersection of race and toxic masculinity and how it impacts characters of color.
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When Niall goes off to university, he meets Elbie Safadi (Bilal Hasna, Charlie De Melo), a gay Black student, one of the few people he can open up to. Their relationship gradually develops into a romantic one, and Elbie gives Niall the space to finally admit to himself that he likes men. Elbie repeatedly becomes Niall's support system, often putting his own interests and safety aside. Just when it seems Niall has finally found a confidant in his turbulent life, Elbie's encouragement to Niall to come out ends with Ruben taking this revelation as a personal insult and violently attacking Elbie.
It's here that Half Human begins to challenge viewers to dispel any doubt that Ruben's attack on Elbie has nothing to do with his race, but solely with his homosexuality. While the show does focus on the turbulent relationship between Niall and Ruben, by making Elbie a Black man, Gadd avoids addressing the problem of Half Human's unnatural depiction of race. (The show also never mentions his nationality or ethnicity.) The attack leaves Elbie in a coma and permanently disfigured, and it also derails the already strained relationship between Niall and Ruben.
Richard Gadd stars in "Half Man." Anne Binkebank/HBO
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Elbie's character is largely relegated to the background, even during the trial, in which Ruben claims the attack occurred because Elbie groped him. The series takes place from the late 1980s to the present day, so to suggest that Elbie's race doesn't influence how Ruben, his family, and the justice system perceive him is laughable. From this point on, Elbie's presence in the series, despite the fact that he is now revealed to be Niall's husband, feels like a ghost. His existence is irreversibly altered by the series' plot, but he is never given enough space or screen time to make a significant impact.
With the exception of "Heaty Rivalry," "Interview with the Vampire," and perhaps a few other shows, the queer television landscape has long centered on white characters or white ensembles, while queer characters of color have often been relegated to supporting roles or love interests for white leads, like Albie. The problem isn't necessarily that these characters are secondary to the plot; it's how they are handled within the narrative and by the writers who created them. Albie's existence in "Half-Human" is a linchpin of the show's conflict in the 1990s, yet only Niall's trauma from the attack is known.
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Through his ragged breaths, moments of confusion, and horrified looks at Ruben, Niall feels the full weight of what happened to Elbie. Elbie's reaction to his own attack is manifested solely in the scars visible on his face, without considering how the attack affected his studies, his subsequent career, and even his renewed relationship with Niall. Clearly, an attack that left him in a coma is serious, but the trauma endured by the only Black character on this show never receives the same attention as the other characters.
Charlie de Melo as Albie and Jamie Bell as Niall in "Half Man." Anne Binkebank/HBO
If Albie existed only in the past, there really wouldn't be any need for this. But he and Niall are getting married in the present day, and Ruben's presence at their wedding sends both men into a panic. Albie clearly bears psychological and physical scars, so downplaying them feels like an ignorant dismissal. This fits a disturbing and growing trend in queer television.
In the final episode, instead of hinting that Albie and Niall's relationship is as damaged or interesting as Niall and Reuben's, Albie is once again portrayed as passive and almost submissive. Then, when he and Niall reunite after Reuben is sent to prison in the late 2000s, he tells his partner that he should try to reconcile with the man who ruined their lives. Gadd thus proves that Albie is nothing more than a pseudo-therapist for Niall, who, since university, has become a despondent addict, mired in shame and obsession.
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«Half a Man is a story about how toxic masculinity shapes and distorts men and their relationships, but the narrative is full of cracks.
There's no denying that the show is one of the best of the year, but by showing it, Gadd has proven that he's not interested in addressing the issue of how toxic masculinity is directly tied to Ruben and Niall's whiteness.
Following Albie's attack, his transformation into a villain, and subsequent return, Half a Man left me wondering why Albie was cast as a Black man when the show's creator hadn't explored how the violence he committed directly impacts the lives of the Black men around him. By using Albie as a therapist for the show's white protagonist—and as a punching bag for his white antagonist—the bold and succinct series is softened by its disregard for racial politics, pointing to a larger problem that continues to grow in LGBTQ television.
Half-Human is available to watch on HBO Max.
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