With overflowing booze and bacon, Ernest Hemingway could only be proud. EpicMealTime, the sensational(ized) YouTube cooking channel has become all the rave in the last few months, with its host, a burly Canadian (actually, all three hosts are Canadians) and I couldn't resist discussing them!
Before reading further, check out a few of my favorite episodes: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BaKcl0Qg13o, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YYxO3Y-wOrM&feature=relmfu, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eah23WvLYsQ&feature=relmfu, and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Xc5wIpUenQ
Michael Warner and Lauren Berlant, in their seminal essay "Sex in Public," theorize that the projection of national culture (i.e. heternormative white culture) subjugates the sexuality of its citizens; consequently, spaces for acting out sexuality (cinemas, clubs, print and online mediums) emerge. In this case, the kitchen becomes the space in which sexuality emerges, a space featuring multiple sexualities, a queer space. In EMT we see the dual narratives of national and globalized identities forming simultaneously as the series develops. The hosts use bacon and syrup as their signifiers for Canadian, while frequently appearing in supermarkets and ethnic restaurants. The latter locations indicate that the hosts have broken the barrier into a global community of consumerism and as such lose some of their Canadianess.
The absence of hardened nationalism allows the hosts and guest stars to produce public sex, that is acts which express sexuality. One of the hosts, Alex Perrault has become simply "MusclesGlasses" and the main host, Harley Morenstein affectionately refers to him as such. Inspired by fanfare, Morenstein engages in openly homosocial interaction, girded by undertones of homosexuality. He devalues the body in the same way as viewers, leaving him without a fully-expressed identity; MusclesGlasses is a condensed moniker summarizing Perrault's status as a masculine, accessorized body. There's also the wonderful ejaculatory imagery which seemingly appears in every episode: while making tacos, the men promise that the female tasters will sour cream; a later episode features ice cream. Morenstein's use of inflection is key to deploying his sexual commentary.
Finally, there are the thinly-veiled acts of explicit homosexual sex. On a trip home to see his Dad, MusclesGlasses is fed taffy on a large stick by Morenstein who visibly enjoys feeding his the phallic object with its sweet nectar. Feeding each other food as symbolic of the blowjob has become a theme appearing in other episodes as well. Or, in "The Black Legend," the men make a giant crepe and find two girls to eat it in a play on girl-on-girl porn with Morenstein as the voyeur in the background, doing his best to appearing as if he is masturbating.
Kindly, the men want us to know that we can also be men like them with the sale of shirts that read "&Baconstrips&Baconstrips&Baconstrips," a phrase that is exalted in each non-dessert episode. The best we Americans can muster in retort to these virile Canadians: Vegan Meal Time (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TbBCWZue57M). The Swedes have concocted a whole series entitled "Regular Ordinary Swedish Meal Time" making such delicious treats as "Macho Salad," a title meant to outdo EMT's "Meat Salad."
Bon Appetit!
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