Fungible:of goods) being of such nature or kind as to be freely exchangeable or replaceable, in whole or in part, for another of like nature or kind. Interchangeable, flexible.

Science and contemporary Western culture are category crazy. All living things must fall into a phylum, class, kingdom, species,order, genus, weight class, demographic, ethnicity or zip code. And while I certainly understand the compulsion to bring order to our universe, few things challenge this human impulse more than human sexuality. Heterosexual. Homosexual, Bisexual, Transsexual, Asexual. But what if there's another way?

"You people and your quaint little categories," says Captain Jack of the British science fiction television series, TORCHWOOD, as he drools over two women entwining tongues. And this is the same Captain Jack who exchanges spit with a more than willing male team member who had just risked his life for his girlfriend who was only half human. We haven't seen this kind of sexual flexibility since Jason Biggs made mad passionate love to his mother's hot apple pie and Portnoy went steady with raw liver. The whole category issue is very disturbing. Many of us don't believe in bisexuality. Choose a side. And we even become militant about our own sexual category. The other day I caught myself admiring a women's breast and felt the urge to play with them. I was immediately overcome by anger and guilt. I felt like I had just betrayed my phylum. But they were pretty and fluffy and needed to be kneaded--same reason I love playing with cookie dough. (OK, that was likely a pretty gay description of female breasts, I admit it.)



In a meeting with our chief financial officer, I mentioned that I'd like to shift some funds from one line item in my departmental budget to another line item. "No problem," he said. "The funds are fungible." Fungible. Love the word. Depending on mood, age, circumstance, opportunity, the ebb and floe of chemistry, aren't we? Fungible? How much of our sexual behavior is determined by the rules rather than the divining rod bobbing between our thighs? (I am, of course, speaking as a male.)

Ironically, the folks who gave us Darwin have now given us TORCHWOOD.

As if we didn't have enough reasons to suffer from Brit envy, the American television launch of TORCHWOOD will leave you with the odd feeling our ancestors must have felt when they saw the first of their kind walk upright on two feet.

One could claim that TORCHWOOD is the first all-bisexual television series, but as these characters move in out of embraces and each others various orifices, you quickly come to sense that there's nothing "bi" about any of this. These people are out and proud fungibles.

And it's not just TORCHWOOD. The world of television science fiction is aggressively--albeit quietly and with little fanfare--exploring the boundaries of human sexuality and more and more often crossing the borders. Not that I would venture into every imaginable region, but I'm finding this exploration to be inspiring and liberating in ways I haven't felt since first coming out as a gay man.

The most recent and most evolved example of this phenomenon is TORCHWOOD's Captain Jack. Jack is gay. Nope. Jack is straight. Nope. Jack is clearly fungible. Jack's sexuality drifts according to the story line and slowly but surely he's influencing his mortal human team mates to drift along with him. Initially a straight on straight woman, Gwen, the show's female lead, under Jack's influence also seems to be developing fungible sexuality, madly in love with her boyfriend, lusting for Captain Jack and snogging an oversexed female alien (not from Mexico but from another galaxy.) Another main character, Owen "borrows" an alien sex pheromone enhancer in order ensure sexual success with a certain young woman. When he discovers that a small spritz of the solution is as effective on big burly men men as it is on the local barmaid, Owen has no issues and is instead quite comfortable with the convenience of it all.

THE FOLLOWING VIDEO CONTAINS SOME LANGUAGE NSFW

Again, it would be easy to label and categorize TORCHWOOD as television's first all bisexual show, but that would be very wrong. The writers are not depicting "bisexuals", they are depicting fungible sexuality, a fluid eroticism that is neither homo nor hetero. But of even greater importance, TORCHWOOD is not about sexuality.

TORCHWOOD takes us to an even higher playing field and this is where things get really good. This is top notch science fiction--almost as good as it gets. Intelligent, imaginative, challenging, outside the boundaries of human morality and definitions. Sexuality is simply what it is, as it is in our lives. The TORCHWOOD characters are complex creatures on a mission to save the world from a chaotic universe of diverse aliens, the good, the bad and the otherworldly ugly. Sexuality is integral to the show in the sense that all aspects of life are integral to the show. These characters are not Will Trumans, gay but sexless. And they are not on some sexual roller coaster; these these are intrepid adventurers and one super hero. Of course, our super hero, Captain Jack has among his super powers the ability to french kiss handsome young men back to life. (Not kidding.)

I have a feeling that BATTLESTAR GALACTICA and STARGATE ATLANTIS are going to start taking us down this road with characters who enjoy fungible sexuality. British shows are well down the road with this evolutionary (as i see it) depiction of human sexuality, TORCHWOOD is the most evolved example of this. American shows can't catch up soon enough. Imagine a world where the only rule is consent.

As an aside, I'm letting the world know here and now that the star of TORCHWOOD, Jack Barrowman, an openly gay actor, can have me any way, any where and any time he wants. Oh, and on any planet.