“To L and Back” L Word Podcast Episode 311: Last Dance With Merry Dana

Hey, you know who’s a lesbian? DANA FAIRBANKS!!!! This week on The L Word, we say goodbye to Dana Fairbanks for many minutes, with activities including yelling at a funeral, Carmen becoming a gardener, the ashes of 100 dead bodies, a hike to a magical waterfall, genuinely fun flashbacks, Max flexing his map-reading skills, Tina and Henry being a general nightmare, and everybody having an excuse finally to wear cute puffy coats! Come for Dana in pigtails, stay for the performance art.

Also we have a SURVEY you should take if you haven’t already! It’s very important and it’s for our wrap-up episode. But be warned if you’ve not seen the entire season yet, there are spoilers within it!

A crowd of people dressed in all black attending Dana's funeral service. The minister (off camera) says, "Dana longed for companionship."

Alice (notably wearing a brown dress at a funeral) stands up in the crowd at Dana's funeral service and yells, "Dana was gay!"

Shane and Tina sit on some steps in the back of the church of Dana's funeral service. Shane says to Alice (off camera), "You are my hero."

Max (wearing a grey button-up) is standing in a tech office with three other white guys in suits. Max is looking at a computer monitor and says, "So that must mean a dual-core mobile chip"

Bette (wearing a black pantsuit) is carrying Angelica through her house. The subtitles say, "[Man and boy laughing]"

Tina (wearing a brown blazer and holding Angelica) and Henry (wearing a black blazer and has his hands on Mikey's shoulders, who is standing in front of him) pose awkwardly for a picture.

Joyce (the lesbian lawyer played by Jane Lynch) is sitting behind her desk and wearing a black blazer over a blue-and-white shirt and a tie. She says to Bette (who is sitting across from her, her back to the camera), "I'm a lesbian in Los Angeles."

Max, Bette, and Alice are preparing to go on a hike in Dana's memory. Max is pointing out in front of him and says, "Take a right at the Micmac Valley"

Dana (wearing pig tails and a light blue sweater) is looking at Alice (wearing a pink sweater, her back to the camera) with a sly look on her face. Dana says, "Maybe Fred Segal Cafe"

Shane (wearing a black beanie, a grey hoodie under a black jacket) sits next to Alice (wearing a dark beanie and a striped neck scarf). Shane asks, "Do you remember that girl in the box?"

A flashback scene in which Shane (wearing a white button-up), Alice (wearing a grey sweater and black-and-yellow striped neck tie) and Tina (wearing a dark brown blouse and holding a cocktail glass) are standing at a party. The subtitles say, "[Snickering]"

Dana and Jenny (both wearing black tank tops) are holding hands and dancing together in a dimly lit room. Dana says, "I'm doing the Charleston."

Carmen (wearing an orange puffy vest), Kit (wearing a fur lined black jacket), and Bette (wearing a red jacket) sit next to each other in a cabin. Kit asks, "Where we partied like it was 1999?"

Tegan (or Sara? Hard to say) Quin is wearing a black shirt and standing at a microphone on stage. She asks, "Do you know who's a lesbian?"

Tegan (or Sara? Hard to say) Quin is wearing a blue blazer and standing at a microphone on stage. She responds to her sister's question, saying, "Dana Fairbanks."

Dana and Shane sit at a table at a crowded Tegan and Sara concert. Dana's jaw has dropped, while Shane inspects her fingernail.

Kit and Jenny are hiking next to each other through a forest. Kit says, "Dana, we are not all athletes like you!"

A serene waterfall. Ever so slightly Dana's body can be seen glimmering in the falling water.

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Riese

Riese is the 43-year-old Co-Founder of Autostraddle.com as well as an award-winning writer, video-maker, LGBTQ+ Marketing consultant and aspiring cyber-performance artist who grew up in Michigan, lost her mind in New York and now lives in Los Angeles. Her work has appeared in nine books, magazines including Marie Claire and Curve, and all over the web including Nylon, Queerty, Nerve, Bitch, Emily Books and Jezebel. She had a very popular personal blog once upon a time, and then she recapped The L Word, and then she had the idea to make this place, and now here we all are! In 2016, she was nominated for a GLAAD Award for Outstanding Digital Journalism. She's Jewish. Follow her on twitter and instagram.

Riese has written 3341 articles for us.

4 Comments

  2. This is the episode where I stopped watching the first time around. Now, because of To L and Back, I’m almost done with season 5

  3. I can only assume the rest of what they poured into the water was additional bodies of ash and other ground spell ingredients provided by Uta for the “Bring Back Dead Friend and Put Her Face In A Waterfall Spell”.

  4. I’ve been to Vancouver once before I’d ever watched The L Word and yet I still managed to find myself at Lynn Canyon. My queer compass must have been very well calibrated at the time?

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