Adults Season 2 features unconventional romantic gesture

In the second season of the series ‘Adults’, a central plot point involves a character attempting to normalize a controversial term to support a romantic interest. In episode seven, titled ‘C Alert’, the character Anton (played by Owen Thiele) faces professional trouble after using the word ‘cunt’ during a company meeting. While the term is used by Anton in a positive context rooted in the queer ballroom scene, it is perceived as offensive by his older, less queer colleagues.

To assist Anton, his housemate and love interest, Paul Baker (played by Jack Innanen), attempts to normalize the word by using it in various viral man-on-the-street interviews. Co-creators Ben Kronengold and Rebecca Shaw described the act as an ‘ugly sweet’ romantic gesture that reflects the specific, unconventional dynamics of the characters, rather than using traditional romantic tropes like flowers or grand declarations.