The HGTV show House Hunters featured its first “Throuple”, or polyamorous couple, on its show Wednesday night.
A “Throuple” is a relationship made up of three people. In this case, two women and a man named Lori, Geli, and Brian. The couple has two children, who are biologically related to Brian and Lori.
In the episode, the trio describes their ideal home as one that has a three-car garage, a master bedroom that fits three people, and room for the two children. While looking at a house’s kitchen, Lori remarked on its size as a “couple’s kitchen, not a throuple’s kitchen.” (RELATED: Across The Country, Universities Look To Mainstream Polyamory)
The episode describes to viewers how the couple met. Brian and Lori were legally married and met Geli at a bar, where they fell in love with her. Brian and Lori subsequently exchanged vows in a commitment ceremony, which their children attended.
The episode was titled “Three’s Not A Crowd In Colorado Springs,” and received mixed reviews. Some viewers disapproved of the show featuring a polyamorous couple, while others lauded it for being progressive.
The normalization of polyamory rolls down the track, just as I and others predicted it would. It was, as I said, less a “slippery slope” than a simple unfolding of the logic of social liberalism.
https://t.co/xgh5OtM5aB via @people— Robert P. George (@McCormickProf) February 13, 2020
Most notably, “Bad Feminist” author Roxane Gay responded on Twitter calling the episode “educational.”
Oh my god. A throuple on House Hunters.
— roxane gay (@rgay) February 13, 2020
Others reacted by commenting on how “progressive” the episode was.
HGTV really might be the most progressive show on TV. About to watch a polyamory couple fight over a house! #HouseHunters
— Hemal Jhaveri (@hemjhaveri) February 13, 2020
HGTV issued a statement on the episode supporting all couples, and told Newsweek that “we feature all homebuyers and living choices.”
While the program, which has been running for over two decades, has featured gay couples before, this episode was the first one featuring a polyamorous couple.
