Why you need to watch Netflix’s new military series in this Trump era: We’ve only scratched the surface

Netflix’s “Boots” follows a young gay man who finds camaraderie in a seemingly hopeless place, while struggling with the emotional (and sometimes physical) cost of keeping his true self a secret. Still, series creator Andy Parker and his cast of rising stars hope viewers will find a moving message in the character’s transformation, even if the show isn’t a traditional coming out story.

Released last week, “Boots” stars Miles Heizer as Cameron Cope, a queer teenager who enlists in the Marine Corps encouraged by his straight best friend, Ray McAffey (Liam Oh), after graduating from high school in 1990.

Although Cameron befriends some fellow recruits, including the mischievous and mischievous Hicks (Angus O’Brien), any hope of accepting his truth is dashed, since being openly gay in the military is expressly prohibited.

“Boots” is an adaptation of Greg Cope White’s 2015 memoir, “The Pink Marine,” and one of the final projects to be executive produced by Norman Lear, who died in 2023 at age 101.

Alfonso “Pompo” Bresciani/Netflix

Lear’s production company hired Parker, who worked on Netflix’s “Tales of the City” and “Grand Army,” to translate Cope White’s book for the screen. The result is a compelling action drama that examines masculinity and internalized homophobia while nodding to other cinematic depictions of military life, particularly Stanley Kubrick’s 1987 film, “Full Metal Jacket.”

In an interview with News, Parker recalled how he “instantly had a personal connection” to the story.

“I was a closeted teenager in the late 1990s, and I was looking for a way to hide from my own sexuality and deny it,” he said, noting that he had once considered joining the Marines. Hence the eight-episode series became “an opportunity to imagine what it would have been like for me to do that. How would I have lived up to it? Would I have survived or not? That was my way in.”

Heizer, whose credits include “13 Reasons Why” and “Love, Simon,” relished the opportunity to inhabit a character whose journey of self-discovery did not explicitly focus on his sexuality. At times, Cameron interacts with an alter ego (also played by Hezier, with the help of some on-screen magic) who represents his repressed queerness.

Alfonso “Pompo” Bresciani/Netflix

“Cameron is forced to not only try things he would never have tried, but also to publicly fail in front of a group of kids from different places; he has no idea what their beliefs are or how they will view him,” he said. “You end up not only discovering all those things you’re good at, but you also find respect from a group of people you never would have thought possible. It’s about gaining a brotherhood.”

O’Brien, meanwhile, found similar pleasure in providing much of the show’s comic relief. “Hicks is wild and unpredictable, but there is something endearing about a person who refuses to let the gravity of a situation go too deep,” he said. “When I’m going through something, I need that person to keep me from sinking too low. What makes it so refreshing is that it’s a stark contrast to the rigidity of bootcamp.”

Cameron’s main adversary is Sgt. Robert Sullivan, played by British actor Max Parker. At first, Sullivan mercilessly mocks Cameron during basic training and isolates him from other recruits. However, it is soon revealed that he is dealing with his own queer sexuality and the painful demise of a secret romance.

Alfonso “Pompo” Bresciani/Netflix

“He goes through this whole journey of loneliness and self-doubt… I’ve had those moments in my life that helped me understand, ultimately, how sad he was,” Max Parker told News. “He’s at the top of where he wants to be, but he could lose everything if he’s found out to be gay. He sees that Cameron may be gay, too, and his sole purpose is to get him to quit, but he sees a resilience in him that he didn’t expect. So he goes from tormentor to mentor.”

The actor also credited Lear for his support in landing the role: “I was a wild card, a little unknown in America. And Norman was the one who said he thought I was the best for the role.”

In the 35 years since “Boots” was set, the U.S. military has seen the “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy, which allowed gays, lesbians and bisexuals to serve as long as they kept their sexuality a secret, come and go.

However, the series seems surprisingly relevant. In May, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld President Donald Trump’s policy barring transgender people from serving in the military. And last month, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth pledged to eliminate “woke garbage” and called for a review of military standards that have changed since the 1990s, including measures to protect the rights of LGBTQ+ people.

Courtesy of Netflix

While they wait for news on whether “Boots” will be renewed for a second season, Andy Parker says he and the creative team have a lot they would like to explore in future episodes. The show’s bittersweet season finale hints at the looming threat of real-world conflict and intentionally leaves the fate of a major character unresolved.

“We’ve only scratched the surface with a lot of characters,” said Max Parker. “I know ‘Heartstopper’ did a lot for the younger generation in terms of making people feel seen and I hope our show does something similar.”

While Heizer is “hoping for some romance” with Cameron, O’Brien is eager to see how Hicks and his fellow troops perform when deployed to combat.

“All of these guys have been so caught up in the world they’ve been training in,” he said. “But how do they exist outside of the bootcamp bubble? How will these characters develop when faced with the reality of how heartbreaking it can be?”

Watch the trailer for “Boots” below.

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