Fun in the greenhouse (or why I want to watch)

Over the last weekend I attended the Des Moines Science Fiction Society's (DMSFS) annual convention DemiCon. (http://www.demicon.org/). One of the panels I was on talked about the hot men of science fiction. And of course, you know Captain Jack and his young sidekick Ianto were among the topics of conversation.

But the conversation went something like this.

Other panelist to me: "Captain Jack, the character, may sleep with anything, but the actor John Barrowman is completely gay."

Me: "So."

Other panelist: *looks at me as if I've lost my mind.* "He's gay." (As if I, a M/M author has no clue what that means.)

Me: "I can watch! I'll probably even take notes."

Other panelist proceeds to look at me like I've grown a second head.

And maybe that's why in one of the Torchwood episodes, when Gwen finds Jack and Ianto playing "hide and seek" in the greenhouse, I found it hilarious that they offer to have Gwen join them. (And why if I were Gwen, I would have said hell yeah in a heartbeat.)

So what is it about "watching."?

Aside from the million nuances I'm sure I'd pick up that would help my writing, I think it boils down to having two very handsome men feeling secure enough to express their physical appreciation/lust/love/whatever you want to call it sexually and being secure enough to do so in front of an audience. I'll be shallow for a moment. Eye candy is eye candy. Two of them are even better. Two of them naked and having sex, even better! (the best!). And I think watching that, especially since men really are different from women and it would be fascinating to see their physical desires play out. I don't have to join them to appreciate the beauty of the male form and the beauty that can be found in sex, no matter the gender of the participants.

Also, I happen to be an unashamed admirer of the human form. I can see why my partner thinks Gwen is gorgeous (and she does have a lovely accent, too.). There's also the lure of the forbidden. I can watch and know that they wouldn't want me touching, but I can think about it. The brain is the largest sex organ in the human body, after all. I can imagine being between (behind, beside, name your preposition and I can be there) the two men, participating, enhancing their pleasure and my own.

No, it's not something that I'll ever do in real life, most likely. But I can fantasize, and that, is the allure of watching. Because it's like a movie screen for your mind.

So who would you want to watch?