In just two episodes of 90 Day Engagement: Another Way Season 4, Gabriel Paboga has done two main things.
They have brought longstanding trans representation to the franchise. And he has too indeed endear himself to viewers as an instant fan-favorite.
But that doesn’t mean people don’t want to learn more about him. Or have some concerns.
Did Gabe wait too long to tell Isabel who he was? That’s a complex question, really.
Did you know that Gabriel wasn’t the one who wrote it? 90 Day Engagement in the first place?
We meet her sister, Monica, who reads her for dirt when she gets a tattoo tribute for Isabel. Gabe is charming … and a bit impulsive.
It turns out that Monica is sure that she will fit into the franchise written as her, pretending to be her.
Of course, being in the spotlight means Gabriel has a lot riding on his shoulders.
He is a transgender person who is on television at a time when the trans community is facing massive and coordinated attacks across America and in other countries. Many eyes were on him now.
“It feels like I have to live up to the expectations,” Gabriel said Entertainment Tonight.
“And it was scary, because I didn’t know what I was doing,” he said. “I’m really just winging it in life. So it’s just… I just don’t know what to expect, ever. Because I just don’t plan anything. Really.”
Because Gabe and Monica both watch the show, they know the memes and body-shaming that can arise from people they see on screen. So yes, that is not safe.
“I just thought, ‘Oh, a lot of people are going to make fun of my nipples.’ That’s what I think,” he admitted.
“So the first thing I think about is how many memes I’m going to make,” Gabriel added.
“And then I was like, well, you know what, I guess, you know, people make fun of me for my nipples,” he added with acceptance.
“But then it’s like, it’s all going to be good for somebody else,” Gabe added. “Because I would go out of my way and be a fool to help others.”
“Overall, it will be better for thousands of people,” he later suggested.
“Because I know what it’s like to be in a transgender person’s place,” Gabriel said.
“So it’s like, I wish someone would tell me all the things I know now,” he said.
“So I think it’s good to show people, you know, trans people aren’t just like, weird, or, you know, or weird,” Gabe added. “Or they won’t find love because you can live a normal life and still be trans.”
She worries about being seen as a stepping stone for the entire trans community. Among other things, he was “a bit reckless,” he admits.
Meanwhile, some viewers criticized Gabriel for not immediately telling Isabel Posada – at least before the first kiss – that he was transgender. He told her before going to bed, but Isabel had found out by accident by posting her thirst on Instagram.
It’s a complicated topic. And something Gabe thought.
“I’m not going to lie, we were, like, dancing real nice together, and we, like, making out together,” Gabe recalled the night they met.
“And I was like, ‘Oh, crap. They don’t understand,'” he continued. “And I always tell people because I have a YouTube channel and I give people advice — like, if you’re trans, you’re transgender, whatever.”
Gabriel added: “I always give people social media before I date them, before I even give them my phone number. … Because people, if you see me, they won’t know.
“I 100 percent had to, like, that’s why I never found myself in this position,” Gabriel said of himself.
“But then it’s like, when you meet people, and you’re with them, like, did I say, like, before?” he explained.
Gabe added: “It all happened so fast. … Yeah, no, it was terrible.”
“I wish, you know, in a perfect world I would, but I don’t know if he even likes me in the first place,” Gabriel continued.
He commented: “So it’s like, do I tell him and never see him again?”
Just for the record…no everybody will agree that he owes on the information?
There are some things that people need to express. But people who are cis or trans are debatable. I am certainly not an authority on this.
But it’s worth asking: how many people “open” that they are cisgender before kissing someone? Is it fair to sue trans people? Especially when trans people can be targets for the worst bigots imaginable.
If people can face eviction, fire, or even violence just for being there… who do we ask them to put themselves in potential danger before a safe kiss with a new friend?
Meanwhile, Gabriel has zero qualms about sending money to Isabel. She didn’t think he was using her – and noted that it was for her too.
He owns a house, wears clothes and so on. It’s cheaper than one of those very expensive Airbnb rentals.
“How can I lose money and how can they use me if I have things too? I have all my clothes and everything is in there,” said Gabe. “How did he use me? If he did, I would use him to sit at home.
And Gabriel is even more assertive when it comes to helping raise Isabel’s children.
“Yes, well, this is what you do, you take care of your family if it’s your family,” he said.
“I just feel, I don’t know. I love people. I love their children,” Gabe reasoned. luxurious. He bought food and clothes.”