After years of skinny boys having to allegedly hide in shame, the New York Times declared this morning that we are living in the age of the twink. Citing “ultimate twink” Timothy Chalamet’s “naturally smooth” body, “femme twink” Adam Rippon, and “gay twinks” Olly Alexander and Troye Sivan, Nick Haramis concluded that twinks “aren’t just enviably lean boys or the latest unrealistic gay fantasy, but a new answer to the problem of what makes a man.”
Wow, ladies. The solution to toxic masculinity has been here all along: It’s me! I’m the solution! As The Stranger‘s lead twink, I just want to say that it’s been hard being skinny and white and a man, but I’m glad it’s finally my time. You’re welcome.
Just kidding!
As the Internet likes to say about The Stranger‘s Katie Herzog: This is trash.
Twinks have always been a desired and privileged subcategory in gay male erotica. Though Haramis admits twink-love isn’t new, his “art twinks” (????) are allegedly taking twinkiness to a whole new level. That new level, I guess, is straight culture, because straight people can now identify as twinks? Kewl.
I’m betting you’ll find a better answer to the “problem of what makes a man” in the trans movement—and not the straight twink movement—but it’s nice that we’ve finally reached a point in culture where a boy like Timothy Chalamet can have his “pronounced clavicle” so lavishly described in the paper of record…
Anyhow, since it’s obviously not the age of the twink (see: young Leonardo DiCaprio, who power-bottomed pop culture in the ’90s), and since it would be a crime to be ageist against the old straight art twinks, I’d like you to participate in this scientific poll. A team of art-twink-lovers at The Stranger created this egregiously small list, but please include your favorite old twinks in the comments.
