by Jennifer Matos

On this week’s “’L’ is for Link” segment, we will visit the many links of our favorite “Type A” character, “Bette Porter”.

Whether she is losing, lusting, laughing or lashing out, you can get the full story in Bette’s soulful eyes. With a tailored wardrobe that you could die for, a downright Puritan work ethic and all kinds of issues simultaneously vying for her attention, Bette Porter is one complicated woman.

Bette is played by actress Jennifer Beals of early 1980’s “Flashdance” fame. Known primarily for what she could do in a pair of legwarmers and for making a generation of women want to become welders, Beals is a seasoned actress. The first to sign on to the L Word project, she breathes life and soul into the role of Bette.

The very first time we see Bette, she is with her long time partner, “Tina Kennard” (played by Laurel Holloman). The pilot episode of the series speaks volumes in the status of this premier couple. They are trying to have a baby, and with that comes a myriad of issues they struggle with from whether or not to have an African-American donor, to visits at couples therapy sessions which Bette despises. Her partner wants to become a mother and carry their child, but is initially hesitant about the African-American donor. This hits a sensitive nerve for Bette as she is biracial, and causes a rift between the two. Ultimately they agree to use the donor but that only tackles one of their problems. Although there clearly is a deep love between the two, many of Bette’s own personal issues are at play. An innate control freak, Bette feels that with Tina’s impending pregnancy, she needs to be their family’s sole provider. At the same time, she is trying to form a relationship with her sister “Kit Porter” (Pam Grier), win the approval of her father, “Melvin Porter” (Ossie Davis), and gain the backing of philanthropist “Peggy Peabody” (Holland Taylor) to make the CAC a well-known center for the arts.

The multiple stresses, the strains on her relationship with Tina and battling her own demons prove to be too much and Bette’s façade cracks when she meets carpenter “Candace Jewell” (Ion Overman). She tries to stay away from the temptation, but eventually succumbs to it in a hotel room with the “toppy” carpenter to whom Bette surrenders all control.

Bette’s choice yields painful consequences at the end of season one when Tina discovers her partner’s affair. This brings about an unforgettable episode and subsequent scenes where all of the themes in their relationship play out in an angry, tense and somewhat violent sex scene. It not only strains Bette’s relationship with Tina, it also puts pressure on her friendships with the other women in the group.

Bette and Tina slowly make their way to each other through the successful pregnancy that Tina tried to hide, but they decide to keep their relationship open. This gives way to Bette’s link to a woman she meets in the Starlight bar (Gina Holden), and during heated exchanges with “Alice Pieszecki”, (Leisha Hailey), over her relationship with Tina, we learn that Bette and Alice have chart connections all their own.

In season three, Bette and Tina try to raise their new daughter “Angelica” (Olivia Windbiel), together but they are drifting apart in ways unthinkable. Having lost her job at the CAC, Bette is forced to deal with the fact that she is no longer the bread-winner as Tina returns to work to support all three of them. With Bette no longer the center of her universe, Tina starts to explore her attraction to men, and Bette tries to resist the temptation presented by “Senator Grisham” (Dana Delany). She surprisingly does so as she is desperate to hold onto Tina. Season three provides much insight into how vulnerable Bette really is.

Love her, hate her, admire her or despise her, it is the acting genius of Jennifer Beals that allows us to feel all of these things for Bette Porter.

In real life, Jennifer Beals is married and has a child.