When Tore starts frequenting a gay nightclub, he ends up finding a friend in a drag artist named Shady Meat. In TORE, Carlos Romero Cruz plays Shady Meat.
After losing his father, Tore starts going to a nightclub every night. On his first day there, a drag artist, Shady Meat, catches his eye, but he does not approach her. The next time he goes there, Shady Meat approaches him.
It is very evident that Tore does not usually go to nightclubs to meet strangers and that he is clueless. He looks lost, so Shady Meat tells him how to differentiate between gay and straight men. This becomes the start of Shady Meat and Tore’s friendship.
A new friend
Shady Meat is a singer. When Tore hears her sing for the first time, he is mesmerized by her voice. It is a powerful performance about accepting herself unabashedly. Shady Meat then sees Tore, who is under the influence, being dragged out by security.
When they meet again, Shady Meat asks Tore to take care of himself. She feels sorry for him, so she allows him to accompany her to the dressing room when he asks her to help him get entry into the club.
She gives him friendly advice to prevent him from repeating the incident that got him banned from the club. Tore feels comfortable enough to tell Shady Meat about Erik. This is the first time Tore has liked someone, and as he finds himself in unfamiliar territory, Shady Meat guides him.
She finds Erik’s social media account for him and tells him how he can get Erik to spend more time with him. Tore clearly needed to talk to someone about his feelings for Erik, and Shady Meat ends up becoming that person.
Honesty and forgiveness
After his fight with Linn, Tore goes to Shady Meat to share his troubles with her and her friend, Lo. Instead of telling them the truth, he lies to them about Linn being a homophobe to gain their sympathy.
Shady Meat and Lo even join Tore to take revenge on Linn. They pelt eggs at Linn’s house and argue with her. However, Shady Meat immediately realizes that Tore lied to them.
Shady Meat cannot tolerate liars, and she does not appreciate Tore dragging her and Lo into his mess, so even she leaves Tore. This is not the end of their friendship, as Tore goes to apologize to Shady Meat after reconciling with Linn and letting out his anger.
He tells Shady Meat about his father’s death, and his honesty earns him her forgiveness. That day, Shady Meat, who has been hustling for the past six months, is finally going to perform on a real stage for the first time.
Shady Meat decides to use this opportunity to make Tore perform the opening act, as she thinks he needs it more than anyone else. She dresses him up and teaches him the song that he is supposed to sing.
The song is about home, and Shady Meat was right about Tore needing to sing it to come to terms with his father’s death. Tore performs, and he finds the closure that he needs, thanks to his new friend, Shady Meat.
Also Read: Linn: TORE character explained
