The Quickening: LGBT Oversaturation in Modern Animation · 5:22am Feb 22nd, 2019
Warning: This post is not made with offensive purposes, it's a thought that has been in my mind for a long time and I wanted to express my point of view regarding this topic. This is not about offending anyone, be comprehensive, keep an open mind and make sure to read the entire article before posting a comment. For your attention, thanks.
Remember the times when these groups fought for actual reasons? Remember when we saw these groups as actual people who fought for being treated equally with all respect? Remember when shows like Cow & Chicken, The Powerpuff Girls and The Simpsons gave us moments like these?
I’m not exactly sure where the extremism took place, but if I have to guess, I’d choose 2009, because it was the year when people could access to more information, regardless of its veracity, easily. Negativity began, not for homophobia, but for over tolerance towards these groups, which attacked and labeled other people as “homophobic” when it wasn’t the case. They started asking for more LGBT characters and representation in media and LGBT ideals were spread throughout the Internet to the youngsters, which looked and was only done more as a fad and pleasure that everyone must follow rather than a true feeling of love.
As a result, thanks to Internet (especially Deviantart and Tumblr), if you’re not bisexual at least, you’re homophobic. I’ve seen kids from 10-14 years old being discriminated by their classmates for not being bisexuals. These fad is based on sex, sexual innuendos, sexual harassment and being perv rather than true love, and believe it or not, this way of thinking affected animation. This started with something we like to do:
Shipping.
The best example of this is The Legend of Korra. Tell me 5, 5 fucking moments of the finale that aren’t Korra and Asami holding hands. That's literally everything I find in Google Images when I type "The Legend of Korra ending".
Because who gives a shit about Simon and Betty finally settling down when we can have 3 seconds of Bubbline and Marceline kissing in a scene that even the creators didn’t want to include?
You know what this means?
It means that nobody, and I mean same-sex couples in animation, can demonstrate true love or the minimum sample of affection without people screaming “They’re a gay couple! They’re lesbians! YAY!”
The LGBT community looked foolish when they demanded a gay couple for Toothless. Homosexuality does exist in the animal world, but if they do it, it’s just for messing around or excitement, not true love.
One thing is shipping and another, totally different one are scenes that truly confirm and want an LGBT acceptance. A kiss on the cheek or a hug doesn’t make a couple automatically, just because your project has a LGBT couple doesn’t make it groundbreaking.
In a Heartbeat is an extremely mediocre short. If the creator would’ve change one of the main characters by a woman, the short wouldn’t have been that special. The only reason for its popularity is because it shows homosexual characters. The relationship shown is artificial and it’s not well structured. No wonder why it was forgotten pretty quickly.
You may be thinking “wow, this guy is homophobic and hates LGBT”. No, I don’t. Look, I know not all LGBT people are like this. In fact, it’s easy to see the difference between a true LGBT and one who is it for “being trendy”. For me, what makes a good LGBT character is one that doesn’t take into account his or her sexuality (or very subtlety on certain occasions). When a character behaves like a normal person beyond their sexual preferences, we’re talking about a good LGBT character.
These are examples of a good LGBT character.
These are not.
Another factor we need to take into account is when the creator decided to make them LGBT since the mere inception, since they were created. You can notice this in the character’s behavior throughout the series (pay attention to the dialogue, the way it says it or reacts to it and the way it moves) and, in case its sexuality is officially revealed, it’s formally shown in the first season or at the beginning of a movie. But ok, let’s pretend the staff forced the character into becoming LGBT in the middle of the movie or in season 2. Oh well, could you at least do something with that, like I don’t know, develop the character, please? This is barely done in most of the characters that go through this process and barely leaves an impact in the show itself.
As someone who watched Racing Hearts 2 months before its official premiere, I’m glad to say that Sam finally had proper development and a true presence in the show beyond a couple of mute cameos. Her likes, insecurities and how her relationship with Luna is are a good starting point. However, I’m disappointed the staff took this long to do something with her and I fear she stagnates in just what this episode shows.
By the way, it’s illogical that those who complain about Luna and Sam being together in the show acclaim and cheer this. Can someone explain this to me? Because IT DOESN’T MAKE SENSE!
Also, give us more variety with them. Have you ever notice that almost every remarkable LGBT character in this decade has been a tomboy? In men, I’ve seen both overly-masculine and feminine men as gay, but when it comes to the ladies, is always a tomboy. Shouldn’t be more interesting for a story if a more typical girly girl, one that likes shopping or wearing dresses, was the lesbian? I know it’s harder for the staff to write and harder for the audience to believe, but if we don’t do this, it will feel like a repeat of the same and will, subsequently, become stale. Not all feminine men are gay and not all tomboys are lesbians, but I’m noticing a pattern in recent animations, something that wasn’t that common before.
An overly-feminine lesbian who never hid her feelings towards her friend...
...and a feminine man who, although was more connected to his emotions, didn’t hesitate to show his manliness when it came to protect his friends.
The final point I’ll try to explain is that being LGBT is not enough to praise a couple anymore, you need other factors to make their relationship interesting to the public beyond being another LGBT couple. I’m not an expert in love life or anything, but independently of your sexual preferences, isn’t how the romance goes, how both people give themselves to each other, how they accept each other and how they overcome the problems and circumstances life presents to them in order to achieve an ending as happy as possible the interesting part of a relationship?
While everyone is praising Luna and Sam, I praise these two for an important reason: they’re loyal and faithful to each other, even if they’re a stereotypical teenage romance. In these modern times, where I can legally get married to a bag of chips or my digital waifu to avoid responsibility (because apparently nobody wants to raise a family anymore), where one of each two marriages get divorced, they’re a good example of a healthy relationship. This is far more interesting than another LGBT couple that’s being acclaimed by the public just for being another LGBT couple.
If people want to be LGBT, so be it, they have free will. But I can’t deny it’s uncomfortable at times, because they take their sexuality to the limit. It’s good to have LGBT representation in media, but we don’t have to celebrate every appearance. We’re not in the 90’s anymore. Don’t get me wrong with this, I know I live in a reality where women, gays, African-Americans and handicapped suffer from segregation and must remain constant in their struggle for their rights, works, projects and gender quotas (in fact, I'm in one of these groups). But please! Do it with quality and not forcing it!
Does sexual diversity affect quality at this time? The answer is a cruel yes, and it’s better these “minorities” demonstrate the opposite very soon. Otherwise, if the tendency continues their work and achievements will only win the status of mediocre or worse... forgettable.
But what do you think? Do you think LGBT representation is right or not? Are you demanding my head? Leave it in the comments below. And remember: keep reaching for that rainbow.
I don't see the issue with expressing your view on this. Granted both sides could say the same thing but it wouldn't get anywhere to the real matter of the subject. Maybe there is maybe there is not. It's a matter of how most look at it.
I remember in the 90 television shows a lot of teenage girls had the "Gay friend." Where you didn't know anything about them other than the fact they were gay. I wonder if were just doing another version of this.
EDIT: Though I wouldn't call any character from overwatch a good character.