A Marriage of Gems

I'm back at it again with the Steven Universe! I have been dying to talk about them, so let's give it up for the power couple of century, Garnet! Now, if you don't watch the show, you might be wondering why I only said one name. That's because Garnet is the name of the fusion between Ruby and Sapphire. Garnet is more than a combination of people, she's a relationship, a conversation. Ruby and Sapphire prefer to exist as a fusion together. So, let's talk about them!

credit to https://gifer.com/en/BOlF

Garnet is revealed to be a fusion in episode 52 of the first season, when she is forcefully split up after being imprisoned. After Steven meets Ruby and Sapphire separately, they find each other again and we see that they're not only a couple, but they're Garnet!

credit to https://makeagif.com/i/WSXRkI

This was a huge, amazing surprise for viewers, because Ruby and Sapphire are two non-binary women! Everyone (who isn't homophobic) was delighted to see such a healthy and clear lesbian relationship. 

And their relationship is not mentioned once to never be spoken about again! Ruby and Sapphire are out of fusion many times, where we get to see them be cutesy and dorky together, like real couples.

credit to gaybvckys on tumblr

Their relationship goes through hurdles and problems, and they solve them and become stronger, just like any couple.

And the part I've been dying to talk about - their wedding! 

credit to https://knowyourmeme.com/photos/1389276-steven-universe

After Ruby's proposal, there was an entire episode dedicated to focusing on love and that centered on their wedding, titled "Reunited." In it, we see Ruby and Sapphire nervously get ready for their ceremony. And when we see Ruby walking down the aisle...

credit to unknown on tumblr

She's wearing a dress, whereas Sapphire is wearing a tux! The reason why this is so important is because in many countries, Ruby had been dubbed with a male voice actor or had lines changed to suggest she was a guy, to make their relationship heterosexual. Rebecca Sugar (the show writer) wasn't having any of that, and made Ruby wear a dress on her wedding day. 

credit to https://www.pinterest.ru/pin/461759768038581818/

Steven Universe made HISTORY by being the first cartoon ever to have a lesbian proposal and wedding! This strong, undeniable and loving type of representation is exactly the rep children need to see in their cartoons! And it warms my heart to be alive to experience this history.

For just one day, let's only think about love.

Good-bi for now,

Nelly

Gems of All Kinds

Steven Universe is an animated TV series following the Crystal Gems, a group of magical beings whose self-appointed duty is to protect Earth. Among them are Steven, a half-gem half-human, who learns that sometimes, love is the greatest power of all.

SU killed and resurrected me. I am absolutely in love with this show. Its songs, characters and LGBT rep is honestly unlike any other cartoon I've seen. I'm gonna have to do two posts on this show because there's just too much to talk about!

So, first off, the non-binary rep! All of the gems were confirmed to be non-binary (not counting Steven) by the show's writer, Rebecca Sugar, who is non-binary herself!

I love SU so much because it encourages kids to be their truest selves, and shows how different people can be! For ex. Stevonnie, the fusion (a.k.a combination) of Steven and his friend Connie is seen with a feminine body and facial hair, and goes by the pronouns she/her.

credit to http://giffing-su.tumblr.com/post/169374828442/stevonnie-stubble

This is something we don't see very often on TV, but is true to real life. There are many cisgender (people who identify with the gender they're born with) and transgender girls and NB people who have body/facial hair, yet we never see them represented, because they aren't what society deems "normal." SU isn't afraid to challenge that perception of femininity or defy gender expectations. Stevonnie is just a teenager (well, two!) who want to exist freely as one. What's so wrong with that?

There are also characters that go by less represented/multiple pronouns on the show! The main example of this being a new addition to the show, Rainbow Quartz 2.0, the fusion between Steven and Pearl!

credit to https://troominmoll.tumblr.com/post/182208170156/rainbow-quartz-20

He uses he/him and they/them pronouns! He is the only fusion to go by male pronouns so far! It genuinely knocked me off my seat when I found out he uses two pronouns, since I do myself! It's awesome that this is on a children's (and adults!) cartoon!

If you can't tell from the fact that 1. I'm writing ANOTHER post on this blog about this show and 2. I said so myself, I LOVE this show. And I hope that you guys check it out and love it too!

Good-bi for now,

Nelly 

Queerbaiting, My Dear Watson

I said I'd talk about terrible rep so here it is, folks! Buckle up, because I have a ton of feelings about the British drama Sherlock!

So, for those of you who don't know, the word "queerbaiting" basically means to "bait" queer (a.k.a LGBT) fans into believing that two same-sex people are going to get together, through subtle hints (such as romantic undertones like suggestive words or music or other characters in show hinting at it.) Queerbaiting is done to increase views while never delivering on the representation. Steven Moffat's (the main writer) specialty.

Sherlock as a show itself has so many plot holes (and general bad writing) that I'll just leave you to go watch Hbomberguy's excellent video essay on it:

Credit to Harris Bomberguy. Love you

Moving on to the juicy stuff, let's talk about the queerbaiting between Sherlock Holmes and John Watson. 

credit to unknown on tumblr

credit to unknown on tumblr

Now, I don't have a major in cinematography, but even I can tell that these scenes are framed to seem romantic. Notice how in the first picture, Watson (right) needlessly looks down at Sherlock's lips. And this isn't a one-time thing. The show has included such hints at romantic interest in the literal script.

credit to unknown on tumblr

The show gained a large fanbase interested in the possible romantic relationship between the two, however, the writers of the show and even the actors made sure to make it clear that that is absolutely absurd and laughable. Sherlock isn't gay, how silly! They even make others' assumptions of Watson being gay a consistent joke.

credit to https://outoftheclosetonyourtv.wordpress.com

credit to https://outoftheclosetonyourtv.wordpress.com

And when we consider the actual representation of LGBT people on this show? Let's see what we got. Hmm... Irene Adler, bisexual dominatrix woman, who is a villain on the show and who is an incredibly sexual character.. Needless to say, portraying a bisexual woman as solely interested in sex (and is a literal villain) paints bisexual women in a bad light. It's a literal stereotype for bisexual people to be promiscuous.

credit to https://giphy.com/gifs/fashion-style-star-12oDRtq3Ah5KcU

And the other main character that's "gay"? Moriarty, a.k.a the overarching villain of the show. A psychopath obsessed with Sherlock. 

credit to urtentic.wordpress.com

Moriarty refers to Sherlock as "honey", acts very camp in all of his scenes and even kills himself in front of Sherlock just for fun. The show makes fun of the fans who even considered taking Moriarty's gay coding seriously by making a joke scene where it seems like Moriarty and Sherlock are about to kiss.

credit to https://gifer.com/en/CPEa

So the writers won't even consider making the two main characters a couple, laugh in the face of their LGBT fans and their only gay characters are jokes or stereotypes. How lovely. 

Needless to say, stay far away from this show.

Good-bi for now,

Nelly

Alien In a Top Hat

The Get Down is a Netflix original musical drama taking place in the South Bronx in the 70's and shows the rise of hip-hop through the lives of a group of teenagers who aspire to mark their place in the world through music. It's also, simply put, one of my favorite shows ever.
So I wanted to talk about the representation in this show, as it portrays sexuality in such a refreshing and beautiful way.

So, let's talk about Marcus Kipling, a.k.a Dizzee. He's the artist of the group and is known for doing graffiti art under the tag name of Rumi 411. But Rumi 411 isn't just a tag name to Dizzee. He's a character, an alien in a top hat, who wants to go to the opera but knows that even though he's in a suit and a top hat, he'll never fit in or be accepted. This is a metaphor for how Dizzee feels in society, as a bisexual black man.

credit to @Claarrraaaa on weheartit.com

Throughout the show, we see Dizzee discover his sexuality and more openly express it, as well as find love. This starts when Dizzee meets Thor, a fellow graffiti artist who genuinely likes him and his work. This is new to Dizzee, who's only ever been called weird. Thor later invites Dizzee to a club, where he sees a drag show and many different people who are loud and proud of who they are.

credit to http://themalfoymanor.co.vu/post/154294979294

From here, Dizzee and Thor share their first kiss. 

credit to http://themalfoymanor.co.vu/post/154294979294

And from there, they begin dating. The part I wanted to focus on though, is how non-sexualized their relationship is. Their scenes together focus on their love for each other, and is portrayed in intimate ways.

                                credit to https://www.out.com/television/2017/4/18/lets-revisit-jaden-smiths-beautiful-frustrating-gay-storyline-get-down

Their scenes together are mainly isolated from the world, as they both aren't out to their families. This makes each scene feel safe and beautiful.

There's a tendency for shows to make LGBT people the butt of their jokes. It's really comforting to me as an LGBT viewer to see that this show's writers were delicate with each of their scenes, and the result was a beautiful relationship between two teenagers in love in the South Bronx in the 70's.

Love in chaos.

Good-bi for now,
Nelly

Syd-nificant Other

Following my last post on One Day at a Time, I really wanted to talk about it again, specifically about the reoccurring non-binary character of the show, Syd!

Syd initially appears in the episode "To Zir, With Love," the third episode of Season 2. They identify as non-binary and uses the pronouns they/them.

credit to anonymous on tumblr

After Elena meets them online through their advocacy group The Feminist Gamers of Echo Park, the entire group meets up in real life and Elena learns that Syd is also gay, and that they have a crush on Elena.

credit to anonymous on tumblr

Syd is one of the only non-binary characters I can name in mainstream TV shows, especially as a character who is not the butt of transphobic jokes. They become Elena's Syd-nificant other (more on that later!) in episode 5 of Season 2, and share their first kiss as well.

Syd is a wonderful example of a beautifully handled out non-binary character. Originally in the episodes following Elena and Syd becoming a couple, Elena and others would refer to Syd as Elena's "girlfriend."

This sparked some comments from fans, who wondered why Syd, who is non-binary, would identify as Elena's GIRLfriend.

The writers took this into consideration, to which they made episode 2 of Season 3, where Syd expresses their desire to change their relationship title to something more fitting to them. After a lot (and I mean a lot) of attempts all around, from "my everything" to "better whole" to "person-friend" and "gay of sunshine," Elena tries out significant other, to which Schneider puns up to Syd-nificant Other and it's PERFECT.

credit to anonymous on tumblr

It's really validating to see a show take into consideration what their LGBT fans say and then actually take action into fixing it accordingly. I've never felt hurt or unheard by this show, I feel apart of it, like I belong. A lot more shows should make us feel like that, don't you think?

Although I'd love to go on about this show forever, I do want to provide you readers with more recommendations of shows, or tell you other shows to STAY AWAY FROM.

So, this'll be the last post on ODAAT. I hope you check it out!

Good-bi for now,
Nelly

One Gay at a Time

One Day at a Time is an American comedy show that follows the daily lives of a Cuban-American family and discusses important topics like racism, sexism, depression, LGBT issues and more while still maintaining a light and heartwarming feel. So I wanted to focus on one character of the show for this post, although I'm sure I'll be coming back to talk about this show as it's one of the only ones I know that does such a brilliant job in conveying important messages without sounding disingenuous or one dimensional.

Elena Alvarez is the teenage daughter of Penelope. She discovers that she is a lesbian after dating a boy and coming to the realization that she has no romantic or sexual attraction to him, despite his seemingly perfect personality and looks. She comes out to her mother in Season 1 Episode 10, titled "Sex Talk."

credit to https://www.nerdsandbeyond.com/2018/06/06/pride-month-character-spotlight-elena-alvarez/

While everyone around her seems to be completely accepting of her sexuality (her brother Alex and her close neighbour and landlord, Schneider) her mother struggles with her feelings of discomfort concerning her daughter's sexuality. After her abuelita, considered the most traditional and religious of the family, fully accepts her granddaughter, Penelope realizes she needs to confront her own prejudices.

My favorite thing about the way ODAAT  handles Elena's sexuality is that it is not just mentioned once to be ignored for the rest of the season. It is an aspect of Elena's personality that affects her relationship with others - for example, when she comes out to her father, she is rejected by him. He leaves her on her quinceañera and isn't there for her during the father-daughter dance. This is an important part of the show, as Elena has to cope with being rejected by her own father. Her sexuality is an important, visible aspect of her. She becomes more open about her attraction to women, joins a GSA and attends protests for LGBT rights as her confidence grows.

credit to anonymous on tumblr

This is one of the best examples of dedication to portraying a lesbian character accurately and with respect. Her personality is not "the lesbian daughter" - she is multidimensional, yet her sexuality is still apart of who she is. I love Elena Alvarez, and I hope reading this will convince you to try out the show, because I am sure you'll love her too!

Good-bi for now,
Nelly