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[–]malloww 23 insightful - 2 fun23 insightful - 1 fun24 insightful - 2 fun -  (7 children)

The one that got me was Susie/Theo on the Netflix respin of Sabrina. They take a gender non-conforming girl on a show that's clearly trying to be feminist and go, oh wait, she's not a girl, she's a boy! Then there's an entire Mary Sue plotline around Theo basically cheating using Sabrina's magic to get on the boys basketball team. Every other time in the show magic is used for some kind of personal gain there's a consequence, but this time they just ignore it and never address how Theo manages to stay on the team without magic since she's objectively terrible at basketball. And then they use magic to break a kid's bones and suddenly all of the bros are super accepting and the entire dynamic isn't addressed again.

And finally, icing on the cake, this season Theo gets a boyfriend and they have sex. Mind you, Theo is literally just a girl with short hair who wears plaid, no hormones or anything. But the relationship is clearly framed as a "gay" relationship. So they're preparing to do the deed, and she says "I never thought anyone would accept me as I am" and I was like... wut. You are literally, unmistakably a girl. This is a straight couple with quirky senses of style. There is nothing revolutionary about a teenage girl getting with a teenage boy, and anyone who finds this somehow groundbreaking is a complete moron. It was so bizarre, and I've wondered how it came across to people who aren't paying attention to this shit. It must have peaked at least a few people.

[–]ThisSiteIsUnusable 12 insightful - 2 fun12 insightful - 1 fun13 insightful - 2 fun -  (1 child)

This is a straight couple with quirky senses of style.

I think that's the point. The shows get the kudos for having "queer representation" with none of the potential whining from conservatives if they were to have an actual gay teen relationship. Win-win.

[–]malloww 2 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 0 fun3 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

You're absolutely right, and the evidence of that is that when Susie was implied to be a lesbian and then later when Theo was implied to be a straight guy she had zero romance plot lines at all. Also evidence - Ambrose started out as very obviously attracted to men. Then his lover gets killed off quickly and that part of him is increasingly erased to the point where I think if you never watched season one you'd have no clue he's not straight. Even disregarding the trans aspect, you are 100% right, they don't want to show an actual gay relationship of any kind.

[–]haveanicedaytoo💗💜💙 2 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 0 fun3 insightful - 1 fun -  (4 children)

Hold up... Wasn't Susie/Theo a lesbian in season 1? (I haven't watched any of the other seasons.) So does the boyfriend identify as a lesbian too, or what's going on?

[–]malloww 2 insightful - 2 fun2 insightful - 1 fun3 insightful - 2 fun -  (1 child)

Nope, that was implied as a possibility but it was framed as "Susie/Theo is figuring her sexuality out because she's not like Sabrina or Roz". Then they basically shelved it entirely until they needed a way to incorporate the new boy (who is actually a hobgoblin, aka 'normal looking actor-level-attractive guy with green hair') and BAM, Susie is now a gay man.

[–]haveanicedaytoo💗💜💙 1 insightful - 1 fun1 insightful - 0 fun2 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

Thanks! I didn't want to have to watch it again, and it was eating away at my brain!

[–]PassionateIntensity 2 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 0 fun3 insightful - 1 fun -  (1 child)

No, he's a gay man. So they erased the gay characters.

[–]haveanicedaytoo💗💜💙 2 insightful - 1 fun2 insightful - 0 fun3 insightful - 1 fun -  (0 children)

Google isn't helping. I wonder if they said/showed Susie being interested in girls in Season 1 (I've forgotten most of it) or if I'm just remembering wrong. Maybe I got the vibe because the actress is a lesbian?