#lion king 1994

[hydravns]

MUFASA

THE LION KING (1994)

[theplaguedogs]

“He lives in you.”

The Lion King (1994)

[venus-ratt]

[witchpuppies]

(via GIPHY)

[royalrazz37]

Disclaimer: I love this film. These are just my critics. I know someone else has already pointed these issues out and better than I ever could. Just wanted to get my thoughts out. Feel free to link their analysis

Post Disclaimer Disclaimer: A lot of these may be petty and have no real solution so I apologize preemptively.

Without further ado here is an aging millennial’s concerns with: The Lion King (1994)

Small nitpicks first

Incest

Usually lion prides have a single adult male that mates with all the females but in this case there are two, Mufasa and Scar, meaning, that at best Simba and Nala are first cousins and at worst siblings, getting married and having children.

On the flip side there is nothing more royal than keeping it all in the family.

Say his name

What is Scar’s real name? I know it can probably be found somewhere but i think it’s pretty messed up it’s never said in the movie. Also making someone’s physical feature their name is rude. Its like calling someone Hairy, Big Nose, or Six-Fingered Man.

Sexiest Lion

From what I remember learning about lions, the males with darker manes are seen as more attractive. So why is my man Scar not getting hole? I know its a kids movie but could we at least see a couple dark furred cubs running about? (I know about Kovu)

Choice of voice actors

Why are all the good characters voiced by white people? (Exceptions for James and Madge) and all the bad guys are POC? And its some extra ish when only the lackeys are POC. The big bad is white. Colored folk can’t even be their own boss.

And i know the remake “fixed” this but we’re not talking about the new woke Disney.

Now the real gripes

Monarchy and leadership

While the idea of a hereditary monarchy is bad enough the main plot strongly implies divine right is just and desirable.

Mufasa is supposed to be king and this is reflected by the kingdom being pristine and in balance.

Scar, who is not ordained by the sky daddies, takes the throne and all falls to ruin.

Then the “rightful king” returns, restoring prosperity to the land.

It gives credence to the idea that a higher power has to approve of a leader for things to go right. That those in power are there because that is how it’s supposed to be.

Look, little one. See what happens when you try to break the status quo? Bad things happen. Be happy with your lot in life.

If you try to rise above your station like Scar, well. You saw what happened. (I know Scar murdered fools but you get my drift)

“But Razz” I hear you say. “The reason things went bad is because Scar had the hyenas live in the pride lands and they ate everything. Those slobbering mangy stupid poachers!”

Aha! I say. You activated my trap card.

US History as a Metaphor

I think its safe to say that the hyenas are coded as POC. As such the idea of their integration into the pride lands being the catalyst for its blight is troubling.

It harkens back to the fear of the negro moving into cities during white flight. Hyenas/blacks move in and everything goes to shit.

Thats why we keep them in their elephant graveyards and shadow lands (the ghettos) so the blight doesn’t spread.

And if one of the hyenas do come into the pride lands we send our strong alpha Mufasa to beat and brutalize them.

Also the hyenas are painted as gluttons for wanting to eat. THEY WERE IN A LITERAL GRAVEYARD.

Of course they’re hungry. Of course they’d want to eat everything they could. They were forced to live that way.

Now lets draw a line.

Hyenas are always hungry because they live in a food desert and actual desert.

They live there because of enforced segregation by the lions.

Lions who then blame the the hyenas for being hungry and use that as justification to continue segregation and harsh policing of the hyenas movements.

Sounds familiar.

And the film’s solution to all this is a return to the status quo. Yuck.

Not to mention the sequel where there’s a reconciliation between the lionesses who supported Scar and the pridelanders because Kiara says “We’re the same”. I know I’m probably grasping a straws here but that moment felt like the Irish and Italians gaining whiteness.

Ok rant over.

[me-and-my-dumbass]

*watches og lion king for the first time in years*

"huh, I wonder if there are any good!scar fanfics, I should go check"

*checks lion king ao3 tag*

*sorts from most popular*

*regrets everything*

[divineandmajesticinone]

THE LION KING (1994) dir. Roger Allers and Rob Minkoff

[lunar-girl-fic]

Anyone else had a crush on adult simba as a kid and still do as an adult🙂

[captofthelaney]

LION KING 1994 DIR. ROGER ALLERS, ROB MINKOFF

[hydravns]

THE LION KING (1994)

[venus-ratt]

"That was it? Do it again, come on."

[witchpuppies]

(via GIPHY)

[capturingdisney]

[meraki-yao]

Ok after that Lion King rant I'm here to add a part two of my Firstprince Simba Nala parallel because BOY DO I LOVE FINDING PARALLELS

We have the Bedroom Eyes TM

and then there's pouncing

(the lion king gif is a little slower than it actually is in the movie but you get the idea, also in the video Simba makes a ... sound when he hits the ground which baby me didn't not notice but 19.5 year old me noticed and ... doesn't know what to think)

And then we have... yeah I don't know how to name this one but you see the point

gif from tylerposey

Well I'm happy to know that my taste in ships has never ever changed 😂

[nostalgiahime]

Simba & Mufasa from The Lion King picture book (1994), scanned by me