#rebecca sugar is Also a nonbinary bisexual

[cardentist]

people on twitter freaking the hell out because rebecca sugar drew a comic of pearl and greg having a messy situationship in the aftermath of rose dying wasn't on my 2024 bingo card if I'm being honest

even Less so because the thing they're apparently mad about is that the nonbinary alien rock was supposed to be a lesbian (as if there's anything wrong with a nonbinary alien rock being bisexual, Or that lesbian can't have a situationship with a man without still being a lesbian on the other side.)

anyways, may take on it is: you don't have to consider any of rebecca sugar's sketches "canon," because it's not actually in the source material. rebecca may have a strong influence on how the fandom sees the characters but it does Not actually change the show. so getting worked up about it in the first place is ridiculous.

That Said, it kinda works with whatever they had going on in the show if I'm being honest

[love-takes-work]

Rebecca Sugar is doing a fundraising concert for Bi+ Awareness Week on September 17. With a "big announcement" at the end. Wow!

Full text of fundraiser announcement; links removed to avoid post being flagged as an ad:

I’m Rebecca Sugar, animator, singer-songwriter, and I’m proud to be bisexual, nonbinary, and a member of Trevor’s Board of Directors!

The Trevor Project’s support of LGBTQ young people has always meant so much to me. I hope you’ll join me in supporting Trevor’s mission in two ways:

Tune into my free virtual concert, September 17! I’ll be playing music from “Steven Universe,” “Adventure Time,” and more, and I’ll be joined by some very special musical guests!!! — tune in on Instagram and TikTok on Sunday, September 17 @ 5-7 PM PST/ 8-10 PM EST. I’m hoping to raise $20,000 for The Trevor Project, so make sure to spread the word! (I also have a big announcement to make at the end of the show, so please don’t miss it!)

Make a gift or start your own Trevor Fundraiser I want to meet my $20,000 fundraising goal, to make sure life-saving mental health & crisis intervention resources for LGBTQ young people remain available.

Don’t wait: You can make a gift here! Art and music bring me strength and keep me feeling grounded through tough times. I know a lot of LGBTQ young people are struggling to get through, or feeling alone. I’m so glad the Trevor Project is able to provide the tools young people need to empower themselves. I’m committed to making sure these resources stay available and accessible to everyone who needs them!

That’s why I’m so excited – and grateful – to host a virtual concert on my Instagram and TikTok starting at 5-7 PM PST / 8-10 PM EST on September 17 to support The Trevor Project.

I really hope you can tune in. If you can’t make it, you can donate to the fundraiser here!

Hope to see you there,

Rebecca Sugar (@rebeccasugar on IG, @rebecca.sugar on TikTok) Animator & Singer-Songwriter

[crystal-fems]

Current thoughts on the Pearl/Greg situation…

First of all, It’s crazy coming back to this Steven Universe centered blog after all these years since I still hold so much love in my heart for this show that allowed me to discover who I am and live with confidence as well as helping me through many rough periods in my life. And now since we’re suddenly getting a few trickles of new content here and there (and discourse, but it’s SU so that’s always been a part of the fandom lol) I’m getting the feeling we’ll be getting some kind of big announcement sometime soon. Fingers crossed!

But alas, on the GregPearl early drawings that Raven, a former storyboard artist leaked that were drawn by Rebecca that have been resurfacing around the internet, I am able to see both sides. And incoming is a bit of a rant on the latest debacle…

At the end of the day these are Rebecca Sugar’s (Who is bisexual and genderfluid btw) original characters who she poured her heart and soul into, a lot of whom she based characteristics around herself and the people in her life. So first and foremost, what she decides to do with these characters is up to her. Not you. Of course you’re allowed to have your opinion on it, but Rebecca is nowhere in the wrong here and I’m tired of hearing about it because of the lgbtqia+ community’s blatant biphobia. She also fought tooth and nail to have a wlw wedding in her show but people have the audacity to say this is lesbophobic when these concepts and personal sketches were drawn very early on anyway and not even implemented into the fucking show.

Now on the other hand, I also understand where certain people are coming from to an extent. It’s odd for me personally to see Pearl with Greg and really any other man for that instance, as she’s always been lesbian representation to me and many others as well. At the time, she was the representation in cartoons that we so desperately wanted and needed. She was actually the first character that made me realize I was attracted to women in the first place. And because of that, many of us attached so heavily to this part of her identity which was never officially confirmed.

But you know what’s forgotten? Pearl is also nonbinary. All of the gems are nonbinary. But there’s erasure in that too of course because the community only wants to see her as a futch presenting lesbian when in reality, she physically can’t be that. Now don’t twist my words and think I’m for a second implying that you can’t be nonbinary and a lesbian, because that’s just not true either, but she’s supposed to be an alien for fuck’s sake. The whole idea of gender and sexuality is completely abstract to her species. AND ESPECIALLY SO in a world so inclusive and accepting of everyone, no matter what race, ethnicity, physical capability, gender identities and sexualities. You’d think for a show with a plot that’s so integral on being open about embracing who you are and not being afraid to love yourself as well as the people around you no matter the status quo, that people would have a little more open-mindedness and compassion.

[thousandyearphantombunker]

(rant- and I do get pretty mean so probably don't read im proably gonna delete later)

the people who couldn't handle the ending of Amphibia or Aang's commitment to nonviolence would fucking die if they watched Princess Tutu or Ever After High! If Rose Quartz is too much for you then I don't know what to say! At this point I'm convinced the problem runs deeper than a lack of media literacy and I think it's a mixture of entitlement and some really intense black and white thinking being used to justify it cause for all the flaws in these shows I don't think people can miss the point so badly by accident! At this point it's willful ignorance! For all of Amphibia's and ATLA's seasonal rot and for all of steven universe's more problematic messaging y'all really have do stretch to create 'problems' to justify being assholes and to make your opinions on how the shows ended valid- newsflash you can personally disagree with certain messages and explain why you disagree with Aang's pacifism without turning him into a rapist and saying he (the guy who survived a genocide and whose whole culture is based on tibetan monks) is a white colonizer and rapist! You can say you think there is some genuinely problematic and bad messages in Steven Universe without accusing Rebecca Sugar (a Jewish bisexual nonbinary person married to a black man) of being a nazi apologist! You can say you feel like Amphibia's jokes and tone weren't your cup of tea and you don't like the plantars without shitting on fans who do like those elements for being 'childish'! while were at it your allowed to hate the ending of svtfoe without being mean to people who ship starco! But no so many of you have to be mean inorder to prove your point! You can be critical and point out a shows flaws and shortcomings without being assholes! Also you can just say 'i don't like this price of media' considering some of you don't even try and make a point and are just being assholes

[kowaretatenshi26]

Exactly!! As a queer neurodivergent woman in her 30s, I have been brought to tears several times watching She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, The Owl House, and Steven Universe because of the fantastic representation they provide. I was raised in an ultra conservative family full of homophobia, which made it difficult for me to even recognize my own queerness, let alone accept it. Watching these shows as an adult and seeing how queer couples are portrayed and how normal everyone else in the show treats them is beautiful to me, and I’m so happy that younger viewers, especially younger queer viewers or younger viewers with queer family or friends, can see that gay couples are normal and should be treated with the same dignity and respect as straight couples. One thing that was both interesting and awesome for the world building of The Owl House was that a character who was well known for being cruel, selfish, and neglectful, was many horrendous things, but she wasn’t homophobic; homophobia is something that just doesn’t exist in this universe and I adore it. In all 3 shows, no one has any real negative reactions to queer characters or queer relationships. Pronouns are respected, and feelings are respected.

Steven Universe includes lesbian relationships, bi/pan characters, and a nonbinary intersex character with they/them pronouns that everyone respects, including the character that literally exists to be the town douchebag; most of the characters are LGBTQIA+. Series creator Rebecca Sugar refused to cave to pressures from Cartoon Network regarding how much LGBTQIA+ content they included in the series, including constructing an episode revolving around a lesbian wedding that couldn’t be skipped because the episode also contained critical plot information that couldn’t be explained without watching the episode. Sugar also bypassed other attempts at censorship by putting the more masc character in a dress (some countries had given this character a male voice actor to avoid portraying her relationship with her partner as gay) and the feminine character in a suit. We get to watch a whole lesbian wedding, complete with a lip-to-lip kiss; these characters have also kissed each other’s cheeks and held hands in previous episodes.

She-Ra has gay couples, lesbian couples (including the main character and her love interest), nonbinary characters, bisexual characters, polyamorous characters in a polyamorous relationship, and transgender characters, all of whom are treated with respect. In fact, series creator Nate Stevenson went out of his way to write the story of the entire series in such a way that, if the love story between the main character and her eventual partner was removed, the whole story would fall apart; a lesbian couple, their romantic feelings for each other, and how these romantic feelings impact their actions is so vital that there literally is no show if you remove the romantic aspect. Their first kiss, lip-to-lip, literally gives the main character the motivation she needs to regain her strength and win the final fight. Stevenson also said to assume that all of the characters are LGBTQIA+ unless he explicitly states otherwise. One lesbian character is also shown to have two mothers, and a bisexual character has an entire episode dedicated to him introducing his friends to his two dads.

The Owl House has bisexual characters, lesbian characters, gay characters, nonbinary characters with respected they/them or he/they pronouns, and pansexual characters. The main character is explicitly bisexual, and her love interest is explicitly a lesbian. One of the main supporting characters, who is pansexual with a bisexual love interest, is explicitly shown interacting with and talking about her two dads. Another main character, who is bisexual, has a nonbinary love interest, and another character is shown to be aro/ace. The main character and her love interest go through the normal pre-relationship phase of crushing hard on each other while being oblivious to the fact that the crush is mutual; this transitions to them awkwardly asking each other out, complete with copious amounts of blushing, and this episode where they officially become a couple ends with them holding hands and the main character rubbing her thumb across her love interest’s hand. They explicitly call each other “my girlfriend” and have cute pet names for each other, and there are several cheek kisses. This couple actually gets two lip-to-lip kisses, and they are in a romantic relationship for the entire second half of the show’s duration. There is a whole scene in the third season where the main character comes out to her mother as bisexual and introduces her love interest as her girlfriend, and her mother happily embraces both of them; the scene also shows her friend waving bisexual flags, and later scenes in the episode include her mother wearing a rainbow heart pin and the main character and her love interest having corresponding bisexual and lesbian heart stickers next to their pictures in a scrapbook. Series creator Dana Terrace fought tooth and nail to make the main character and her love interest have a canon, explicitly queer relationship, including their first lip-to-lip kiss. When the show was cancelled for “not fitting the Disney brand” (despite them having a movie where characters virgin-shame another character and literally talk about “having p-in-v contact” that apparently fits the Disney brand just fine), she crammed as much explicitly LGBTQIA+ content into the last three episodes as she could.

Yes we need more chaste twee baby gay romances like heartstopper and yes we also need more shows where men fuck raw to express their love for one another like Élite and yes we need more toxic gays having hate sex like Interview with the Vampire and yes we need more incidental gay characters like the dads in cartoons like Owl House.

It's not a competition! It's a hoard and I'm like a gay little Smaug.

[interruptingkau]

In relation to that post that starts off valid but then calls Voltron revolutionary for killing its gays, the fact that wlw are easier to explain as Just Friends than mlm definitely Is a large part of why they're more prominent in the rep we've been getting in cartoons lately. That's why full on kisses Are a big deal. Su had a whole unambiguous wedding. People will certainly try to explain that away but they can't really. They can't brush off the kiss in At either. It Is a big deal.

Getting hints of us snuck into cartoons just to have the public tell us we're reaching isn't a privilege wlw have over mlm, but it's interconnected to lgbt rep as a whole, and if this is where we start in the effort to normalize all lgbt people, so be it. At the end of the day, gay characters who live will always be more revolutionary than those who die.

[opinated-user]

Lily wanting to pretend Rebecca Sugar composed the music Aivi and Surrashu made makes sense when you realize Aivi and Surrashu are a nonbinary agender AFAB Vietnamese American and a bisexual neurodivergent man (he has ADHD) respectively. They're also in a relationship, which I'm sure Lily would view as cishet because of her views on AFAB people, but setting that aside, shitting on POC, neurodivergent and queer people, taking their work and attributing it to someone else? That's Lily to a T.

Of course she decided their music was done by Sugar. Otherwise she'd have to talk about queer people who aren't sexy hot cis lesbians and she'd have to talk about POC who aren't sexy hot black ladies or her sexy Nativesona. And why have non cishet people and nonwhite people present if they're not going to be sex objects?

It sucks that she's erasing both Aivi's work (they did some songs entirely on their own) and Aivi and Surrashu's work. But not only does this let Lily continue to act like all TV shows are made by only one person, it lets her shit on queer-positive queer people who have done a lot of StopAsianHate activism since the show ended, and I'm sure the more racist part of her probably enjoys getting to punch down on those silly tenderqueers who think racism exists outside of being used as a gotcha in arguments.

(Side note but for further discussions' sake please note: Aivi uses they/them and it/its with a preference for they/them. You'll find some interviews that use she/her but those are from before Aivi came out.)

LO erasing the hard work of POC and other queer people for the sake of bashing on a person with pale skin seems to be a recurrent theme with her lately. when you look at it like that it becomes all the less convincing that she cares about combating racism when she consistently keeps commiting this exact same mistake.

[elfboyeros]

The Importance of The Owl House {A Thesis (?) on Good LGBTQIA+ Representation in Media}

I don't think I have to talk the lot of you all on Tumblr that The Owl House has good LGBTQIA+ representation, this is a microblogging website for ✨the gays✨ but I have thoughts on the show and its representation, especially because this is "children's show" on the Disney Channel!

The Owl House came out in 202O and was created by the lovely Dana Terrace, who as I understand it worked on beloved Gravity Falls (2012, Alex Hirsch) back in the day, {*Gently Holds* THANK YOU DANA TERRACE, MY BELOVED} and is, as Wikipedia describes it, a Fantasy Horror Comedy.

The show is great! It ticks all the boxes for me, chief, which also means it has good LGBTQIA+ representation! As an Asexual and Nonbinary person, I feel seen!

And yes, other shows have the representation I am looking for. She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018) have queer representation thanks to Noelle Stevenson, and no matter how to feel about Steven Universe (2013) Rebecca Sugar moved a mountain in queer representation, so shows that wanted to include queer topics could thrive in a cable space! Although they don't do it like The Owl House!

First off, She-ra and the Princesses of Power is on Netflix, and despite the fact that She-ra target audience is children, a stream serves like Netflix can and does get away with "walking the line," plus beside a few references to two women being in a relationship and queer undertones, most of the queer representation happened in the final season.

Secondly, it is public knowledge that Rebecca Sugar at to twist the truth about what Steven Universe was about so Cartoon Network would consider putting it on the air, and dispute fighting for a lesbian wedding later in the series run, language like wife, and girlfriend are never use when talking about queer characters.

Compared to The Owl House, Danna Terrace was open and honest with those at Disney that Luz, The show's main character, would be Bisexual!

“In [development] I was very open about my intention to put queer kids in the main cast. I’m a horrible liar so sneaking it in would’ve been hard,” Terrace wrote. “When we were greenlit I was told by certain Disney leadership that I could not represent any form of bi or gay relationship on the channel.” (Variety) “I’m bi! I want to write a bi character, dammit!” Terrace tweeted. “Luckily my stubbornness paid off and now I am very supported by current Disney leadership.”

To add recent episodes have not to beat around the bush and showed the term "girlfriend" to reference the relationship that has now form between Luz and Amity!

THIS IS A SHOW ON THE DISNEY CHANNEL AND HAS BEEN MAKING HISTORY!

Alex Hirsch had to tell someone that works on Gravity Falls that they couldn't add an old lesbian couple in a few frames because Disney would not approve!

The language and the force are important for that watching! The young queer kids that are consuming the media and the cishet adults that are having to watch it alongside their children. Using the term Girlfriends with "extreme" force like in "Eclipse Lake" shows that these two young female-presenting characters are not "just friends". The use of Them/they pronouns in "Eda's Requiem" and other episodes not only refer to the character of Raine Whispers and other characters that we don't know the identity of, normalize the use of they/them pronouns to refer to a single person!

The Owl House is making history thanks to Dana Terrance's "studdorness", the queer fans that are starved for quality reperestation, and the progressing society that is allowing it to say on the air instead of setting it on fire because it is "abnormal".

Granted there are still people out there that wish The Owl House would not be a piece of Queer media, and are trying to do everything to kill it on sight, although let's enjoy the fact that we have made this far in the world of media and we have a beautiful show with amazing resperantation for LGBTQIA+ individuals!

-Eros/Cupid!

[mysecondsecretaccount]

Media Theory Analysis - Steven Universe

Steven Universe is an animated children’s TV show from Cartoon Network.  The show had 5 seasons from 2013 to 2019, and was followed up by a 2019 movie and 2019 epilogue series entitled “Steven Universe Future” that ran until 2020.  The series was created by Rebecca Sugar, notable for being the network’s first bisexual non-binary women to run a show.  Steven Universe follows the titular Steven, who lives with his human father and Garnet, Amethyst and Pearl, who are gems, humanoid aliens with a variety of fantastical powers, including the ability for two gems to fuse into one gem, essentially two people becoming one for an amount of time.  Steven is half-gem, and his Mom, the gem Rose Quartz, gave up her physical form to become Steven, essentially dying in the process.  Much of the show centers around Steven coming into his own: dealing with his identity as half-gem, figuring his relationship to his dead mother, and fighting with the responsibilities and assumptions placed on him by Garnet, Amethyst and Pearl, who simultaneously view him as just a little kid, and the next Rose Quartz.  As the show progresses, we learn that the Gems have a caste system based on function, which is run by the tyrannical Diamond Authority.

Power distance

As mentioned above, the show has a caste system based on function, which reflects our current system in many ways.  In the episode “Too Far”, the character Peridot shed some light on how the caste system works (shown at 3:12 in the video below)

As Peridot says “Pearl is a pearl, Garnet is a fusion,  [and Amethyst is] the only Crystal Gem, that's actually a Gem!”  There’s very clearly a power structure implied here, with Pearls and Fusions being seen as second-class citizens.  With this in mind, let’s start to look at the parallels to our real life caste system.

First, let’s talk about Pearls.  Pearls are essentially a slave race of personal servants, owned by nobility and forced to do work similar to secretary work, all while expected to look nice and fancy.  Throughout the show we see Pearl, the character (characters have the same name as their type of gem), being passed off as “just a pearl”, or “a feisty pearl”, and it’s a huge deal that she’s “a pearl that belongs to no one”.

“A Pearl who belonged to no one”

As you may be able to tell, the way Pearls are treated is allegorical for how women are treated in society.  Though views of women as second-class citizens aren’t exactly common in today’s world, backwards views like this still exist in many parts of the world.  There are still places where women are essentially bound to their husbands, in the same way that Pearls are bound to their masters.  And though it isn’t common now, the time when women mainly did secretary work was not that long ago in the grand scheme of things.

Next, there’s fusions.  In the show, fusions between the same types of gem are normal and common, though they are only used for military purposes and unfuse immediately after battle.

Three rubies fusing 

But fusions between different gem types are relatively unheard of, and are heavily shunned by gem society.  The first time two different gems fused, onlookers were horrified, and both particular gems were ordered to be shattered (killed).

Now it’s important to note that fusions, being the physical embodiment to two character’s feelings towards each other, are often used to represent romantic relationships.  And since all Gems are female (or at least, female-coded, I’ll get into that later), all relationships are necessarily queer.  And by viewing fusions through a queer framework, the hatred and contempt felt towards fusions becomes an obvious allegory for homophobia.  And though it may seem like most people are accepting of the queer community, especially seeing how gay marriage is legal in the united states, that’s simply not the case, especially seeing as a major political party in the U.S. is explicitly against gay marriage.

“Garnet? Does that call herself a Garnet? Haha! What would you have her do? Enter with the Demantoids? The Hessonites, the Pyropes?”

This degradation is embodied in the show.  When two gems become one, the gem that they become is one that would be higher rank than the two composing gems.  However, the rulers of gem society do not recognize the status of fusions, and find the very idea laughable, as shown above.  This only further shows how much of a second class citizen fusions are in this society.

 Let’s return to that Peridot quote from earlier: Amethyst is higher status than both Pearl and Garnet.  The thing is, Amethysts are lowly soldiers, so the fact that she could be the leader of the group, despite being the youngest, and despite the fact that Garnet should be a high-ranking military commander is frankly astonishing, and really speaks to the backwards nature of their society, which can, in turn make us reflect on the many absurd contradictions of our society.

Uncertainty avoidance

Newness and uncertainty are heavy themes in Steven Universe, even being built into the show’s very premise.  You see, Steven is a half human, haf gem hybrid, and that’s something that’s completely new in this universe.  

“There's never been anything or anyone like Steven.”

This is at the heart of one of the show’s central conflicts: how Garnet, Amethyst and Pearl view Steven.  Steven is something new, and that’s confusing and scary to the gems, because they frankly have no idea what to do with him.  But, over time, they learn that they have to accept Steven as a member of their team.  And this message of accepting the new and uncomfortable comes through with one of the show’s main mechanics: fusion.

“Something entirely new”

As shown in the video above, when the first fusion between two gems occurs, it’s portrayed as “Something entirely new”, and the show makes sure to emphasize. how special and unique that is.

“I still can't believe it. Only on Earth, don't you think? Only on Earth where anything can happen. A fusion of two completely different Gems! Can all Gems do that? How have I never heard of this?! I've only ever heard that it's unheard of.”

Furthermore, in the episode “Alone Together”, Steven fuses with his best friend Connie, creating Stevonnie, the first human/gem hybrid fusion.  At first, Pearl is perplexed and uncomfortable, calling it “inappropriate”, but Garnet, who’s portrayed as the wisest of the group, don’t ask questions or make assumptions, instead only telling them to “Go have fun!”

Finally, it's important to note that trying new things is at the crux of the plot, at least in season one.  You see, the show starts with Steven and the Crystal Gems going around and capturing corrupted gems, who are animalistic in nature.  For most interactions with these creatures, the Crystal Gems just fight them.  But Steven is irked by this, and proposes nonviolent solutions.  Ultimately, it’s only through these new solutions that progress is made.  Just as in real life, progress can only be made by accepting new and uncertain solutions.

Finally, it's important to note that trying new things is at the crux of the plot, at least in season one.  You see, the show starts with Steven and the Crystal Gems going around and capturing corrupted gems, who are animalistic in nature.  For most interactions with these creatures, the Crystal Gems just fight them.  But Steven is irked by this, and proposes nonviolent solutions.  Ultimately, it’s only through these new solutions that progress is made.  Just as in real life, progress can only be made by accepting new and uncertain solutions.

First of all, the entire Gem race is female (or female presenting rather, I’ll get to that in a minute), except for Steven, who’s half-gem and identifies as male (he/him).  This is notable, because many mainstream franchises have casts that are almost entirely male, usually save for one token female (see: the smurfette principle).  Steven universe is unique for having an entire race designed specifically to subvert this.

But what’s interesting that none of the Gems are actually female, they’re all nonbinary.  According to the show’s creator (who herself is a nonbinary women), all the gems are sexless and agendered, an alien species that don’t have a gender binary.  However, they all present female and use she/her pronouns (with a couple exceptions I’ll get to in a moment).  This is unique as nearly every character in every piece of media falls within the gender binary, and though the gems may lean to one side of it, they still fall strictly outside the gender binary.

 Masculinity vs femininity

Steven Universe is notable for defying gender expectations in several unique and groundbreaking ways.

First of all, the entire Gem race is female (or female presenting rather, I’ll get to that in a minute), except for Steven, who’s half-gem and identifies as male (he/him).  This is notable, because many mainstream franchises have casts that are almost entirely male, usually save for one token female (see: the Smurfette principle).  Steven Universe is unique for having an entire race designed specifically to subvert this.

But what’s interesting that none of the Gems are actually female, they’re all nonbinary.  According to the show’s creator (who herself is a nonbinary women), all the gems are sexless and agendered, an alien species that don’t have a gender binary.  However, they all present female and use she/her pronouns (with a couple exceptions I’ll get to in a moment).  This is unique as nearly every character in every piece of media falls within the gender binary, and though the gems may lean to one side of it, they still fall strictly outside the gender binary.

Some characters go even further in being non-binary, not leaning to either side and using they/them pronouns.  Specifically, we have Stevonnie, who is the fusion of Steven (male) and Connie (female).  Stevonnie is romanticized by the show as a true human experience, which also serves as a validation and confirmation of nonbinary identities.

Stevonnie being awesome.

All of the other fusions that include steven use they/them pronouns, including: Smoky Quartz (they/them), Rainbow Quartz 2.0 (They/Them & He/Him), Sunstone (They/Them & She/Her) and Obsidian (They/Them & She/Her).

It’s also worth noting that in Steven Universe Future, we get to briefly meet a nonbinary character named Shep, proving once and for all, that you don’t have to be a half-alien gem fusion to be nonbinary.

They 

Another gender standard that Steven Universe rebukes is that of traditional female beauty.  Though most Gems are female-presenting, they all present their femininity in different ways.  

Taken from a Contrapoints video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9bbINLWtMKI)  

As you can clearly see, even though all of these characters use she/her pronouns, they all present their femininity in radically different ways, not being afraid to stray into nontraditional femininity.

Then there’s the subversive masculinity of Steven Universe.

The video above basically says everything I wanted to say on this topic in a manner infinitely better than I could ever do, and I don’t want to just limply restate its arguments, so just go watch the video for yourself.  All I have to add is that Steven is not at all afraid to wear traditionally feminine clothing, or act in a traditionally feminine manner, as shown below:

Individualism vs. collectivism

Throughout the show, the Crystal Gems are constantly fighting as a team.  They’re always working together, and there’s an assumed promotion of the value of teamwork throughout the show.  All major problems are only ever solved through cooperation.

What’s more interesting is how fusion plays into this topic.  Fusion is an allegory for relationships, of all different shapes, sizes and kinds.  So naturally, some fusions represent teamwork, specifically Alexandrite and Obsidian, the fusion of Garnet, Amethyst and Pearl and the fusion of Garnet, Amethyst, Pearl and Steven respectively.  These fusions only exist as long as the contributing members are willing to cooperate, and have trouble staying together when the members aren’t working well together.

Alexandrite coming apart after her components start bickering

We also see the smaller, two-gem type fusions being used to represent teamwork and collective power.  The philosophy behind fusions is that they are greater than the sum of their parts, and as such are extremely useful for completing tasks.  Throughout the show we see characters fusing to do things like lift up a drill, destroy a tall structure, babysit, or even just to fight.  Recurring is known for lamenting the fact that she’s always beaten by fusion, even resorting to fusing with an uneasy ally to win a battle, twice (it works neither time).  The message is clear: teamwork creates synergy.

Pearl and Amethyst fuse to lift a drill

But what makes this truly interesting is how Steven Universe also champions individuality.  The show features plenty of characters who have arcs of self discovery, eventually coming into their own as a unique person, most notably Steven Universe himself.  Though you may think that these themes of individuality and collectivism may contradict each other, Steven Universe finds a way to escape that binary and champion both.

In episode “The Question”, the idea of differentiation is explored.  Differentiation is the idea that members of a couple need solid individual identities to work together as a couple.  And this idea can be applied to many other fusions throughout the show.  For example, in the episode “Mindful Education”, Stevonnie starts hallucinating when one of their components, Connie, is having trouble at school.  In said episode, Garnet explains that for fusions to stay fused, there has to be balance, and all participants have to be stable.  

“For a fusion to work, there needs to be balance. An imbalance can cause your fusion to...fall apart. That is to say, if one of you is falling apart, your fusion will as well. To find balance, you must understand your feelings.”

Ultimately, Steven Universe conveys a complex but important message: “Teamwork and cooperation are vital in making societal progress, but individual identity is crucial and cannot be ignored”

Indulgence vs restraint

While Some critics of the show have posited that in the first season, Steven has everything he wants.  And while that may be true from a physical statement (he eats what he wants, he gets to play video games all the time, he lives extremely close to both an arcade and an amusement park), his emotional needs, his need to be accepted by his family, his need to feel like he’s a valued member of the team, his need to be not be seen in the shadow of his mother, taken entire seasons to be meet, and some of those needs are frankly never met.

In the end, Steven Universe proves to be a subversive masterpiece, defying traditional expectations of gender and power structure, while providing new ways forward through uncertainty and the combination of individuality and collectivism.  To matter what framework you view the show through, it will always have something to learn from. 

[popculturebuffet]

OK K.O.! Let’s Be Heroes!: You’re Everybody’s Sidekick Review

OK KO was easily one of the best animated series of the 2010′s and i’ll stand by those words. The brainchild of Ian Jones Quartlery, voice of Wallow in Bravest Warriors and more importantly former head writer for Steven Universe, and current longtime romantic partner of that series creator Rebecca Sugar. That part isn’t AS important, but I still find it sweet.  Anyways OK KO was the story of K.O., a 6-11, not my own laziness for once but the show’s own way of doing age, year old boy who wants to be the best like no one ever was. In this case i’ts being a hero in a world that’s basically like if someone took the marvel universe and smashed a retro game collection and a pile of manga on top of it and then blended up the result and shot it full of gamma rays. Full of heroes of all kinds ranging from those fighitng crime to those who just want to loiter outside strip malls or cut hair.  To achieve this goal KO gets a job at Gar’s Bodega, the combination of your average bodega (for those unfamiliar with the term, i’ts a convience store) and a video game item shop, so the slurpee machine is right next to the power ups and ninja stars, and everything from skateboard polish to Spread Guns is avaliable. The bodega is owned by Mr.Gar, a mustachiosed muscle man whose basically a shoutier mexican version of MIke Haggar but with shades and a mustache. So a somehow better version of him, though with him being busy watching over the plaza itself, doing secret hero missions and what not the day to day operations are left to two teens: Rad, a muscle bound dude bro alien with telekenisis and a secret heart of gold and Enid, a cynical, slacker ninja whose also bilogically a witch because her parents are a vampire and a werewolf. So the series follows these three as they run the boedega, grow as people and fight the robots that frequently attack the plaza sent by the evil Lord Boxman who hates the place literally because it’s there and it’s existance annoys him. This is the canon explination and it is utterly hilarious.  The series was funny, had great character work, decent ongoing stories, great jokes and a fun tone that could go from meaningful and well thorught ot utterly batshit from episode to episode and was sadly canceled after 3 seasons because Cartoon Network is kinda stupid right now and dosen’t know how to handle a superhero show that still makes action a priority, but it did get a solid ending, a slew of great crossovers and a decent amount of representation under i’ts belt.  WHich brings us to today and the start of RED ACTION WEEK: A week dedicated to the series most prominent gay character and the bisexual ninja witch who loves her. I’m covering all 5 of Red’s more prominent apperances... I was just going to do the red/enid episodes but decided this was a better introduction to the series itself, as well as the fact it allows her character arc to better tie together by her final episode, which directly uses this one as a major plot point. I also threw Plaza Prom in there since, even if she’s only a supporting character, it’s still one of her few major apperances, is part of her final major episode, is one of my faviorites, and the climactic dance fights is one of the most intentionally homoerotic fight scenes i’ve seen in some time. With all that out of the way, let’s do this after the cut. 

We start at Gar’s Bodega, just after the opening two parter, with KO starting his first day of work, part of the reason this episode is a fairly smooth introduction into the show. Not even in the door he accidently shoryukyn’s joe cuppa, a stand up comedian with a cup of coffee in the big time for a head... I told you anything goes and I meants it.  After that accident, we find Enid at the counter, ignoring the customers before shooing them away and when KO asks for work, plays along with his enthusasim and tells him to clean the store.. which he does in minutes, before being told to sort the penny dish, and while he does the two discuss KO’s love of helping people: KO just genuinely thinks that’s part of his job, the right thing to do and feels good while Enid.. dosen’t feel it’s worth the effort and people are just generally ungreatful and not worth it.  I really like this scene for showing off their character dynamic beautifully: It starts showing that while at this stage Enid is largely an asshole, she does care about K.O. and while he’s cleaning, despite usually turning customers away, still let’s Ginger, an elderly patron and one of KO’s mom’s dojo customers, not only check out but pay in freaking pennies. It shows that try as she might, Enid really isn’t a cyncial or heartlesss as she claims. It’s also nice setup for later in the season as, and as i’m sure Ian Jones Quartlery and crew were preparing for, we later DO see why Enid hates people so much: her best friend, possibly more, Elodie, who i’ll certainly be covering eventually, betrayed her for a spot at Point Prep, basically UHA or Xavier’s for this world and claimed their friendship was just a ploy (It wasn’t, but again, story for another time), while her one date with Rad went terribly due to him acting like a huge jackass at the advice of his even bigger jackasses of friends. It’s easy to see why she stopped carring: When she opened up in the past it only lead to her being hurt and alone. K.O.... is the opposite. He genuinely belivies in everyone and tries to help them because, as said above, it’s just what he does and what he belivies a hero should be... he hasn’t been hurt or influenced by assholes like his friends, and thus is able to get them to open up. It’s a wonderful dynamic and I love it.  And naturally, KO is determined to help Enid see the light, with Enid responding with the wonderful line “You’ll never melt my icy heart”... give him a few more episodes Enid, give him a few more episodes.  So K.O. Decides to set out helping people, shouting about it to enid back at the store as he does because he’s 6-11 and kids in that age range are many things, but subtle is not one of them. He starts with Geoff and Nick Army, a monk and gay duke nukem reflectivity who despite having polar oppositie personalities, are both a couple, as confirmed by the creative team and then the finale, and a crime fighting duo who are having a dispute over opening a pickle jar with the good old ultra violence or non violence, which KO solves by letting both do it once, which results in a pickle jar explosion, both men in their underwear and everyone happy, especially the shippers.  KO continues his quest, going to Logical Cuts where we meet Mr.Logic, a robot who has a rather moving and well done backstory we’ll certainly get to, and is voice by James Urabanik, aka the voice of Rusty Venture on the venture bros, to my utter delight. And yes i’ll be covering the venture bros eventually, and might be this month. His customer, another one of KO’s mom’s regulars, is upset because her haircut isn’t right while Mr.Logic is upset, well as upset as a monotone robot can convey, that his usually 100% mathmatically perfect haircuts are off. KO pitches in and the new result is perfect, with both being greatful. 

KO’s next stop on his good will help people crying for help tour, after the above bit of wonderful art shift as that version of ko moveds like a south park character for some reason. Anyways, it turns out best friends, co workers and the dante and randal of this show, i.e.two best friends working a dead end job who despite arguing a lot need each other, A Real Magical Skeleton, self explaintory and Greg, a bear, are having an argument because RMS is trying to do their job and frame a baseball for a guy while Greg is being a dickhead and playing the drums constantly. As you can probably wager, I do not like Greg, probably more than rusty, partly because a future episode has him making KO doubt his macaroni art gift for his mom so he can eat it, yes really,and partly because he’s less intresting than his buddy and yet the two are shipped frequently despite my honest assumption they’d kill each other.. much like if dante and randall finally banged. However if you do ship them, I have no hostility with you. Unlike say loudcest or shipping sam with lincoln over at the loud hosue, there's nothing wrong with RMS X Brandon, it’s just not for me.  Anywho KO solves it in the hilarious and awesome manner of just putting Brandon inside one of those baseball cube things... it’s a shame he apparently gave him air holes but whatever. Proud of himself, K.O. plans to head back when he runs into the Ally Teens: Red Action, rude teen warrior from the future who just had a bad haircut, Drupe, a sentient strawberry because of course, and Greg, Drupe’s nonbinary best friend and combination of one of the bone cousins and Woodstock. K.O. offers to help and , with the trio being huge steaming bowls of elephant piss at this point, they instead trick him into waiting in a lava flow and then have drupe whip him every time the lava causes him to cartoonishily jump in the air.  Yeah despite both Red Action and Drupe going on to having supporting roles, like our good pal tom, who I will get back to this month, there isn’t nearly as much wiggle room in their first apperance. With Tom Lucitor, he was a dick.. but you could make the case, even just off that ep that he genuinely dosen’t know HOW to be a good person or that what he’s doing is sketchy at best. Here, it’s fairly obvious the ally teens know setting a child on fire and using vine whip on him super effectively is wrong, that’s why their doing it. Red, being that special brand of asshole, posts it on social media. I mean posting a video of yourself hurting a child, that’s Tucker Carlson level’s of dickery right there. Stone cold. Enid sees it and is understandably concerned, and goes over to see if KO’s allright when he returns and is forced to explain to him that no they weren’t laughing with him, they were laughing at him and were just being dicks. Also he wasn’t in lava, it was magma. It was above ground. 

K.O. glumly wonders why and Enid reitrates this kind of shit is why she dosen’t help people. K.O. also wonders how she saw it and we find out Enid is basically facebook stalking red action on her social media, as you do, and that Red’s been on a bit of a tear lately, smashing up shit and farting in Geoff’s face all because she got a bad haircut, with K.O. , likely going thorugh more of her posts, realizing theirs a pattern: When bad things happen to her she lashes out at others.. just like Enid. I do like the parallel there: Enid likely has a crush on her because the two are fairly similar.. but Enid runs cold and tens to be standoffish as a result of her past, while Red tens to take out her anger and frustration on everyone else and runs red hot. But they come together because opposities attract... it’s what noble laurite MC Scat Kat taaught us after all.  K.O. however, having Steven Universe level’s of empahty and an equal sense of wanting to help, and just as few boundries as he had as a tween, decides that it’s clear the ally teens have underlying issues to adress and gets Enid help to look at their social media. Returning to the ally,and seemingly unphased by earlier, K.O. sets out helping them, starting by helping red get her haircut fixed by Mr. Logic. Red is adorably delighted. Moving on K.O. notes that Drupe basically just follows Red’s lead but has a fashion blog and clearly an identiy of her own and we soon learn she believes no one reads it. K.O. showed it to the not at all ambigiously gay duo and Geoff and Nick thank her> That’s two blushes and two wins in K.O.’s court.  Finishing up, K.O. realizes Gregg stays quiet because they have low self esteem and feel they have nothing to be proud of. K.O. however found lots to be proud of and framed Gregg’s valdectorian certificate for him, again with some help from earlier.  Instead of graditude red just calls him weird and leaves and KO slumps back depressed. I’ts a good lesson though: people DON’T change just because you did one weirdly kind thing for them. That takes time.. as we’ll see with Red and as we see with Drupe, who has less of an ons creen journey but is far nicer after her next apperance. While Enid is grossed out over having helped someone, Gregg comes in.. and after some great deranged animation thanks K.O. and Enid admits after some prodding that it does feel good to help, and K.O. is happy to have helped her int he process. The two playfully mess around as the episode ends. Final Thoughts: This was a really good one. Reaching back this far into the series, I didn’t think it’d would be nearly as good as it ended up: It serves both as a good proper introduction for a lot of the plaza regulars, a good setup for Enid’s character arc, and was also really funny with great animation. LIke Tom, I don’t think the creators knew exactly what they were going to do with the Alley Teens and thus take the two they end up focusing on in opposite directon: Red keeps her assholishness for her next apperance and grows from it, while Drupe’s drops off by the end of this season, likely due to her fashion blog taking off, but we’ll get into Red more in a review or so and Drupe more later this month.For now this episode was good and next up we have their next apperance in Plaza Prom. Until then, follow this blog for more reviews and nonsense, like and reblog it if you enjoyed this, hit me up with asks for review suggestions or comssions and until next time, later days!

[phantomdragon62]

My piece for @marksartcenter ‘s upcoming show from October 14-November 14 2019! The Artist’s Reception is October 29 from 5-7PM.

SU is amazing, thank you RS 💖

✨🏳️‍🌈✨

@cartoonnetwork @rebeccasugar @crewniverse

My portrait is of Rebecca Sugar ( @rebeccasugar ). Rebecca is one of my favorite artists, people, and the creator of Steven Universe (which is an animated cartoon series that airs on Cartoon Network that deals with love, family, emotions, life, and LGBTQIA* themes of acceptance and normalcy). I’ve wanted to make a portrait of her/them for a long time, for she herself is a Bisexual Nonbinary Woman who works with a diverse team of artists, animators, writers and singers to make this revolutionary show for kids and adults alike can all enjoy. She is one of my biggest inspirations as an artist, shows great representation of the LGBTQIA community in all of her work, and her show has also made cartoon history several times and still continues to do so; some examples are winning the “GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Kids & Family Programming” 2019 (doing so makes it the first animated show to do so), the “Peabody Award - Children & Youth” 2019, and is the first occurrence of a same-sex proposal and marriage wrapped together in a mainstream show for children. I have been watching the show since it first aired all the way back in 2013; Steven Universe has been my favorite show for its message of empathy, love, family, as well as the lovely animation, story, music, and art involved in it all. Rebecca Sugar is an amazing person who is passionate about her art, her beliefs, and is a kind person that has done so much for children and adults in the LGBTQIA community. It was an honor to capture her beautiful smile and emotion in my digital art piece and an honor to be in this show. I have never done anything like this event before, but I am proud to be a part of this community with so many amazing artists and people. *Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer (or questioning), Intersex, and Asexual (or allies) * 

[help-mypartner]

Day 19: LGBTQ+ recommendations (films, TV, books etc)

One day this list will be much longer, however these are my recommendations at the moment.

Films:

Pride - a British film about what it was like to live as an LGBTQ+ person back in the 80's, with a wholesome storyline in parts and inspired by real people. Amazing soundtrack! Makes me cry every time.

Blue is the Warmest Colour - a fairly graphic film about a girl discovering and exploring her sexuality.

Bohemian Rhapsody - a film exploring the life of Freddie Mercury and his sexuality. Emotional and amazing.

Moonlight - just an adorable and emotional film with some graphic scenes.

TV:

Steven Universe - the lovely nonbinary sapphics Ruby and Sapphire are my life tbh. I love this show for some solid representation on sexuality and pronouns, and Rebecca Sugar is nonbinary!

One day at a time - solid representation, including the important message that you don't have to forgive someone just because they're family. I adore the show in general (and I think it was just renewed for another season), so check it out for heavy hitting storylines about race and mental health, as well as some LGBTQ+ characters that are very relatable.

Crazy Ex Girlfriend - literal song about being bisexual. Also super funny and emotional, exploring themes of mental health and relationships.

Books:

Girl Hearts Girl by Lucy Sutcliffe - a YouTuber's memoir discussing her coming out and long distance relationship.

The Devouring Gray by Christine Lynn Herman - a YA fiction novel with some disabled and some LGBT+ characters in. Love that representation!

When You Are Engulfed in Flames by David Sedaris - another memoir by famous non fiction author David Sedaris who is a gay writer.

Of course there are plenty of others, and a fair warning that some of these cover more Adult content so check the ratings before you check them out, but this makes up a good list!

[aftselakhis-shaladin]

Almost All Queer Representation In Children’s Media Is Superficial

Soon, we will celebrate the fifth anniversary of the airing of Legend of Korra series finale. It certainly made history: it was the first time a non-Japanese-made children’s cartoon featured positive queer content.

However, korrasami scene was literally the last minute of the series, and during the season the girls didn’t even interact much.

And this is the heart of the problem: sure, those characters are queer. Sometimes, they are even queer for each other. However, the children barely get to actually see the characters being queer – the characters’ interactions are few and far in between.

While korrasami relationship has been elaborated on in the comic books, the medium not only appeared years after Korra finished airing, but also is geared towards somewhat more mature audience, focusing on sociological and political topics a child would find boring. Other characters may not even be that lucky. We don’t really see the characters being queer in Voltron, Adventure Time, Arthur, Ok Ko or RWBY – sure, those characters are confirmed to be queer, sometimes even queer together, but never shown *how* they are queer.

Only two examples I can think of actually explore the queerness of the characters. Steven Universe is an obvious winner: Ruby and Sapphire’s love for each other and Pearl’s love for Rose are driving forces of the plot, while the reappearing character if Stevonnie is canonically and explicitly intersex and nonbinary (as implicitly are the gems in general).

The second example is She-Ra and the Princesses of Power. While it’s still too early to say anything about the minor lesbian couple or the intense relationship of Adora and Catra, the episode introducing Bow’s dads gives them not only nuanced characterization, but also portrays them as a loving couple and doting parents – something no other cartoon does for queer male characters.

Let’s look on Sailor Moon Crystal, on the other hand. It’s not a good cartoon, and certainly not a queer cartoon, but nonetheless from the beginning it establishes the titular character’s bisexuality – she may be in an established relationship with a boy, but that doesn’t stop her from finding other girls and boys attractive. This is especially pronounced in the third season, where Haruka (herself in established lesbian relationship) plays with Usagi’s attraction towards her, to emotional detriment of both girls. By the end of the season, love between two preteen girls gets confirmed, putting the number of queer characters in SMC up to five, number rivaling Steven Universe’s, even if the screen time dedicated to them is lesser.

And this is honestly the bottom line, casual queerness in Japanese media. Looking back those five years, very little changed in Western media – actually, all the meaningful change can be traced to Rebecca Sugar and Ian Jones-Quartley, a creator couple. Now you can understand why I am disappointed.

[analytickle-lezdom-in-space]

So I can’t help noticing that while I won’t name names, we queer people seem to be trying to make queer icons out of cishet people because they look cute or people who are actually kinda shitheads,. Lemme rattle off some actual queer icons, fictional and real, and all my queer followers feel free to add on (I will be missing some obvious ones, but part of that is I’m sticking with ones I actually personally follow so that’s where you guys come in, so for example Korra and Asami won’t be here because I’ve yet to watch LoK but any LoK fan followers absolutely feel free to add them)

Venom, and of course Eddie and Anne as well, the bisexual poly couple we needed in 2018

Rob Halford of Judas Priest, the Metal God and the man who defined the aesthetics of heavy metal as “Gay BDSM biker” that we know today. Plus, dude’s got the pipes.  

Janelle Monae, pansexual goddess of forward-thinking R&B and queer fashion icon (and an excellent actress to boot)

Sister Rosetta Tharpe, the queer woman of color who invented rock and roll (Yes, before Chuck Berry or Elvis, look her up) 

Frank Ocean, another queer R&B icon whose work I can’t recommend enough.  One of the first men to come out as gay in a genre with some major problems with uber-masculine homophobia, so bravo, Frank. Keep kickin ass.

Natalie Wynn, AKA Contrapoints, the YouTube star whose stories about her own discovery of her identity as a transgender woman is what lead to me realizing I was transgender myself (Also, just the best YouTuber for social issues I know, hilarious, and really pretty).

Legendary poet Allen Ginsberg, for all y’all classier folks. 

Bisexual horror icon and activist Vincent Price, the undisputed god of horror actors.  The man loved his work like no one else.  

Us Adventure Time fans waited for it to be confirmed for years, but we got it.  Marceline The Vampire Queen and Princess Bubblegum be the ultimate royal gay power couple 

Speaking of power couples, Root and Shaw from Person of interest, BAMFs in love. One of many reasons to watch this excellent show plus Shaw’s excellent arc exploring her sociopathy in one of the best, least stigmatizing storylines about mental illness ever put to TV 

Canonically genderfluid and pansexual science officer Jadzia (later Ezri) Dax and nonbinary sentient goo security officer Odo of Deep Space 9.  Odo is another figure that helped me come to grips with my own identity and recognize I wasn’t a man.  The fact that these two were allowed to exist in a 90s TV show continues to astonish me.  

Paranormal investigator John Constantine of DC comics fame.  For those of us who want to stick a middle finger up at authority sometimes.  And no matter how often people forget it, he is indeed very bi.    

Renee Montoya, the second Question, a character I had a major crush on going all the way back to when I watched BTAS as a kid.  Guess some part of me knew I was a lesbian even then.  Plus she was just one of the best parts of 52.

And of course, her on and off lover and gay superhero icon Batwoman (I’m very hype for the new show by the way)

And of course on top of all the DC heroes, I saved the best for last, Wonder Woman, whose bisexuality we knew for decades but was finally confirmed very recently.  Truly an icon for queer people and anyone who wants to stand up and do what’s right.  

And then sadly I’ve not been following much Marvel stuff recently but alongside Venom I of course also gotta point out Valkyrie, who I sincerely hope we see more of in future MCU films 

And then from Dragon Age we got a ton of people but I’ve selected my own personal favorites, Leliana, Isabela, Dorian, Krem, and of course my love Josephine, who you can see in my profile.  I adore all of these characters, her especially, and wanted to represent all 3 of the games.  Plus with Krem it’s nice to see Bioware’s first actual trans character. 

Back to real people, speaking of Batwoman, let’s not forget genderfluid icon Ruby Rose who’ll be playing her.  Those tattoos... *Swoon* 

Rebecca Sugar, nonbinary writer of Adventure Time and Steven Universe, another show I really need to watch sometime.  Love her AT work to death though. 

Kim Deal of the Pixies and Breeders, one of the best bass players in rock music and a huge influence on bands as huge as Nirvana, and by her own statement, also asexual.  

And of course, gotta end it all with Freddie Mercury, the one, the only, the inimitable.  We will never have another man like him, but we can always keep him alive in our memory.  As the bisexual Indian man he actually was, not the white gay man so many people think he was.  

And I think that’s a good start, as I said I invite other queer folks to add on.  This may go without saying but that does not include TERFs, biphobes, aphobes, nbphobes, or any other bigoted gatekeepers, nor does it include MAPS.   But other than that, please go mad, people.  You want icons, we’ll give you icons.  

[jusadode-blog]

There are some pretty solid theories I've seen indicating that Lars is a trans guy/transmasc, if you're interested! I don't have any on hand rn (I'm sorry) but I think user mostlyanything19 has a masterpost of her personal stuff that they've collected :) (I just read your post on the lack of trans guys in su and related rlly hard so I sent this) (I am awkward forgive me)

I actually saw that exact post about two weeks ago! I’m not entirely set on it personally, especially since it hasn’t been explicitly stated. However, I wouldn’t be surprised if Lars is meant to be trans (and thereby coded to the T), but cannot be explicitly stated as such due to censorship issues. Rebecca might be able to get a lot through CN, but I honestly don’t know if the channel is ready to say something that cannot be brushed off with any form of excuse (such as Lars’s possible dead name being mentioned and corrected can easily be brushed off as him just wanting to sound cooler and hating his birth name). To be honest though, I wouldn’t be surprised if Sugar will literally fight tooth and nail to finally get that done, even if it takes another dozen seasons. Either way, that analysis is amazing and I appreciate you trying to drop it on me though!

That post I made is fairly old now, and just a minor back-log feeling in relation to the show since trans-masc people are so heavily overlooked in media and seeing so many other types of people being represented in SU but not me made me pained and jealous. I’m tired of accepting things as “good enough” and want to literally hear something that is so blatantly a tell-tale of “I’m trans”. Bisexual people are often stuck with the phrase, “I don’t like labels” when they mention liking girls and someone mentions they dated a boy or something, and that works to label the characters while avoiding censorship, but for trans people we don’t even have that. Everything that can signify a person is trans is so easily brushed off, so unless Lars casually mentions he’s finally starting his “hormone medication”, or that he’s getting a binder (which would be perfect for a book binder joke for him to make a :l face in reaction), or something so blatantly trans I really can’t accept it as good enough. Don’t mistake me, I am so thankful after seeing the analysis of the whole body-swap episode and realizing how heavily coded Lars is, and I am so glad a generation of young trans masc individuals can have someone they relate to who ACTUALLY IDENTIFIES AS MALE, but I want undeniable canon and I WANT IT HAPPY.

However, on the note of trans coding and the use of trans language, I will say the whole “Change Your Mind” final battle really made me feel so happy and represented, like Rebecca Sugar really went all out for the trans fans, but it felt especially comforting for me as a trans masc person to hear Steven be constantly misgendered and for the final “She’s GONE” moment just broke something in me that needed to be broken. I have mixed feelings about the finale of the season, but the build up, the breakdown, the whole thing was so good. I cried so fucking hard while watching it because for the first time I heard someone literally say by verbatim something that truly spoke to me on such a painfully primal level. Sugar identifies as nonbinary, and you could really feel that she(? the page says that Sugar uses she/her) truly understands what it’s like.

Thanks for writing in though, anyone who want’s to see a collection of trans!Lars evidence please check out the master post like Anon recommended! Also don’t worry about being awkward, I love getting anons, especially when they’re meant to try to spread positivity and happy news!

[nonbinarynotandrogynous]

so i have a question regarding nonbinary genders. i’m honestly really confused with myself right now. i never really cared much about my gender at all, like it just never made a difference to me. i don’t care much about gender, regarding to myself or others. i guess i’m bisexual or pansexual or whatever, i really don’t know. gender just doesn’t matter to me. anyway, seeing as i never really gave much mind to it, it never made me uncomfortable when people referred to me by my birth gender (1)

like, i always just went with it. it’s how i was assigned and that’s fine with me. i always thought being nonbinary was about feeling not male or not female. like feeling something completely different, or being uncomfortable referred to as male or female. i started questioning that all recently when i was listening to an interview with rebecca sugar and she explained she was a nonbinary woman. it seemed completely contradicting to me. like i didn’t understand. so i asked around a little people started to explain to me how being nonbinary doesn’t necessarily mean you’re completely not male or female. and like… now i’m questioning my gender. there have been times strangers have thought i was a boy because i have short hair and i don’t dress very feminine. and it didn’t offend or bother me. i guess that goes along with how gender doesn’t matter to me much. so now i’m just confused. i don’t mind using she/her pronouns, i don’t care what people think my gender is so like…. idk. i’m just confused. am i nonbinary? what would it even be called? am i just cis and confused? i have no idea what’s going on in my head. honestly, i’m just kind of lost.

I can understand how lost and confused you’re feeling now. This sounds a great deal like what I went through when I first started exploring my own gender. Unfortunately no one else can give you the answers you’re looking for. This is something you’ll have to discover for yourself. Don’t expect the answers to come fast or easy. You are examining a fundamental part of your identity, one which every person experiences differently. The best advice I can give is to take your time. Try on a few labels, see what feels most comfortable to you. You might start with agender/genderless, quoigender (confusion regarding what gender is/means) or cassgender (indifference to one’s gender or the very concept of gender). You might find that after spending time with one of these labels they feel right to you, or perhaps you might settle on calling yourself nonbinary without needing to qualify it further. Or, after exploring the possibilities you might decide that you are cis after all and simply put little importance on gender - there would be nothing wrong with this. Just don’t put too much pressure on yourself - there’s no rush to find answers. Give yourself the time and consideration you deserve.Feel free to message me again, I’m happy to help in any way I can. We could also talk privately if you wanted to message me off anon.