The Big Picture: Boy's Own Adventure

[mronoc]

This is off-topic, but I just wanna mention that it's nice to see some love for "Amazing World of Gumball." It's a funny show with a lot of fun, cool, and clever design and animation work, but for some reason I never see it getting the same attention that Adventure Time, Regular Show, and MLP do.

Also the subject of me being an insufferable cartoon nerd:

And 60s...

I'm gonna be "that guy" and point out that this still is from a 1940s Bob Clampett cartoon

 

[The White Hunter]

Kupo!

Speaking as a bisexual male yes they need some special attention, even though what you said is true the fact that we're often brushed aside is worrying, and indeed a lot of gay communities really aren't very open to bisexuals and will actively persecute and push us away.
Ed: Oh and for the record I have an opposite gender partner, still face discrimination, and peoples ignorance is still harmful and the scars gained from it dont heal.

It's sad because we don't need to blend in and assimilate, nor do we need to be defined by our sexuality, the solution is education, not legislation.

Huh, that's pretty odd. I'd've thought that the lesbian and gay communities would be the most open to this, seeing as many of them would have faced rejection and discrimination for their own sexuality. And it's particularly ironic considering that very few of them are actually likely to be 100% only attracted to their same gender all of the time[footnote]because of the Kinsey scale [http://www.kinseyinstitute.org/research/ak-hhscale.html][/footnote]. Guess it shows that bigotry is an equal opportunity character flaw.

Yeah you would think that, and you'd think they'd be able to use their own experience to empathise and show compassion rather than just acting like any other discriminating person.

It's rather sad because a lot of it could be solved if people just stopped giving so much of a crap about what others do and were just pleasant to each other. Attempting to understand people and treating them as you would like to be treated is a pretty easy thing to do.

 

[tamaness]

But surely bi groups wouldn't need that much special atte-

Sure, it seems like that, but factor in that there is a rather large (and surprising) amount of biphobia/anti-bi-bias in both the gay and straight communities. LG people see bi folks as 'undecided gay people', both sides see bi people as automatically poly or unloyal or a slut who will sleep with anyone...

EDIT: oh, and SheZow seems to both ridicule the tropes of Golden Age female comics....while also utilizing aspects of Drag Queen culture (one bit i saw made much use of the term Glamazon, which IIRC was a term coined by RuPaul, to the point of it being a song/album by that person).

Within the QUILTBAG [http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/QUILTBAG] community, many bisexuals feel they aren't considered a "true" orientation by their gay and lesbian brethren, e.g. the accusations that bi-men are actually gay men unwilling to admit they're actually gay, or that bi-women only exhibit bi-curious behaviour to appeal to men. Like most things involving human society, it's probably complicated: there probably are gay men and straight women who pretend to be bi, but that doesn't necessarily mean there aren't actual bisexuals.

I assume Bob left this out because to explain the issue with any justice would probably require a Big Picture episode to itself. His focus here was on the common enemy of QUILTBAG rights, the so-called "social conservatives", not the movement's internal issues. If you have 5 minutes to explain World War II, you'll probably focus on Axis vs. Allies. You probably wouldn't bring up, for examples, all the strife between Winston Churchill and Charles De Gaulle.

Speaking as a bisexual male yes they need some special attention, even though what you said is true the fact that we're often brushed aside is worrying, and indeed a lot of gay communities really aren't very open to bisexuals and will actively persecute and push us away.
Ed: Oh and for the record I have an opposite gender partner, still face discrimination, and peoples ignorance is still harmful and the scars gained from it dont heal.

It's sad because we don't need to blend in and assimilate, nor do we need to be defined by our sexuality, the solution is education, not legislation.

Huh, that's pretty odd. I'd've thought that the lesbian and gay communities would be the most open to this, seeing as many of them would have faced rejection and discrimination for their own sexuality. And it's particularly ironic considering that very few of them are actually likely to be 100% only attracted to their same gender all of the time[footnote]Kinsey scale [http://www.kinseyinstitute.org/research/ak-hhscale.html][/footnote]. Guess it shows that bigotry is an equal opportunity character flaw.

Speaking as a bisexual male here (I actually choose to identify as pancurious, but bi gets the point across), we don't really get considered as "real" by either hetero- or homosexual communities. Hell, my ex-wife constantly forgot I was also attracted to men. That said, I think acceptance of gay and lesbian persons certainly helps move everyone else in the sexual/gender spectrum closer to equality.

This show is a kids' cartoon. It's based on a one-shot gag that they ran with. It's really not noteworthy, except for the fact that that boy is dressed as a girl!

 

[mcnally86]

Bob thanks for pointing this out. I do find it funny that Sponge Bob and Patrick have been a couple for years and no one said anything because they didn't cross dress even though Spongebob is a flaming homosexual.

 

[l3o2828]

I'm totally with you on the "Fox news is over-exaggerating about a cartoon" bit. Its a cartoon.

That said, you lost me at "Connected to men= good; independent=evil". Your white knight is showing.

Again.

Stop it.

But that's not white knighting, sir.
That's just the use of *GASP* logic and very simple analysis of portrayal.
Comics are sexist.


As for Shezow...This whole outrage for this cartoon is really what i expected from the people that actively outraged...so yeah, no news there.

 

[DRTJR]

I watched fox news this weekend and All I saw was the IRS debacle, and other actually big ticket news items... this wasn't there at all.

 

[Gunjester]

I guess past generations didn't have a problem when Bugs Bunny was dressing up like a woman and kissing Elmer Fudd.

Of course not, that was in a cartoon, which although the creators may not be making with inherently innocent ideas they will be received as such and are expected to be corrected by their parents. That being said, its seems nowadays everyone's a helicopter parent with so little confidence in their skills as such to let their watch Spongebob without wondering if the little hearts that form when he hugs his best friend represent mutual erections.
Case in point: Parents nowadays are idiots who insist on spoiling their children while at the same time sheltering them from any and all life lessons, immunity-building and un-wholesome experiences that could actually teach them something.

 

[Gatx]

Since this change is FORCED on the protagonist and the thin premise seems to mostly involve making jokes at his expense, how is this a positive portrayal? There doesn't seem to be ANY gender identity stuff here, it's just 'ha ha, you look like a girl now'. If he'd dressed up like that on purpose, or the ring brought out his true inner self or some bs it would be different. This being a point of contention is stupid for both sides of the issue. Arguing about Bert and Ernie is dumb but even that makes more sense.

I haven't seen the show but from having read the synopsis, I can imagine then going down a rout where eventually he'll have more "respect" for the identity and females in general. So I mean it's not necessarily a transgender show, but it could support positive views for both genders separately, and maybe even blur the line between what's acceptable for either gender.

 

[Hutzpah Chicken]

That is upsetting that the vox populi doesn't think cross dressing is funny anymore. The real thing that I thought of when Bob said this is what the media decided to talk about is what the main stream, Soros-owned media is hiding. Another question this raises is why the generally liberal media would think this to be a problem. Either way, cross dressing is still funny when done right.

Another big thing is, why does anyone really care? It's not like anybody's sexual preference is going to make their motives and ambitions any different. This entire social issue falls under the "wooptie-fuckin'-do" category. Everyone who sensationalizes the social problem, to either end, are often the ones who precipitate larger problems by trying to get everyone to make the problem a big deal in both camps. In reality, most people don't care about what doesn't effect their lives, thus making a mountain out of a mole hill. So, the commoners apply the "wooptie do, I don't really care" constant to the crazy people who have nothing better to do that to hate someone's sexual preference and the people who think the entire world cares about every aspect of their lives'.

If you want to stand on either side of any issue, be my guest, but think of what the problem really is and don't try to make it any bigger than it needs to be. People won't care unless it effects their lives directly.

 

[1337mokro]

Get out of the kiddie pool Bob. You are crushing the children against the wall.

 

[Rad Party God]

Oh shit, this takes me back to the days when Ranma 1/2 was being aired in public TV (we had no fancy cable back then), I thought the show was hilarious, but having a mom that's even afraid of her own shadow wasn't easy, but I still managed to watch many animes back then, heck, we got the uncensored versions of many animes (that's why it always pisses me off to watch the US version of Dragon Ball Z).

 

[Soviet Heavy]

I guess none of the guys at Fox ever watched Cybersix. Oh wait, that's because the morons banned the show in the US after its first run because of the crossdressing superhero.

Where else do you see an androgynous woman jump between being a male teacher and then fighting Nazi mutants with her "Brother reborn as a Jaguar"?

 

[Steve the Pocket]

Man my dad watches Fox news.

I watch it to make myself laugh.
Seriously.

GO and watch it, it is funnier than Colbert or Stewart, without even trying to be.

I love hearing them RAGE about NEW THINGS.
"X, X IS DESTROYING 'MERICA!"

It's funny until you remember that those people represent the actual views of roughly half the people who run the country. Then it's depressing.

Anyway, I thought SheZow's gimmick of "I'm a superhero, but I'm also a girl! Tee-hee! Watch me use makeup and hairbrushes as weapons!" was kind of over the top, but then I remembered that she was the kid's ... great-aunt, I think? Which means her heyday would have been around the Silver Age. Before series like The Fantastic Four and Teen Titans existed. I'm not too familiar with what sort of characters were around back then, but I could definitely see a character like SheZow popping up.

Hmm, now I'm tempted to draw a fake 1960s-style SheZow comic book cover. Heck, a real comic book series chronicling her exploits would make a good tie-in, if it ever got popular enough to merit one.

 

[Ukomba]

Since this change is FORCED on the protagonist and the thin premise seems to mostly involve making jokes at his expense, how is this a positive portrayal? There doesn't seem to be ANY gender identity stuff here, it's just 'ha ha, you look like a girl now'. If he'd dressed up like that on purpose, or the ring brought out his true inner self or some bs it would be different. This being a point of contention is stupid for both sides of the issue. Arguing about Bert and Ernie is dumb but even that makes more sense.

I haven't seen the show but from having read the synopsis, I can imagine then going down a rout where eventually he'll have more "respect" for the identity and females in general. So I mean it's not necessarily a transgender show, but it could support positive views for both genders separately, and maybe even blur the line between what's acceptable for either gender.

Respect for and understanding of things girls have to deal with, sure I can see that. Bluring the line, not so much. It would be different if he was obviously a boy in girls clothing, but it appears that only people who know will be able to tell that. It's actually a more watered down version of Gravity Fall's "Carpet Diem".

On top of that, the whole premise seems too thin to support even a single season without getting either repetitive or stale. It would be like trying to base a series around Sally Solomon from Third Rock From the Sun.

 

[GamemasterAnthony]

I have one question...and it's a very serious one.

When can we finally sue/criminally charge Fox News and/or any of these other overly conservative groups for what basically amounts to harassment of the GLBTQ community and those that support them?

Seriously...this crap is getting out of hand and a line needs to be drawn.

 

[loudestmute]

I spent a good twenty minutes thinking of something I could write up. An examination of American conservative news pundits. The cynical marketing minds at the Hub (and their connection to the Hasbro corporation). The shift in perception of gender roles in the past 50 years. Cautious optimism for a second season of The Aquabats Super Show.

Then, perhaps the most interesting point of all struck me.

The part of this that should be causing me to talk, the SHOW ITSELF, is completely innocuous to me.

The thought of a boy named Guy using pink and glittery super powered gear to fight crime isn't a shocking concept. It concerns me how they can make the one-note joke that is the series' main angle last more than an episode without getting tiresome, but that's a structural concern, not a conceptual one. It's not a ploy to corrupt my hypothetical children, it's not forcing me to ask difficult questions about my own sexuality. It's a cartoon that I only hope is well written enough to withstand the sudden wave of interest from concerned parents and media talking heads.