New childrens' show features "gender-bending" action hero

[alexri]

I've pulled the below info from a couple of sources.

The children’s cable network "The Hub" is launching its latest superhero cartoon, which features a gender-bending crime fighter named “SheZow.” The show has previously aired in Australia and will be debuting in the United States in June.

The show’s main character is a 12-year-old boy named Guy who uses a magic ring to transform himself into a crime-fighting girl.

Guy finds and puts on his deceased Aunt Agne's super powered ring, inheriting her Super Hero alter ego, SheZow. Guy takes on the appearance of a female super hero and with the help of his sister, Kelly, and best friend, Maz, he protects the city of Megadale from supervillains and criminals.

Controversy is already stirring online on social media and on news sources. One Million Moms is protesting. The network has already gotten some hate mail.

I'm wondering what you think about this cartoon. I've attached the preview. I know it's not the first show/cartoon to deal with gender switching or issues but it's getting a lot of heat/discussion/interest as it's launching on a US children's network.

[DapperButch]

I don't know. He is not too thrilled about being a girl.... that makes me a bit uncomfortable. If he was ok with the change to being a girl, that would be different. His discomfort gives me pause. I am wondering what message that sends.

Yes, it is only the preview, and perhaps this is only how he feels "at first", but I would be much more comfortable with a character who from moment one was nonplussed about the gender change, if not pleased.

[spritzerJ]

Hmm... I love the idea. I hope the character does evolve and grow into a level of comfort with being a girl.

The General feels pretty darn certain that being a girl kicks tushie and doesn't want to be anything else right now. But she has experienced a few gender presentations. Some of her friends haven't experienced that. She has friends who like to switch between girl and boy identities. And that is just their normal play. Part of their process in middle childhood.

So I can see SheZow as having an audience with the 6-10 crowd.

[dykeumentary]

I'm curious about this!
Gender happens in the context of race and class and culture, so I suppose we will see what "being a girl" will actually mean in this story.
It might be fun!

[DapperButch]

<Bump>

Surely more people have thoughts! This is a good topic!

[Corkey]

I need more than a trailer to make an informed comment....there's a first for everything.

[alexri]

I think you can see more of the Australian version on YouTube.

What gets me is the conservative media and groups are already jumping all over this without the show even being on yet in the US.

It's not like it's the first gender-bending cartoon or show. I can think of many off the top of my head, like Ranma 1/2, Mrs. Doubtfire, etc. Maybe the difference is that this show is on a dedicated children's network and that the "she" is the superhero.

[The_Lady_Snow]

I find this to be no different than *Chowder* or *The Normal Show*.. Both of these shows had some form of gender bending qualities to them. We can even look far as back as Bugs Bunny (how quickly we forget):

Gender bending has existed in childrens programming for as long as I can remember. I am going to assume that this Guy kid found a ring with super powers and like any other kid he is going to do what kids do. He is gonna keep it, don't matter if he is a girl or has to turn into one with the support and friendships of a bestie and a sister most kids will do just about ANYTHING.

I wonder (because I just can't remember) if people did this with Bugs, Tom..

The annoying TeleTubbies (one carried a purse) brought this form of reaction too, anyone remember Jerry Falwell assuming and imposing Tinky Winky as a "gay icon" because of the upside down triangle and purse?!?

My folks (who are fucking ridiculously Catholic and conservative) never had an issue with the cartoon, they do have issues with sexually over toned cartoons and will not let the kids watch them in the living room area if they go to Abuelita's house..

The ridiculous reactions of people like One Million Moms is no surprise, the hate agenda is strong and loud when it comes to spreading the hate and claiming the *gays* are trying to convert their children...

Binary thinking will always fear what is nor deemed *normal* they aren't going to allow their children to watch Cartoon Network, PBS, Disney anything that does not keep gender presentation to just F and M is going to scare them and because "merica feeds on fear, they are going to be chaotic and fearful.

[Bad_boi]

I watched the first episode of it and I don't really see the problem with him being unhappy/shocked at first. I think that would be a normal reaction really. As a trans person I guess I see it differently. Often trans people are unhappy about being trans and try to repress it before the accept it. I think the character will learn to accept his role as a female hero. He does seem exited when he gets the pink car and at the end of the episode he even smiles about being shezow.

The only thing I didn't like was everything was plastered with pink. This bugs me because I kind of hate the way pink is used to tell girls "its pink so its for you".

This is the first episode if you care to check it out.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7K3z-CRNi-E

[Allison W]

So someone showed me this link tonight, in which a commentator on The Escapist talks about SheZow. He makes some interesting points, including one that might explain the ubiquitous pinkness that Bad_boi took exception to.

http://www.escapistmagazine.com/vide...-Own-Adventure

[DapperButch]

Originally Posted by DapperButch

I don't know. He is not too thrilled about being a girl.... that makes me a bit uncomfortable. If he was ok with the change to being a girl, that would be different. His discomfort gives me pause. I am wondering what message that sends.

Yes, it is only the preview, and perhaps this is only how he feels "at first", but I would be much more comfortable with a character who from moment one was nonplussed about the gender change, if not pleased.

I watched the first episode. I am glad that it was presented the way I had hoped (he is uncomfortable at first, but isn't disgusted by it...he even has some moments of fun with it). It doesn't appear transphobic to me, which I am happy about.

[DapperButch]

Originally Posted by Allison W

So someone showed me this link tonight, in which a commentator on The Escapist talks about SheZow. He makes some interesting points, including one that might explain the ubiquitous pinkness that Bad_boi took exception to.

http://www.escapistmagazine.com/vide...-Own-Adventure

Hey, this was great. Thanks for posting!

[Allison W]

I don't still have a link to the source on this one, and I really should have posted it in my last post, but the show's creator did say that if SheZow gets a second season they'd like to deal with the question of why Guy is able to use the ring in the first place.

[alexri]

This is an interesting discussion. Thank you to all who contributed.

The latest thing I've seen in the news is one conservative tv show host said that the network decided to run the show purely to try for a ratings boost.

One Million Mons has a campaign going against the show; not sure how successful it is.

Other interesting things-- the show's Facebook page has doubled in followers in three weeks. They've also had to remove the option for people to write on the show's Facebook page (as a free comment, not as a comment on a post- and people are posting mostly positive things about the show).

[EnderD_503]

Reading the first post about it made me skeptical, which I usually am when it comes to supposedly "gender-bending" shows/movies etc. But I watched the first episode and actually think its pretty good. I like that he starts off as kind of like this stereotypical boy who thinks skateboarding/sports is for boys, while house/domestic tasks are for girls...but he changes pretty quickly. At first he seems pissed off about turning into Shezow, but by the end of the episode he's actually starting to like it. I feel like as the show goes on it's going to become more and more normal to him and not as "sensational" because it'll be apart of the normal pace of the show. I also feel like this is gonna differ from other instances of "gender-bending" in cartoons because he's pretty much made permanently into Shezow. It's not something he can change, and it's an actual part of the show and its concept instead of being one instance in an episode or a single episode. And in the beginning its played off as "comical" (in the same way "gender-bending" usually is made comical in the media), but even by the end of the episode it becomes more a part of the pace of the show than something merely for comedy's sake.

Originally Posted by Bad_boi

I watched the first episode of it and I don't really see the problem with him being unhappy/shocked at first. I think that would be a normal reaction really. As a trans person I guess I see it differently. Often trans people are unhappy about being trans and try to repress it before the accept it. I think the character will learn to accept his role as a female hero. He does seem exited when he gets the pink car and at the end of the episode he even smiles about being shezow.

The only thing I didn't like was everything was plastered with pink. This bugs me because I kind of hate the way pink is used to tell girls "its pink so its for you".

This is the first episode if you care to check it out.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7K3z-CRNi-E

I think the only reason some might see it as a "normal" reaction because society sees it as degrading to be a girl. I think that's the reason why the show does it, tbh. It's playing up the stereotypical male reaction to anything female-related, which is to see it as a negative or lesser than or "not for boys." Yet for him, he's still Guy/a guy but inherits his great aunt's superhero abilities and costume that happens to come in a feminine form. It kind of takes the whole idea of a superhero and turns it on its head, and takes a shot at society's negative valuing of female/feminine roles. For me I'm not really seeing this as specifically a trans thing or even the intent behind.

I think the link that Allison W explained it really well, and is so true when you think about female superheroes. I think the show's aim really is more toward negative valuing of female/femininity and the idea that you can't be a superhero and be female or feminine without being attached to a male or masculine superhero. For Guy being given a feminine costume/appearance isn't, in the end, negative, but actually the source of his power. I dunno, I think it's pretty cool.

[Femminator]

I grew up watching Bugs Bunny, who crossed dressed every other episode. When I was a little girl, I used to pretend I was guy Superheroes, I was NEVER Supergirl or Wonderwoman. I was Spider-man, or Ironman. Children will be fine with this, and not at all concerned as adults obviously are.

Kids gender bend while they are growing up, by wearing clothes that are considered oposite sex, this does not cause any of them to grow up TG. However, the TG youngsters out there KNOW they are in the wrong body, and this will give them support, they much deserve.

[Bad_boi]

Originally Posted by Femminator

I grew up watching Bugs Bunny, who crossed dressed every other episode.

That reminds me. When I was a kid, pokemon was one of my most favorite shows/games.It was a running gag with Team rocket for them to crossdress when they were wearing disguises.

In this picture we can see Jessie is in a men's suit and James is in a woman's robes/kimono type outfit. I never thought much of it as a kid.

[EnderD_503]

Originally Posted by Bad_boi

That reminds me. When I was a kid, pokemon was one of my most favorite shows/games.It was a running gag with Team rocket for them to crossdress when they were wearing disguises.

That's the thing though. In most past cartoons where characters are "crossdressing," it's seen as a joke...the joke is "oh haha, look at x character dressed as the wrong gender." That's how it was with bugs bunny. It was a comedy and bugs bunny did it to trick Elmer or whoever was chasing him.

What I like in this case is that in the beginning this cartoon seems to address that tradition of "crossdressing" as a joke...then it normalises it in the context of the show.

Also I think that the video Allison W posted addresses the male vs female superhero thing well. The point is that kids rarely want to be female superheroes, because they were always made less interesting and often dependent on an already existing male superhero.

[Bad_boi]

Originally Posted by EnderD_503

I think the only reason some might see it as a "normal" reaction because society sees it as degrading to be a girl. I think that's the reason why the show does it, tbh.

You have a valid point. When I saw that point in the show it was kind of like a flash back to when I was a kid and I realized that my body did not match who I was on the inside and I was uncomfortable with my body being female. I never thought "my body is female and being female is bad". It was more of a "this feels awkward/not right for me/how do I fix this". Therefore I interpreted it that way.

People have different interpretations of movies books and shows. When we observe a character, we may feel sympathy or empathy for them. Sometimes we relate to characters or situations in fiction in different ways because of our mindsets and experiences. It is interesting to see how people feel about things like this.

[Sheridan]

I want to see this cartoon sounds like it is not making fun of transgenderism (and may even give transgender and gender fluid children someone they can relate to), it is just showing someone having to deal with something new and making it through. It puts me in the mind of the old series The Greatest American Hero (a fish out of water story). Space aliens gave Ralph a super suit and a grumpy FBI partner named Bill and then Ralph looses the instruction book to the suit and the fun began (he had to learn the powers by accident and experiment, the flying and landings were priceless). It gave all us klutzy geeks a hero to look up to, because you did not have to be perfect to be a superhero. I hope that some day they might do a TV show with actors for Shezow (it would be cool to see who would be cast).

Opening Theme:


Ralph gets suit from space aliens: