racialbechdel

[racialbechdel]

This might sound ridiculous, but does the racial bechdel test pass when it is conversations between a main character and her family members who are very minor characters? I'll have many other POC characters, but they don't come along till later in the plot, and I want it to pass the main test in the first "episode", so to speak.

This is one of the failings of the original Bechdel Test, to be honest, and one which isn't avoided by the Racial Bechdel Test. There is a lot of debate on whether such short or unimportant interactions actually count towards the Bechdel Test. Technically, it would pass, but at the same time passing the test doesn't mean that what you wrote is 100% non-racist/sexist etc. 

[racialbechdel]

Big Hero 6 (Spoiler Free Review)

Big Hero 6 is the story of Hiro Hamada, a 13-year-old robotics prodigy. After a terrible accident, Hiro is left to cope on his own, or, at least he thinks he does until he meets Baymax, a robot that his brother had made as a medical aid. Eventually, Hiro and Baymax run into a mysterious masked figure who utilizes stolen robot technology in order to terrorize the city of San Fransokyo. After giving Baymax some upgrades, Hiro utilizes the help of his friends in order to save the day.

1. Is there more than one character of color? Yes. Both Hiro and his brother, Tadashi, are half-Japanese, and when you include Wasabi and Gogo, the total of characters of color becomes four.

2. Do these characters ever hold a conversation with each other?

Yes. Hiro and Tadashi talk a lot with each other as do Wasabi and Gogo. Unfortunately, we don't get to see a lot of interaction from Wasabi and Gogo as the film focuses it's attention on Hiro and Baymax.

3. Do these characters talk about something other than a white character?

Yes. Hiro and Tadashi spend a lot of their time together talking about their family and Hiro's future in robotics. Hiro's interactions with Wasabi and Gogo focus primarily on their work in the sciences when they're not talking about Tadashi or The Man In The Kabuki Mask, who serves as the villain of the film.

While the movie passes the Racial Bechdel Test, there are still a lot of problematic elements within the movie. The blending of Japan and America into "San Frasokyo" is poorly inspired. Other than keeping an aesthetic, Japanese culture is barely represented and has no influence on the story or Hiro and Tadashi's life. Other than their names, there is very little that actually links them to their Japanese heritage, which is troubling for me. Also, there is the issue of whitewashing and racebending in the cast. While normally I would have no problem with such a racially diverse cast, Disney achieved this by changing the race of three of the characters. Racial diversity shouldn't come at the cost of losing characters who are already part of a marginalized group.

As a film, Big Hero 6 isn't the worst thing I've seen. It's actually a pretty fun film. The visuals are amazing and the action scenes are a blast to watch. The humor, at times, is spot on and hilarious. However, a fun movie isn't the same as a fulfilling movie. I left the film wanting more, and not in a good way. I wanted to see more interactions from Wasabi, Gogo, Honey Lemon, and Fred. The movie tries to move fast in order to not drag the plot around, but as a result, the movie feels rushed in the end. There's a few scenes in the movie that are meant to be heartfelt, since a major theme in the movie is learning to move on from your past while holding it with you, but as a result of the fast pace, these scenes feel very slow. The emotion in the film doesn't feel like it's coming from the heart. 

EDIT 1: Honey Lemon is a Hispanic character and the casting department carefully chose an actress who would match the character, much like how they did for the other PoC characters. However, aside from her skin tones being slightly darker than other white Disney characters, the only other indicator of ethnicity is the few times when an accent would slip through. The times they did slip through can also easily be misinterpreted as a faux-Japanese accent. In a similar vein of Japanese culture having very little importance other than aesthetic, Honey Lemon's ethnicity is practically invisible.

Edit 2: Honey Lemon can be read as Hispanic, but her skin tone is part of an ongoing problem in Hollywood as of recent years where Hispanic and Latino characters are portrayed as light-skinned. 

[racialbechdel]

This may not be something your current staff would be up for but it'd be really cool to test videogames as well!

Actually, that sounds like a great idea! Maybe I'll find a way to work that in somehow.-Gabe

[racialbechdel]

Game of Thrones

Game of Thrones is a medieval fantasy drama and the adaption of the bestselling series of novel A Song of Ice and Fire by George R.R. Martin. The series follows the multiple storylines of the violent dynastic struggles of the noble families in the seven kingdoms of Westeros, with the ongoing threats occurring from the dreaded north of the wall and the eastern continent Essos across the narrow sea.

The series features large cast with many engaging and storylines. Bringing something a different to the high fantasy genre on TV that has never been done before. The scenery is very beautiful and all too real with filming taking place in Northern Ireland, Malta, Croatia, Iceland and Morocco. I feel the special effects mesh really well with the real life landscapes as shown with the final scene in the last episode of Season 2.

 Is there more than one character of colour?                                               Yes they are in the space of two seasons there are people of colour such as Khal Drogo and the Dothraki are mainly people of colour. There is also Salador Saan and Xaro Xhoan Daxos

Do they talk to each other?                                                                              It is very rare that we see characters of colour talking to each other, Khal Drogo talking to his blood riders briefly and addressing his Khalasar. There is also Irri and Rakharo speaking to each other,

Do they speak to each other about anything other than white people

Sadly no. POC are hardly ever on screen and when they are they have minor roles and are talking to White character and briefly talking to each other about white characters.

The portrayal of POC in Game of Thrones has been highly problematic, the Dorthaki are shown to be savages that are great at stealing, raping and killing other people or themselves. As the season progress the Dothaki are somewhat humanized, but are used for Danerys white savior storyline fauxminist storyline. IN season 2 when most of Danyers’ khalasar are slaughtered and dragons are kidnapped, she is more concerned about her dragons than ‘her people’.

There is also Salador Saan, a pirate that agrees to provide Stannis with ships with the promise that he gets to bed Queen Cersei Lannister. Then there is Xaro the richest man in Qarth that turns out to be the villain in Danerys storyline.

When it comes to people of colour Game of Thrones is failing badly, as they have erased some of the POC in the books and killed off one that lasted a lot longer in the books. I really do like Game of Thrones, it’s very addicting and 10 episodes are really not enough but when it comes to race it can do a lot better with complex depictions of 

[racialbechdel]

New Girl (Season One 2011-2012)

New Girl is about a distraught Jess (Zoey Deschanel) who is forced to move into a new apartment after catching her boyfriend cheating on her. She moves in with three men: Schmidt (Max Greenfield), an oversensitive playboy, Nick (Jake M. Johnson), a bartender going through a tough breakup, and later, Winston (Lamorne Morris), a former basketball player trying to find a new job. With the help of her best friend Cece (Hannah Simone), Jess is trying to get her life back together

Despite my personal dislike for Zoey Deschanel, I enjoy this show. Deschanel is playing the "Manic Pixie Dream Girl" type in the show, but it's played entirely for laughs and instead of the character of Jess being pivotal in making the lives of her three male roommates better, it is the other way around. In fact, in several cases, the three roommates show more MPDG tendencies than Jess. Furthermore, while the show is called "New Girl", the show focuses on the other characters just as much. In fact, in later episodes, Deschanel gets less screentime when compared to her roommates.

Is there more than one character of color? Yes. Morris and Cece are part of the main cast, and Kali Hawk plays Winston's girlfriend.

Do these characters ever hold a conversation? Yes. Cece and Winston interact a lot and Hawk's character, Shelby, interacts exclusively with Winston.

Do these characters talk about something other than a white person? Yes, but it varies episode to episode. Cece and Winston rarely talk about anything other than Jess or Schmidt, but Winston and Shelby talk exclusively about their relationship with each other.

The show actually does a good job when portraying race. Winston, despite being a former basketball player, is not a stereotype at all. He is actually one of the more level-headed characters on the show, as well as one of the most clever. Cece, another main character, however, her heritage is rarely brought up on the show. This is mostly because her race is not the central part of her character. Despite the problems the show has when it comes to gender, it does a good job with race.

[racialbechdel]

The Hunger Games (2012)

The Hunger Games takes place in a post-apocalyptic future in the nation of Panem, which resides in what used to be North America. Each year, one boy and one girl aged 12 to 18 is selected from each of the twelve districts that rose up against Panem to fight in an annual event where they fight to the death. Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence) volunteers to represent her district after her sister (Willow Shields). Together with Peeta Mellark (Josh Hutcherson), Katniss has to figure out a way to survive the games and make her way back home.

The movie was average at best, but I still enjoyed it. I felt that a lot of the meaning was either lost or didn't translate as well from book to film. While the acting was great, a good chunk of what could've been one of the most memorable fight scenes in Hollywood gets lost in shakey-cam. I also feel that a lot of the tricks used in order to make the audience experience what Katniss was going through to be quite cheap.

Is there more than one character of color? Yes. Cinna, Rue, and Thresh contribute heavily to the story when they appear.

At any time do these characters talk to each other?/> No. Most of this is justified, though, because the audience experiences most of the movie through Katniss' eyes and she hardly ever sees Rue and Thresh together.

Do these characters talk about anything other than a white character?

Despite The Hunger Games not passing the Racial Bechdel Test, the movie still speaks loads about race relations. District Eleven, the agricultural district, is comprised of Black people mostly to allude back to slavery. However, a lot of this symbolism goes over the heads of most fans of the series, as shown by the tumblr blog Hunger Games Tweets.

Also, a problem that has been made apparent by sites like Racebending is that Jennifer Lawrence was cast as Katniss despite the character being described as having olive-brown skin and dark brown hair. Racebending made it clear that the casting call for the character didn't extend the invitation to actresses of color.

But in the end, I still found the movie enjoyable. However, I think that this is probably because I was a fan of the books.

[racialbechdel]

Grimm

Grimm is a fantasy/mystery/crime drama inspired by the macabre fairy tales from the Brothers Grimm, where the creatures from the book really exist. The series centres on homicide detective Nick Burkhardt (David Guintoli) that discovers he is descended from an elite line of demon hunter know as "Grimms," charged with keeping balance between humanity and the mythological creatures of the world

Each episode begins with a brief passage from one of the Brother Grimm’s book to give the audience a clue on what the plot will be about. Not all the tales features are exclusively Brothers Grimm; they use other western fairy tales such as Goldilocks and the three bears as well as Aesop’s Fables. I was really interested in the series at first it seems like a really fresh idea, and had many familiar producer and writers names from cult supernatural show Buffy the Vampire Slayer. So far with the first season has reached it halfway point it has yet to graduate from the standard “monster of the day” and develop some sort of meta-plot although there a subtle hints at a possible season finale “big bad”. Grimm has poetential, but does it pass the Bechdel test?

 Is there more than one character of colour?                                      Yes. Only two though, Nick’s partner/sidekick is Hank Griffin (Russell Hornsby) and who is the Black best friend. The other is Segeant Wu (Reggie Lee) that works closely with Nick and Hank he would the Asian computer wiz. Both of them are unaware of Nick’s double life.

 Do two or more character of colour talk to each other?                       Yes, when investigating a crime Sergeant Wu and Detective Griffin talk to one and other. Most of the time Nick is part of then conversation

Do they talk about anything other than a white character?                No, and if they did it was very short and went unnoticed. When Detective Griffin and Sergeant Wu are on screen together they usually talk about the case and with most of the episodes the case they are investigating are about white characters. Hank is seen a little bit more of the two being as he is Nick’s police partner and I say police partner because Nick’s true partner/sidekick would be Monroe (Silas Wier Mitchell), a reformed “Wieder Blutbad” that is very knowledge of the supernatural creates that Nick faces as a result Nick confides in him the most. Sergeant Wu is rarely seen outside of the police department and usually does the tech and paper work . As with both characters of colour we know very little about them outside of their police life Grimm. Grim fails the test tremendously being as this is the first season I hope that Grimm can change and take it’s writers to task.

[racialbechdel]

Hachi: A Dog's Tale

Hachi: A Dog's Tale is the story of college professor Parker Wilson (Richard Gere) who finds an Akita puppy wandering around the train station he uses to commute to and from work. While he intended to find the owner or a new home for the dog, but the family ended up keeping the dog. The dog also grew incredibly attached to the professor and would follow him to work every morning and wait for at the him at the train station every afternoon. Eventually, Wilson dies and Hachi has to go live with Andy Wilson (Sarah Roemer), the professor's daughter. However, Andy eventually lets Hachi go and he continues to wait in front of the train station in hopes Parker returns.

The movie itself is nothing special, just a cute story for families to enjoy. It was specifically made to draw in its audience. The acting is nothing phenomenal and the directing and editing is nothing incredible. Compared to his previous works, Lasse Hallström hits an all-time low with this movie. It's nothing more than a slice of American life served up in the form of an animal movie.

Is there more than one character of color? Yes. In fact, most of the characters seen working at or around the train station are people of color.

Do two or more characters of color ever hold a conversation?/> Yes. Several times throughout the movie. The conversations are usually very short, but they hold a lot of significance.

Do these characters talk about something other than one of the white characters? Yes. Most of the conversations in the movie have more to do with the dog than anything else.

So Hachi passes. However, the entire film is problematic and not just for the poor acting, writing, and directing. The film is actually based on the true story of a dog named Hachiko, who was raised in Japan. In fact, most people in Japan already know the story of the dog who waited by the train station every day for its owner to return long after the owner died. There's even a statue at the train station in question of Hachiko. In other words, the entire movie is a whitewashed retelling.

This is an example of American media erasing bits and pieces of Asian history. Take for instance the movie 21, starring Jim Sturgess. The movie was based on the true story of six MIT students who "cheat the system" of Blackjack by counting cards. The cast was heavily whitewashed despite the students being predominantly Asian. Not only is this kind of whitewashing a form of erasure, but it also prevents Asian American actors from being visible in Hollywood. And although Hachi acknowledges the story's source, it is not enough to prevent the movie from being a complete bastardization.

[racialbechdel]

My Name Is Earl

My Name is Earl is the titular troublemaker, Earl (Jason Lee), who is trying to put his life back together after winning the lottery and ending up in the hospital shortly afterwards. Learning about karma from the Carson Daily Show, he realizes that all the bad things he has done to other people has had lasting effects on his own life as well. With the help of his brother, Randy (Ethan Suplee), Earl is going to right all the wrongs he did following a compiled list of every bad thing he has ever done. Along the way he helps his ex-wife, Joy Turner (Jaime Pressly), her husband, Darnell Turner (Eddie Steeples), and their friend Catalina (Nadine Velazquez).

The show gained a huge cult following during it's four seasons. Viewers were attracted to Jason Lee's earnestness as Earl and to the many one-shot and recurring characters who gave life to Camden County, where the show takes place. Unfortunately for many fans, the show was canceled before it's fifth season, leaving a very sudden cliffhanger ending that remains unsatisfied to this day.

For purposes of this review, I am only testing the first two seasons.

Is there more than one character of color? Yes. There are actually two people of color in the main cast (Steeples and Velazquez), and in the first two seasons we are given several recurring characters of color as well (Iqbal and Nescobar-A-Lop-Lop).

Do these characters of color talk to each other? Yes. Several times. Darnell and Catalina hold several conversations in these first two seasons, and Nescobar talks to several characters of color, most of whom are recurring characters.

Do the characters talk about something other than one of the white characters? No. While the characters of color do talk to each other a lot, many of the conversations are centered solely around Earl, and if they're not talking about Earl, they're talking about Randy or Joy.

My Name is Earl doesn't pass the Racial Bechdel Test despite having an incredibly diverse cast. However, a diverse cast doesn't mean that they pass the test, aafter all. And there are some major problems with how some characters of color are represented in the show as well. Darnell, with his high-intelligence and connections to the government comes off less as a clever character, but rather follows the Magical Negro trope. Catalina, on the other hand, plays the stereotypes straight. She is an illegal immigrant and works as a maid. Not even the minor characters are spared. Nescobar is a former Congo citizen and speaks with a thick accent. His character even holds stereotypical "old-world African" traditions.

Despite these stereotypes, I still enjoy the show. The show is very honest and darts between being idealist and being realist without losing sight of what it is really about. And as Earl crosses items off his list, the audience is treated to a lesson about humanity without it being incredibly ham-fisted. In fact, the show is incredibly heartwarming. As Earl works on making up for all the bad things he has done, Camden County goes from a crapsack town full of thieves to a strong, close-knit community.

[racialbechdel]

This blog is such a cool idea! I can't wait to see what other shows you review.

We don't just do shows, we do movies too! And I do plan on doing some comics as well.-Kaxbeokay

[racialbechdel]

One good series that passes the racial Bechdel test: most variants of Law & Order. Feel free to add that series to the list. (My wife adores Law & Order!)

Ai-Yo and I will usually try to review shows and movies that we have already seen. I haven't really seen any Law & Order, but I'll be sure to add it to the list of "to be reviewed" so I can watch it later.

-Kaxbeokay

[racialbechdel]

glee

glee is a popular show featuring a group of high school misfits as they compete as part of their school's recently revived glee club. Will Schuester (Matthew Morrison) is a Spanish teacher at McKinley High School who gathers these students in a new glee club named "The New Directions". Among the initial members are Artie Abrams (Kevin McHale), Tina Cohen-Chang (Jenna Ushkowitz), Mercedes Jones (Amber Riley), Kurt Hummel (Chris Colfer), and Rachel Berry (Lea Michelle). Lacking a strong male singer to match Rachel's voice, Will forcefully recruits Finn Hudson (Cory Monteith). More recruits follow, including Noah "Puck" Puckerman (Mark Sailing), Quinn Fabray (Dianna Agron), Brittany Pierce (Heather Morris), Santana Lopez (Naya Rivera), and Mike Chang (Harry Shum. Jr.). Despite growing in numbers, the glee club meets opposition from Sue Sylvester (Jane Lynch), whose funds for cheerleading were cut and given to the glee club.

Despite all of the show's flaws, glee remains one of my guiltiest of guilty pleasures. The show cheaply relies on song selection and cheap writing ploys in order to attract a large fanbase. The show has constantly been criticized for how it uses shameless character stereotypes, its use of autotune in order too quickly produce songs for episodes, and it's misrepresentation of several different groups.

Is there more than one character of color? Yes, and a good number of them are in the main cast (Tina and Mercedes), or have been promoted to main cast (Santana and Mike). These characters also have their own share of the spotlight, having their own storylines and their own solo and duet numbers.

Do two or more characters of color have a conversation? Yes. These characters of color interact with each other several times throughout the show.

Do these characters talk about something other than a white character? Yes. For example, Mike and Tina tend to talk about their relationship with each other several times throughout their storylines and Mercedes and Santana talk several times about not having enough chances to shine in the glee club.

glee passes the Racial Bechdel Test. However, despite this, there are many problems with how minorities are portrayed. For example, one of Mike's storylines involves his parents not supporting his decision to pursue dance. The parents, particularly the father, were depicted as incredibly strict, following the stereotype of the "Strict Asian Parent". Also, while some characters, like Mercedes, aren't a complete stereotype, many minor, one-shot, and background characters are stereotyped by race. For example, in the first season, one of the New Directions' competitors is a glee club from an all-female high school for juvenile delinquents. Nearly all of the students at said school are Black.

Racial minorities are not the only group who are misrepresented either. The show is ripe with stereotypes of the lesbian and gay community as well as poor depictions of the disabled and those of "different" body types. Sadly, a good number of the fandom is very harsh towards all of these groups. Many fans of the show were very hard on Ashley Fink's character, Lauren Zizes, when she started dating Mark Sailing's character. They said she was "too fat" and "too big" to be dating "someone as hot as [Puck]". Amber Riley's character received very similar criticisms from the fans when her character started dating Chord Overstreet's character, Sam Owens. And along with these harshness towards those groups, several fans oversimplify the relationships of the gay and lesbian characters to the point of fetishization.

However, despite all these problems, I continue to watch glee. Why? Because I know that they can do better I hope that they do better. The show has a large fanbase and has the opportunity to really change how people think about racial minorities, the LGBT community, the disabled, and the overweight, which could eventually change how those groups are presented in the media as well. And the show has been getting slightly better about this. They recently had a character deliver a speech on how cultural appropriation is harmful and devoted an entire episode to suicide prevention. But these changes took three seasons to occur and, as I said before, there are many, many problems with the show. Hopefully Ryan Murphy and the rest of the writing staff for the show will get their crap together.

[racialbechdel]

Attack the Block (2011)

Attack the Block is a UK sci-fi comedy/horror film. It is about a gang of youths (Moses, Jerome, Pest, Dennis and Biggz) from a council estate in South London defending their tower block from alien invaders during bonfire night.

It's no secret that I liked this film, in the UK there are a handful of 'hood films' with a similar plot so this is film is very refreshing. It was fast paced, thrilling and dramatic offering laughter, tears and suspense all in 88 minutes set to a Basement Jaxx soundtrack. New commer John Boyega gives a stunning performance as Moses as do most of the first time main cast.

As for the Bechdel Test...

Is there more than one character of color? Yes, most of the main cast are people of colour and the majority of the minor cast are also people of colour

Do two or more characters of color talk to each other? Yes, they do. The main cast talk to each other a lot and to the minor character a group of girls that are also majority characters of colour.

Do they talk about anything other than a white character? Yes. Throughout the film most of the talk is about the aliens. Look at the aliens, how to kill the aliens, how to survive against the aliens, let's save our friend that is trapped because of the aliens. Attack the Block passes.

[racialbechdel]

South Park

South Park is about the adventures of four kids (Kyle, Cartman, Kenny, and Stan) in the strange town that they live in. The town of South Park is always ripe with controversy and angry citizens. From dealing with immortal celebrities, aliens, and leprechauns, to befriending towels, test-tube babies, and Mormons, the citizens of South Park have seen it all.

I'm a huge fan of South Park. The show is usually spot on with their social and political satire, tackling everything from race relations, medical controversy, and celebrity hijinks. The show started off just focusing on the four boys and their misadventures throughout the town. However, as the series went on, the show became more and more political and the show also began to focus on the other citizens of South Park, such as Randy Marsh, Mister Garrison, Chef, Mister Slave, and so on and so on.

But does it pass the Racial Bechdel Test?

Is there more than one character of color? Yes. However, they rarely get the spotlight. Chef was a main character throughout most of the series until his voice actor quit because of an episode mocking Scientology. Other characters who have shared the spotlight are Token Black, Starvin' Marvin, Baahir, and The City Wok Guy.

Do two or more characters of color talk to each other? Yes, but rarely. The only other people of color who Token talks to is his parents and the same applied to Chef. Minor characters have also held conversations with other characters of color as well.

Do they talk about anything other than a white character? This is another case of "yes but rarely". This is mostly due to how the show, for the most part, is focused around the four main characters, so for the most part they are discussed. However, there are several episodes that also focus on minor characters as they are discussed.

So South Park passes, but only barely. This is mostly because the show is focused more on the four boys. The show is actually really smart with how it handles stereotypes. While it does use them, it doesn't use them lightly and smartly handles race issues. One such episode is "The N Word". Randy Marsh is on Wheel of Fortune and mistakenly thinks that the winning answer is "niggers" when in actuality it is "naggers". While Randy is met with a lot of animosity from white people, several Black people see the whole thing as foolishness. Meanwhile, Token is dealing with what was said in his own way and Stan is trying to make amends with him. However, Token is unresponsive and constantly dismisses Stan when he tries to apologize on behalf of his father. In the end, Stan realizes that he will never be able to understand how the whole ordeal affects a Black person, learning more in thirty minutes on how to be a good ally than most white people do in real life.

[racialbechdel]

Misfits

Misfits is a UK sci-fi teen drama about five young ASBOS Curtis (Nathan Stewart Jarrett) Alisha (Antonia Thomas) Kelly (Lauren Socha) Simon (Iwan Rheon) and Nathan (Robert Sheehan)doing community service that are suddenly swept away by a freak storm and find that they have acquired special powers that reflect an aspect of a personality.

I enjoyed this series from episode 1 and has gained popularity and a strong fandom. The characters are funny real and relatable. I like the writing very authentic and natural; it manages to be dark and light hearted at the same time.

Does it have more than one character of colour?                                         Yes it does. Curtis, Alisha and short lived character Nikki are very visible POC.

Do two or more characters of color talk to each other?         Yes they do, Curtis dated both Alisha and Nikki for a while. Curtis and Alisha relationship ended rather abruptly and his relationship with Nikki seemed very rushed.

Do the characters of color talk about something other than a white person?        Yes. Very rarely though. Alisha and Curtis talked about their relationship as did Curtis and Nikki. However once Nikki had died and Curtis had moved and Alisha was with Simon it was we are very lucky that they engage in conversation that was not about a white character. Curtis gender-shifting story-line is one of the few occasions.

Misfits does pass the Racial Bechdel test but just barely. It's treatment of race in general needs a lot of work. Especially when it came to Alisha who is a Black woman. Her initial power worked against her than to her benefit unlike the rest of the group. Unlike everyone else Alisha never truly had her own episode where we learn about her background and see someone from her origin story. What we do find out is that she was called cock-monster for her promiscuity and throughout Season 1-3 it has always been about sex with Alisha. I wouldn't go as far to say it is a complete Jezebel stereotype as she is no more sexually active as the other main cast however they are certainly some elements of the hyper-sexual Black woman. 

[racialbechdel]

Parks and Recreation

Parks and Recreation is about Leslie Knope (Amy Poehler), a woman who loves her hometown very much and wants to improve it while working in the parks and rec division of the city hall. After receiving a complaint from Ann Perkins (Rashida Jones) about a hole which injured her boyfriend, Leslie sets out to fill it in hopes of turning it into a park. With the help of Tom Haverford (Aziz Ansari), Ron Swanson (Nick Offerman), April Ludgate (Aubrey Plaza), and the rest of the parks and rec department, she aims to fill the hole and turn it into a new park.

The writing is clever and the characters are charming. Even minor characters such as Jerry Gergich (Jim O'Heir) and Donna Meagle (Rhetta) get a chance to shine and are just as lovable as the main cast. The show is filmed in a documentary-esque style similar to The Office, however no real evidence of a camera crew being around is ever shown and the "confession shots" do nothing more than provide the character an aside to share their thoughts. Since these asides are shot in "real time", background events are likely to interrupt them, adding more hilarity to the scene.

Does it have more than one character of color? Yes. The two main examples of this are Tom Haverford and Donna Meagle, although it is hinted a few times that April has some Latina heritage and Ann's character is "Ambiguously Brown".

Do two or more characters of color talk to each other? Hard to say. The character of April is white-passing and Ann's ethnicity is very ambiguous, making it difficult to even truly classify what would and wouldn't count as a conversation between two people of color. If we restrict it to the two visibly PoC characters, only a small handful of episodes would even pass, mostly from season three onwards since Donna didn't have many on-screen roles for most of the first two seasons. If we include Ann and April, more episodes would pass, making it easier to say that the show as a whole passes.

Do the characters of color talk about something other than a white person? Just as with the above requirement, it is hard to say whether or not Parks and Recreation passes. Even the first episode in which we see Donna and Tom talking to each other, they end up making the conversation about trying to cheer up one of the white characters on the show. The show only passes this if we include Ann and April as characters of color.

So, in the end, it is hard to say whether Parks and Recreation passes or fails the Racial Bechdel Test. Despite this, though, the show does a great job at portraying race despite not having a strong minority presence unless we fiddle with the rules a little. There is one episode in which the audience learns that Tom actually changed his name from "Darwish Sabir Ismael Gani" to "Tom Montgomery Haverford" because he was worried that a person with a name like his would not be able to make it in politics. Also, the character of Donna Meagle comes from a very wealthy (and secretive) family. It is hinted that money has been in the family for a long time.

I feel that Parks and Recreation could do a lot more in order to obtain a stronger minority presence, but for now they're doing well as far as avoiding stereotypes goes.

[racialbechdel]

Scott Pilgrim vs. The World

Scott Pilgrim (Michael Cera) is a Canadian youth who falls in love with the mysterious Ramona Flowers (Mary Elizabeth Winstead). However, before he can date her, he must beat her Seven Evil Exes. With the support of his friends (portrayed by Alison Pill, Mark Webber, and Johnny Simmons), Scott must face his insecurities if he is to win over the girl of his dreams (literally).

I'm a huge fan of the movie, which is based on the comic book series by Bryan Lee O'Malley. The visuals are top notch and the music is great. Also, the characters are quirky and lovable. The movie is pretty much an ode to video games, pop culture, and indie music. But does it pass the test?

Are there more than one character of color? Yes. In the main cast, you have Ellen Wong as Knives Chau, the girl who is dating Scott at the beginning of the movie. Accompanying Knives is her best friend Trasha, portrayed by Abigail Chu. The League of Evil Exes also has minority representation with the characters of Matthew Patel and the Katayanagi twins.

Do two or more of the characters hold a conversation together? No. Despite a little under half of the League of Evil Exes being people of color, they don't talk to each other. Some sort of conversation is implied in the movie, but it is not shown on screen and not at all important to the plot of the movie.

Do these characters talk about something other than a white character?

Unfortunately, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World does not pass the Racial Bechdel Test. Which is a real shame because the movie is very good. However, maybe the movie doesn't pass because of the content which had to be cut from the source in order to meet time requirements. I will review the Scott Pilgrim comic book series in the future.