#bad Bynars

[singlecrow]

why am I suddenly obsessed, I don't know! but Mariner needs to eventually notice that T'Lyn is, by Vulcan standards, a bad girl (this is literally why she was thrown off the Sh'vhal!) and therefore exactly Mariner's type

[star-trek-fandom-confessions]

#710

I've noticed that shipping Mariner with male characters gets some backlash from the fandom, which is unfair because being pansexual means being attracted to all genders and sexualities. To quote Mariner, "I like bad boys, bad girls, bad non-binary babes, bad Bynars..." Basically, Mariner being attracted to guys is just as valid pansexual rep as her being attracted to girls and non-binaries. I also think besides the fandom panphobia is another deeper issue. I think because Mariner is a badass female character who also happens to be black, some people ascribe the racist Strong Independent Black Woman Who Don't Need No Man stereotype to her. Which is messed up because black women rarely get cast as the male lead's crush/love interest and also, being attracted to men or being vulnerable doesn't make Mariner less of a heroine.

[amateur-mint]

I am decidedly neutral on the topic of Beckett Mariner's romantic life, to the point where I could not care less about who she ends up with (if anybody) as long as she's happy...

but the concept of her ending up with Boimler of all people after the string of hotties and badasses she's managed to ensnare is objectively funny, and it gets funnier the wider your definition of 'ensnare' gets.

Amina Ramsey, Jennifer Sh'reyan, Jack Ransom, T'lyn (arguable but I like the idea), a string of bad boys, girls, nonbinary babes, and Bynars... and she goes for the raisin boy with the sand allergy.

Brad: I would like to give a shoutout to my fellow nominees, who will now and forever be known as the guys who lost to fuckin' Brad Boimler

[curator-on-ao3]

Again, cool response to the last question, so I'll let you pick from these options:

And there are things I have fan-fixed in my head to the point that I have to remind myself that the fix-it isn’t part of the actual canon: favourite one of these?

Or

Your/a favourite part of actual canon. Like, maybe something little but it's just so lovely and fitting to you and you're just happy that it exists?

I’ve been a little down on Trek lately, so I’m going to type as fast as I can to brain-dump, in show order, the first things that pop into my mind that I absolutely love in Trek canon:

Kirk calling Nomad his son, the doctor

Christine Chapel’s snark to Roger Korby about schtupping the androids

Mark Leonard’s performance in Balance of Terror

the Horta (a great mama)

“Edith Keeler must die.”

Captain John Christopher, United States Air Force. Serial number 4857932.

Tribbles

the lesson of The Cloud Minders that we must have empathy and listen to others when they tell us about their lived experience in an environment unlike our own

the cheap-ass animation of TAS

Q

Bynars and Minuet

Beverly Crusher’s frustration in Arsenal of Freedom (and the episode’s Good Ship Lollipop joke)

Picard shooting the other version of himself in Time Squared (to clarify: out of respect for those times when we have to stop ourselves from getting caught in loops/doing stupid stuff and we summon up the courage to break a bad cycle and move forward)

K'Ehleyr

Picard out-lawyering the Sheliak

Rachel Garrett; Yar and Castillo

Lal (but I can’t watch the end anymore, it hurts too much)

the Shakespeare and “Set a course for Betazed. Warp 9.” comedy in Ménage a Troi

Best of Both Worlds, I and II (Shelby inclusive)

every conference table discussion in all of TNG

Beverly’s jump in Remember Me (such a damn good episode)

the reveal in Future Imperfect (which one? all of them)

The Dancing Doctor tap dancing with Data

Darmok. And Jalad. At Tenagra.

Ro Laren

Troi saying, “You could have easily been right” to Ro in Disaster

Hugh, Third of Five

the fact that The Next Phase has so many plotholes and they’re forgivable because the episode is so fun and great

Scotty on the holodeck version of the TOS bridge and Picard joining him

Rascals!

Deanna’s “Ancient West” outfit

the Jefferies tube music and make out session in Lessons

Attached. Oh, my heart.

the Enterprise with three nacelles … and that absolutely perfect last shot of the series

“You exist here.”

Sisko’s casual, everyday affection for Jake

“Old Man”

Rejoined. Lenara Khan. The love. That kiss. The emotional stakes. All of it.

the three Ferengi hitting their own heads to try to fix their universal translators so the 20th century Earth military people mimic the movement to try to communicate

every second of Trials and Tribble-ations including Sisko working overtime to stop fuckmaster Dax, tossing the tribbles, Sisko meeting Kirk, “We do not discuss it with outsiders,” and so much more

Kira blaming Bashir for putting the baby inside her when … you know … behind the scenes

The Sons of Mogh helping with the harvest in Children of Time

Far Beyond the Stars — some of the best if not the best science fiction I have ever seen

the monster fakeout (and kindness) in The Sound of Her Voice, even though the end makes me cry

“Computer, erase that entire personal log.”

Solok

Sisko and Kassidy discussing their comfort levels about a simulation in which the reality was segregation

Janeway waterfalling off the sofa to be closer to Mark on the screen

“Warp particles!”

the lizard babies

the two Janeways in Deadlock

Remember (a painfully good Holocaust episode that doesn’t get enough credit and, yes, I know the path the script took and I’m glad it ended up as a B’Elanna episode)

“I don't know what I'm seeking.” “Then I believe you are ready to begin.”

“The child you spoke of, the girl. Her favorite color was red.” Also, Tuvok’s meditation lamp in the window for Kes.

hot damn, Counterpoint, yaaas

everything in Relativity

“The Yankees, in six games.”

Janeway going after Seven in The Voyager Conspiracy

“This is Lieutenant Reginald Barclay at Starfleet Command.” “It's good to hear your voice, Lieutenant. We've been waiting a long time for this moment.” “The feeling is mutual. Unfortunately, the micro-wormhole is collapsing. We have only a few moments.” “Understood. We are transmitting our ship's logs, crew reports, and navigational records to you now.” “Acknowledged. And we're sending you data on some new hyper-subspace technology. We're hoping eventually to use it to keep in regular contact, and we're including some recommended modifications for your comm system.” “We'll implement them as soon as possible.” “There's someone else here who would also like to say something.” “This is Admiral Paris.” “Hello, sir.” “How are your people holding up?” “Very well. They're an exemplary crew, your son included.” “Tell him, tell him I miss him. And I'm proud of him.” “He heard you, Admiral.” “The wormhole is collapsing.” “I want you all to know we're doing everything we can to bring you home.” “We appreciate it, sir. Keep a docking bay open for us.”

“Nice hair.” (Live Fast and Prosper)

Janeway and Jaffen in Workforce

the spot-on legal concerns of Author, Author

“Set a course. For home.”

(Nothing from Enterprise or Prodigy only because I haven’t watched enough of Enterprise or any of Prodigy)

Burnham and Georgiou forming the delta with their footsteps

the CGI on only the shields protecting Burnham from space

“Are we in session? Because I didn't know you were practicing again. Because if I have your undivided attention for fifty minutes, I can think of a whole bunch of other things we could be doing.”

“That's as depressing a trait as I've ever heard.” “I don't give a damn … I still don't give a damn.”

Cornwell beaming in, phaser aimed, taking command of Discovery

Cornwell phasering the fortune cookies

Cornwell’s voice breaking: “So my Gabriel is dead.”

Detmer’s little bounce when Emperor-as-Captain Georgiou takes command

Pike beaming aboard and instantly being all like MOJAVE to prove to the audience he’s the guy from The Cage

New Eden. Everything. Oh my God (pun intended). The visuals. Owo’s backstory. Pollard patching Pike up after he’s shot. The light at the end. Oh my God, yes. That episode. Yes.

Number freaking One beaming aboard and having her lunch briefing with Pike (Chris and Una’s decades-long friendship wasn’t canon yet, but it shows here so beautifully)

Gabrielle Burnham

“In case the shit hit the fan.”

Michael Burnham on truth serum

Book

Laira Rillak, everyone!

Q&A

season 1 Raffi Musiker

Fleet Admiral and Commander-in-Chief Kirsten Clancy

“You owe me a ship, Picard.”

“You need a feather in your hat.”

Riker greeting Picard

Hugh greeting Picard

the separate trio of Raffi, Clancy, and Deanna all telling Picard he’s shit

Rios singing in Spanish

President Annika Hansen

everybody finding each other in the Confederation Universe

Liam Shaw — a character with incredible highs and lows

Majel Barrett as the computer voice when the crew gets to the Enterprise D

“Somehow I figured you might.”

everything in Ghosts of Illyria

Spock and La’an’s mind meld

Spock and T’Pring in Spock Amok

“You cannot resign. The loss to Enterprise would be unimaginable. To me.”

“If you’re going to steal a starship, do it correctly.”

Neera Ketoul

La’an normalizing needing to eat all the time as a teenager (especially important for girls to hear)

Pike and Una visually checking in with each other so often that it’s in their cartoon versions (that whole episode, actually, including, “Riker!”)

That’s scrolling through episode titles and jotting down stuff I love off the top of my head, fam.✨

Thank you so much for this ask, anon! ❤️ I needed this positive energy in my life.

[jonfucius]

Great Star Trek Rewatch - TNG Season 1

Originally posted on Twitter 17 March 2021 - 6 April 2021

Star Trek: The Next Generation Season 1 is up next in my Great Star Trek Rewatch. As with ENT, DSC, STX, TOS, TAS, and TOS FF, mini-reviews will document my progress.

Encounter at Farpoint: TNG's pilot is the weakest of the various series premieres. Saving graces are John DeLancie's fully-formed Q, the McCoy cameo, the visual effects, Patrick Stewart's commanding performance, and the greatest tag line: Let's see what's out there, indeed. 5/10

The Naked Now: This episode would have worked better once we knew our heroes a little better (perhaps after "The Arsenal of Freedom"). Since we're still getting to know them, this rehash of a superior TOS episode is flat on arrival. Fully functional, it ain't. 4/10

Code of Honor: It's a racist piece of dogshit. Next. 0/10

The Last Outpost: Man, these Ferengi that allegedly eat their enemies must be as bad the Klingons or the Romulans! Uh, no. They're bad, but not in the way we've been expecting. The T'Kon Empire is worthy of follow-up. 5/10

Where No One Has Gone Before: TNG’s first great episode. Reality powered by thought is a classic Trek idea. Kosinski and the Traveler are excellent guest characters. I’m not the biggest Wesley fan but I cheer every time he calls out Riker. 8/10

Lonely Among Us: There’s just not enough story here to sustain an entire episode. Also, justice for Engineer Singh, reduced to a wig on a chair in one scene. The Antican and Selay makeup, however, are very well done. 5/10

Justice: 90% of this episode is hot garbage. The remaining 10% goes to Picard’s speech about absolute justice (something governments still struggle with), and Crusher’s grief over losing her son. If the Edo really were this primitive, would Picard have stopped there at all? 3/10

The Battle: Wesley’s smugness (and the weak writing for Crusher and Troi) drags the score down a bit, but this is a fairly good first season effort. Learning more about the otherwise enigmatic Picard through a Ferengi’s quest for revenge works. 8/10

Hide and Q: Q’s return so soon after the pilot tries to do something interesting, but it’s not an engaging story. 6/10

Haven: Lwaxana Troi is a love her or hate her character, and I adore her. Wyatt’s chemistry with Troi makes him a believable rival with Riker for Troi’s affections. The Tarellian ship is a striking design. 7/10

The Big Goodbye: While this episode is responsible (for better or worse) for holodeck malfunction stories, this one has a reasonable amount of tension. The reaction to Whalen’s shooting is an excellent in-universe touch. Redblock is effortlessly malevolent. 8/10

Datalore: I would imagine this was the first time people really took notice of just how damn good Brent Spiner is. Evil twin plots aren’t new to Trek, but this is a good one. Glad to see both villains again at later dates. 7/10

Angel One: It’s a sexist piece of shit. Next. 0/10

11001001: The visuals are striking, as are the Bynars. The holodeck scenes with Picard, Riker, and Minuet are worth the price of admission. A solid mid-season installment. 7/10

Too Short a Season: Fountain of Youth episodes are corny at best. A combination of makeup and casting dooms this one from the start. The Iran-Contra parallels come through loud and clear. 4/10

When the Bough Breaks: The Aldeans' plight is sympathetic. I just get the feeling that there's not enough plot to sustain an entire episode each time I watch this one. It's not objectionable but it's not oustanding, either. It just is. 5/10

Home Soil: Some very subtle commentary on the ravages of colonization gets lost in the "ugly bags of mostly water" scene at the very end. Malencon's death is somewhat gruesome for Trek (at least until the airing of the season finale). 6/10

Coming of Age: An excellent first season effort, with Wesley's exam and Remmick's investigation serving as the impetus for the title. Will we see Quinn and Remmick again? Time will tell. 8/10

Heart of Glory: A strong Klingon episode that sows the seeds for RDM’s sublime “Sins of the Father”. All killer no filler. 8/10

The Arsenal of Freedom: Confining this episode to a soundstage limits the scope and stakes of this one, but I do enjoy Crusher and Picard’s scenes. I especially love the Lower Deckers on the bridge. Some good commentary on the military-industrial complex here. 7/10

Symbiosis: Did Nancy Reagan write this stinker? A bummer that this was one of Merritt Butrick’s final roles before his too-early death from AIDS. It could’ve been a great one, but it’s just mediocre. 5/10

Skin of Evil: The first time a series regular dies…for good. The behind-the-scenes tales are legendary, but aside from the goofy oil slick monster, Yar’s senseless death (randomly, in the line of duty) and touching funeral elevates this episode. 7/10

We’ll Always Have Paris: I don’t know why, but this one works for me. I like the sense of isolation as our heroes track down Manheim; and the time distortions are fun, even if the science doesn’t make sense. 7/10

Conspiracy: This episode's shocking climax still hits hard over thirty years later. The unnerving feel of the episode kicks in from the jump and is sustained through to the chilling tag. A shame that this wasn't followed up in live-action. 8/10

The Neutral Zone: The return of the Romulans is dramatic, but the best scenes for me are in the 5th act and the tag. Picard's speech to the refugees is an inspiring summation of Star Trek, and even after an uneven season, it's hard not to be energized for what's to come. 8/10

And with that, TNG Season 1 comes to an end in my Great Star Trek Rewatch. Final score: 5.84/10. Highest score(s): “WNOHGB,” “The Battle,” “The Big Goodbye,” “Coming of Age,” “Heart of Glory,” “Conspiracy,” “The Neutral Zone.” Lowest score(s): “Code of Honor,” “Angel One.”

[thewordinvention]

This is related to the latest (at time of writing) Lower Decks episode (season 4 episode 7), so, uh, spoilers an' all that.

So, this week a Bynar ship got seemingly destroyed, but now we know for certain not really. Now, maybe I'm just making random connections, but I remember that Mariner references dating "Bad Bynars" in We'll Always Have Tom Paris (the line may've stuck with me because she also referenced non-binary people).

So, you may see where this is going and y'am certainly right to call this a wild bit of speculation, but, what if they're gonna call back that line? What if when they discover where the ships and their crews am they meet Mariners old Bynar partners who were upon that Bynar ship?

Probably won't happen, but if it does I want there to be proof I had the thought beforehand.

[historyhermann]

Booming LGBTQ Representation in Animation in 2021 [Part 2]

Continued from part 1

Reprinted from Pop Culture Maniacs, my History Hermann WordPress blog on Jan. 15, 2023, and Wayback Machine. This was the seventh article I wrote for Pop Culture Maniacs. This post was originally published on January 5, 2022.

Other streaming platforms, like Paramount+ had animated series with LGBTQ characters. For example, the Rugrats reboot, a gay single mother named Betty DeVille, voiced by openly queer actress Natalie Morales, is a character. More prominent, however, is Star Trek: Lower Decks, fulfilling on Mike McMahan’s commitment to explore the identity of Beckett Mariner, who is voiced by Tawny Newsome. In the episode “We’ll Always Have Tom Paris,” Mariner tells Tendi, “I’m always dating bad boys, bad girls, bad gender non-binary babes, ruthless alien masterminds, bad bynars,” with a reviewer saying that Mariner affirms that “she is essentially pansexual.” In another episode she reveals she spent time on a space station and notes one of the nature preserves they are going to is where she went on a date, not specifying whether the date was male or female. She also calls Boimler, her male friend and colleague, her “number one.” Andy Billups (voiced by Paul Scheer), the ship’s chief engineer, is implied to be asexual as he has no interest, in the episode “Where Pleasant Fountains Lie,”of sleeping with the male or the female guard, and he is not shown participating in any sex acts in the “Naked Time” simulator in the show’s following episode. Whether the series follows up on this in an expected third season is anyone’s guess. At the same time, Star Trek Prodigy, also on Paramount+  includes Zero, who is a Medusan, with Medusans as genderless aliens who use they/them pronouns.

Hulu and Peacock also featured LGBTQ characters. In March, the series creators of Solar Opposites, Justin Roiland and Mike McMahan confirmed that Korvo and Terry are a romantic couple in a committed relationship. Another Hulu series has two LGBTQ characters, one of whom is bisexual (Melissa Tartleton) and another which is gay (Gary Garoldson). Furthermore, in the a Pride-themed episode of the children’s animation, Madagascar: A Little Wild, an okapi named Odee Elliott appears, who is non-binary. Odee is voiced by Iris Menas who said the episode’s biggest takeway is “acceptance and love and celebration” while GLAAD’s director of entertainment media, Jeremy Blacklow, said the episode comes at a time that “LGBTQ inclusion in kids and family programming is rapidly growing,” and stated that  DreamWorks Animation is partners with GLAAD to “ensure that all families are represented on-screen.”

A late comer is the Crunchyroll coming-of-age series High Guardian Spice, created by a trans man, Raye Rodriguez, who was a character designer for Shadi Petosky’s Danger & Eggs animated series. This series featured trans and lesbian characters, with one of the trans characters voiced by Rodriguez himself! The other character, Snapdragon “Snap”, was voiced by a trans woman, and is on the road to transitioning to being a trans woman by the end of the series. The lesbian characters included two cousins of Sage, one of the story’s protagonists. They are named Aloe and Anise, her wife. The person who voiced Anise is a lesbian actress and she voiced two other characters in the show, meaning that those characters could be arguably lesbian coded. Furthermore, Sage showed an attraction to Snap and her friend Rosemary, meaning that she is presumably a lesbian, and  Rose may be as well. Thyme, one of the show’s other protagonists, shows an attraction to a mermaid in one episode, while her roommate Parsley is very close with her. At the same time, another voice actor is openly gay and a person who voices a character named “Slime Boy” is ambiguously queer.

At the same time, terrestrial broadcast networks had their share of LGBTQ characters. This included gay men Crispin Cienfuegos and Ham Tobin in The Great North, voiced by Julio Torres and Pauli Rust respectfully, an implied lesbian woman named Frankie (voiced by Naomi McDonald) in Cartoon Network’s Elliott from Earth, and a queer man named Jerry Smith. Craig of the Creek, another Cartoon Network animated series currently airing features non-binary, lesbian, gay, and agender characters. Nickelodeon’s Blue’s Clues & You! featured an alphabet song which featured multiple Pride flags, Jessie Juwono, a supervising director of the now-ended Big Hero 6: The Series, confirmed Globby and Felony Carl, as a gay couple, and storyboarder Sam King said, two days after the series finale of Disney’s DuckTales, that she would permit fans to “assume I think every character except, like, Lunaris, is LGBTQIA+ in some shape or another.” On the other hand, Nickelodeon’s still-airing The Loud House features lesbian, gay, and bisexual characters. Another series, Tuca & Bertie,  the new season of which began airing on Adult Swim in June 2021, on Netflix for season 1, featured various LGBTQ characters as well. This included a bisexual Toucan named Tuca, and a female seagull, Kara, who is a former love interest of Tuca.

The ongoing Cartoon Network series, Victor and Valentino, features a character who is implied to be a lesbian: Xochi Jalapeno, voiced by Cristina Vee. As I wrote in November 2020, she has a clear romantic interest in another woman, Amabel, and her lesbianism is “heavily implied by her never showing romantic feelings for male characters and often blushing when she is around Amabel.” Sadly, in May of 2021, it was announced that The Venture Bros was ending. The series featured various LGBTQ characters such as the openly gay Colonel Horace Gentleman, a lesbian character named Virginia “Ginnie” Dunne, and a gay couple: The Alchemist and Shore Leave. Luckily, it was later announced the series would have a direct-to-video film continuation at some point.

Some shows aired on actual television channels and on broadcast networks. One such show was Final Space, with the show’s final season premiering on Adult Swim first, then later HBO Max and Netflix (for international broadcasts), from March 2021 to June 2021. The show’s cancellation was confirmed by show creator Olan Rogers. Final Space had previously aired on TBS. In December of 2020, I wrote that “if rumors are true, then the third season of Final Space will have LGBTQ characters” and that turned out to be be true! This was manifested in a humanoid alien by the name of Ash Graven voiced by Ashly Burch. She had previously voiced a bisexual woman in OK K.O.!: Let’s Be Heroes named Enid, a non-binary Gem woman in Steven Universe named Rutile Twins, a lesbian woman named Laney in The Loud House, and currently voices Molly McGee, a Thai-American protagonist of the series, The Ghost and Molly McGee.

In Final Space, however, Ash was shown to be a lesbian character in the eighth episode of the show’s final season, as she holds hands with a genderless being, Evra, voiced by a biracial queer actress, Jasmin Savoy Brown, and she had previously hated a man who had rejected her in a previous season. In a podcast about the episode, Rogers confirmed that Ash was lesbian and noted that his co-writer, David Sacks, pushed for an episode about Ash, while he had wanted to do another character. He also stated, at the time, that if the show were to have another season he would expand on the relationship between Ash and Evra. Sadly, he never got the chance to do this due to the show’s cancellation. The show also included recurring LGBTQ characters like Clarence Polkawitz (voiced by Conan O’Brien), a selfish man, as bisexual, and the gender-flipping possibly genderfluid Tribore Menendez (voiced by Rogers), while Rogers himself said that he would have pushed for Little Cato as a gay character in another season.

Other examples of shows airing on television and streaming platforms were Duncanville and HouseBroken, which aired on Hulu and FOX. Duncanville features a recurring genderfluid character named Mia Abarra (voiced by Rashida Jones), a kiss between one of the protagonists, Annie, and another woman, Sandra, and features background characters mentioning they are in gay relationships in several episodes in the show’s newest season. LGBTQ characters were throughout HouseBroken, whether a gay trans male cat named Chico, a bisexual mixed-breed terrier Diablo, and the owners of Tabitha, Stelios and Brett, as a same-sex couple. In November, in an episode of The Simpsons, a FOX series which has been running since 1989, Smithers was shown with a new boyfriend who was named Michael de Graaf.

More prominent is The Owl House, the first half of the second season which aired on the Disney Channel from June to August, then was added to Disney+ later. While it is aimed at pre-teens, the series is a “deep story with a simple premise” as one reviewer described it. A second season canonized the semi-canon feelings between a bisexual Afro-Dominican/Afro-Latina young woman named Luz Noceda (voiced by Sarah-Nicole Robles) and a lesbian young woman named Amity Blight, which fans dubbed “Lumity.” It also introduced a new non-binary character named Raine Whispers, voiced by Avi Roque, a non-binary actor, and confirmed that Eda Clawthorne (voiced by Wendie Malick) is queer because she had feelings for Raine, who she previously dated before breaking up, and previously noted she had ex-boyfriends. Furthermore, Mae Whitman, who voices Amity, came out as pansexual. The way forward for The Owl House beyond Season 3 is uncertain, as showrunner Dana Terrace stated in early October. Unlike previous Disney shows, which featured LGBTQ actors who generally did not voice LGBTQ characters, The Owl House features LGBTQ actors voicing LGBTQ characters, such as Mae Whitman. [6] Another currently airing Disney series, Big City Greens, featured two gay characters: Alexander and Terry.

Other Disney shows seemed to feature LGBTQ characters as well. In one episode of Amphibia there were two women who were coded based on the bisexual and pansexual flags, according to the show’s art director, named Jess and Ally. The latter was voiced by Latina comedian Melissa Villaseñor who is of Mexican descent. In another episode, a man was shown proposing to another man. As Jade King pointed out, there is a possibility of confirmed representation between two of the show’s protagonists, Anne Boonchuy and Marcy Wang, while there is “chemistry between Yunan and Olivia…teasing…a full relationship between the two.” There was even an episode which a song by Rebecca Sugar, creator of Steven Universe, was shown.

In two episodes of The Ghost and Molly McGee, a lesbian character named Ms. Roop, who is voiced by Jane Lynch, a lesbian woman, is shown. In the episode “Mazel Tov, Libby!”, she is slow-dancing with a woman and in the next episode she is shown to be a lesbian. The woman she dancing with is her wife, Pam. Samantha C. King, a director for the show, said that Roop is a “lesbian who always talks about her wife” and added that Pam and Roop aren’t the only LGBTQ characters, but that there will be “more significant rep later on.” Others have even argued that Molly McGee herself is bisexual, claiming that during a musical sequence in one episode, a bi flag-colored sticker can be seen on Molly’s motorcycle helmet, but this is only a unconfirmed theory. One of the show’s creators, Bob Roth, one of the show’s creators stated as much, urging fans to let the representation “unfold naturally.”

One indie animation put many of the series on streaming platforms and broadcast television to shame. Helluva Boss, at the head of the indie animation boom, continued to air on YouTube. Apart from the established LGBTQ characters like Blitzo (pansexual), Moxxie (bisexual), and Stolas (gay or bisexual), voiced by the openly gay Brandon Rogers, Richard Steven Horvitz, and Bryce Pinkham respectfully, the episode “The Harvest Moon Festival” introduced a trans female character named Sallie May (Millie’s sister), who is voiced by a trans woman, Morgana Ignis. Even two male-presenting characters, Blitzo and Stolas shared a kiss at the end of the episode “Truth Seekers.” The series can be described as having a tenor of morbid humor and being “unlike any other animated series, indie or mainstream, that has ever been created or has appeared on any platform,” unique in its own way. The series also featured, in the next-to-last episode of the show’s first season, Blitzo and Stolas going on a date together, although it did not work out for either of them, as Stolas can’t spell out why exactly he loves Blitzo, with both leaving each other behind. This series is prominent in the indie animation scene and one of the few queer female-led series, unlike other series which have wonderful representation but are not headed by queer people.

Otherwise, My Life is Worth Living, a series which is meant to use “relatable teen stories to teach suicide prevention strategies.” It includes stories which cover “LGBTQ+ issues, substance abuse, sexual abuse, and physical injury” and has aired on YouTube since September 2021. LGBTQ characters include Scott, a public speaker revealed to be gay in Dante’s Story and Dante, a high school football player who has struggled to come out. On October 11, the newest episode of Nico Colaleo’s series, Ollie & Scoops, premiered on YouTube. In the episode before that, which aired on October 22 of 2020, it centered on the history of a teacher, Binnie, who is “anxious and nervous to tell another teacher, Wendy, that she likes her,” with Colaleo promising that there will more of both characters in future episodes.

Many anime led the way when it came to representation. For instance, the original net animation, Assault Lily Bouquet: Fruits, based on Assault Lily Bouquet, had homoerotic focus, while the ongoing series My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom! featured a bisexual harem of men and women who pin after the protagonist, Catarina Claus. In 2021 five series with LGBTQ characters began. High-Rise Invasion featured two protagonists who begin as a friends but become romantically involved with one another, while Otherside Picnic centered on two women who have feelings for each other. In the latter case, however, their feelings are only implied as they never kiss or even directly say they love each other, leading some critics to say that they can’t think of the show as anything more than “just another generic supernatural anime.”

Trans characters appeared in So I’m A Spider, So What? and Wonder Egg Priority. A non-binary character appeared in the series, Blue Period, who is misgendered and mocked by her classmates, and yuri content was present in both Sailor Moon Eternal movies, with two lesbian characters having a role: Sailor Neptune and Sailor Uranus. The series Komi Can’t Communicate includes a character with an ambiguous gender and another character, a woman, who is infatuated with the series protagonist. Some reviewers pointed to yuri coding in other series, like Vlad Love, Blue Reflection Ray, Kiniro Mosaic, Vivy, YuYuYu, Zombieland Saga: Revenge,  and Battle Athletes, while noting the final season of Kobayashi-san Chi no Maid Dragon S, calling the latter the “one of the most ridiculous and entertaining yuri-ish anime…in some time.” There are also implied yuri tensions between the protagonists of The Aquatope on White Sand with one reviewer for Anime News Network saying that they are considering the series “to be a yuri series” and calling it “yuri-coded right from the start,” while another saying they are setting their “yuri expectations…fairly low” for the show, but are still planning on watching it anyway.

January of this year will see the premiere of the new season of Princess Connect! Re:Dive, along with Luminous Witches and Love Live Superstar!, all of which may have yuri subtext. In early February 2022, The Legend of Vox Machina, an adult animated fantasy series based on a Critical Role campaign, will begin airing on Amazon Prime. It will include two bisexual siblings (Vex’ahlia “Vex” de Rolo and Vax’ildan “Vax” Vessar), and two queer characters (Keyleth of the Air Ashari  and Scanlan Shorthalt).

There are a number of animated series with LGBTQ representation that are either scheduled to air or presumed to air in 2022. This includes the reboot series The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder, which will have an interracial gay couple (Barry and Randall Leibowitz-Jenkins), part 4 of Disenchantment, and the fourth season of The Dragon Prince. The latter show has featured supporting characters who are gay, non-binary, and lesbian. Arcane may also be coming back for another season sometime in 2022, although the exact date is not currently known, as will, presumably, Volume 9 of RWBY.

It is also expected that Dead End: Paranormal Park, previously named DeadEndia, will premiere sometime this year as well, after it was pushed back from its original premiere of October of 2021. Dead End: Paranormal Park, when it premieres, will break barriers with a trans male protagonist, Barney, with series creator Hamish Steele hoping it would get “more trans creators getting their chance to tell their stories” while hinting at other LGBTQ characters in the show apart from Barney. Steele also, in a thread on Twitter, described overt trans representation as important to him for a number of reasons, but due to the show being a UK production since UK broadcasters had rejected his previous trans storylines, and hoped that the series can be “one production taking a clear stand against the normalisation of transphobia in this country [the UK],” with the series having, in his words, “multiple trans cast and crew.” Hopefully the series will continue to increase positive queer representation in kids animation.

There are indie animations in development which will likely begin or continue this year. This may include new episodes of Nico Colaleo’s series, Ollie & Scoops, the premiere of S.A.L.E.M.: The Secret Archive of Legends, Enchantments, and Monsters, [7] and a new season of Hazbin Hotel on A24. Colaleo has already stated this, saying there would be “much more” Ollie & Scoops, while Hazbin fans were annoyed at much of the pilot cast not returning in the animated series which seems all but guaranteed to premiere this year.

HBO Max’s Lumberjanes, an animated adaption of the comic of the same name which ended in December 2020, will likely not air this year, but it is possible the litany of indie animations will air. This will not include Rain: The Animated Series as it was cancelled in September 2021 before the series premiere in a re-upload of one the show’s animations for unspecified reasons. The creators of the indie series, The Descendants, said they will pitch their series this year, with the show creator declaring that people need to create their dreams.

However, there are indie series moving forward, with no sign of cancellation. Indigo, with its development presumed after a previous cancellation, Wild Card, which has an openly bisexual protagonist, Jack, based on the show’s bisexual creator, Alex Bahrawy and Sheepish, with a non-binary protagonist, are only a few of many indie series with LGBTQ protagonists which are currently in development. [8] Wild Card seems to be moving closer and closer toward premiering the pilot, at least, as does Far Fetched Show.

I hope that Mika A. Epstein of LezWatch.TV is right in arguing that in terms of representation, this year, “things will get better” and fandoms will develop as ways to express the love people have “for a story or a movie of a TV show,” with shows which take risks, are daring, an tell diverse stories of various types.

© 2022-2023 Burkely Hermann. All rights reserved.

Notes

[1] This was also clear in GLAAD’s 2020-2021 “Where We Are on TV” report (counting characters which premiered on primetime cable TV from June 2020 to May 2021) which noted characters in BoJack Horseman (since cancelled), The Owl House (p. 15, 40), Carmen Sandiego (p. 19), Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts (p. 19, 40), Steven Universe Future (p. 40), DuckTales (p. 40), She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (p. 40), Harley Quinn (p. 42), Young Justice (p. 42). Let’s not forget that as Mike A. Epstein of LezWatch.TV pointed out, “while GLAAD does look into some international shows, it’s very skewed American.”

[2] 2021 was the fourth year of the awards show. In 2020, She-Ra and the Princesses of Power won for the “Outstanding Animated Series” category (the runner-up was BoJack Horseman and other nominees were: The Owl House, Steven Universe Future, Harley Quinn, and Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts). Also She-Ra was nominated for the “Best TV Episode With LGBTQ+ Themes” category, for the episode “Heart Part 2” while Adora and Catra in the same show won the “Fan Favorite Couple” award. In 2019, Steven Universe‘s episode “Reunited” was nominated for “Outstanding Individual Episode with LGBTQ+ Themes” and She-Ra won “Outstanding Animated Series” category (runner-up was Steven Universe and other nominees were: Love, Death & Robots, Bojack Horseman, Adventure Time, and Tuca & Bertie). In 2018, Rebecca Sugar, the showrunner of Steven Universe, was a runner-up for the “Outstanding LGBTQ+ Director / Producer / Showrunner” category, Steven Universe was one of the nominees for the “Most Groundbreaking Representation” category, and Steven Universe won the “Outstanding Animated Series” category (runner up was Adventure Time and other nominees were: Danger & Eggs and Loud House).

[3] Apart from these series, Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts, She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, Recorded by Arizal (implied that future story could have LGBTQ characters), and Onyx Equinox (with bisexual characters) ended in 2020. The hinted Astur’s Rebellion series by Sara Eissa was posed in 2020, but likely will not return. Additionally, the third “season” (as Peacock called it) of Cleopatra in Space, as I wrote about in December 2020, aired on Peacock on January 24, but had no more rep than the two moms of Akila which appeared in “School Break” which aired in November 2020.

[4] The other series are produced by a smattering of companies like Shadow Machine (Final Space; Tuca & Bertie), SpindleHorse Toons (Helluva Boss), Liden Films and Felix Film (Otherside Picnic), TNK (Redo of Healer), Millepensee (So I’m a Spider, So What?), The ULULU Company and Rough Draft Studios (Disenchantment), Zero-G, Inc. (High-Rise Invasion), Skybound Entertainment (Invincible), Asahi Broadcasting Corporation (My Next Life as a Villainess: All Routes Lead to Doom!), P.A. Works (Aquatope on the White Sand), and Titmouse (Star Trek: Lower Decks).

[5] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PIjX9rGvUmk, at 41:40-44:24). A few months later, an animator for the show said that they were “given explicit directions” to make Le Chevre and El Topo, in their scenes together, “romantic and intimate.” (https://scepterno.tumblr.com/post/642230247631323136/wait-i-can-finally-talk-about-how-i-was-given). This confirmed what GLAAD said in their report: “…Netflix includes queer characters in the animated series Carmen Sandiego” (p. 19)

[6] Other LGBTQ actors who did not voice LGBTQ characters include Matt Lucas as Benny in Romeo and Juliet, Rosie O’Donnell as Terk in Tarzan, Joshua Rush as Bunga in Timon & Pumbaa, Jane Lynch as Sergeant Calhoun in Wreck-It Ralph, Harvey Guillén as Funny in Mickey Mouse Funhouse, Auliʻi Cravalho as Moana in Moana, David Hyde Pierce as Francis in A Bug’s Life, Raven-Symoné as Monique in Kim Possible, Jack Dylan Grazer as Alberto in Luca, Sara Ramirez as Queen Miranda in Sofia the First, Graham Norton as Moonwind in Soul, Miley Cyrus as Penny in Bolt, Billy Eichner as Timon in The Lion King (2019 remake), Nathan Lane as Timon in The Lion King, Ellen DeGeneres as Dory in Finding Dory, Jonathan Groff as Kristoff in the Frozen films, Patti Harrison as Chief of Tail in Raya and the Last Dragon, Sean Hayes as Terri Perry in Monsters University, Alyson Stoner as Isabella in Phineas & Ferb, and David Ogden Stiers and Ian McKellen as Cogsworth.

[7] In this series, Salem, protagonist, is non-binary and pan, while Oliver is gay, and Petra is asexual.

[8] Others include Dirt: The Series, Romancing Roslyn Cherry, Howdy Cloudboy, Gadzooks and the Cryptoid Kids (a series by two gay men with LGBTQ themes), Roads to Rome, Succubus Cop, Starmakers, Cabiria Intermezzo, and Long Way From Del’Arte.

[quasi-normalcy]

Bringing this back because I hope that her bad Bynar exes turn out to be behind the mystery ship

STAR TREK: LOWER DECKS We’ll Always Have Tom Paris | 2x03

[alexkablob]

So the thing about Mariner and Jen and the “get out of my school” of it all and the way her at least attempting a romance with Jen fits into and reinforces her ongoing  is, Jen is like...so not her usual type. She tells Tendi her type is “bad boys, bad girls, bad gender nonbinary babes, ruthless alien masterminds, bad Bynars...” and the one definite ex of hers that we’ve seen, Amina, was exactly as much of an agent of chaos in the academy as Mariner was.

Mariner has huge issues with being afraid of commitment and taking on responsibility, which is why she’s gone out of her way to remain a lower decks Ensign, and it’s why her dating type seems to by and large be “a mistake that I’m making on purpose”. Even in the case of her amicable ex, Amina, it was a relationship with a built-in expiration date—it seems like it was always the understanding that they wouldn’t stay tied down to each other when they graduated and inevitably got postings on different ships. And then there’s Barb, who she totally had sex with at that tournament they went to together (because Mariner stole Boimler’s girl and I CAN’T STOP LAUGHING ABOUT IT) but who also wasn’t looking for an actual relationship right now.

Which brings us to Jen, because the thing is...we haven’t seen a lot of her, but from what we have seen every indication is that she’s just like...normal. Kinda preppy. She was only being a bitch because she was returning the energy that Mariner was giving her, and that energy was “get your stupid little butt out of my school”. But now that they’ve cleared up that their rivalry was based on nothing and are giving dating a shot...

There isn’t a built-in expiration date there. The worst case scenario with her is that they go on a date and it’s a little awkward and they don’t fit and they don’t go on another one. But if they actually do fit well together? If things get serious?

Oh fuck. Oh fuck. Mariner doesn’t know how to handle that, the idea of a relationship that could actually turn into something close that lasts, and it’s a microcosm of all of her other emotional issues, of her rebelling both when it’s the right thing to do but also to sabotage herself out of fear of the unknown, because she isn’t afraid of screwing up command of a starship, she would be good at it, deep down she knows she would be good at it, but it would be change and that’s scary.

And so the reason she pretended she hated Jen and pushed her away was that she was afraid that if she actually opened up, she might actually end up loving her.

[scientific-tricorder]

[Image description: Gif from Star Trek: Lower Decks showing Tendi and Mariner, with subtitles. Tendi says "You have a thing for bad boys?" and Mariner responds with "Oh, I'm always dating bad boys, bad girls, bad gender nonbinary babes, ruthless alien masterminds, bad Bynars."]

[starlogged]

Shout out to all the bad boys, bad girls, bad gender non binary babes, ruthless alien masterminds and bad bynars

[discotreque]

LwD 2.03: We’ll Always Have Tom Paris

I’ve lived in the same apartment for eight years now, and yesterday was the fifth catastrophic mechanical failure of the same bathroom toilet—all unrelated issues, too; this time it was the fill valve. At this point I don’t know whether to call a plumber or an exorcist… but anyway, it’s been kind of hard to focus on Star Trek! Ugh.

This week’s episode is credited to M. Willis, who I last encountered on She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, a show about which I wrote literally 100,000 words of fanfic last year, in between Picard and Lower Decks when I had no Star Trek to obsess over. Willis’s She-Ra episodes tended to be slightly off-format in execution, with big action set pieces, lots of characters in unexpected combinations, and usually an emotional game-changer of a climax—and her last credit on this show was “Much Ado About Boimler,” which obviously had all those elements too. She writes to her strengths!

Spoilers within:

If you need me, I’m going to be ugly-laughing about “Voy” for the rest of the day. (Wow, that does actually save a ton of time!)

SHAXS IS BACKXS!!!! The lower-deckers never knowing how or why a senior officer came back from the dead is a perfect microcosm of this show. I love that he still calls Rutherford “Baby Bear,” and I love the weird cosmic horror that LwD keeps sprinkling into the Star Trek universe. (What does that koala know?) I hope this doesn’t mean we’ve seen the last of Kayshon! His appearance on the bridge gives me hope we’ll get to keep both characters around.

Star Trek has always had fairly fuzzy world-building for the world outside Starfleet—understandable, since 99% of Star Trek takes place within Starfleet—but it’s been such a thrill to see LwD (and Picard) finally establish some in-universe pop culture that isn’t conveniently familiar to 20th- or 21st-century audiences. Like the Zebulon Sisters last season—a band that apparently does USO-style tours of Starfleet ships? Delightful. Kestra Troi-Riker having a t-shirt from a Sex Pistols cover band in Klingon? Fucking brilliant. Tendi bonding with the guy at the storage place over the “Klingon acid punk” playing from his little Bluetooth speaker? PUT IT IN MY VEINS.

They really put the character development in gear this week! I liked how we locked in a couple of things already established in extra-canonical material: Mariner’s bisexuality, which Mike McMahan mentioned in an interview last year, and Tendi’s given name, D’vana (which I was sure we’d heard on the show before, but I guess not?).

Speaking of Mariner’s love life, is human–Bynar dating just… by definition a threesome situation?

We learned a lot of new things about Tendi, though, and every single one makes her 10 times more interesting to me. Remember last season, when she said “many” Orions hadn’t been pirates or slavers “for over five years”? Is the implication that something happened in Orion culture—around the end of the Dominion War?—that led to Tendi (and presumably others) rejecting a life of crime and joining Starfleet? How long was she “the Mistress of Winter Constellations” before that—or is it more of an inherited title? I want more Tendi lore!!!!

(Speaking of Tendi’s life, another quick and confounding piece of information for my red-yarn “what the hell is up with Tendiford” theory board: Mariner asks if they’re dating and Tendi’s response is “Not really!” Not really? That’s not no, D’vana!)

This show continues to be a surprisingly conventional workplace sitcom underneath all the excellent Star Trek (and that’s not a bad thing, just a genre overlap that keeps falling out of the front of my mind). Boimler’s inability to use the computer hit way too close to home for me this week: a couple years ago, I returned to a job after a long-term leave of absence, during which time I’d been assigned to a new manager—who’d never had an employee return from long-term leave before, so he didn’t know what to do beforehand—so I spent my first day back just chilling at my desk, fucking around on my phone, because there was literally nothing else I could do without logging into the system first. Too real!

Something we’ve seen in this show that I’m not sure we’ve seen before w/r/t the food replicators is somebody putting a tray of food into the replicator to add more food on top of it—in this case Shaxs getting spicy kiwi ketchup (?!) on a hot dog he seems to have already replicated. (He couldn’t have asked for “hot dog, with spicy kiwi ketchup” in the first place? This is haunting me worse than him coming back from the dead.)

As a certified cat lady, the T’Ana plotline—and its resolution—made me laugh until I couldn’t breathe (unless that was the toxoplasmosis). I should have seen it coming, but I was too distracted by the second-hand embarrassment of them breaking “Jeremy” (and the completely unprecedented Star Trek plot of a doctor getting off on her grandmother’s family heirloom…).

Miscellany:

Jet offering to carry Boimler across the threshold of the door like a bride… am I going to ship THIS now?

Mariner interpreting Tendi’s “talk like a pirate!” in the same way a modern millennial would—“Arr, how ya be doin’ today, me fellow Orion?”—might have been my favourite dumb joke in the entire episode. (“I’m allergic to, uh, pheromones?”)

Tawny Newsome read the line about “only one name, like Odo!” in the script and apparently literally called Mike McMahan out of the blue to remind him that Odo’s name is short for “Odo’ital” and she didn’t want nitpicking nerds on her case. He told her the line was so funny he would accept the nitpicking, so don’t blame Tawny—she tried to warn him!

“There’s like, only a couple people in the quadrant who can say they got beat up by Tom Paris.” Is that a burn? I think that’s a burn.

Another banger of an episode. This show is more confident this season, and I’m loving it—and based on what I’ve heard from people who’ve seen the next two episodes, it only gets better from here. HYYYYYYYPE!!!!!!

See you next week—I’ve got to go fashion a toilet plunger into a crucifix, apparently.

[rebelsofshield]

Far, Far Away Comics: 8/29/2020

Three weeks in and I’m already missing deadlines. Oh well, good thing there was only one comic last week. This week has double crossing bounty hunters and archaeologists and an explosively fun clone story.

Star Wars Adventures: The Clone Wars Battle Tales #4 written by Michael Moreci and art by Derek Charm and Davide Tinto

The ill-fated sons of Kamino get their time in the spotlight in this fourth installment of Battle Tales and it makes for the best issue yet. While previous installments in this loosely connected anthology series have centered on various guest stars from The Clone Wars television series, Michael Moreci takes a detour this week and offers a new tale with new clone characters.

We are introduced to Heater, a former clone deserter who has recently been brought back into the fold of the Grand Army of the Republic. He and several other clones who saw fit to leave the clone army are offered a chance at redemption by Commander Wolffe in the form of a sabotage mission behind Separatist lines. Heater and his other disillusioned clones troopers must learn to work together and also find trust in the Republic once more if they are to survive.

While the circumstances of Heater’s desertion are left maybe a little too vague, the fact that Moreci gets to play with new characters here adds much to the issue’s success. There’s a great sense of tension as Heater and his allies have to face a dangerous mission and also come to terms with their place in the clone brotherhood. While Heater is far from the first clone to realize that his position in the clone army is not an ethical one, it still makes for compelling storytelling. There’s also some suspense in that the expendability of these characters is written into the narrative. While Star Wars Adventures has never been particularly bloodthirsty, it does seem more than possible that Heater or any of his friends could meet a sad end here.

Visually, this issue is another standout. Derek Charm’s action packed and stylized battle sequences overwhelm the pages with explosions and blasterfire while Davide Tinto gets the meatier character drama creating visually distinct and expressive clones that each have clear and distinct personalities. While it may not be the most visually expressive of the Adventures line, it still makes for a great looking comic and continues to show that one of the strengths of IDW’s take on Star Wars has been the showcase of all ranges of styles and voices.

Fans of the clones will need to grab this issue. If you can’t wait until next year for The Bad Batch, this will likely hold you over in the meantime.

Score: A-

Star Wars Bounty Hunters #4 written by Ethan Sacks and art by Paolo Villanelli

For better and for worse, Star Wars Bounty Hunters feels like a comic written by a twelve year old boy. In some ways this makes sense and arguably even works. The iconic bounty hunters of the Star Wars galaxy are the closest things to living action figures that the franchise has to offer. They come with all manner of creative designs and lots of action ready tools and gadgets. At its best, Bounty Hunters feels like an opportunity to crash new and old figures together for flashy and dynamic fight scenes rendered by Paolo Villanelli. Issue #3 had the smackdown between Vance Beilert and Bossk and this issue features an equally fun brawl with newcomers Nakano Lash and Ooris Bynar.

As an action comic, Bounty Hunters isn’t half bad. The creative and iconic designs of its characters allow for big splashy fight sequences and Villanelli is able to render this moments with energy and brutality without the characters losing definition. It’s at times visually busy, but it does its job well and can even be a decent amount of fun.

The problems start in Ethan Sacks’s script. As a means for the above mentioned fight scenes to happen, Sacks’s storyline has been threadbare but doable. Years ago Nakano Lash betrayed a group of big named bounty hunters and escalated an interstellar crime war in the process. Years late she’s resurfaced and set off a race for vengeance. Few characters have yet to establish themselves in this blood chase though. Vance Beilert is only marginally more interesting than he was in last year’s Target Vader and the various other bounty hunters mostly exist to be badass. The two exceptions so far have been Lash, who has a familiar but empathetic goal, and the vengeful T’Onga, a woman looking for answers about her late brother’s passing. It’s disappointing then that Sacks’s script kills one of the two and violence against other women is a central part of the storyline. In a fandom that’s been increasingly hostile to women and people of color, the sort of shock oriented violence centered in Sacks’s script is regrettable and saps away much of the enjoyment out of the dumb, empty spectacle offered so far.  

Score: C+

Star Wars Doctor Aphra #3 written by Alyssa Wong and art by Marika Cresta

Doctor Aphra remains the biggest successes for Marvel’s comic tenure on Star Wars. Whether it’s through winning GLAAD Awards or the character spinning off into audiobooks, toys, and games, it’s been a long time since a comic originating character has created a following for herself in the Star Wars fandom.

Part of this is due to the boundless opportunities offered by Aphra’s character. She’s a refreshingly complex and amoral character that has her toes dipped into a whole host of different places in the Star Wars galaxy. Alyssa Wong’s tenure so far has looked to take the good Doctor back to her tomb raiding roots and so far that has been more than successful.

Wong peppers in all manner of creeping discomfort and dread throughout this issue. Although this is far from the first time that Aphra has tangled with ancient forces outside her control, the temples and dungeons of the galaxy have never felt creepier than under Wong’s hands. Marika Cresta sells this too with all manner of bizarre apparitions and traps manifesting themselves to haunt and torture Aphra and her allies and rivals. It’s not a full on horror comic like we’ve seen with Charles Soule’s Lando, but it takes a nice spin on the “Indiana Jones in space concept” that has been running for about five years now.

That being said, much of Aphra’s supporting cast this time around is in need of fleshing out. We’ve met all manner of new faces over the last three issues and unfortunately not many have been particularly memorable. It may be that Cresta’s character designs have been decidedly forgettable or just that the ensemble is so packed and primed for double crossing that it’s hard to really form much of an emotional connection with any of the new crew. Some revelations at the back half of this issue point towards an exciting new future for the title, but as of the moment Aphra may be riding a bit too much off the fun of its setting and the strength of its title character to establish a new identity for itself.

Score: B

[fart-gate]

SG1

Season 3 episode 12

"JOLINARS MEMORIES"

🚨trigger warning: mention of possible rape 🚨

Notes by me

- Incoming wormhole!!! "Maybe its dad" never get tired of Jack calling Jacob Dad

- MARTOUF!!! MY LOVe

- one way ticket downstairs for Jacob

- Netu is a moon (also known as Hell)

- jolinar escaped hell itself? She just keeps getting sexier doesnt she

- daniel fluttering his lashes at martouf

- jack: lets go stealth and prison break his ass

Martouf: you CANNOT be sneaky with this one

- alexa play Highway to Hell

- MARTOUF IN SG1 CLOTHES ALL MY PRAYERS HAVE BEEN ANSWERED

- Jack criticizing martoufs space ship out the gate unprompted

- martouf: are you sure you can pilot this ship

Tealc / poe dameron: I can fly anything

- sorry tealc , beefiest members stay on the ship

- "To Hell with us!"

- martouf modifying the temple device so that it doesnt display sams thoughts like tv. Definition of perfection #dreamy

- jolinar looks different. Is this the host she had before the one that looked like Sam?

- Sam is trying to think of discreet ways to tell martouf that she can see him and jolinar slappin bellies

- when she wakes up martouf and the first thing he says is "are you ok" husband material

- martouf is handsome in this black shirt ok what?? What you thought I wouldnt mention it?? You think I'm not horny for him?? Well you were wrong werent you

- big surprise, Satan is ugly

- Jack calling him Marty

**trigger warning

- Sam seems to be implying jolinar got raped

***

- Daniels choker

- being blasted out the escape hatch towards an on fire moon seems like fun

- we already lost comms this is a bad idea

- first impression of hell? seems cozy. Needs marshmellows

- *screaming in distance*

- the only movie Jack has ever seen is wizard of oz

- bynar is a stupid name. Fits an ugly man

- "the smells keep getting better and better"

- how has daniel not lost his glassses

- Jack is so snarky with martouf. Jealousy??? Or flirting....only time will tell

- jolinar escaped using sexual means OF COURSE bc she cant have escaped using cool means. It had to be sexual bc she cant do anything else bc shes a woman and the people writing this show are men!!!! Rant over

- oh boo hoo she used her feminine wiles to escape get over it

- technically not even rape as she willingly bounced on it so that she could wait till he fell asleep

- jacob!! 50% of mission complete

- is martouf crying

- interesting how he used to call selmek a 'she' and now he calls her a 'he'. Diversity wins again. The parasite fused to your spine stem is gender fluid❤

- daniel giving him his jacket💗

- ok I'll admit it. this devil is scary

- costume department needs a raise. Yes I'm still talking about how attractive they are and what of it?? This is who I am

- "look after my dad" I CRY

- theyre so sexy covered in dirt go ahead tell me im wrong🔪

- this guy trying be seductive meanwhile his eye is oozing 56 diseases

- "I once carried her" like babey

- theyre like how is he getting off the moon and I'm here yelling at the screen to call tealc!! He saw the beaming thing!

- Sam now knows how to get off the moon. apparently this guys has RINGS?? I didnt even know they went that far

- the guard saved her .

- usually when someone keeps their face hidden on a tv show than it is someone from previous episodes. Who is the guard

- intercept the rings should be easy once I lose these spaceships shooting at me💭tealcs thoughts

- SPACE CHASE

- martouf throwing his axe and Jack catching it . bros for life

- APOPHIS back by unpopular demand i see

- why does he look like phantom of the Opera

---- to be continued ----

~

Whump under the cut

Sam carter whump: temple device, flinching, vivid recall, sensory recall, screaming, captured, forced kneeling, fought, interrogated ish, face grabbed, mind probed

Jack Oniell whump: shot by ribbon device, laying on ground, coughing, thrown in pit, forced kneeling, captured, fought , mind probed

Daniel jackson whump: captured, forced kneeling, mind probed

Martouf whump: captured, forced kneeling, tears on face, mind probed

Bonus Jacob carter whump: beaten, bloody, dirty, weak, helped walking, out of breath

🎶listening to Highway To Hell by ACDC🎶 for obvious reasons

[ancientstarrydynamo]

My family is watching TNG episodes together every day during isolation. Maybe I’ll start blogging our thoughts.

Yesterday was Angel One, a notoriously bad one. I feel like they could do so much more with the character of Trent; it should be him and not interlopers that prove men can have brains. Beata’s treatment of Riker is so “not like the other girls” it hurts.

Today was 11001001, my mother thinks the Bynars got off too easy for stealing a starship. We all agree that the trope of falling in love with a hologram is something we look forward to seeing again.

Next to Jim Shimodo, my brother and I agree that Trent is the best character so far.

[wlwkiranerys]

[id: five gifs from Star Trek Lower Decks. Beckett Mariner and D'vana Tendi are standing on a street and talking to eachother.

Marnier: "Tendi, you've got to warn me if we're going to meeting up with a sexy bad boy. That's my type. Well one of my types."

Tendi: "You have a thing for bad boys?"

Mariner: "Oh I'm always dating bad boys. Bad girls. Bad gender nonbinary babes, ruthless alien masterminds, bad Bynars." /end id]