Long story:
So I just finished the newest season of Unicorn Academy, right?
Yes, I am an adult and I watch stuff like that cos I find the storytelling and moral weaving enjoyable. Yes, my kind exists.
Anyways, as a girl's kid's show with a feminine aesthetic, I expected the girls of the UA friend group to get the spotlight over the past six seasons and they have, each with a whole arc of the show dedicated to their growth. The only member of the group who has yet to get that level of focus is Rory, the one male member. Here we go again....
I cannot stress enough how much I hate when a show with interesting worldbuilding and relationship analysis tries to be "inclusive" by trying to squeeze a secondary demographic into one character that is introduced as important, only to take a backseat to everyone else in all the important ways. I believe said character is referred to as the "token". I first became familiar with this in a racial context (black character in predominantly white casts), but now I have seen the goalpost split into sex-based (Rory in the UA friend group) and orientation-based(LGBT-character in a straight friend group) majorities as well.
Thankfully UA takes a very diverse approach to the girls in the group, having them come from different backgrounds (with their sexuality still up to interpretation as of this post)...but the problem of Rory being the token is pretty glaring considering the possible "periphery demographic" of boys, transgender people, and intersex people that enjoy UA.
I can't proclaim myself blameless in this situation, either. You'll notice that most of the romantic relationships in my work are heterosexual, with a few exceptions across all media I have done so far. Why? Because I make it a rule of mine to "write what I know" - makes the story a bit more believable, you know? I draw some inspiration from people and places I have seen and interacted with. Unfortunately, that experience has yet to completely cover the LGBT+ (or any) spectrum, and I honestly don't believe it ever will.
I leave the writing of relationship and character types that I have not seen progress in real time to the people that have, because I know they can do it right instead of inadvertently creating a token. Since UA decided to include Rory, I REALLY hope the next season ejects him from that status.
As for me, I also make it a point to try and give equal character development/establishment to every character to which I direct your attention in the story's flow. I know I would hate it when a show's coolest designs only get two lines throughout the show and get forgotten almost immediately, so I would never make yall suffer for that! If they seem like a backburner character now, it just means their time to shine is planned for later. The Return to Eternity game is only just one part of an entire project, after all!
Side note - as far as kids show's go, I am impressed with UA's depth nonetheless.
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