It's Okay to Not Be Subtle

[@BusterCorp]

"I know writers who use subtext and their all cowards"

[@NewSonyWonderHappyMadisonFan]

There's nothing wrong with being subtle tho.

[@YINSED5192]

It's a reference. kzbin.info/www/bejne/j5yafmWgfMmhrrc

[@eglol]

Sometimes subtext is cool though

[@C_to_the_S]

I also know writers who don’t know the difference between they’re, there, and their… They certainly weren’t cowards, but they weren’t great at their jobs either.

[@NOAHandmycreations]

My teachers haven't touted me subtext and subtitle so can you please explain

[@anothergamer112]

This is the only show aimed at kids I know of that had the balls to say the word "gentrified" and I have nothing but respect for the show because of it.

[@rootru6631]

LITERALLY I WAS SO SHOCKED! Like I was watching it and said outload "Lmao this is gentrification" and was stunned when they said it outright a few minutes later. Very refreshing

[@sp4c1ng_0ut8]

I fell in love with the show at that moment. I respect and appreciate it so much

[@sneakydeechey7210]

It’s cringe propaganda

[@KittyTrackz]

@@sneakydeechey7210 explain how?

[@realdavestrider]

​@@sneakydeechey7210cringe propaganda is when critical thinking

[@Pancakes-n-Waffles168]

In conclusion: USE BOTH! :D

[@NOAHandmycreations]

Evenly?

[@thepnkponcho]

shelly pfp spotted!!

[@Pancakes-n-Waffles168]

@@thepnkponcho :DDD

[@RocknRocknRock]

Of course Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur has S Tier animation. It's Flying Bark, the same people that did Rise of the TMNT, Glitch Techs, Monkie Kid (the first two seasons at least), AND they're so good that they're going to do the animation for the upcoming Avatar the Last Airbender movie. Side note, all these shows are awesome and deserving of your time.

[@igbunujed-sodje179]

They animated the first 4 seasons of Lego Monkie kid.

[@MSAWCartoonist]

rise of the tmnt mentioned!!

[@AnIdotHyperfixator]

MONKIE KID METIONED?!

[@RocknRocknRock]

@@igbunujed-sodje179 Oops! I mixed up the numbers! Thanks for the correction!

[@ThompsonSteamtrain]

Glitch techs needs to be revived

[@the_UF365]

A mixture of Subtlety and Overtness makes the problems characters face more relatable to an audience. Somedays, as a trans person, I wanna talk to my friends about my trans issues. Other days, I'm grappiling with my own morality which is a whole complicated can of worms that has it's own special set of questions uneasy to answer.

[@LibraryofAcousticMagic3240]

I agree. I think the example with the curly hair falls into that perfectly. I have a friend who went through the same journey: First being insecure about her looks (especially her hair), wishing she had straight hair, finding advice on how to style and care for it on the internet, appreciating her hair and honestly wearing it in a very aesthetic way. What I like about this is that it's not like she thought about her hair every day. But there was definitely a peak of focus on the insecurity and then she dealt with it and moved on mostly. That feels organic because it's how most people experience insecurities and it also neatly fits into an episode.

[@svxd7369]

Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur is an amazing show and it does not deserve to be mistreated by Disney, especially when Disney decided to not air the episode about Brooklyn the trans girl which I have seen and enjoyed.

[@GabrielaRodriguez-b1q]

Yeah! Trans Rights! 🏳️‍⚧️

[@johnsonsharon81]

The thin skin snowflakes got the show cancelled. This show deserves a lot better

[@svxd7369]

@@johnsonsharon81 The thin skin snowflakes? What are you talking about?

[@johnsonsharon81]

@svxd7369 the ones that bitch and whine and call things "woke"

[@samt3412]

​@@svxd7369maybe referring to the conservatives?

[@klonekomet]

Shame they decided this was "too much", yet apparently The Proud Family saying it's okay for parents to literally kick out their own children is perfectly hunky-dory. God, I hate Disney sometimes.

[@lexmarovsky6667]

"Sometimes"

[@queenbee3561]

Ain’t that the truth

[@sneakydeechey7210]

They’re both bad

[@DoormanSoorman]

@@sneakydeechey7210no

[@sneakydeechey7210]

@@DoormanSoorman they are. Move on.

[@MsMvsc]

Another good example is Static Shock. Never shied away from real social issues AND used allegories to bolster them too.

[@TheNerdWithASuit]

It's nuts people still think you have to be subtle in your messaging to be good when Avatar: The Last Airbender is considered to be one of the best shows ever made. Anybody here gonna tell me the Warriors of Kyoshi episode was subtle?

[@midnightthesmartfox9981]

Nope

[@lifeisadrag7705]

Or Pakku not teaching Katara? He literally breaks down exactly why he's upset that Katara wants to learn to fight, because it goes against his tradition and it offends him, and he condescends to Katara about being a "little girl". Katara is too prideful and challenges him to fight if, "you're man enough to fight." None of this is subtle, yet it's praised endlessly. Rightfully so in my honest opinion, but people never apply that same grace to new shows because it may conflict with how they feel about said topic if there's a message being said straight up.

[@midnightthesmartfox9981]

@@lifeisadrag7705 Well said

[@TheNerdWithASuit]

@@lifeisadrag7705 The final scene of Mike in Breaking Bad is him point blank explaining why Walter turned into a monster. His pride and his ego.

[@Cappuccino_Rabbit]

Hell let's even compare Eastern animation, about 80% of Japanese anime is not subtle especially with its dialogue I consider Jojo one of the greatests but holy shit its dialogue during the fights, especially from Phantom Blood, feels like a hammer beating my head.

[@legometaworld2728]

Real, I’m tired of “discrimination allegories.” They usually send the wrong messages anyways (like in Overwatch where almost all of the Omnics, the group facing oppression, are faceless enemies). Just make a story about discrimination.

[@MsMvsc]

they also usually come with unfortunate implications

[@azural8347]

Yeah like zootopia is great and all but it has....interesting implications, to say the least

[@Sappysappster]

Glad im not the only one that doesn't like discrimination allegories; I want representation but I can do without discrimination plotlines tbh They're usually written by out of touch white dudes who just dont get it man Look at the furry racism subplot in RWBY or Zootopia's entire shtick Why are the PREDATORS the MINORITIES in this allegory bro 💀💀💀💀💀

[@DTFauxClassic]

Cynically, the reason why we don't see as many stories with as much overt sociopolitical messaging is because major media companies have a financial interest in not rocking the boat too hard. They'll gladly sell us another "Black Struggle" story set before the 1980s, but good luck convincing them to release a mainstream movie that acknowledges systemic/institutionalized racism anytime after that.

[@gooeydude574]

This is also something I sometimes think when I hear something being called unsubtle like it’s a bad thing

[@eglol]

Sometimes in some cases though, it can be a "bad thing" Just more complicated and different circumstances

[@Ramie0Cat]

@@eglol being unsubtlie is a bad thing when you try to roll for stealth

[@Mawwy-Mawwy]

Saw another commenter bring up a similar thing but The thing about "not being subtle" as a criticism is that it is also pretty often used as bad faith from people who don't like what the thing the show is trying to say in the first place, cause it really shows that being not subtle was never the problem, the problem for these people was discussing issues they don't support / actively contribute to, to continue trying to erase the people affected by this issues, which gives all the more value to shows that aren't afraid of hiding their messages behind metaphor imo. Especially when similar messages are hidden through metaphor and when someone makes the connection they say "they are reaching or reading too deep into it". They want stuff to be subtle cause if it's subtle they can pretend the show isn't talking about that and actively ignore the signs that it is. That's why I love the Brooklyn episode so much, it's proud and completely unapologetic about its queer themes and message, because when there are people that want to erase our existence and write us off, being as out and proud about who we are is the best thing we can do to fight back, especially since doing that helps more queer people to be proud of themselves for who they are. I feel like I wrote this kinda awkwardly but just. God I appreciate that episode so so much ( and it got me into Moongirl! )

[@amphibiansriseup596]

You can be upfront and still have a compelling story/message. The problem isn’t the use of dialogue, the problem is bad dialogue.

[@tacothursday7364]

Well said!

[@Sootielove]

There's something to be said about complaining a show isn't subtle enough when it's made for children. Being made for children doesn't invalidate quality, but it's a fact that children don't have the experiences to pick up on subtle messages and a lot of tv for children is explicitly made to teach them good qualities. The skill of these shows is taking unsubtle messages like "be kind to people", "don't tell lies", or "accept people who are different from you" and make enjoyable characters work through them. Especially when you have children who will be facing prejudices they don't understand, you kind of do want to have characters they care about saying "hey! that's wrong and you don't deserve to be treated badly!" Metaphor is great for abstracting lessons and being able to apply them to any group (Zootopia did a great job discussing discrimination and how varied it can be), but it can also be weaponised against anyone trying to tell specific stories. Sometimes people want to write stories about black girls knowing their natural hair is something they can be proud of. Sometimes you want children to learn trans kids exist and deserve respect. They're relevant to many children's lives and just because you're making a story specific does not make it unapproachable or alienating. I find it weird in this landscape of "appealing" storytelling that assumes that no human can relate to or care about a story that doesn't strictly align with their experiences. I'm a queer woman and that didn't stop me enjoying tv shows with straight protagonists. I'm british and I can watch shows about americans. It's honestly important for people to watch shows about other people they aren't immediately categorised with to develop empathy

[@vividence2936]

Thank you so much for this. Brooke's episode was what prompted me to start watching the show too.

[@burgersfrompigs]

The sayings show not tell, not 'metaphor not tell.'

[@greysenhucek635]

The fact that Laurence fishburne is one of the directors just makes this show even better seriously Disney you take down the owl house Hailey's on it and now moon girl not cool

[@luigiboi4244]

He’s also The Beyonder

[@luigiboi4244]

He’s also The Beyonder.

[@sneakydeechey7210]

Ditch the mid keep the best (big city greens and kiff)

[@mittag983]

​@@sneakydeechey7210You saying that while actually naming mid, boring slice of life shows...

[@sneakydeechey7210]

@@mittag983 moon girl is boring and a letdown as a superhero show while ttg and spectacular Spider-Man and the Batman and brave and the bold are peak

[@bendu8282]

While being Subtle is preferred even if you’re not subtle in the messages behind your writing, the quality has to be high, and the entertainment has to be effective or people will reject it. George Lucas “Still others picked up on Lucas's Vietnam allegory, though Lucas, wary of politics, publicly disavowed any and all sociopolitical theories and quashed quashed any speculation on the deeper meaning of his film. For Lucas, it was enough that Star Wars could be merely entertaining-and entirely the point.” ROSE:”Could I show you a list of the 100 best films (LAUGH) and how many of 'em are made by George Lucas?” LUCAS:”Yeah, but they're not made to --they -- yes, they have a political undertone. I mean, especially "Star Wars" has got a very, very elaborate social, emotional, political context that it rests in. But of course, nobody was aware of that. Nobody says, "Oh my gosh." But if you actually watch the movies, it's there. And you subliminally get the fact of what happens to you if you've got a dysfunctional government that's corrupt and doesn't work.” Stan Lee "So social issues I try to get in in the background, or underlying a plot, but never to the point of letting interfere with a story or hitting the reader over the head.” - Stan Lee STAN'S SOAPBOX “From time to time we receive let- ters from readers who wonder why there's so much moralizing in our mags. They take great pains to point out that comics are supposed to be escapist reading., and nothing more. But somnehow, I can't see it that way. It seems to me that a story without a message, however sub- liminal, is like a man without a soul. In fact, even the most escapist literature of allold-time fairy tales and heroic legends-contained moral and philosophical points of view. At every college campus where I may speak, there's as much dis- cuSsion of war and peace, civil rights, and the so-called youth re- bellion as there is of our Marvel mags per se. None of us lives in a vacuum-none of us is untouched by the everyday events about us- events which shape our stories just as they shape our lives. Sure our tales can be called escapist-but just because something's for fun, doesn't mean we have to blanket our brains while we read it! Excelsior!” -Stan Lee

[@GaryViews]

It's always gonna be amazing when my KZbin recommendations actually recommend very well made, underrated videos. Thank you for covering Moon Girl in this even if it's just brief

[@Aranock]

Oh hey thats me getting mentioned :3

[@lonelcrosley]

700th like let goo! In all seriousness tho glad I'm seeing more people talk about this. I've been saying this for years, and its almost hairpulling to hear the paroting of "the art of subtlitly," and declairing it the right way, and only way to send a message. When honestly, that's simply not the case at all. being direct about a message doesn't automatically make that bad writing. Sometimes, some things need to be direct. sometimes being direct can make a message more powerful and beautiful. and sometimes... some people need it to smack across their face like an open palm or else they'll never get it.

[@yell0w-man]

dude even my homophobic/transphobic mom loves this show

[@spritesensation]

you should show her this episode

[@Raggy_df]

lucky, wish mine did

[@Nikolapoleon]

My favorite film of all time, probably, is Abel Gance's "Napoleon." The main reason I like it, though, is because it has the subtlety of a sledgehammer. Instead of attempting to be subtle, it takes the opposite approach, elevating its material by emphasizing to a near absurd degree the power, grandiosity and intensity of its subject. The effect is like a symphony or opera. Every moment, through music, imagery, acting, etc. is given the greatest possible emotional weight, such that no scene ever feels wasted or dull.

[@40Ccents]

4:46 they also license some popular songs like sweatpants

[@veronica_editig3698]

Basically, use both if necessary.

[@underratedgrapejuice]

as a writer god i really needed this video

[@JoeStinker-ip9mr]

I’m still waiting for a season 3

[@BookWyrmOnAString]

I recognize that that ending song is Time Adventure! Awesome music (that makes me cry) to finish off an awesome video!

[@redwings13400]

Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur is a fascinating show. The animation is amazing, the writing is... well... I'll say it's inconsistent. It is very in your face, and I think there is some stuff that's lost because of it. In its best episodes, the writing is great, and I don't particularly mind the social messaging. However, sometimes it's so clear that the writing is from the writer, not from the characters, and that by making an episode so focused on a message, we lose any potential characterization that's not associated with that message. I really noticed this trend in the beginning of season 2, where we have three episodes in a row that I think completely missed interesting scenarios to convey an oversimplified message. The worst offender is The Great Beyond-er. Here, get a pretty cool scenario where Moon Girl and The Beyonder are trapped on another planet, having to escape when the Beyonder can't access his powers. The writers seemed to write this episode with two outcomes in mind. First, The Beyonder was going to learn that it's not his powers that make him great, it's himself that makes him great. Secondly, Lunella is going to learn that there are some enemies she can't defeat. Most of the episode is centered around The Beyonder struggling with learning how to be useful without his powers, and then at the end Lunella gets traumatized by almost dying. On the surface, this is fine. Now lets think for a second about what this episode misses. Lunella is trapped on another planet and has no thoughts that she might not get home, she just hears the word black hole and is like, 'oh, yeah, I can build a ship to get us home, that's easy'. Even for her, that's a stretch. I could rant about how her intelligence seems to vary greatly from episode to episode (again, I think it's because they write each episode with the message first and characters second), but I'll leave that for another time. Secondly, why is she helping the Beyonder? Seriously, it would have been so much easier for Lunella to get home on her own, the only reason anyone attacked her was because she was protecting him in the first place. The Beyonder has only almost destroyed humanity a couple of times, he's in this situation because he's been a cosmic jerk to literally everyone, and he destroyed this planet in a game of space golf. Why does Lunella care about him? The show sorta asks the same question with an alternate Lunella asking her the same question, but we never actually get it answered, because the show sure doesn't seem to have an answer. I don't even mind Lunella helping him, I just want to know why. Does Lunella think The Beyonder deserves another chance, does she feel obligated to save him because he got her out of the rift, does she just want to team up with the one thing that reminds her of home? I don't know! I don't think the writers know! The show never asked the question because the writing was so focused on the lessons it wanted to convey, it forgot to acknowledge the actual situation it put the characters in! My third issue here is the lesson Lunella learns from this episode. Eventually, she gets over this trauma by learning that she needs to trust herself, and they have a pretty cool metaphor about the owl trusting its own wings to bring this message home. However, I don't think that's actually the right lesson for this situation. Lunella didn't get out of this situation by trusting herself, she got out of this situation by trusting her friends to help her when she's in over her head. It wasn't just her fighting or tech skills that let her get home, it was also her social skills. The Beyonder saved her, because she saved the Beyonder. She doesn't need to be invincible, because she's not fighting alone. That was such an obvious lesson to learn from this episode, and I thought for sure they would go that route on her getting beyond her trauma, but they just... didn't! At all! And I'm so confused by that! It's like 'saving Lunella with the tippy toes was the Beyonder's lesson, so Lunella can't actually learn anything from that because that moment's already accounted for'. I don't mind talking about complex social issues and even being direct in what the audience and characters should learn. I'm in support of most of their controversial statements and messages, and actually love that this show tries to tackle problems so directly. I love that Lunella is a young black girl from New York who confronts real world economic and cultural issues that this area really faces. What I don't like, and what this show is sometimes guilty of, is ignoring its own situations to push a message that may or may not be supported by the actual story. There are so many times in this show, especially in season 2, where I just go, 'these writers created an interesting situation, then ignored half of it because the episode was written with the message first, characters second'. That, I think, was an issue with this show that cropped up constantly, it bothered me in an otherwise really good show.

[@animal_gal_adventures9885]

yall know where i can find this episode of brook? idk what or where to look up online

[@imagiman893]

Hi there, i found it. Go and search for Internet Archive (not the Wayback Machine, the Internet Archive) and just type the name of the show and if scrool a bit u will find it. Bye 👋

[@cookiesandtea6442]

Another commenter said to look up Moon Girl on the Internet Archive website, so maybe try that?

[@animal_gal_adventures9885]

@cookiesandtea6442 ill look into thanks!

[@imagiman893]

@animal_gal_adventures9885 yea check there, for some reason my comment got deleted

[@imagiman893]

Check there, sorry my comment got deleted for some reason

[@MrGabeanator]

this is a great show even my mom loves it

[@KotoCrash]

Depends. Look at the leaked Moon Girl and Devil Dino ep which was less "Not being subtle" and more "lecturing you for 22 mins"

[@40Ccents]

1:36 shark 🦈

[@redrasegarden]

We had more story, why wouldn’t they give us more story 😭

[@sinisternorimaki]

What baffles me is that we got this show before a Ms. Marvel cartoon, specially because it's filling the exact spot that a Ms. Marvel show should feel. Anyways, I should start reading the Moon Girl comics.

[@breadsliceanimations]

Me and my little brother watched and LOVED this show, and were disappointed to hear that it was cancelled, I however was NOT surprised, this IS Disney, they pull away so much regardless of it being loved and well rated. It boils me to the bone when they proceed to “support” the show afterwards, along with the lgbtq representation, they can’t pick and choose when they support/represent, you’re either with it, or you’re not.

[@nathanieljones8043]

fun fact everyone likes avatar the last airbender and is such a blatant example of the hypocrisy I am surprised you didn't mention it.

[@hectormontes7056]

I think people just don’t want to hear the same language they hear in left-wing talking points in media. I can understand in a way, left-wing politics can be very patronizing to those who aren’t actively acting in bad intentions, but that isn’t an excuse to completely dismiss things that literally say the words.

[@frimi8593]

One of my favorite things about bojack horseman is how unsubtle it is when it needs to be

[@Fafnd]

I have recently (about 3 years ago) relearned this: Show and Tell is awesome! You show something and then you tell your audience about it. It's a more holistic approach to storytelling than "Show, don't tell" because their should be no misinterpretation, no misunderstanding, and no twisting to mean the exact opposite.

[@warrenbradford2597]

When I get my own Disney plus account, I will.

[@Squiggy8440]

Oh! I didnt know there was an unreleased episode! I LOVE moongirl & DD

[@MelodiTheMess]

Brooklyn is well-written imo

[@shawnbay2211]

When I was a kid, I couldn’t understand huge portions of stories & shows. Couldn’t understand what characters said, couldn’t understand y stuff happened. It’s obvious I needed clarity … but that also means making sense. A lot of kids probably need that thorough, overt storytelling. This is also true in adults’ media. I think ppl overvalue show don’t tell 2 get a point across. Sometimes I feel if ur gonna b so loud with ur subtext, might as well just tell instead of show.

[@Moxilock]

When its subtle, youre reading into it too far and if that was the author's intention then they wouldve focused on it. When its not subtle, its too heavy handed and wouldve been better if it was shown and not told.

[@ShirubaGin]

This feels like the kind of video there would be a 5 hour stream of people complaining about the video cause they're stupid

[@Snt1_]

I didnt expect it to be a Marvel property tbh

[@royal1499]

I 100% agree with everything. I also add that subtlety can also be a double edge sword, especially if you add an author’s intent. Nimona being a great example you mentioned, the author themselves originally the story as a webcomic to help them understand their gender dysphoria. But then you have transphobes say that Nimona isn’t a trans story because there is nothing explicitly saying it in the story. I genuinely believe being blatant can be a good thing. Ghibli films are other examples of not at all subtle themes of anti-war and environmental protection.

[@natalimoina]

Just saw some nasty terf video about moon girl, glad to wash out the taste with this wonderful video

[@ThugHunter-qn6uc]

YWNBAW

[@zainmudassir2964]

Too bad i actually liked moon girl

[@Pancakes-n-Waffles168]

same =w= SCREW DISNEY

[@ron4202]

The episode still exists and in on the internet archive. Look up "Moon girl and devil dinosaur the gatekeepr internet archive" and youll find the episode. I know its ending soon, but all good things come to an end and I hope the series makes people happy.

[@sneakydeechey7210]

It is too bad. Do better

[@mittag983]

​@@sneakydeechey7210Says the kid, driving to school in a shortbus.

[@sneakydeechey7210]

@@mittag983 I heard that bus driver has the hardest time with your ass

[@Oceane1803]

Yeah like for example, recently Dragon Age Veilguard came out and it has Taash, who's non-binary, and even people that don't seem to have issues with trans people have issues with how directly these subjects are adressed because they say it's not subtle and is just social commentary from our world being brute forced into theirs. But I disagree. I'm not really too knowledgeable about the Dragon Age worldbuilding and lore, but from what I understand of it, the way they speak about Taash's identity seems to fit pretty well in this world. And I genuinly enjoy Taash's character, her story, and how her identity relates to it. Just because it's not subtle and missable like with Krem in Inquisition doesn't mean that it's bad. Of course some people out there use these arguments as excuses because they're transphobic and don't like that trans people are being represented. But I discussed with someone who, as far as I can tell, had no problem with trans people and seeing them, but genuinly believed that it's better when these subjects are adressed in a subtle way and they don't like how the dialogue handles Taash's identity. Personally I have no problem with this dialogue. Heck, I'm happy this stuff is actually being said and that the game doesn't try to beat around the bush when it comes to it. I really think that this is a good thing and more media should do this. But a lot of the Dragon Age community disagrees, whether it's out of transphobia or just thinking that it feels forced just because they actually use the terminology and adress the issues surrounding the topic unlike in most media. And I think it's a shame because yeah Taash is really cool and interesting.

[@nathanblevins158]

This show was one my favorite marvel shows and now it gone. Who ever is the director should get fired,

[@ErinEpica]

Fucking beautiful video, thank you Mr. YINSED ❤❤

[@AutumnCritters]

Allegories are great for a lot of stories, but but the message might be more easily missed or ignored by the people who most need to learn it

[@LordSillywastaken]

you sound like odyssey central

[@olgagachaphoenix9130]

hi

[@Pancakes-n-Waffles168]

ello

[@AuraOfANobody]

Relevant experience I had with a work in a non-visual (well, mostly) medium recently, I think: [Spoilers for The Wild Robot below, covering the book series in its entirety at the time of this comment and including elements that May appear in later entries of the film series] Prior to the release of Dreamworks's adaptation of The Wild Robot, I picked up the trilogy to give it a read before I saw it in theaters. And, of course, I went into it with the knowledge that, like, the series is a bunch of middle-grade fiction books with a target audience of, you know, kids, and coming at it from the perspective of a queer, neurodivergent, Whole Ass Adult, I was probably going to get different things out of it than the primary demographic, and it was likely some of my views and interpretations of the books might not equate to something the author intended to convey. So, needless to say, while I suspected that the heavy undertones of Roz as an autistic character were intentional (and I would argue that she is even moreso in the books than the film. Like, the books basically start off with her learning to mask so she can survive on the island. "I am not friendly but if I can Act friendly maybe I'll be able to make allies here" okay. I see you. I know what you are), when I started picking up on elements of the second book that had me raising my eyebrow a bit at, "This is giving Gender vibes," I rather wrote it off as me as a trans person being primed to pick up subtext where none was intended. Her having to hide who she is around the humans she's been surrounded by? Well, that could be an allegory for a Lot of things, it's probably just more of the autism coding (And obviously, of course that's part of it regardless). Her questioning her designer on, among other things, why she was made to be female and why her body was designed the way it was? Well, she's a robot, robots in fiction having genders is just sort of par for the course, it probably doesn't Mean anything deeper than a nod to that and emphasizing that ROZZUMs are designed to learn and Roz is particularly primed for that given that from the start she was just kind of learning anything and everything she could that might be of use, because she had no assignments to focus that learning on like others of her line would. Her... getting a new Body after this discussion, one that, while it has downsides too, is generally better suited to the life Roz lives? Well, uh. Again, she's, you know, a robot, it's just. You know, it's just an upgrade, and one made a necessity by the plot of the books. So, you know, I saw this, and made note of it, and even joked to some friends on discord as I was reading it about Roz being trans coded. My exact words were, and I quote, "this is silly because it was Not intended this way but roz asking her designer 'why am I female? why was my body designed this way?' congrats on the gender girlie lmao". And then a few hours later I return to that channel of our server having read chapter 27 of The Wild Robot Protects with the announcement, "oh my mistake it wasn't just throwaway lines and undertones I was reading too much into, ACTUALLY congrats Roz on the gender." Because in that chapter, the author made explicit comparisons between Roz being programmed to feel female despite not being Physically female (with one character even briefly using he/him pronouns for her out of confusion over her gender - "'He looked dangerous. I mean, SHE looked dangerous?' The ray's face scrunched up with confusion. 'Tell me, Roz, are you male or female?'") and what I've opted to describe as "instances of Gender in biological creatures." While the examples listed in the book focus specifically on naturally occurring (that is, biological changes without medical intervention) cases of, to put it technically, hermaphroditism - A goby character named Ripple having changed from female to male, species that change from one sex to another, or are male and female at the same time as in simultaneous hermaphroditism, etc., - given the books' focus on Roz and the animals she meets and befriends, I think it's obvious that paralleling Roz's identity with them was very intentionally pulling that subtext of "Roz is giving Gender vibes but it's probably just me overthinking it" to the forefront and going "No, no, you're right, go off", especially given that it's portrayed as a positive thing ("Roz scrolled through her computer brain for information about gobies and about all the other creatures who were different. [...] And just like that, our robot felt more connected to the natural world."). And to be sure, I confirmed with the author at a signing a few weeks later, as when I brought the topic up to him, Peter said that he was glad I was happy with the handling of Roz's gender and the idea of transness as a good and natural thing, and was happy to see that I'd noted it even prior to that scene in the third book. Sometimes subtlety is good, but sometimes you look at subtlety and go, "Okay, this is here, and I love that, but I know my perspective is skewed to see this where it wasn't meant to be, I don't think this is what they necessarily Intended so I'm not going to put too much stock into it." So it being made explicit, getting told, "No, no, you got it right, go off king"? Sometimes that shit feels GOOD. I love our autistic transgender wild robot. I love Gwen "they can only know half of who I am" Stacy, I love "I wouldn't DIE die. I just sure wouldn't be living" Nimona. And if and when I get the chance to sit down with Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur, even if Disney doesn't love her enough to stand by her in the face of everything, I think I'll love Brooklyn, too.

[@YINSED5192]

As someone who also loves the Wild Robot books, this warmed my heart to read. Thank you for sharing this.

[@AuraOfANobody]

@@YINSED5192 Haha, you know, even though your name is familiar (I can't quite place it, but I think you might have been in or been mentioned in a video from another person I follow?) this was actually the first video of yours I've watched, and I didn't check out the rest of your page until after I left this comment - Funny coincidence to find that you've made a video discussing the book series and movie adaptation! Bit funny to think of a childless 26yo picking up and chewing through a series targeted mainly at kids the way I did, especially given how few proper books I've read since leaving school, but they're damn good works. Was quite pleasantly surprised to find Peter was doing events near me, and ones that I was able to get to despite not driving, no less, given how little comes up to Maine - Nice little benefit of so many authors living here, I guess!

[@ThompsonSteamtrain]

Love this show it’s amazing. It’s like commenting spider-Man into the spider verse, the Casagrandes, primal, kid cosmic and Glitch techs.

[@dissonanceparadiddle]

This show filled the static shock shaped hole in my heart. It isn't afraid to be blunt about socal issues and i love it for that. That episode deserves justice. Give Disney hell people!! Until they release it

[@JoelTheParrot]

Great job

[@laurenrogers]

SUCH AN EXCELLENT VIDEO SUCH AN EXCELLENT MESSAGE MWAH

[@fishactivation5087]

I've seen clips from that unaired episode that you're talking about, and those clips were actually, physically _painful_ to sit through with how obnoxious and preachy they were. It's not okay to not be subtle.

[@GaypataponALT]

I agree, it just comes off as a cartoon you would see made by corny tumblr twitter users

[@GaypataponALT]

I’m all for queer and disabled representation but if I would add some then I won’t make it sound like it was made by a corny tumble user

[@harm0ny_]

It’s literally not for you. It’s for kids who need things spelled out for them. Do you call it “preachy” when kids are taught shapes and colors in ways that aren’t subtle and hinted at? Do you call it “preachy” when they’re taught to share, to be kind, to deal with grief, to deal with self doubt? Why is it only preachy when it’s about serious issues that affect both kids and adults? You don’t need to spelled out to you, but kids do. The show isn’t for you, it’s for kids.

[@fishactivation5087]

@@harm0ny_ "A children's story that can only be enjoyed by children is not a good children's story in the slightest." -C.S. Lewis

[@harm0ny_]

@@fishactivation5087 And yet there are adults who enjoy it. You’re twisting that quote to fit a narrative that isn’t true here. This is an entire video about an adult enjoying it. The show does things all ages can enjoy, but when it comes to parts aimed to teach children it’s apparent those aren’t going to resonate with adults who are used to reading between the lines. There’s wonderful children’s stories that spell things out. If you can’t adjust your viewing to account for the fact that you are not the target audience you shouldn’t be watching children’s media.

[@copfrown2397]

Ok

[@-originalLemon-]

I think the unaired episode is bad because it's one sided.

[@AbadabaBoy]

You can’t be one-sided with transphobic just like how you can’t be one-sided with racism chief

[@natalimoina]

reality is one sided

[@fatcat1414]

Well I would hope that the story sides with a marginalized child and not with the grown adult trying to hurt her, so yeah.

[@thesmilyguyguy9799]

: )

[@mechajay3358]

Nah, we need more subtly in shows again. So many shows these days are too "in-your-face" about it.

[@SeinIshamiado]

Oh shut up. Thats your issue buddy.

[@ron4202]

Too many shows are too subtle and dumbasses miss the point. Also, shows have always had "in-yout-face" shit. This has always been a thing, just because you werent alive for shit back then, doesnt mean it didnt exist. You have the internet, watch older shows, dumbass.

[@maldambao6126]

"shows these days are too in your face" My brother in Christ, the original He-Man literally spits out the message of the story at the end of the episodes

[@johnsonsharon81]

What tv show HASN'T been "in your face"

[@lornadune2506]

I love moongirl, but I'm kind of glad that the brooklyn episode didnt air. It looks like it was about brooklyn being on a female vollyball team, and if brooklyn isnt actually female, she shouldnt be competing against girls. It's unfair. Lunellla, being a genius, should know better than anyone else the physical advantages that being male would give brooklyn. Girls deserve fair competition just like everyone else, a male's feelings are not more important than girls' rights.

[@colindowden2182]

Same.

[@FilmBucket]

this a wild ass take acting like all ppl who are born women are just entirely physically the same. some ppl are simply born better fit for something and yall need to accept that LOL

[@colindowden2182]

@FilmBucket Dude, she was born a biological male and is playing a sport that requires strength and agility which she has an advantage over the girls in.

[@FilmBucket]

@ consider the other side here. trans men have a biological disadvantage to people born as the male sex. theres always gonna be disproportionalities, what matters is that people are willing to overcome them instead of bitching about how unfair it is

[@pixel9825]

​ @colindowden2182 here's some little fun facts about the "biological advantage" thing! 1. Michael Phelps has a biological advantage in swimming over *literally everyone.* He has won several gold medals for swimming in the Olympics. If making sure people don't play against people they have an advantage over is so important, why was he allowed to compete? Furthermore, if we don't allow people with advantages over other athletes to compete against those athletes, if you only compete against your exact equals, will there ever be any winners? If the competitors are perfectly matched, can there be any competition? 2. There's so many other sources of advantages, both biological and environment, that are completely unrelated to sex. Intersex people exist, and so do natural variations in body types. Both of these could result in an athlete that has a biological advantage or disadvantage over other athletes. Why is this specific case special? 3. It really seems like these "biological advantages" can be split into two categories. One of these is temporary advantages caused by hormonal levels. If you know anything about trans healthcare, you've probably seen the phrase "hormone replacement therapy" or the acronym HRT. As you can probably guess by the name, HRT brings this first category of advantages into the same range as cis women. The second category is those caused by testosterone-induced puberty. The main difference between the first category and this one is that these can't be reversed. But what's better than reversing changes? Making sure they never happen in the first place! THE FIRST thing many trans people get as part of medically transitioning is puberty blockers. As you can probably tell by the name, puberty blockers prevent the physical effects of puberty from occurring. This prevents _any_ sex-based biological advantages that could be there from ever developing. Quite frankly, I think dividing sports into performance-based categories would make more sense than our current gender-based division. A performance-based divide avoids all the questions with trans, non-binary, and intersex people, and allows for both more categories (if wanted/needed) and mixed gender competition. (Of course, to avoid the problem outlined in point 1, each group would cover a range of skill and performance levels. Being in the same group wouldn't mean there aren't any advantages, it would simply mean that these advantages are within whatever "tolerable level" is defined for the group.)

[@XstickbuddyX]

gross

[@Nonjola]

Does this show have any white people or gingers? In those clips you showed, I have not seen a single white person or ginger.

[@Honest_Abe1]

The dinosaur

[@Pancakes-n-Waffles168]

Yeah there's white people...uh why? and most of them are background characters

[@Pancakes-n-Waffles168]

@@Honest_Abe1 Amazing example :>

[@lifeisadrag7705]

Devil Dinosaur

[@cosmicspacething3474]

A few background characters I guess