Board Thread:Spoilers!/@comment-4877635-20130614170253/@comment-22525977-20131003000115

I don't, at all, believe that Choc made the comment with malicious intent. That does not change the fact that it did cause me significant discomfort (because trans* people=fish) and I think it was a problematic comment (the term is "microaggression"). My intent in my original response was to point this out; I concede that I could have been less abrasive about it and for that I apologize.

The "it's just fiction, it isn't that serious" argument doesn't fly with me because fiction does not exist in a vacuum: it's a reflection of us, and there is significant evidence to suggest that we're a lot more influenced by our intake of fictional media than we realize. Fiction is very, very serious, and it makes statements about the world whether we like it or not. Quite apart from the question of problematic fiction, to say that anything is "just" fiction trivializes what fiction is; you would not, for example, respond to someone's argument that Harry Potter is excellent because it values nonromantic love with "it's just fiction, it doesn't matter." Yes?

I agree about Mulan not being transgender; her reasons for crossdressing are practical ones, not about personal identity and gender expression. Making it because she is transgendered cheapens the point of her story, which is about patriotic responsibility and family honor.

On the other hand, I think it is completely possible to deal with trans* characters in visual media. It's been done before (google it), albeit often not well; OUaT would be better able to than most, I think, because they already spend greater-than-average amounts of screen time talking about love and relationships and people. In the event that they introduce a trans* character, they already have an audience that is open to watching interpersonal discussions of feelings and opinions, so that character explaining themselves to whoever would feel less forced than it might in a less talk-y show.

That, and taking big risks is what fiction is for: you might crash and burn, but you might also be wildly successful.