Here we go again

[catherineldf]

On the heels of The Mammoth Book of Mind-Blowing SF debacle, we have the following.
So back in June, GLAAD (Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation) rated the various networks on wacky things like positive (or in some cases, any) portrayals of actual LBGT people on their shows. Not surprisingly but sadly, the SciFi--excuse me, SyFy--Channel failed. SyFy said public equivalent of "Ooops. We will do better." Then turned around and developed a Stargate Universe episode in which Ming-Na's lesbian character goes through the old body switcheroo with another character, then sleeps with a male character, only it's like not really her, it's this other character doing it. Yeah. Right. Said lesbian character is of course a zillion light years from actual partner, just to cut down on the onscreen ickiness potential of, you know, showing homosexual interactions of any kind between actual queer characters. Way to grasp the whole diversity thing there, Sy-Fy. They say "Oops again." In the midst of this, a science fiction writer named John C. Wright (with whose works I plan to remain blissfully unfamiliar) decides to wade in to save the world of scifi from the Homosexual Menace (advise skipping this unless the old blood pressure needs a boost - the high points are repeated elsewhere). He's quite fond of words like "sin" and "perversion" as well as drawing the most bizaare connections between racism and homophobia ("Is an irrational lust and longing to mimic the mating act with a sex with which one cannot mate, at its root, any more or less disconnected to reality than an irrational fear and hatred of a Negro?"). Author Hal Duncan writes a marvelous response here. Explain to me again why the sf/f field and fandom are just so accepting and open minded that we don't need to talk about or respond to homophobia and racism and sexism and ableism again? I think I missed it.

And other links, just for variety -
From the fab When Fangirls Attack comics feed - 100 Best Comic Book Covers, compiled by one of those semi-mythical female comic book fans who presumably don't go to ComicCon to lust after and grope the "booth babes" (another classic moment from recent weeks). It's an interesting list - I found some stuff I'll be checking out, as well as things to avoid.

Also, check out the following -
The Hathor Legacy searches for good women characters as well as providing a bunch of good resources on books, movies, gender, race, pop culture and politics. Recommended.
Genre Reviews - Well written and entertaining paranormal and fantasy reviews. Good stuff!

Comments

[oneminutemonkey.livejournal.com]

Um... y'got me on that one. I guess what it is, is that the SF field has room for all kinds. And all kinds just aren't on the same page.

(It's like the Fans (http://www.faans.com)webcomic. Take your local college-sponsored SF/Fantasy/gaming club. You have your movie geeks, your cosplayers, your anime fans, your old-school Heinlein fans, your MZB fans, your Harry Potter fans... and along comes some redneck jerk who likes barbarian films and zap-em-ups, and he doesn't fit in at all, but he's got every right to be there also because his sci-fi isn't any less valid, but man, you just want to slap him silly...)

But yeah, our open-minded, tolerance, accepting, understanding, liberal idea of SF/F, both on the professional and fandom sides, has a long way to go before it's a universal one. :<

[stacia-seaman.livejournal.com]

I had decided to reserve comment on the Stargate Universe spoilers until I actually saw the episode, until I remembered that I quite likely won't be watching the show anyway.

Can you imagine the uproar if they had a disabled gay man in the body of a straight man, who took the body-on-loan to a gay bar for a little "intimacy" (and yes, that's the term they've been using in the episode descriptions)? Apparently it's just fine to have a lesbian's body having sex with a man (and of course, all someone who's a paraplegic but who can suddenly walk again wants to do is have sex, not, you know, enjoy being able to walk and run and dance and do all the other things a paraplegic can't do) because women's bodies are SUPPOSED to be interested in men's bodies. But if it were the other way around? A man's body being used for sex with other men? I can just hear the shouts of rape and perversion and so on and so forth that would keep the episode from even being written. Amazing how they congratulate themselves on their "diversity" when what they're really doing is quite the opposite: She's a lesbian but we want to show her in sexual situations, so here's a way to make them heterosexual! YAY!

[dharma-slut.livejournal.com]

Oh yeah I WANT TO SEE THAT HAPPEN!

[catherineldf.livejournal.com]

Gotta love the combo of homophobic and hackneyed. :-(((

[stacia-seaman.livejournal.com]

The more I think about it, the more angry I get. At least in Dollhouse, one of the primary themes of the show is the issue of consent--there's a very real awareness of the moral implications of what they're doing, and we see some characters struggle with it and others dismiss it, but it's there.

In a show like Stargate, they're more likely to say, "but body swapping is a common theme in sci fi!" Which is true, but that doesn't excuse what they're doing in this episode. It's one thing to have an enemy suddenly inhabit your body and do things you wouldn't normally do (Xena/Callisto). But if it's someone you know, or someone with whom you'll have contact with after the fact, wouldn't you, you know, be careful with that person's body? Make sure you didn't do anything that will jeopardize your relationship with the body's owner?

Not to mention the whole issue of, you're trapped in a small space with a small group of people. ANY romantic involvement is going to to have a major impact on the ship's population. Why, oh why, are you then going to USE SOMEONE ELSE'S BODY to have sexual relations with not one but TWO men on the ship, knowing full well that the person in your body would not be doing this? And what does it say about the men who are sleeping with a body they know is off-limits to them? Are we going to see the major moral struggle that goes into that, or is it just going to be all, oh this is so romantic and amazing and I never thought I'd have this chance?

We won't even get into the subtextual message here: the lesbian gets punished by being put into the body of a quadriplegic while the straight woman is rewarded with approval and intimacy with men.

I don't think I'd be so upset about this were it not for the good old boy atmosphere at Stargate (and despite a good start, Battlestar Galactica had a horrible outcome for every human female on the show, while the human men did just fine). Science fiction has traditionally been a leader in gender issues. Trust Stargate to take a huge step back.

[catherineldf.livejournal.com]

Excellent points, all around. And it's not like there weren't variations on this before. It is completely infuriating.