i think there’s a very big difference between explicit rep and good rep. a lot of our fight is normally with having characters explicitly confirmed as lgbt in a show, it’s hard to have that established.

however, the duration you see the characters, the context, etc. matters too

is tdp explicit rep? yes, absolutely, and that’s one less stepping stone we have to fight for and a precedent set for other animated shows/fantasy stories of its kind.

however, the lgbt shown are all side characters with very little screentime in the grand scheme of things.

If you asked me to name the Duran queens off the top of my head i wouldn’t be able to tell you. If you asked me to tell you about Ruthari like who helps the other with moral guidance more, who secretly has more whimsy, who enjoys what, i wouldn’t be able to tell you.

Because all we’ve actually seen of either of these couples is a kiss in flashbacks. They haven’t been allowed to exist as lgbt people with agency within the narrative. There is no lgbt couple to see ourselves in. And i’m not counting Janai and Amaya until they’re explicit.

You can think the show is good, you can think the representation is good.

However, really sit back and ask yourself if you think that because you’ve put this show and it’s content on a pedestal and believe it will do you no harm.

Is it because the rep is explicit, something we fight tooth and nail for, that makes it seem trustworthy/valid?

If another show killed two lgbt characters (within any context) and then separated another two, would you praise it the same way you praise it in this show?

And lastly, who are you willing to put your trust and faith in. If morally and personally you can’t decide on any of these things where you’d stand, who will you trust.

The fandom of predominantly lgbt people and the lgbt women who worked on the show saying it isn’t good rep

Or are you going to trust the creator who has a track record of discrediting said women, who are surrounded by others who have enabled him and stayed absolutely silent in the midst of things.

It’s hard to say certain representation is bad. It’s hard to look at something you’ve begged for for so long, something that even now seems sparse, and say it’s not good enough. Because we all want it, so so badly, and we want it to be there for us and we want it to be amazing.

We have so so much hope and as a community we throw everything we have into anything that’ll acknowledge us or show us. Y’all aren’t alone in that.

But we’ve gotten too far to not keep pushing. We’ve worked too hard to take just anything we’re given.