With its rainbow colours and vibrant animation, She-Ra has gained a sizeable following. But it’s not all sweetness, light and unicorns in Etheria, as the backlash from The Horde (aka basement-dwelling alt-right trolls) kicks in. Laurence Russell explains ix Netfl ix Netfl 58 MMM70M70 ppagesages finalfinal 3.indd3.indd 5858 228/11/20198/11/2019 09:2409:24 What sets She-Ra apart from other cartoons is its remarkably queer focus. While shows like Steven Universe feature characters that pioneered LGBTQ representation in children’s television, She-Ra’s cast and character relationships seem to be fundamentally built around it. The enigmatic and ambitious Catra from She-Ra and the Princesses of Power 59 MMM70M70 ppagesages finalfinal 3.indd3.indd 5959 228/11/20198/11/2019 09:2409:24 ast August, the third season of hit The backlash, ix Netflix animated series She-Ra and the Netfl Princesses of Power was released to mostly initiated much acclaim. The show focuses on LAdora, aka She-Ra, the champion of the Princess by aging male Alliance Rebellion fighting the oppressive nerds, primarily inter-galactic empire of The Horde and is a reboot of the 1985 show of the same name, centred brilliantly adapted for modern audiences. around the The first season aired on Netflix in November 2018 and the franchise is evolving as it gains desexualisation popularity. The first season included a lot of of the show’s high stakes and raw emotions while the second season was far lighter, better befitting its characters and younger audience demographic. The third season the progressive cemented these themes while reflecting a more longitudinal strategy for the franchise, with less themes plot critical events per episode and almost fewer associated with episodes per season, no doubt hoping to draw out the action across many more seasons. the creative Despite the swift turnaround of the team. seasons, production quality has held up and the writing and voice acting is just as hilarious as the characters’ friendships deepen and the mysteries of Etheria are slowly unravelled and the war between The Horde and The Rebellion marches on. What makes She-Ra particularly noteworthy are the startlingly progressive themes. The show is headed up by Noelle Stevenson, a proudly lesbian Eisner award-winning artist who made a name for herself creating graphic novels with queer themes ix such as the webcomic Nimona (2012), and the Forever in feverishly popular Lumberjanes (2014-present). crop tops Netfl The art is sharp and dynamic, with and cut outs, Bow and Sea vibrant colours, compelling animation and Hawk strong attention to detail. A first look at the show’s art appeared in July of 2017, sparking both excitement and contention online. Certain subcultures voiced fury over the change in visual style. She-Ra Haters and the ‘CalArts’ Style The ‘CalArts’ institue, The backlash, mostly initiated by ageing which was evacuted after male nerds, primarily centred around the an online threat. desexualisation of the show’s characters and the progressive themes associated with the creative team. 80s She-Ra was a buxom, mini- skirted heroine caked in make-up, whereas the modern incarnation is a more modest, rough and tumble girl scout. Early complaints about the show seemed to express a nostalgia for the barefaced sexualisation of children’s characters common to 80s animation, but it was quickly reframed to a less sinister debate, namely the supposed ‘simplification’ of cartoon character design, a criticism specifically aimed at the ‘CalArts style’ – referring to Wikicommons 60 MMM70M70 ppagesages finalfinal 3.indd3.indd 6060 228/11/20198/11/2019 09:2409:24 She’s a regular girl-scout! Adora aka She-Ra and her trusted steed, Swiftwind graduates of the California Institute of Arts. This contention had been growing for several years in response to animated shows such as Adventure Time (2007-18), Amazing World of Gumball (2011-present), Gravity Falls (2012- 2016), Star vs the Forces of Evil (2015-present) and especially Steven Universe (2013-present), many of which feature characters with simple, clean designs with rounded shapes, large eyes and faces, and often thin, noodly arms. Progressive political themes were also claimed to be a common feature of the ‘CalArts’ animation style, which often seemed to be the primary criticism amongst detractors of the style. Simplification of design in animation is a common production technique intended to make it easier to draw a character over and over in the many frames in which they feature, ix especially when drawn in the multiple complex Netfl poses required for action scenes. This kind of deliberate uniformity has surfaced repeatedly across certain animation eras and studios, from Loony Toons to the works of Japanese anime. However in the case of She-Ra and its contemporaries, the style has been repeatedly vilified online and heralded as the unilateral Three cheers decline of quality in western animation. for diversity in This issue reached a fever pitch following the animation! announcement of Thundercats Roar! another 61 MMM70M70 ppagesages finalfinal 3.indd3.indd 6161 228/11/20198/11/2019 09:2409:24 In She-Ra, Princesses come in all shapes and sizes ix Netfl ix Netfl LGBTQ Representation What sets She-Ra apart from other cartoons is its remarkably queer focus. While shows like Adventure Time, The Legend of Korra (2012-14), Steven Universe, and Voltron: Legendary Defender (2016-18) feature characters that pioneered LGBTQ representation in children’s television, She-Ra’s cast and character relationships seem to be fundamentally built around it. While same- sex couples have been blushing at one another from the start of season 1, season 3 featured an on-screen kiss between two women, and season 4 heralded the franchise’s first non-binary character; a shape-shifting mercenary called Double Trouble, played by non-binary performer Jacob Tobia. 1985 reboot on May 11th of 2018, deemed guilty The original series was said to have a strong of perpetuating the style which shockingly following of lesbian fans not unlike that of the resulted in the California Institute of Arts closing Xena: Warrior Princess series, and the Netflix reboot its campus on June 4th 2018 over a shooting seems to aim to cultivate the same reputation. threat made on Twitter which referenced With the heated love-hate rivalry between a meme created by a real school shooter, Adora and Catra serving as the emotional which became popular in alt-right circles. driving force behind much of the series so far, The backlash seemed to be similar to the abuse the show also features a number of adult same- aimed at the newer Star Wars trilogy or the all- sex couples, a wide diversity of body types, female Ghostbusters reboot, characterised by and a certain main character, Bow rigorously long-time fans, often white men over 30, surfacing integrating a crop top into all of his outfits. to furiously voice discontent at their demographic Cartoon Network and Nickelodeon, the being decentralised in the franchises that networks that aired the shows mentioned once catered to them almost exclusively. above were said to be resistant in pushing 62 MMM70M70 ppagesages finalfinal 3.indd3.indd 6262 228/11/20198/11/2019 09:2409:24 Animation powerhouses like Cartoon Network, Nickelodeon, Disney Studios, and DreamWorks [...] monopolise the industry and have become gatekeepers of the medium in the process. Arguably, this is why the productions that Netflix commissions look so fresh in the current media landscape. LGBTQ representation any further in cartoons Cat Noir (2015-present) are finding funding prior to She-Ra; however Netflix seems to where their native television networks wouldn’t possess fewer qualms on this topic, with dream of investing in them. Unprecedentedly, Adora and Catra sharing a rather tense dance Netflix is also commissioning and licensing together at Princess Prom, and Scorpia’s second a number of Japanese animated series such and third season character arc seemingly as Aggretsuko (2018-present) and Little Witch hinging upon asking Catra on a date. Academia (2017). This is certainly not the first time the East and the West have joined Netflix Vs the Animation forces through animated productions, but it is Powerhouses easily one of the most successful occasions. Regardless of the criticisms of its look and Although animation powerhouses like progressive representations She-Ra’s critical and Hilda, another of Cartoon Network, Nickelodeon, Disney Studios, commercial acclaim is snowballing and showing Netfl ix’s innovative and DreamWorks have been behind some of no signs concluding its story anytime soon. animated shows the most influential and timeless animation With Netflix’s penchant for pushing in human history, they also monopolise the the envelope in animation, the show’s industry and have become gatekeepers of future seems sure to reach new heights the medium in the process. Arguably, this is alongside its similarly impressive why the productions that Netflix commissions contemporaries on the streaming service. look so fresh in the current media landscape; because its structure and strategy is so inherently different to its immediate competitors. Laurence Russell is technology journalist and In the field of animated television, Netflix former Media Studies technician. is carving out an impressive reputation for supporting original and groundbreaking shows. Castlevania (2017-present) and Neo Yokio (2017- 18) are both US productions with a mature audience focus, while international productions like the British-based Hilda (2018-present) or ix French-based Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Netfl 63 MMM70M70 ppagesages finalfinal 3.indd3.indd 6363 228/11/20198/11/2019 09:2409:24.