Comic Discussion > QUESTIONABLE CONTENT
WCDT 25-29 Apr 2011 (1911-1915)
Near Lurker:
--- Quote from: mary tyler murder on 29 Apr 2011, 15:48 ---Tai continues to make advances on Dora after those advances contributed to the failure of her last relationship.
--- End quote ---
Uh... how?! When did Tai even make an advance on Dora that wasn't an obvious joke before the breakup?
Is it cold in here?:
1595 and 1596 make it plausible that Tai's advances were in the vein of "many a true word is spoken in jest".
How would we have reacted if a straight man had tried to pull Faye's shirt off? Is that different from Tai doing it? If so, how and why?
cesariojpn:
--- Quote from: Is it cold in here? on 29 Apr 2011, 20:08 ---How would we have reacted if a straight man had tried to pull Faye's shirt off? Is that different from Tai doing it? If so, how and why?
--- End quote ---
I believe the term would be "sexual harassment" or "sexual assault."
Blackjoker:
--- Quote from: Is it cold in here? on 29 Apr 2011, 20:08 ---1595 and 1596 make it plausible that Tai's advances were in the vein of "many a true word is spoken in jest".
How would we have reacted if a straight man had tried to pull Faye's shirt off? Is that different from Tai doing it? If so, how and why?
--- End quote ---
To see that, simply look at the people who strongly dislike Angus because they view him as a pushy stalker who wouldn't take 'no' for an answer from Faye.
Tergon:
--- Quote from: LoveJaneAusten on 29 Apr 2011, 16:33 ---Tai did more than take her top off; she also tried to take Faye's top off. I find that to be a troubling example of a sex-obsessed lesbian. Whether Jeph intended to make her a stereotype or not, or being unwilling to see the connection between Tai's example and a host of common characterizations of gays and lesbians in the media, doesn't change the fact that she is. Alone, she would be a harmless character. In a greater media context, she serves as a further entrenchment of lesbian stereotypes. I don't think that this is what Jeph intended, personally, but it is there, irrespective of intention.
--- End quote ---
But you see, to me, that's as big a problem in society as the alternative. By that logic, how is it even possible to portray a homosexual character as a sexual entity at all without confirming to the offensive stereotype? And if your intention is to portray the character in a completely non-sexual light who forms no physical or romantic relationships, by what measure is that character then homosexual in the first place? Because if media simply refused to acknowledge the existence of homosexuals in the first place, that's even worse in my mind than a horndog stereotype.
This is not a joke about Tai being gay. Imagine that instead of Tai, Faye and Dora, it was Raven, Marten and Steve, respectively! The exact same joke could play out, in the exact same manner, without a hitch. Hell, considering that Steve's in a relationship and Marten is recently broken-up, it'd be just as inappropriate! And since all three are firmly heterosexual, it'd be even more sexually charged as a comic. Or maybe you'd prefer to take it in the other direction: assume that this is the first time you have ever seen a QC strip. You have no knowledge about any of these characters, and therefore do not know anything about their sexuality. The joke still works simply for what it is, with gay or straight undertones being utterly irrelevant, because it is a joke about Tai having few boundaries on the subject of nudity and finding such things amusing, while Faye clearly does not.
To take this joke and then to insert the subject of lesbian stereotyping is not merely to misunderstand the joke, it's to actively search for a reason to be offended by it. And you even acknowledge that aside from one or two of these examples, Tai is shown as a headstrong, intelligent, independent young woman who knows what she wants in life. The fact that she's uninhibited is a facet of her personality. Taking that facet, twisting it into a comparison with negative portrayals of homosexuals in other media, and then claiming that because the comparison can be made, it's offensive... it just bewilders me. The logic seems similar to how Jack Thompson claimed that school shootings were a direct result of kids playing Grand Theft Auto games.
Tai's a quirky, uninhibited, fun-loving character who coincidentally happens to be a lesbian. Now, we could all declare that portraying her as a sexual entity is serious business and so we shall make no jokes, harrumph! But where would that get us? It's literally choosing to become offended over something that was never even remotely intended to be so, and can only be vaguely connected to anything that is. And perhaps it could have been done more respectfully, but this was done to be true to the character and for the sake of a harmless joke, compared with several other perfectly respectful discussions of the same topic. And if this one, single, throwaway joke offended you that badly that you can't get past it... well, I just don't know how to help you get over that hurdle when for me, the hurdle doesn't even exist.
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