we may never meet again

tokenblkgirl:

darthrose:

tokenblkgirl:

palaceoffunk:

So, I was thinking about BBC Sherlock fandom’s hate-on for Sally Donovan, and just earlier today I was talking with Maria about Tara Thorton’s shitty treatment in True Blood.

And then I made myself a list.

You’re not fooling anyone, fandom. I know what’s up.

They want these women to be invisible and get upset when they’re not. Then they’re bitches, sexless (i.e. no chemistry with ANYONE), or sluts. And it’s not like the show writers don’t have the same problem, those tropes are a consistent fallback when it comes to any major characterization of black female characters. But when they step out of those tropes (Bonnie becoming more assertive, not just a support system for the white female lead; Martha wanting the Doctor to see her in a romantic way, not just as a support system for the white lead; Gwen being the LOVE object of several male characters, not just a support system for the white lead) fandom goes apeshit cause their worldview is being messed with. These women are not supposed to be important, loved, complicated in their minds, just easily forgotten once the episode is over.

Ok, I can only speak for the three characters/fandoms I recognize on the list (Martha/DrWho, Gwen/Merlin, Dualla/BSG) and for myself and my own view as a fan. (And I suppose, to clarify, I’m an independent professional single woman who mostly presents as white with a mix of asian).

The assumption that “fandom” wants these women to be invisible and then gets upset when they’re not, or when they break out of their supportive role tropes, is a very broad and frankly, inaccurate assumption to make. I love all of those characters. What made me angry is not that they ‘dared to break the trope’ but that The Powers That Be insisted on ramming a different trope down my throat. Here are women who COULD have been awesome, and instead we get their awesomeness overshadowed by ridiculous plots.

Martha? Martha was a BAMF. Martha saved the world. I wanted more of THAT Martha, not the Martha that wrecked herself pining over an alien on the rebound. Please don’t tell me that I, as part of fandom, wanted a Martha who could have been in a relationship with the Doctor - I don’t. I want the Martha who walked the Earth, I want the Martha who walked out, I want the Martha who came back strong, and who went off to save the world with Mickey. THAT’s the Martha I love, and I hated most of the emotional plot with the Doctor because it came off very pasted on and false and unnecessary for her. Martha didn’t need that to be awesome.

Gwen gets a pass as I enjoyed what I saw of her in Merlin’s first season and hadn’t yet been disillusioned. But again, please don’t tell me that I as ‘fandom’ should be ragging on her, because I’m not. I enjoy Gwen quite a bit more than Morgainne.

Dualla drew the ultimate short stick, relegated by TPTB into being Lee’s little fling with domesticity, again with the ultimate rebound relationship, and cheated on and treated as dirt by Lee with his obsession with Kara. I would like to punch Lee in the face, but more, I would like to punch TPTB in the collective face for reducing Dualla to that. WHY should Dualla be confined to her role in relation to the (white) male lead? Or ANY male lead? WHY couldn’t she have been awesome on her own??

“Fandom” is a large hive and doesn’t have one collective view on anything. Some of us don’t see women of color infringing on a white woman’s leading role. Some of us just see TPTB giving the short stick to female characters in general and fridging them for the sake of the male lead’s angst. I would LOVE to have seen these characters be as strong as they could have been and to see fandom flock around them for that reason, not because they did or didn’t land the male lead.

Bolded the comments that read as follows:

1. Martha was awesome after she accepted The Doctor wouldn’t love her and left the series. (ew, gross, unrequited love!)

2. Gwen was great when she was just that cute girl who picked flowers and wasn’t considered attractive to either of the male leads.

3. Lee’s treatment of Dualla totally makes her a worthless character, whereas she was perfect when her story had no effect on any of the main characters.

You totally missed the point of almost all of what I said, but hey. At least you’re not racist right?