SPN 6.05
I thought this sucked, for political reasons. Maybe don't read if that's not your thing?
This episode sucked for two reasons: misogyny, and homophobia.
Quick! What do Twilight, Justin Bieber, Zac Efron and Hanson (?!) have in common? They're things silly girls like! I talked about spoilers for this episode and fandom's reaction to it earlier, and it's all still accurate so I won't repeat myself. The whole Twilight thing was really forced and kind of desperate, didn't really make sense since presumably Dean and Sam don't have a lot of time to spend keeping up with pop culture, and will get dated really quick. "Adolescent girls are stupid and shallow and gullible, and romance is lame" is a really old, tired theme I don't think SPN needed to retread for the sake of "parody."
Next, why do the female vamps get locked in cages until they're "compliant?" Do the men simply have more self-control when they turn? Why are Dean and all of the rest of the dudes perfectly comfortable walking around and generally acting like normal people, but the women are crazed animals?
If the "recruiting" goes both ways; with women attracting men (and why can't men attract men and women attract women, since the show basically calls pretty vampires gay anyway?) why couldn't we have seen a sexy woman seducing a man, too? Why are the only women we're shown the pathetic victims or the caged animals?
Why is Dean so fucking defensive about his sexuality? Why do they look away so uncomfortably at the bar kiss, and why is Dean so obnoxious about asserting his heterosexuality in the alley? Is the vamp who turned Dean supposed to be creepy and make us uncomfortable because he's a vampire, or because he wants to give Dean the private tour? Combined with the "these vampires are wusses" and all the bashing of particular celebrities, it was very clear that only one kind of masculinity was okay here. Other sorts of masculinity? Creepy or pathetic (just like the girls who are attracted to them). What happened to awesome Dean, who was secure in himself and didn't care if someone called him a soccer mom and wasn't afraid to buy diapers and take care of a baby?
By the way, it's totally okay to wear fake fangs glitter if you're using it to lure young women into bed.
And this is all so disappointing because I was having such positive Show feelings! I'm actually really interested in the Sam arc, and I care about Dean, and Lisa is growing on me and I think the monster arc could turn out kind of fun. Though there are still bumps to iron out, I actually think the season could turn out kind of great, and I'm really rooting for Sera. This episode has put a serious damper on my enthusiasm. Also, it should have been so sexy, and it just wasn't. Talk about a wasted opportunity.
It'll be interesting to see where the meta for the episode goes, because I know even bringing up issues of gender representation can cause backlash and accusations of oversensitivity. To each their own, I guess, but the whole ep just made me super uncomfortable. I think it's really important that we be able to discuss these kinds of concerns openly, even if we don't all agree.
Because I try to be an optimist, three things I liked about the episode:
1. That guy did a really, really great Edward Cullen impression. It was spot on, and thus the one part of the Twilight stuff that was actually funny, only because it was spookily accurate.
2. Sam watching as the guy turned Dean was really fun! dress_myself_up and I freaked out and yelled at the TV and stuff. I love when we get so involved. I also love Sam&Dean angst in general, so those bits were great, though I'm looking forward to getting some answers next week.
3. How interesting that Samuel is concerned about Sam. So they are *different* kinds of wrong.
Edit: Elaboration on the homophobia I see in the episode: I don't mean to suggest that Dean's actions alone are obviously homophobic. Although Dean's reactions are less than ideal, there are, of course, justifications we might imagine for his reactions. The homophobia I see is in the episode more generally.
Even if we assume Dean is straight, I do think it's important to realize that straight doesn't have to mean "freaked out by gayness" or "offended when a man thinks I'm pretty." Dean's "pal" when he thought he was shutting The Vamp Who Turned Dean (TVWTD from now on) does come off a bit unnecessarily aggressive to me, considering Dean has no reason to be afraid or on his guard at that moment (and clearly isn't, as the guy catches him off guard). The show kind of has whiplash when it comes to how Dean reacts to questions about his manliness and his sexuality. Sometimes he does get defensive, so I understand when people say it's in character. Other times, though, he plays it off without a fuss, or even encourages it if it helps with the case. I just like the version a heck of a lot better. I like straight men who have confidence in themselves, and don't freak out when someone calls them a girl, or gay...because those things aren't really insulting, are they? I like the Dean who admits to liking the feeling of wearing women's underwear without shame, or doesn't care if someone calls him a soccer mom. Who doesn't flinch at two men being affectionate, who will pretend to be dating his brother and think it's funny, who can make jokes about fucking Cas the same way he jokes about fucking women. That guy is just so much cooler.
That said, this isn't really about Dean. What I'm saying feels homophobic to me might just come across more sexist to you, and that's okay. What I mean is that throughout the episode there's a lumping together and then rejection of "alternative" masculinities in favour of a dominant macho masculinity. For some reason the show lumps hot vampires, men who wear leather, current teen idols and Hanson together, and mocks them as a group. The guys they follow in the club look nothing like Zac Efron and Justin Bieber, but it doesn't really matter because "wimpy men" in this episode are basically interchangeable. The wannabe-vamp in the alley looks nothing like anyone in Hanson, either. What matters is that these men are not *real* vampires (they're not scary, or violent, they seem to care about romance, and they glitter) and not real men, either. Alternative masculinity - in dress (glitter, black leather), in hobbies (writing poetry, romance) in appearance (general prettiness) is rejected outright, numerous times. All of this problematic representation of masculinity is sexist, to me.
Where it gets homophobic is when you consider how much gay was actually in this episode. There's the gay kiss in the bar, TVWTD apparently hitting on him in the alley, and the clear seduction in the scene where he leers at Dean and offers to give him a private tour of the lair. Normally, homosexuality is pretty invisible in Show, but this episode had three separate events clearly coded as gay (and all three were, at best uncomfortable and at worst, evil). I can't help but combine that with the disdain for "girly" and "pretty" men found throughout the whole episode in general. Though I think TVWTD is creepy in general, obviously, his attraction to Dean (for his recruiting potential *and* for fun) is supposed to make him extra creepy. I can imagine how much differently that scene would have played had TVWTD been a woman (and wouldn't that have been cool!). Sexist derision of non-dominant masculinity very often goes hand in hand with a latent homophobia, and that's what I think happened here. Effeminate men and men who are attracted to men are both coded as wrong by the episode, Dean's specific actions aside.
This episode sucked for two reasons: misogyny, and homophobia.
Quick! What do Twilight, Justin Bieber, Zac Efron and Hanson (?!) have in common? They're things silly girls like! I talked about spoilers for this episode and fandom's reaction to it earlier, and it's all still accurate so I won't repeat myself. The whole Twilight thing was really forced and kind of desperate, didn't really make sense since presumably Dean and Sam don't have a lot of time to spend keeping up with pop culture, and will get dated really quick. "Adolescent girls are stupid and shallow and gullible, and romance is lame" is a really old, tired theme I don't think SPN needed to retread for the sake of "parody."
Next, why do the female vamps get locked in cages until they're "compliant?" Do the men simply have more self-control when they turn? Why are Dean and all of the rest of the dudes perfectly comfortable walking around and generally acting like normal people, but the women are crazed animals?
If the "recruiting" goes both ways; with women attracting men (and why can't men attract men and women attract women, since the show basically calls pretty vampires gay anyway?) why couldn't we have seen a sexy woman seducing a man, too? Why are the only women we're shown the pathetic victims or the caged animals?
Why is Dean so fucking defensive about his sexuality? Why do they look away so uncomfortably at the bar kiss, and why is Dean so obnoxious about asserting his heterosexuality in the alley? Is the vamp who turned Dean supposed to be creepy and make us uncomfortable because he's a vampire, or because he wants to give Dean the private tour? Combined with the "these vampires are wusses" and all the bashing of particular celebrities, it was very clear that only one kind of masculinity was okay here. Other sorts of masculinity? Creepy or pathetic (just like the girls who are attracted to them). What happened to awesome Dean, who was secure in himself and didn't care if someone called him a soccer mom and wasn't afraid to buy diapers and take care of a baby?
By the way, it's totally okay to wear fake fangs glitter if you're using it to lure young women into bed.
And this is all so disappointing because I was having such positive Show feelings! I'm actually really interested in the Sam arc, and I care about Dean, and Lisa is growing on me and I think the monster arc could turn out kind of fun. Though there are still bumps to iron out, I actually think the season could turn out kind of great, and I'm really rooting for Sera. This episode has put a serious damper on my enthusiasm. Also, it should have been so sexy, and it just wasn't. Talk about a wasted opportunity.
It'll be interesting to see where the meta for the episode goes, because I know even bringing up issues of gender representation can cause backlash and accusations of oversensitivity. To each their own, I guess, but the whole ep just made me super uncomfortable. I think it's really important that we be able to discuss these kinds of concerns openly, even if we don't all agree.
Because I try to be an optimist, three things I liked about the episode:
1. That guy did a really, really great Edward Cullen impression. It was spot on, and thus the one part of the Twilight stuff that was actually funny, only because it was spookily accurate.
2. Sam watching as the guy turned Dean was really fun! dress_myself_up and I freaked out and yelled at the TV and stuff. I love when we get so involved. I also love Sam&Dean angst in general, so those bits were great, though I'm looking forward to getting some answers next week.
3. How interesting that Samuel is concerned about Sam. So they are *different* kinds of wrong.
Edit: Elaboration on the homophobia I see in the episode: I don't mean to suggest that Dean's actions alone are obviously homophobic. Although Dean's reactions are less than ideal, there are, of course, justifications we might imagine for his reactions. The homophobia I see is in the episode more generally.
Even if we assume Dean is straight, I do think it's important to realize that straight doesn't have to mean "freaked out by gayness" or "offended when a man thinks I'm pretty." Dean's "pal" when he thought he was shutting The Vamp Who Turned Dean (TVWTD from now on) does come off a bit unnecessarily aggressive to me, considering Dean has no reason to be afraid or on his guard at that moment (and clearly isn't, as the guy catches him off guard). The show kind of has whiplash when it comes to how Dean reacts to questions about his manliness and his sexuality. Sometimes he does get defensive, so I understand when people say it's in character. Other times, though, he plays it off without a fuss, or even encourages it if it helps with the case. I just like the version a heck of a lot better. I like straight men who have confidence in themselves, and don't freak out when someone calls them a girl, or gay...because those things aren't really insulting, are they? I like the Dean who admits to liking the feeling of wearing women's underwear without shame, or doesn't care if someone calls him a soccer mom. Who doesn't flinch at two men being affectionate, who will pretend to be dating his brother and think it's funny, who can make jokes about fucking Cas the same way he jokes about fucking women. That guy is just so much cooler.
That said, this isn't really about Dean. What I'm saying feels homophobic to me might just come across more sexist to you, and that's okay. What I mean is that throughout the episode there's a lumping together and then rejection of "alternative" masculinities in favour of a dominant macho masculinity. For some reason the show lumps hot vampires, men who wear leather, current teen idols and Hanson together, and mocks them as a group. The guys they follow in the club look nothing like Zac Efron and Justin Bieber, but it doesn't really matter because "wimpy men" in this episode are basically interchangeable. The wannabe-vamp in the alley looks nothing like anyone in Hanson, either. What matters is that these men are not *real* vampires (they're not scary, or violent, they seem to care about romance, and they glitter) and not real men, either. Alternative masculinity - in dress (glitter, black leather), in hobbies (writing poetry, romance) in appearance (general prettiness) is rejected outright, numerous times. All of this problematic representation of masculinity is sexist, to me.
Where it gets homophobic is when you consider how much gay was actually in this episode. There's the gay kiss in the bar, TVWTD apparently hitting on him in the alley, and the clear seduction in the scene where he leers at Dean and offers to give him a private tour of the lair. Normally, homosexuality is pretty invisible in Show, but this episode had three separate events clearly coded as gay (and all three were, at best uncomfortable and at worst, evil). I can't help but combine that with the disdain for "girly" and "pretty" men found throughout the whole episode in general. Though I think TVWTD is creepy in general, obviously, his attraction to Dean (for his recruiting potential *and* for fun) is supposed to make him extra creepy. I can imagine how much differently that scene would have played had TVWTD been a woman (and wouldn't that have been cool!). Sexist derision of non-dominant masculinity very often goes hand in hand with a latent homophobia, and that's what I think happened here. Effeminate men and men who are attracted to men are both coded as wrong by the episode, Dean's specific actions aside.