My thoughts on That Article that Everyone Seems to Think Makes Perfect Sense and why I DON'T GET IT.
This is an 'article' in the form of a letter posed to Eric Kripke regarding issues of race in Supernatural. You can read the article without my commentary HERE if you don't want to read how much I disagree. No spoilers for s5. My comments underlined.
Dear Eric Kripke,
I want you to know that this is a fan letter. I’m saying this upfront because I’m aware that it might not seem like that as I go on. There are some problems I need to discuss, some issues that have repeatedly cropped up on your show that I just have to talk about.
::In my experience, starting by stating THIS IS A FAN LETTER is usually the best way to wave that little red flag that says, WARNING, WANK AHEAD.:::
But this is still a fan letter. I love Supernatural. In my opinion, it’s the best speculative genre show on the air at the moment. I love the snappy dialogue, I love the dense, multi-faceted characterization, I love that the plots hold together and continually surprise me (especially the season finales!) I love the actors, I love the writing, I love the car and I love the endless American landscapes. I love that the boys never eat in a Denny’s or stay at a Motel 6. I love that such a strange premise became such an intelligent show, when it could so easily have turned into self-parody.
::: Just in case he missed it the first time, HEY KRIPKE!! She's a FAN! Don't forget that, now. :::
Like I said, I’m a fan.
::: Oh, good. I was worried. :::
I’m also a black woman, and I’ve gotta tell you, that’s been giving me some grief.
Because as a black woman, I can’t ignore the aversive, stereotypical and damaging ways that your show deals with race. I can’t ignore the fact that there hasn’t been a single black woman on your show who has lasted more than one episode. This includes Cassie in “Route 666″- the only woman the show ever states explicitly that Dean loves. And even that was so frustrating. First, because it put a promising character in a ham-fisted Very Special Episode about a racist monster truck. Second, because instead of taking her out of that context and providing some depth to Dean’s relationships with women, she vanishes completely from the show. (This is, of course, an issue with most of the boys’ relationships with women, but I don’t want to get into that here).
:::Now, stop right here. I can't say because I was not in fandom then, and I don't know if this writer was in fandom, but correct me if I'm wrong, didn't Cassie disappear forever because EVERYONE HATED HER? I mean, Dean LOVED her, that was a huge deal, IMO.
Also, GET OFF KRIPKE FOR THE TRUCK ALREADY. He's apologized for the bad writing in that episode like A MILLION TIMES. He even had Chuck apologize to the boys for it in 4.18. Seriously, LET. IT. GO.
(This is, of course, an issue with most of the boys’ relationships with women, but I don’t want to get into that here). What she just said is, 'it's like that with EVERY love interest, of COURSE, but ... I'm ignoring that because I'd rather argue, and stating that particular fact renders my argument invalid.'
Perhaps you will understand the extent of my problem when I say that I can count the named black female characters who have appeared on four seasons of a television show on one hand: Missouri Moseley (in “Home”), Cassie, Taylor (in “Hookman”) and Tamara (in “The Magnificent Seven”). That’s four women-there were none in third or fourth seasons.
::: FIRST, all 3 of those women are doing other shows. Missouri has ALWAYS been on the list of people they wanted back but she's too busy. If we are going to flail about that, WHAR'S MAH JDM!?
And SECOND - every single one of those characters was portrayed as a strong, kick-ass, independant woman who did NOT need the boys to save them. IMO, that fact alone carries their presence through far more than one episode. We've never forgotten them, have we? No.
Would you like a list of white women characters who only lasted one episode that was badass and didn't need the boys to save her? Jamie. There. There's your LIST.:::
You know your show better than anyone. You know that the boys are spending a significant amount of their time south of the Mason-Dixon line. There are black people everywhere in this country, and even setting your show in, say, the pacific northwest really isn’t much of an excuse, but I find it mind-boggling to watch episode after episode where Sam and Dean drive through a landscape of such exquisitely evoked Americana…except without the black folk.
:: Why yes. Kripke DOES know his show better than anyone. But you know that, because you are quite obviously a FAN. For the record, I live south of that line myself, and I have no problems with the demographics portrayed. It's pretty even keel down here unless you are at a Wal Mart at midnight. I'm just sayin'. .:::
It’s like some sort of freaky horror movie.
Not the kind you were going for? Then let’s talk.
Because it’s not just the black women. In fact, that’s the mildest part of my problems with race on the show. Because, for better or worse, it’s difficult to mess up the portrayals of a demographic you have excised from the world of your characters.
::Wait, that's the LEAST of your problems? Good thing you're a fan.:::
Black men, on the other hand? Well, that’s where I really hit some brambles.
Because you have some black men on the show. They have major roles across multiple episodes. They engage the plots, have multiple interactions with all sorts of people and have as much of an emotional life as any other non-Winchester character does.
:: Well, now - that just sounds ... right. Huh. *scratches head*:::
But there’s a problem. A big one, really, and this has to do with the space in the story that these black men occupy. Because every single time they are tragically evil, and they are killed off to add to the emotional angst of your white leads.
:: Interesting. You mean to tell me that the supporting characters are only existing to influence the story of the main characters, and not to start their own spin-offs? The mind, it boggles.:::
Nothing is wrong per se with a tragically evil character. You have plenty of tragically evil white people on the show, too. Ruby comes to mind, but also Travis (in “Metamorphosis”) and Eva (one of Azazel’s other special children).
:: Ok, but what about Doctor Jennings , in Simon Says? He wasn't tragically evil at all - he was a victim of evil JUST LIKE EVERYBODY ELSE. Or how about Sarge, in Croatoan? He was rather awesome until he was killed off, OH WAIT, JUST LIKE EVERYBODY ELSE IN THAT EPISODE. Or what about George, from Crossroad Blues? He made his deal and he accepted the consequences - JUST LIKE DEAN. :::
But something is wrong when you follow the same pattern with every single black character of any importance on your show across four seasons. First there was Jake, the Iraq War soldier who was manipulated by the yellow-eyed demon into killing Sam and opening the Devil’s Gate. He lasted two episodes, and ended with a clip of bullets pumped into him.
::You are right, of course. Because Lilly and Eva and Andy and Max Miller and Scot Carey all had much better runs, and NONE of them were tragically evil. *eyeroll* :::
Then we met Special Agent Henriksen. He was awesome: tough, ironic, smart. A worthy adversary for the boys. When Henriksen is finally confronted with unequivocal evidence that The Supernatural Is Real And About To Fuck You Up, he responds with those same qualities that made him such a scary opponent. And then…he dies. Within twenty minutes of his final empowerment as a fully-fledged good character (as opposed to good, but doing bad things mistakenly), Lilith murders him, along with everyone else in the police station. It was a dramatic, breathtaking moment in the context of the show, but once again I had to check a black man off of my list of characters I enjoyed.
::That is true. (although since she has already established that EVERY black character has been tragically evil by saying 'something is wrong when you follow the same pattern with every single black character of any importance on your show across four seasons', is she sure this Henriksen she is talking about isn't on some other show?) I also miss Henriksen, a lot. I was sad over everyone that died in that episode and felt he had a hero's death. I too, was regretful to check him off the list of characters that I enjoyed, race and gender aside. Just like The YED, and Ronald, and Ash, and Kubrik, JOHN, and ANDY, and Adam. :::
Next came Gordon Walker. He was a lone hunter whose philosophy of a black and white world clashed brilliantly against Sam and Dean’s increasingly murky shades of gray. He was insane, but enjoyably so: I loved watching him hunt Sam, and his role in “Bad Day at Black Rock” was hilarious. He was a quintessential tragically evil character: doing bad while convinced he was good. When he was turned into a vampire, I couldn’t wait to see where the show would go with him. Imagine all the drama in that situation: the man who hates supernatural creatures more than anything has become one. Does he still hunt them? Does he struggle with himself?
:: Oh, that's right, I forgot about the spin-off show thing. I totally would have watched Gordon's show. The Vampire Hunter diaries?:::
No, of course not. Sam kills him.
:: IT IS FORSHADOWING OMG PAY ATTTENTION. Look at what she JUST said - ":Imagine all the drama in that situation: the man who hates supernatural creatures more than anything has become one." Um - HI, SAM. ::
And then there’s season four. Uriel is an angel, so it’s understood that he’s simply possessing his body, but for the purposes of us in the real world, he’s still a black character. I’m pretty sure he was still a black character for you writers, as well. Because isn’t it funny that he’s the one who wants to lay waste to municipalities and break Dean’s psyche by forcing him to torture, while Castiel (the attractive white male) has the emotional arc and the implied romance and the tortured wrestling over the nature of free will and the existence of God?
Did I mention that Uriel also dies, tragically evil?
::Uriel was NOT tragically evil by any stretch. He was empowered evil to the nth degree, if you even want to call it that. Because guess what? In this apocalypse, when ZACH doesn't care how many eggs he has to break? LUCIFER is the one who doesn't want the world to end. He just wants to LIVE IN IT. Tell me, in terms of collateral damage - does the side with the highest body count equal the evil side? :::
I suspect that if you were going to grasp my point, you’d have done so by now, so I won’t belabor it. Suffice it to say that now when a black character appears on Supernatural I wince and reach for my pillow, because I’m pretty sure he’ll be checking out in some less-than-pleasant way in a few episodes.
:: Name me a pleasant death on Show. A SINGLE pleasant death. I dare you. ::
But, like I said at the beginning, this is a fan letter. It’s one in more ways than you might appreciate right at this moment. It’s only because I am such a fan that I am sticking with this show and hoping you’ll do it better. And it’s only because I’m such a fan that I’m writing you this letter.
:: Oh, good. I was worried again.::
The fifth season starts on Thursday, and I’m so excited I could sing. I can’t wait to see more of your deliciously amoral angels, your conflicted demons, and-inevitably, perfectly, fraternally-Sam and Dean. The final season four scene of them gripping each other’s shirts as the screen fades to white was one of those storytelling moments where I felt the pure contentment of a well-executed narrative. There is so much going for Supernatural into this season that part of me just wants to lay back and enjoy the ride.
:: Wait, you want to see more 'deliciously amoral angels'? But I thought Uriel was tragically EVIL!! *brainspin*:::
The trouble is, I can’t. Each episode, these problems worm their way inside my head. They’re too obvious to ignore. As a black woman who consumes a lot of pop culture, I’ve learned to compartmentalize. To acknowledge problematic aspects of things I like and still enjoy them. But I’m aware of the process, and when I find myself doing that to such a degree with a show that I otherwise love so much, I can’t help but feel sad.
Mr. Kripke, I certainly hope that you care about social justice and historical power imbalances and the struggles for racial equality in this country. But I don’t actually intend for this letter to appeal to your ideals. Because you’re a writer. A damn good writer, and I can tell from the way you handle the rest of the show that you prioritize characterization and narrative flow and plausibility and other major touchstones of good fiction.
::I'm going to insert a point here about how every Supernatural guest spot casting call says, 'All ethnicities welcome.' The scripts are often written with no race in mind. ::
So, consider this as a bit of advice from one professional writer to another: in this aspect, you have really fallen down. The patterns I have identified above don’t just harm black people, or people of color. They harm every viewer of your show.
:: I've been harmed? OMG, we should sue. Dear Article Writer. Thanks for speaking for me, since clearly I had no idea this was going on.
Wait, hold up - you are a professional writer? But you don't understand forshadowing and paralells? I'm confused again.:::
Every single person who watches and enjoys Supernatural for a hundred good reasons is being subjected to this shoddy, sub-par evocation of one of the most important aspects of the American experience. Every fan you paid homage to in “The Monster at the End of This Book” is damaged by the utter absence of black women (particularly the one that one of your two main characters fell in love with). They might not notice it, they might figure it doesn’t matter, but even so it takes away from the power of the story.
::I'm going to insert a point here about how every Supernatural guest spot casting call says, 'All ethnicities welcome.' The scripts are often written with no race in mind. Yeah, I know, I already said that. I decided it was worth saying twice. :::
Here’s my point: a richer, fuller, more completely-evoked America with black people and Native Americans and Asians and other people of color (and more women who don’t only exist as sexual objects) would make Supernatural even better.
Maybe I’m the first person to seriously lay out these issues for you. If so, I hope you won’t dismiss this critique reflexively. I assure you, if no one else has said this, it’s not because the problems don’t exist, but because racism (particularly aversive racism) is still so prevalent in this country that many white people can go their entire lives without thinking seriously about race. That doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist- it means you don’t see it.
Mr. Kripke, I wish you the best of luck with this season. I can’t wait to see what you do with it.
And I hope I’ll get to see what my favorite TV show would be like with a black man who doesn’t die; with a black woman who has a voice.
Sincerely,
Alaya Dawn Johnson
So, clearly this woman has some complaints to address, and I'm not putting that down. Everyone has the right to their opinion. I am just tired of hearing about this. I love my show and I want to enjoy the new season, but apparently, at less than 24 hours left to go, the important thing on Fandom's mind is to HURRY AND WANK MORE!