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Adventure Time: Fionna and Cake Spoiler-Filled Review

Adventure Time: Fionna and Cake is a mature animated series developed by Adam Muto. It is a spinoff of the well-known Adventure Time series. Unlike the original, it is aimed at a young adult audience. Muto, Fred Seibert, and Sam Register are executive producers. Debora Arroyo is another producer. Frederator Studios and Cartoon Network Studios produced the series. This piece was written during the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike. Without labor of the actors currently on strike, Adventure Time: Fionna and Cake, being reviewed here, wouldn’t exist.

Reprinted from Pop Culture Maniacs and Wayback Machine. This was the fifty-second article I wrote for Pop Culture Maniacs. This post was originally published on October 9, 2023.

Unlike the original series or the Adventure Time: Distant Lands specials, this series focuses on alternate versions of Finn the Human and Jake the Dog: Fionna Campbell (voiced by Madeleine Martin) and Cake (voiced by Roz Ryan). Character designer Natasha Allegri created them years ago. These characters debuted in the season 3 Adventure Time episode “Fionna and Cake.” They made additional appearances in Seasons 5, 6, 8, and 9 of that series. In that series, they are part of Ice King’s Finn and Jake fan fiction. Also, the characters appeared in comic books which Allegri co-created with other comic book artists.

This series brings Fionna and Cake beyond their depictions in Adventure Time. In this series, Fionna works as bus tour guide, but struggles to find her place. The fact that her apartment is a mess, with uncleanliness and dirty dishes, is symbolic. It shows that her life is disorderly. In many ways, her character is relatable. She stands up for herself and is on the edge between having work (and not). The latter is not unique. Protagonists of Magical Girl Friendship Squad, The Great Jahy, and The Devil is a Part-Timer! are impoverished and live in similar circumstances. The difference is that Fionna actively does not want to go to work. Instead, she likes to hang out with street musicians like Marshall Lee (voiced by Donald Glover).

Everything goes off the rails when Cake runs away, through a portal, and ends up in the land of Ooo. This terrifies Fionna, who desperately looks for Cake. In her search, she meets Hunter (voiced by Vico Ortiz), a woman who is planting weeds rather than picking them up, Ellis P (voiced by Pendleton Ward), who is her world’s version of Lumpy Space Princess, and owner of a bakery where her friend Gary (voiced by Andrew Rannells) works: BB. The latter is her world’s version of Princess Bubblegum. Gary is called Prince Gumball in Adventure Time.

As you can tell, there is a barrier to entry when watching this series. This series is made for Adventure Time fans. Those who aren’t fans of that series can watch this series. However, they may miss something. Savvy fans may see comparisons to series such as The Legend of Korra, Bee and Puppycat, and Steven Universe Future. Others may recognize the anime references, either to Sailor Moon or My Neighbor Totoro, in the first episode.

This series may excite those who enjoy multiverses and alternate realities. In the first episode, Fionna believes she is chasing a rat bus which somewhat resembles the cat bus from My Neighbor Totoro, while wearing a Sailor Scout costume. At the last second, the mysterious Ice Prince saves her. Her alarm clock wakes her before she can learn more. This dream’s importance is clear later in the series. Also, the fact that everything on TV is Cheers is significant not only because it was Simon Petrikov’s favorite shows, but the show’s tagline: “filmed in front of a live studio audience.” It implies that Fionna’s world is manufactured.

In Adventure Time: Fionna and Cake, Donald Glover, Tom Kenny, Sean Rohani, Roz Ryan, Madeleine Martin, James Kyson, Andy Daly, and Pendleton Ward reprise their roles as Marshall Lee, Simon Petrikov, Prismo, Cake, Fionna, Big Destiny, Wyatt, and Lumpy Space Princess (in the form of Ellis P.). Jeremy Shada, Hynden Walch, Olivia Olson, Ron Perlman, and Felicia Day voice the supporting characters Finn the Human, Princess Bubblegum, Marceline the Vampire Queen, The Litch, and Betty Grof, as they do in the original series. Kayleigh McKee, Cree Summer, Jinkx Monsoon, Andrey Bennett, and Brian David Gilbert join these voice actors.

These voice actors lend their voices as the Scarab, the Lemoncarbs, Astrid, and the Winter King. Summer and Monsoon are known for their voice and live-action roles. This series is McKee’s first lead role. This is significant because McKee is a trans woman and due to the fact that her only voice roles before there were anime dubs for series such as Kageki Shojo!!, Sasaki and Miyano, and Lycoris Recoil. As for Bennett, this is one of her first voice roles, apart from work on Not Quite Narwhal, Ada Twist, Scientist, and City of Ghosts. This series is also the first major voice role for Gilbert as well.

Like Bennett and Gilbert, Adventure Time: Fionna and Cake is one of the first voice roles for Vico Ortiz. He voices Fern in this series. Previously, Ortiz voiced Tefé Holland in Harley Quinn. Ortiz is non-binary and genderfluid, and a Puerto Rican actor, activist, and drag king. Andrew Rannells, another voice actor for this series, is a White gay man. He voiced gay characters like King Barton in Princess Power, Matthew MacDell in Big Mouth, and William Clockwell in Invincible.

The wonderful thing about this series is how easily it meshes with the existing Adventure Time universe. There is little retroactive continuity. Extraordinarily little of previously established narratives are changed. Unpopular elements don’t return nor are dead characters revived or reality disregarded. The series plotlines easily fit with plots in the original show. It is set after Adventure Time and Adventure Time: Distant Lands.

The second episode of Adventure Time: Fionna and Cake makes this clearer. There is an interesting contrast between Simon’s messy problems, which he hides away, and his attempt to keep his 20th-century antiquarian house clean, as an exhibit. It is revealed that Cake and Fionna were his creations. He dismisses them as “old stuff.” This comes to a head when he talks to Finn in a bar, saying he can’t relate to this alternate world, the Land of Ooo anymore, and admits he missed Ice King.

He goes on a quest led by Finn to an ancient part of Ooo. Simon reminisces about his “good memories” with Betty. However, so much is going through his head that he’s unsure what to do. A song by non-binary screenwriter Rebecca Sugar, best known as the creator of Steven Universe, clearly and eloquently explains to the viewer what he is going through. Sugar has an upcoming personal album Spiral Bound released in November.

This comes with a fun moment between two queer characters known by Adventure Time and Adventure Time: Distant Lands fans: Princess Bubblegum (PB) and Marceline. Simon tries to talk about his struggles, after he admits that he made a little girl cry. Unfortunately, Marceline can’t hear him since she, and her girlfriend, PB, are trying to get matching tattoos, but the artist is having trouble. On the one hand, this scene shows how Simon is holding back his true feelings by claiming “everything’s fine” and there are no issues. On the other, it is a representation of queer representation in the series. Those who like the Bubbline pairing of Marceline and PB may be overjoyed by this short funny scene.

That scene is one example of representation in Adventure Time: Fionna and Cake. The series intercuts the growing relationship between Marshall Lee and Gary to that of Marceline and PB. This includes a world where PB and Star (a version of Marceline) are locked in combat. This could be an indication that PB and Marceline, in whatever form they take, have intertwined romantic destinies. Such storylines gave this queer couple “multiversal staying power.”

The queerness of Gary and Marshall is shown unabashedly and openly, without anyone bating an eye. This contrasts the heterosexual themes in Adventure Time and previous fights by the crew of that series to have queer inclusion. Series creator Adam Muto said that LGBTQ+ representation in this series came from show writers and artists, who wanted their identities portrayed and expressed. Hopefully, other shows follow suit, even as animation industry is in crisis. As Raye Rodriguez, showrunner of High Guardian Spice, recently put it, “there are some companies that…have decided that they are like protectors of the gays…but that’s only as long as those companies decide to be that kind of brand.” This was the case for The Owl House. Disney cancelled the series, and gave it a shortened third season, after executives declared that the show didn’t fit the company’s brand.

The second episode hints at what is to come: inter-dimensional travel of Cake and Fionna to the Land of Ooo. Simon uses an evil Choose Goose (voiced by Jeff Bennett), that taunts him, to open such a passage. Cake comes through, surprising Simon. To make matters worse, Prismo ignores a blinking light on his universal remote-control, indicating a new portal. In the third episode, Fionna follows a sparkly blue light and appears in Ooo. Simon determines that she isn’t “real” and blames the goose. Thanks to help from a big Fionna and Cake fan, Astrid (voiced by Andrey Bennett), she saves Cake after she is kidnapped following an encounter with a talking squirrel. Soon enough, Prismo realizes this is a major issue which could get him in trouble. It would reveal his unauthorized world, where Fionna and Cake live. So, he teleports Cake, Fionna, and Simon to his headquarters-of-sorts.

The stakes of Adventure Time: Fionna and Cake are raised when Scarab (voiced by Kayleigh McKee) enters the scene. They are an auditor tasked with tracking down violators. They set their sights on Prismo for letting an item on his remote-control blink for too long. It is possible that Scarab may have had a previous bone to pick with Prismo and is using this as an excuse to get back at him. The entire universe of Fionna and Cake’s universe (called “Fionna World” for short) is at stake. Prismo made it in an unauthorized fashion and stored it within Simon’s head. The world changed after Simon was no longer Ice King. Prismo warns that the fact that the universe exists at all could result in unintended consequences for other realities.

Before Scarab catches them, Simon, Fionna, and Cake escape the Time Room and appear in another world. Thus begins their trip through the multiverse to find a crown. The plan is for Simon to become Ice King again and bring back magic to Fionna World. They first arrive in Farmworld. Simon hopes they can get clues about the crown’s location in the library, but this is soon dashed. Library books are stolen so they can be burned and used for a funeral. In the process, they meet Jay Mertens (voiced by Tiffany Wu). He has a crush on Little Destiny (voiced by Mickey Zacchilli) of the Destiny Gang. Fionna is scammed by the world’s version of the Choose Goose, who gives them a fake crown. In response, Cake beats them up.

This world involves Finn leading a family with several children and a traitorous Choose Goose. Scarab follows them, thinking he can chase them down. Unfortunately, they can’t find a magic crown, as it was annihilated. Furthermore, a version of PB tattles about where Jay, Simon, Fionna, and Cake went. Scarab, after capturing Prismo, catches up with them, following them to the next world: the Winter Kingdom. In that world, Fionna develops a crush on the Winter King.

The Winter King acts suave, which pulls in Fionna. He claims that he created his own winter wonderland by sheer “force of will.” He also declares that he is making Simon a duplicate crown. In some ways, he resembles the Diamonds in Steven Universe. He has servants called ice scouts, which somewhat resembles pearls, and he sings a song to explain his story. Fionna even slays citizens of the Candy Kingdom to rescue Simon and Winter King from Candy Queen. She is a version of PB, a cross between Spinel and Harley Quinn. As it turns out, the world falls apart when Fionna kisses the Winter King. PB reforms into her usual form. She kisses Fionna on the cheek as a thank you. Fionna lifted the “curse”: negative energy from the crown changed the Candy Kingdom’s citizens into monsters.

In Fionna World, the romance between Gary and Marshall, as mentioned earlier, develops. Gary is worried about Fionna’s whereabouts. He plans to start his own business. He even goes to a local fair with Marshall. Later, in an attempt to help Gary’s recipes gain traction, Marshall brings in the Lemon Carbs. In their typical fashion, the Lemon Carbs, which have a sour personality by their very nature, hate the snacks. Even so, Marshall and Gary get closer. They go to a gothic-style church where Marshall’s parents live, where Gary pitches his pastry idea. He ends up calling out Marshall’s mom. Although hesitant at first, Marshall ends up leaving with him. Both kiss in an elevator as they leave the building, infuriating everyone, especially Marshall’s mom.

Adventure Time: Fionna and Cake has a serialized storyline. This is clear from the fact that Fionna reflects on her actions, like hurting innocent candy people in the sixth episode to make her “dream” true. Although Simon claims that the next world will have a Simon cursed in the “right way,” she isn’t sure. Her suspicion is correct. In the next world, a non-magical Simon was killed. Then, the Vampire King adopted Marceline (called Star in this world). As a result, she became a vampire princess.

This world is one of the more interesting. Bonnie heads up a tank, with Martin Mertens and Huntress, to settle a score with Star. However, Star messes with/flirts with Bonnie, saying she will “have her heart.” Although Simon says that in his world Marcy and Bonnie fell in love, the Bonnie of this world pushes this idea away. The attack on the “hive” of vampires seems to be successful. Star ensures that the battle is far from over. She and Bonnie fight, with queer tension between them, as much is present in the fights between Catra and Adora throughout all five seasons of She-Ra and the Princesses of Power.

Fionna cares about Cake, and Cake cares for Fionna. This dynamic is fraught with tension. For one, Cake is angry that she was pulled to a terrible wasteland world since their dimensional remote control is malfunctioning. She was prevented from grabbing the Vampire King’s magic crown. Fionna and Cake seem at odds with one another. After watching disturbing videotapes from Ice King, thanks to BMO, both realize that the crown caused Simon to lose his mind, and this tension ends.

All of this happens while Simon is struggling to realize what his identity is in the world, and what Betty means to him. He often reminisces about his “fond memories” of Betty, including how they met and went on adventures together. Fionna and Cake return to their world. He is forced to confront this when he meets Golb. The Lich, which destroyed everything in an entire world, is a being which now feels empty and worthless. Golb easily turns the Lich into a block without much effort.

This results in a journey in the last two episodes. Simon attempts to look, in the form of Shermy, for a book about a magic crown. He wants to return magic to Fionna World. He follows the story of Nova and Casper, which parallels his relationship with Betty. As a result, he comes to realization that he caused Betty to subordinate her desires to his. At the same time, Fionna and Cake come back to their world and fight off the Scarabs with help from Gary and Marshall. This is unsuccessful. Scarab reforms, due to Ellis P.’s cluelessness.

The final episode of Adventure Time: Fionna and Cake ends with a bang. Simon realizes that he doesn’t need to be Ice King. He only wanted that so his life would matter. As a result, he gives Fionna control of her world. She brings it back into existence while Scarab is trying to destroy everything. Scarab remains determined to destroy it piece by piece, even after it becomes a canonized universe. Prismo deems Scarab “not cool” for their destructive actions. Fionna ends up winning the battle against Scarab, who is now weaker. In a huge form, she crushes him, thanks to Cake becoming a hammer. This allows him to be captured.

The series finale implies that it will be self-contained and not have a season 2. The world continues to be rebuilt. Gary’s business is booming. Marshall protests his mom. Gary and Marshall remain a couple. In addition, Simon enjoys himself, even talking to Finn’s mom about the experience of Fionna and Cake on his life. Prismo collaborates with Scarab, who can’t harm anyone anymore. They create a medieval mystery drama world together.

Adventure Time: Fionna and Cake could be an effective way to wrap up the Adventure Time franchise, which began in 2007 with a pilot for Nicktoons. Later, that pilot was adapted into an animated series. It premiered in April 2010 on Cartoon Network. As noted before, this series includes more queerness than before. Fionna might be queer. She is attracted to Winter King, and likes being around Hunter, as shown in a final scene.

Additionally, this series has racial diversity. It is the first time that Marshall Lee is a visibly Black character. Muto said that “it would have felt harder to rationalize not showing [Marshall Lee] that way.” Some fans have questioned whether Marshall’s more well-known female version, Marceline, was Black, even though she was an established character of color with a Black or Brown mother. It ignores the fact that Olson, who voices Marceline, is of Afro-Jamaican descent. Muto added that they tried to make sure that the show’s cast had “representation that better reflects the world we live in.” Show writer Kate Tsang helped them in this task.

Whether Marshall or Marceline, there are Black vampires across media. This includes characters in a mature action and dark fantasy series, Castlevania: Nocturne, like Drolta Tzuentes. This representation comes at a time that the number of Black animated series are increasing. This year, alone, there have been series such as My Dad the Bounty Hunter, Supa Team 4, Kizazi Moto: Generation Fire, Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur, and The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder. A recent addition, Young Love, joined this list, based on Matthew Cherry’s 2019 short animated film, Hair Love. It is also airing on Max. However, it aired four episodes a week rather than two episodes a week for some reason.

There are other praiseworthy elements in Adventure Time: Fionna and Cake. Melissa Villaseñor, Cristina Valenzuela (also known as Cristina Vee), Phil LaMarr, Chelsea Peretti, Robbie Daymond, and Ellie Newlands guest voice characters. These people are known for their voice work on Amphibia, Primos (upcoming), RWBY, Helluva Boss, Futurama, Samurai Jack, Static Shock, My Dad the Bounty Hunter, The Legend of Vox Machina, and Unicorn: Warriors Eternal.

There are six people who wrote on, or storyboarded five or more episodes of this series: Hanna K. Nyström, Anna Syvertsson, Jacob Winkler, Iggy Craig, Graham Falk, and Jim Campbell. Most of them had previously worked on Adventure Time: Distant Lands, and four of them worked on Adventure Time. Also, Winkler storyboarded for Infinity Train. Craig wrote and did prop design on the same series. Falk, Nyström, and Campbell storyboarded on Summer Camp Island. Adding to this, Craig was a character designer for Craig of the Creek. Campbell storyboarded and wrote episodes of Over the Garden Wall.

Other storyboarders and writers worked on two or more episodes. They include Lucyola Langi, Sonja von Marensdorff, Nicole Rodriguez, Haewon Lee, and Jackie Files. Two worked on the aforementioned Distant Lands. Others worked on Summer Camp Island, Infinity Train, or OK K.O.: Let’s Be Heroes!. Langi and Rodriguez worked on series within the Steven Universe franchise. Langi designed characters for Steven Universe. Rodriguez storyboarded on Steven Universe Future and Steven Universe: The Movie.

Langi storyboarded for We Bare Bears. Rodriguez storyboarded on The Owl House, Central Park, The Great North, Hazbin Hotel, and Helluva Boss. She also animated Obituary: A Grave Beginning, later turned into a webcomic. von Marensdorff previously storyboarded episodes of The Jellies. She also animated the animated short, entitled Crow. The supervising directors for this series, Ryann Shannon and Steve Wolfhard, are well-known for their work in the animation industry. This includes OK K.O.!, for Shannon, and Bravest Warriors, Amphibia, and Big City Greens, among others, for Wolfhard.

Overall, this series avoids inconsistencies and focus on all-ages in Adventure Time. It is more of a united story than Adventure Time: Distant Lands, a limited series with four loosely connected vignettes. Furthermore, there is no wasted space in this series. No part feels like “filler.” Instead, everything fits well together. The characters, animation, and voice acting mix with a strong story. With the animation industry in turmoil at the moment, and Warner Bros. Discovery purging Max of animated series deemed as “low rated,” a second season seems unlikely. If so, this season easily wraps up the plot, like My Dad the Bounty Hunter does in its second season. An additional season could be weaker than the first one.

Adventure Time: Fionna and Cake can be streamed on Max. In Australia, it can be watched on Binge and Fox8.

Review box: Animation: 5 Voice Acting: 5 Music: 5 Story: 5 Overall: 5

© 2023 Burkely Hermann. All rights reserved.

Nimona Spoiler-Filled Review

Nimona is a science fantasy adventure-comedy film. It is based on ND Stevenson’s webcomic, and later graphic novel, of the same name. Annapurna Animation, Vertigo Entertainment, DNEG Animation, Blue Sky Studios, and 20th Century Animation produced the film. Nick Bruno and Troy Quane directed it. Karen Ryan and Julie Zackary are producers. This piece was written during the 2023 WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes. Without the labor of the writers and actors currently on strike, Nimona, being reviewed here, wouldn’t exist. As a warning, there will be discussion of death, murder, depression, suicide, and other distressing topics.

Reprinted from Pop Culture Maniacs and Wayback Machine. This was the forty-second article I wrote for Pop Culture Maniacs. This post was originally published on July 31, 2023.

The film begins in an almost Disney-like fashion, with the opening of a scroll. Viewers are told about a kingdom where everyone lived in peace with nothing to fear. A “great and terrible evil” is said to be lurking in the shadows. As the narrator states, in this “dark hour”, a hero named Gloreth (voiced by Karen Ryan) rose up, banishing the evil. She vowed that her people would never be in such a vulnerable place again, thanks to an elite force of knights. Their descendants were tasked with protecting the kingdom for years to come. Following this, the narrator declares that if you want a happily ever after, you can never let your guard down because the monsters are “always out there”. This film takes place 1000 years later.

What follows is one of the film’s most important plot points: the beginning of Ballister Boldheart’s “villain arc”. While he is at the knighting ceremony with his boyfriend Ambrosius Goldenloin (voiced by Eugene Lee Yang), Queen Valerin (voiced by Lorraine Toussaint) declares Ambrosius, who is called Goldenloin in the rest of this review, a knight. However, she only calls him a “hero of the realm”. To make matters worse, his sword activates, causing him to stab the Queen, and kill her. Even though it is evident that someone set him up, everyone is against him, and he becomes a fugitive.

Before going further, it is worth noting the amazing cast choices with this film. Apart from Eugene Lee Yang, Lorraine Toussaint, and Karen Ryan, there’s Chloë Grace Moretz as Nimona, Riz Ahmed as Ballister, and Frances Conroy as The Director. This is enhanced by RuPaul and Indya Moore as announcers Nate Knight and Alamzapam Davis. Even two Saturday Night Live cast members voice characters: Sarah Sherman as Coriander Cavaverish and Beck Bennett as Sir Thoddeus Sureblade. In addition, Zayaan Kunwar voices a young Ballister, Charlotte Aldrich as young Gloreth, and Cindy Slattery as Syntheya (voice of the kingdom). Lastly, Julio Torres voices Diego the Squire, Sommersill Tarabek an Institute Analyst, and Lylianna Eugene as Patinece. Even ND Stevenson cameos as cereal mascot Kwispy Dragon.

What is interesting about these cast choices is that the voice actors have a lot of range. Moretz previously played Wednesday Addams in the two animated Addams Family films in 2019 and 2021, while Ahmed did the English dubbed voice of Takai in Weathering with You and Amin Nawabi in Flee. Furthermore, Yang voiced Toul in Star Wars: Visions, Toussaint famously voiced Shadow Weaver in She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, RuPaul as Mr. X in Amphibia, Moore as Shep in Steven Universe Future and Brooklyn in Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur, while Conray has provided her voice to characters in We Bare Bears, Summer Camp Island, and many other (mostly live-action) productions since 1976.

Adding to this, Yang is outwardly gay and of South Korean descent. Ahmed is British-Pakistani. Toussaint is a Black woman born in Trinidad and Tobago. RuPaul is a Black gay man (and drag queen). Torres is a gay man born in El Salvador. Eugene is a young Black girl. Moore is a transgender non-binary Black woman with Dominican, Puerto Rican, and Haitian ancestry.

This diversity translates onto the screen. In the original comic, Goldenloin was a White man, but in this film, he is East Asian, like his voice actor. Similarly, Ballister is Asian descent in this film as well. Some online chatter claimed that the Queen Valerin’s death was “anti-Black”. However, this faulty and wrongheaded claim shows a lack of understanding about the film. For one, Valerin is beloved by everyone in the Kingdom. As such, everyone wants to avenge her death. Secondly, there are two other prominent Black characters, new anchors Alamzapam Davis and Nate Knight.

Furthermore, although Ballister is the one who “killed” Valerin, it is later revealed that this is a set up by The Director of the infamous Institute. Even if Valerin had survived, she would still be heading an oppressive system built on lies and deceit. So, there would have been a confrontation at some point. But, it’s hard to know when that would have happened.

There is more to this film than its diversity and cast choices. For one, Nimona has a strong chaotic and “riot grrrl” energy to her. This is clear from her introduction about 10 minutes into the film, when she breaks into Ballister’s “secret lair” (an abandoned tower) and “applies” to be his sidekick. Ballister isn’t sure about her, but she tells him that “every villain needs a sidekick”. After spurning her, he goes off to get arrested (despite his claim he won’t be). That whole scene, which is less than three minutes long, begins the great dynamic between Nimona and Ballister. Surely, it is different from what is in the original comic, but that’s ok.

Ballister’s character development is clear. He goes from being an “innocent” hero who loves the Institute to a “villain” determined to clear his name. He wants to find who is responsible for killing Valerin, no matter what. Nimona helps him along the way. She notes that when the world sees you as a villain, you are one, no matter how hard you try and change that perception. That’s an important message, especially when certain groups and individuals are villainized by reactionary individuals (and groups).

I also liked how fluid Nimona is with her forms. She changes into a rhino, a bear, a gorilla, a monkey, an ostrich, a whale, and a cat at different points in the film. Her ability to easily change her form is shown effortlessly in the film. This embodies the power of animation. If this film had been live action, rather than animation, it may have been an unmitigated disaster. Through her transformations, Nimona becomes a more relatable character, despite her desire for destruction. After all, she is excited when there are explosions through the Institute, with fire in her eyes, and saying “metal”. Her relatability may be heightened for those who are gender non-conforming, trans, non-binary, or combination of all three.

Goldenloin’s leadership of the mission trying to track down Ballister says a lot. It shows how committed someone can be to oppressive systems, even if you love the person being targeted. ND Stevenson noted in one interview that it is convenient for the Institute to cast Ballister as a villain and Goldenloin as the opposite.

This relates to the argument that at times cisgender gay individuals fit into corrupt institutions and systems that the trans community can’t. Ballister does this during the film. At the same time, the Institute claims they are taking “every precaution” to keep everyone safe. They even have tests to stop “monster attacks”. All these tactics attempt to keep people in a state of fear. Similar tactics were employed by Clu and his minions, like Pavel and Tesler, in Tron: Uprising. In that series, those villains attempted to marginalize the Renegade and get everyone to turn against him.

In an undoubted criticism of mass surveillance, the Institute look at their cameras and use facial recognition in an attempt to locate Ballister. Despite this, Nimona and Ballister still escape, with Nimona telling how she ended up becoming a shapeshifter, and even kidnap the squire (voiced by Julio Torres). He reveals that the Director set up Ballister, with the video evidence to prove it, with Nimona later uploading this video. It is implied that Nimona doesn’t feel pain. Later, in another relatable moment, Nimona says she feels worse when she doesn’t shapeshift, saying it makes her insides feel itchy.

Nimona is not alone in criticism of surveillance. At one point, in the ever-controversial and problematic gen:LOCK, Col. Raquel Marin demands loyalty, belief in the chain of command. She is so paranoid of people criticizing her that she orders covert surveillance on the gen:LOCK team (the show’s protagonists). There are many other examples of this in fiction. For instance, Philip K. Dick’s The Minority Report and A Scanner Darkly, The Lord of Rings move adaptations (specifically the all-seeing Eye of Sauron), THX 1138 (1971), Brazil (1985), V for Vendetta (2005), The Dark Knight (2008), and Snowden (2016) all have commentary which is critical of mass surveillance.

The rest of the film involves attempts to expose the Director for her crimes. In the process, the cruelty of the world is shown. The Institute’s Knights try to electrocute her, and a little girl declares she is a “monster”. The latter breaks her. She comments that she doesn’t know if it is scarier that everyone in the Kingdom wants to put a sword through her heart or that sometimes she wants to let them do that. Ballister agrees with her. But he reassures her that no matter what they do, they can’t change how people see them. This brings me to one of the best parts of the film: when Nimona shapeshifts into Goldenloin. She does so that the Director will admit her crimes and note that she framed Ballister.

Unsurprisingly, the Director tells Goldenloin she is innocent. In a TV broadcast, she inspires fear in people, declaring that anyone around them can be the “monster”. This is meant to increase public support for the Institute. She caps this off by lying, claiming she isn’t the one in the video, pointing to the fact that Nimona is a shapeshifter. To make matters worse, Goldenloin causes Ballister to doubt his faith in Nimona and she flees from the Institute’s knights, who now know the location of her secret headquarters. As she runs away and hides, she remembers playing, many years prior, with Gloreth, until the village residents pull them apart, surround her. She inadvertently causes a fire and Gloreth sides with ignorant adults of the town, declaring that Nimona needs to go back to “whence she came”, back to the shadows.

Nimona then alludes to how depression and anger can lead to suicide. Nimona attacks the walled city, and despite their attempts to stop her, she goes onward. In the process, the Director shows her true colors. She wants to turn the cannons on the city, even though many innocent people will die! The attempt by Nimona to take her own life, to have the statue go through her heart, is stopped by Ballister who tells her she isn’t alone and apologizes for her actions. As Stevenson noted in one interview, Ballister isn’t a bad person, but doesn’t understand everything Nimona is going through, even though he grows through the movie.

The film ends with the Director expressing her commitment to the oppressive system. She claims that Nimona is a threat to their “way of life”. Nimona appears to sacrifice herself and transforms into a huge phoenix. As a result, the Director is killed, and a wall is destroyed. However, this isn’t the end. There is a time skip. The kingdom has changed, with the former wall-breach becoming a trade road, while Ballister and Nimona are honored as heroes. Ballister is with Goldenloin, in a scene which reminds me of when Troy Sandoval and Benson Mekler run a restaurant side-by-side in the Kipo and the Age of Wonderbeasts series finale.

When revisiting his old hideout, Ballister remembers his time with Nimona, fixes up the place, and hears something which sounds like her. It is heavily implied that she has resurrected, bringing him great joy. This means that there is the possibility of a sequel or continuation in some form.

There have been many reviews of the film, whether in Variety, Empire, The Hollywood Reporter, Screen Daily, The Guardian, and Associated Press. None mention a criticism I saw online: that the film slimmed Nimona down from her chubby/fat/overweight self in the comic. I remember people claiming the same happened with Steven Universe over the course of that series. Fans had various explanations for that. As for Nimona, Stevenson stated that it was very important to him that Nimona’s body type be accurate in the film.

In one interview he noted that Nimona is “chubby…curvy…never sexualized, and…gender-nonconforming”. He added that she “has her own unique style…[and] chooses to look this way.” In another interview, Stevenson noted that it was “very healing” to draw Nimona’s body type because he had an hourglass-teenager body type which he was uncomfortable with. He further explained that Nimona is “not constrained by her body.”

The film is different from the comic in many ways. Even so, Nimona is still an “embodiment of that feeling of limitless possibility”. The film encourages audience members to question the labels people have assigned them,. It focuses on the ability of people to change and personal identity. As such, it should be no surprise that animators/creators such as Vivienne Medrano, Daron Nefcy, Michael Rianda, and Matt Braly, praised the film, along with many others on social media.

It is almost a miracle the film was made at all. In 2015, 20th Century Fox acquired the animation film rights to Nimona. The scheduled release was February 2020, with Blue Sky Studios doing the animation work. However, this changed when Disney gobbled up 20th Century Fox. As a result, the film was delayed to March 2021 and again to January 2022. To make matters worse, the pandemic caused remote production, adding a strain on the film’s crew. The film’s future was thrown into question when Disney announced that Blue Sky Studios was being shut down and ended the film’s production. While there will continual speculation as to why Disney did this, some argued that Disney cancelled the film because of its LGBTQ representation.

Annapurna Pictures revived the film. DNEG Animation was added as an animation partner. Despite this change, the voice cast was retained. Later, reporting revealed that the film was the first release of Annapurna’s new division, Annapurna Animation. The latter may be the division under which Hazbin Hotel is released. It will build upon an oft-watched indie animated pilot. In contrast, this film built upon what Blue Sky Studios completed before Disney closed the studio. This meant that the film wasn’t started “from scratch“. On a related note, I wish that Nimona would have been an animated series, rather than a film, as they could have explored more of the characters, but the film is strong on its own.

There is no doubt that more films like Nimona need to be in the world. This film comes at the same time that animated films like Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse and Elemental have done well. Others, like Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken have bombed at the box office, or have only been released on streaming platforms. The latter is the case for Justice League X RWBY: Super Heroes and Huntsmen: Part One, with a second part reportedly coming on October 31st.

Nimona would not be possible without hard work of the writers, animators, storyboarders, and other crew. A largely-circulated spreadsheet in which people anonymously described their conditions in animation studios does not mention Annapurna Pictures or Annapurna Animation. Two reviews on Glassdoor are diametrically opposed. One praises Annapurna and another is very critical. So, the true work conditions are hard to determine. The same spreadsheet includes reviews describing DNEG as having low pay, disorganization, and overwork.

There is no doubt that that each member of the crew worked hard on this film, even though their working conditions may not have been the best. This film aired 59 days after the writer’s strike began and 14 days after the actor’s strike began.  Those individuals are represented by WGA and SAG-AFTRA. Both strikes are paired together in a Wikipedia page entitled “2023 Hollywood labor disputes”. The script and work had been stockpiled. This allowed for the film to be aired. Netflix has become a struck company for striking actors and workers.

There is no doubt that the material work conditions for writers influences how “good” or “bad” a work is. High-quality and well-edited work is only possible when studios value creative labor and give writers enough security and time to perform that labor. The studios are often standing in the way between the audience and the vibrant art. As I noted in my last review, online jerks who hated High Guardian Spice said it was “bad”. These claims were faulty. The real reason should be obvious: the horrendous working conditions at Crunchyroll.

The Animation Guild, also known as IATSE (International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees) Local 839, which represents animators in Canada and the U.S., does not have talks for a new contract until 2024. The results of the present strikes by writers and actors will likely impact the contract and shape the demands that the guild makes of studios. There are reports that WGA East will add animation writers to their union next year. It could cause the relationship between the WGA and animation writers to cool from previous “bad blood” which dates back to a “turf war” in the 1970s between the Guild and WGA.

The success of this film proves that those who claim that a film needs to “tone down” its queer themes are wrong. The same goes for anti-establishment films. Arcane is another example of a series which suggests that institutions that “try to hide and kill people” should be torn down. At the same time, there is a contradiction of liberals and progressives within Hollywood producing “revolutionary queer happy ending stories” but not doing anything to make this happen in reality.

On the other hand, the series differs in many ways from the comic, no matter how queer the cast is. The webcomic, which later became a graphic novel, depicts mental institutions as agents of oppression which “engage in structural violence.” It does this even better than series like Disenchantment. There’s also a focus on disability, as Ballister, in the comic, has a prosthetic arm. This is replicated in the film, although his prosthetic arm comes about in a different way.

The film, unlike the comic, is comedic in the first part, then more dramatic. The comic had a different tone. Even so, both are metaphors for transness and have positive LGBTQ representation. It is a milestone for Western animation. Disney clearly missed an opportunity by turning down (and cancelling) the film before its revival.

Nimona does much more than the family-friendly animated film, The Mitchells vs. the Machines. The latter was praised for putting a queer character, Katie Mitchell (voiced by Abbi Jacobson) at the center. Nimona has more openly queer characters, specifically Ballister and Goldenloin, who are both gay. As for Nimona, her character is open to interpretation, including an implied gay relationship with Gloreth before she betrayed Nimona.

The Mitchells vs. the Machines had unnecessary hype for a sci-fi comedy romp. It centered on White family, has extraordinarily little rewatch value, and only hints at Katie’s queerness. Her girlfriend is shown in almost a blink-and-you-miss-it moment. Film director Phil Lord was criticized for creating a crunch environment for animators working on Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. Possibly, work conditions for animators on The Mitchells vs. the Machines were the same.

Nimona avoids the issues with the aforementioned film, to its betterment. Public Enemy famously sang, in their 1988 hip-hop single, to not believe the hype. For Nimona, it lives up to the hype in many ways. In contrast, The Mitchells vs. the Machines falls flat, stitching together “hundred familiar film plots“, has inconsistent themes, and is very nostalgic.

It is worth noting the importance of pink as a color in Nimona. Stevenson described the color pink as Nimona’s way of expressing her nonconformity and refusal to act according to “anybody else’s standards”. Instead, she will be unequivocally herself. This contrasts with how pink is portrayed in Steven Universe. That series already subverts toxic masculinity and normalizes trauma. Series creator Rebecca Sugar noted that Revolutionary Girl Utena influenced her. As Peter Tedesco wrote, Steven’s choice of a pink shirt with a big star and pink flip-flops goes against “traditional masculinity”, and exudes femininity. His pink shield or oft-crying do the same. As such, Nimona and Steven Universe subvert the “traditional” meaning of pink, each in their own way.

Ultimately, Nimona has a strong rewatch value, even though it differs from the webcomic which has a focus on secret documents and bureaucracy. The latter wasn’t a major theme in this film. While this film, in terms of themes, somewhat connects to She-Ra and the Princesses of Power, the same may be true for future productions by Stevenson. The latter includes “two book series of novels” and the animated adaptation of Lumberjanes (hopefully coming out in 2024).

Overall, I recommend this film. Nimona is currently streaming on Netflix.

Ratings: Animation: 5 Voice Acting: 5 Music: 5 Story: 5

© 2023 Burkely Hermann. All rights reserved.

Things Get Better?: LGBTQ Representation in Animation in 2022

Komichi Akebi of Akebi’s Sailor Uniform happily welcomes all the LGBTQ animated shows in this article. Logos of my favorite anime with LGBTQ themes which aired throughout 2022 are shown in this graphic which I created

In January 2022, I wrote that there was a possibility that in 2022 things would “get better” in terms of LGBTQ representation, with new fandoms developing from shows which take risks by telling diverse stories. Although 2022, in some regards, more than lived up to this possibility and went beyond, there were challenges.

Reprinted from Pop Culture Maniacs and Wayback Machine. This was the nineteenth article I wrote for Pop Culture Maniacs. This post was originally published on January 16, 2023.

In the world of anime, some series with implied, or directly represented, LGBTQ characters, ended. [1] Often times these series had yuri themes. For instance, there were somewhat strong undertones between the protagonist, Komichi Akebi, and her friend, Erika Kizaki, in Akebi’s Sailor Uniform, and the protagonists of The Demon Girl Next Door, Yuko Yoshida and Momo Chiyoda, and those of the short-lived, but intriguing, yuri isekai, The Executioner and Her Way of Life. In the latter series, one of the protagonists, Akari Tokitō, has a crush on Menou, a female assassin with a duty to kill her. At the same time, Menou’s aide, Momo, has a crush on her and is jealous of how close she is getting to Akari.

One series, Birdie Wing: Golf Girls’ Story, blew representation out of the water, with strong romantic themes between Eve and a Japanese girl she plays golf against, Aoi Amawashi. Eve is often unaware of how romantic she is toward Aoi, who has a clear crush on her. Erica Friedman of Okazu, a well-known reviewer who focuses on lesbian themes in anime, even wrote that she may “start measuring other anime based on how amazing this one was”. Other series ranged from having implied to more direct themes, including Vampire in the Garden, Do it Yourself!!, Bocchi the Rock!, Healer Girl, Lycoris Recoil, and Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch from Mercury.

There were additional anime with LGBTQ themes or characters. For instance, Life with an Ordinary Guy who Reincarnated into a Total Fantasy Knockout, which had a three-month run from January to March 2022, featured a reincarnated protagonist, Hinata Tachibana, who is heavily implied to be a bisexual trans woman. The spinoff from the popular Rooster Teeth series, RWBY, named RWBY: Ice Queendom, featured a non-binary nightmare hunter, Shion Zaiden. Christine Brent, Senior Brand Director for Rooster Teeth, confirmed this and said she would like to have similar characters in future productions.

Apart from these series, there were implied yuri themes in the ongoing idol series Love Live! Superstar!! and second season of Love Live! Nijigasaki High School Idol Club. Such themes were also present in Management of Novice Alchemist, Encouragement of Climb: Next Summit, KanColle: Itsuka Ano Umi de, My Master Has No Tail, Prima Doll, Smile of the Arsnotoria the Animation, Shine Post, and many others, [2] all of which began, and ended, in 2022.

Many of these series are on Crunchyroll, one of the biggest anime streaming services. With its recent merger with Funimation, Crunchyroll now dominates the anime streaming market, and will likely continue crackdowns on pirate sites. Its only real competition is YouTube, smaller sites like HIDIVE (owned by AMC), and streaming services such as Netflix, Tubi, and Hulu.

In 2022, there was a plethora of LGBTQ characters in Western animation, from gay warriors Orc and Iago in Battle Kitty to a lesbian drama teacher in Dee Dee Holloway in Big Nate. Other series featured gay couples (as in Baymax!), gay and lesbian parents (as in Firebuds), and many other lesbian, bisexual, non-binary, and queer characters. [3]

Some series had more representation than others. One of these was The Legend of Vox Machina, airing on Amazon Prime and based on the Critical Role roleplaying podcast, which featured lesbian, bisexual, and queer characters, specifically Vex’ahlia “Vex” de Rolo, Vax’ildan “Vax” Vessar, Lady Kima, Keyleth of the Air Ashari, Scanlan Shorthalt, and Lady Allura Vysoren. Stephanie Beatriz, a bisexual actress, voiced two of these characters: Lady Kima and Lady Allura. In addition, there were was a reboot of Monster High which premiered on Nickelodeon in fall 2022, with more gender diversity and LGBTQ characters, such as a non-binary monster named Frankie Stein and two lesbian moms (Medusa and Lyra).

Just as powerful was the reboot of The Proud Family in a series named The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder. It aired on Disney+ from February to April of 2022. Created by the same person as the original, Bruce W. Smith, it includes three gay characters: Randall Leibowitz-Jenkins, Barry Leibowitz-Jenkins, and Michael Collins. There were also one-time lesbian characters and queer vibes among other characters, who are part of the show’s mostly Black cast.

One of these characters is Maya, a 14-year-old anti-racist activist voiced by Keke Palmer. Although Palmer is an actress who has described herself as sexually fluid and queer, it remains to be seen whether Maya will be “sexually fluid and queer as much as Palmer is in real-life.”

This was followed, later in 2022, by the much-expected Dead End: Paranormal Park, which Netflix recently cancelled. This series broke barriers as the first animated series with a trans protagonist named Barney Guttman. He is voiced by a trans male actor, Zach Barack. The show also includes Norma Khan who likes multiple genders and is ambiguously queer, and Courtney, who is non-binary. This series goes beyond the barrier-breaking of High Guardian Spice, a series by a trans male creator, Raye Rodriguez, who voiced one of the show’s characters (Caraway), or the trans male lead character in Wendell & Wild (Raúl Cocolotl), who was said to be the first trans man in an animated film.

2022 heralded the end of the much-beloved Disney series, Amphibia. The series featured LGBTQ characters who were confirmed after the show’s finale, like bisexual Sasha Waybright, voiced by bisexual actress Anna Akana. There’s also Mr. X, Frodrick Toadstool, and Toadie who are gay, Yunan and Lady Olivia who are lesbian, Ally who is pansexual, and Jess who is bisexual.

Just as bombastic is the third season of Harley Quinn headlined by two bisexual protagonists, Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy. Both are known by the ship name Harlivy. The season, premiering from July to September 2022. The series also features a queer character named Clayface, who works with Harley from time to time. Harley Quinn was recently renewed for a fourth season, with a standalone episode premiering sometime this year.

There are other Western animated series with LGBTQ characters. For instance, Craig of the Creek features Kelsey Pokoly and Isabella “Stacks” Alvarado, two lesbian characters who have an important role in the series. There are additional LGBTQ characters in Summer Camp Island and Victor and Valentino. In the latter series are episodes partially focusing on the relationship between Xochi Jalapeno and Amabel. The former series has at least four LGBTQ characters: Puddle, Alien King, and Ghosts Dads as noted by the Insider database of LGBTQ characters and cartoons, which was last updated in June 2021.

All three of these series were targeted by Warner Bros Discovery execs. Summer Camp Island and Victor and Valentino were removed from the HBO Max streaming platform. Craig of the Creek had its final season order cut in half by execs, worrying those who worked on the show. These shows were not alone. In 2022, three other series with LGBTQ characters also faced the axe from corporate executives: Tuca & Bertie, The Casagrandes, and Close Enough.

In 2022, some months after the fourth season ended, shenanigans by Warner Bros Discovery execs led to the effective cancellation of Young Justice. The series includes LGBTQ characters such as Eduardo “Ed” Dorado Jr., Kaldur, and Marie Logan. Lagoon Boy “La’gaan” was shown to be bisexual and in a poly relationship in the recent season. Bart Allen is in a relationship with Ed, and Wynnde is in a relationship with Kaldur.

The show features Harper Row who is bisexual, Rosa who is trans woman, and Violet who is non-binary. In the most recent season, there was a sub-story showing Violet beginning a romantic relationship with Harper Row. Unfortunately, without another season, these stories could not be expanded.

Other series shined through in their representation. This included The Dragon Prince. There are lesbian (Amaya and Janai), non-binary (Kazi), and otherwise queer (Annika, Ethari, Neha, and Runaan), characters. The story of Amaya and Junai was an important part of the story in the show’s recent fourth season, becoming more than “lip service” regardless of how bad other narrative choices in the season were, with this story likely continued in the show’s next three seasons.

The same can be said for the mature animated series, Disenchantment, which features the bisexual Princess Bean, voiced by a bisexual actress, Abbi Jacobsen, and various characters in Star Trek: Lower Decks. [4] The latter series, its third season airing from August to September 2022, has a bisexual protagonist named Beckett Mariner, a possibly asexual chief engineer named Andy Billups, and a lesbian woman named Jennifer Sh’reyan. The relationship, and subsequent break-up of Mariner and Sh’reyan was an important part of the recent season, which featured Mariner as a protagonist.

There were other characters of note, like the confirmed lesbian relationship in Arcane between two characters (Vi and Caitlyn) and many characters in another ongoing series, The Owl House. This includes the now-canon romantic relationship between Luz Noceda, who is bisexual, and Amity Blight, who is lesbian. The show featured other LGBTQ characters, whether those who are queer (Eda Clawthorne), aromantic asexual (Lilith Clawthorne), gay (Gilbert Park and Harvey Park), non-binary and transmasculine (Raine Whispers), and presumably non-binary character named The Collector.

While some shows with LGBTQ characters, have ended (Kid Cosmic and Amphibia), were cancelled (Q-Force), or won’t be renewed (Dead End, gen:LOCK, and High Guardian Spice), indie animation has continued to shine. Some argued that people shouldn’t look to Disney for queer representation in animation, that there may be a decline of superhero shows where many queer characters are, and noted a limited number of out TV stars out there. Although by midway through the year LGBTQ representation looked grim, due to what I’ve mentioned earlier, indie animations made clear that queerness is normal, just as it should be in real life.

None of these indie animations would even be recognized by GLAAD, which recently promoted the animated series Chicago Party Aunt, and animated films, [5] and with their nominees for the GLAAD Media Award, blogposts, and annual reports, nor by queer feminist magazines like Autostraddle, a queer feminist magazine. Instead, fans and supporters have recognized them. This includes those such as Helluva Boss, Ollie & Scoops, Eddsworld, a new season of Hazbin Hotel in development, along with others in development like The Descendants, Wild Card, Far Fetched, and Indigo, to name a few.

In the year ahead, there are bound to be more LGBTQ series, with the premiere of the yuri series The Magical Revolution of the Reincarnated Princess and the Genius Young Lady in January, the second season of D4DJ in January, the new series Yuri Is My Job! in April, and the new season of Birdie Wing, also in April. Another yuri series, I’m in Love with the Villainess is also set to air this year, while the sci-fi yuri manga, Hoshikuzu Telepath, is in development. This is coupled with continued release of yuri manga, visual novels, and the planned release of Love Live! anime spinoffs Nijiyon Animation and Genjitsu no Yohane: Sunshine in the Mirror. Both will likely have yuri subtext in line with other Love Live! anime series, which only have women as characters. There are indications that anime adaptations of Hikikomari Kyuuketsuki no Monmon aka The Vexations of a Shut-In Vampire Princess, Whisper Me A Love Song, Young Ladies Don’t Play Fighting Games, and Vampeerz may be premiering this year.

Despite these positives, I worry that LGBTQ representation in animation, this year, may wane, in line with declining representation in film. For Western animation, what shows can fill the void left by The Owl House, Amphibia, Kid Cosmic, Dead End, gen:LOCK, High Guardian Spice, or even Q-Force? It’s hard to know if existing series can fill that gap. In anime, there is more possibilities, due to the aforementioned yuri series, and any possible yaoi (boy’s love) series.

However, there is some hope for representation in Western animation. The next season of The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder is coming in February, along with Ark: The Animated Series which features a lesbian protagonist, the animated series Princess Power and Velma in January, and the Nimona animated film in the summer. New seasons of Witch from Mercury, Arcane, Star Trek: Lower Decks, The Great North, Invincible, The Ghost and Molly McGee, and Disenchantment may premiere. The pilot episode of S.A.L.E.M.: The Secret Archive of Legends, Enchantments, and Monsters or the film which precedes the Lumberjanes series might air.

There might be new information about an animated series set after The Legend of Korra, which had two bisexual protagonists (Asami and Korra), which will focus on an unnamed earthbender, a film centered around Korra said to be released in 2026. There might be LGBTQ characters in Kiff, Hailey’s On It!, and Iwájú, which are scheduled to begin airing this year, or those in future series such as Primos, Moana, Tiana, and Iyanu: Child of Wonder.

Animation may continue to be in a bit of a rough patch and more may flock to indie animation in hopes of finding an alternative to the studio system. That is what can be easily predicted for this year.

© 2022-2023 Burkely Hermann. All rights reserved.

Notes

[1] Some could say that the final season of Princess Connect! Re:Dive has yuri subtext and point to the second season of Dota: Dragon’s Blood featuring an Elven thief named Fymrym, who was once in a polyamorous relationship with a woman and two men, with her partners murdered by Luna, who attacks the Elves who don’t worship Selemene. Also, Komi Can’t Communicate featured Najimi Osana who has an ambiguous gender and Ren Yamai who is a lesbian, a bisexual man named Apollo in Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon?, gay characters like Nagi and Soldier in Goblins Cave and Suma in Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba. Attack on Titan has LGBTQ characters as well, as does One Piece.

[2] Others, as listed on Yuri Anime Reviews, include Teppen!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Laughing ‘Til You Cry, League of Nations Air Force Aviation Magic Band Luminous Witches, Kakegurui Twin, Magia Record: Puella Magi Madoka Magica Side Story Final Season, RPG Real Estate, Miss Shachiku and the Little Baby Ghost, Black Rock Shooter: Dawn Fall, Cue!, Slow Loop, and Girls’ Frontline.

[3] This includes lesbian characters Nadja el-Koury and Danielle in Human Resources, Laura Feinberg as a bisexual woman in Little Demon, a queer non-binary couple (Gladys and Wren) in Pinecone & Pony, a non-binary Faerie student named Jae in Supernatural Academy, and a non-binary transformer named Nightshade in Transformers: EarthSpark. In addition, Dragon Age: Absolution, which only aired for six episodes in December 2022, featured four of LGBTQ characters (Miriam, Hira, Roland, and Lacklon), with Qwydion voiced by Ashly Burch who came out as queer and pansexual in July 2022.

[4] There were gay characters in Kid Cosmic (Fry and Hamburg), The Great North (Ham Tobin and Crispin Cienfuegos), Jellystone!, Chicago Party Aunt (Daniel and Gideon), Close Enough (Randall “Randy” Watson), Invincible (William Francis Clockwell), Big City Greens (Alexander and Terry), Baby Shark’s Big Show! (Viv and Vera), Undone (Alejandro Diaz), and Pete The Cat (Sam and Syd), along with lesbian characters in Little Ellen, The Ghost and Molly McGee (Mrs. Roop and Pan), the new Rugrats (Betty DeVille), Tuca & Bertie, The Casagrandes (Becky). In addition, non-binary characters appeared in Ridley Jones (Fred) and Madagascar: A Little Wild (Odee Elliott) while genderless characters had roles in Star Trek: Prodigy (Zero) and Solar Opposites (Korvo and Terry), and a trans woman is a character in Peepoodo & the Super Fuck Friends (Evelyn). There were an assortment of LGBTQ characters in Big Mouth, The Loud House, Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir, Bob’s Burgers, Bee and PuppyCat, Rick and Morty, RWBY, Hey Duggee, American Dad!, Red vs. Blue, South Park, Family Guy, Spongebob, The Simpsons, and Archer.

[5] Strange World featured a gay couple: Ethan Clade and Diazo. In 2022, there were been bisexual and lesbian characters in Catwoman (specifically Catwoman and Batwoman), queer characters in Turning Red (Priya Mangal), a lesbian woman in Lightyear (Alisha Hawthorne), along with lesbian women in DC League of Super-Pets (Nancy), and Trick or Treat Scooby-Doo! (Velma Dinkley and Coco Diablo).