Power Rangers Dino Fury has finally revealed the series' first LGBTQ+ ranger, with fans saying it's "about time".
The series is currently airing on Nickelodeon and in its most recent episode, titled 'The Matchmaker', green ranger Izzy Garcia comes out as LGBTQ+.
In the episode, Izzy - played by Tessa Rao - reveals that she is a member of the LGBTQ+ community in a heartfelt scene, before romantically walking off hand-in-hand with Fern, who is played by Jacqueline Joe.
As she does, the other rangers watch with pride.
Needless to say, the episode has been celebrated by fans online, with one person tweeting: "I’m literally crying and I haven’t even seen the episode! Congrats to #PowerRangers for FINALLY doing something worth doing! #DinoFury".
A second Twitter user wrote: "My heart goes out the LGBTQ community in celebration that proper representation will now be confirmed Canon in the show."
A third typed: "It's a great year to be a fan of Power Rangers."
Many fans also tweeted the show's executive producer, Simon Bennett (who goes by the handle @Pookina1 on Twitter), to praise his part in the decision.
"@Pookina1 To you and your team and partners that made Episode 13 happen: Thank you," wrote one fan.
Another tweeted: "This makes my heart happy. Thank you, @Pookina1 and the team, both on the production and at Hasbro for making this happen."
Bennett did take the time to reply to some viewers' tweets, telling one person that it was "about time!"
And in response to one person calling the move a "marketing stunt", Bennett responded by saying: "I assure you, it was no marketing ploy."
Of course, even though Izzy made history as the first LGBTQ+ character in a Power Rangers TV series, she is not the first queer character in the franchise.
Back in 2017, Becky G played the role of yellow ranger Trini in a movie adaptation of the show. In the movie, Trini was an LGBTQ+ character struggling with her sexuality.
Speaking out about the groundbreaking role to Us Weekly, Becky G said: "I wanted her to be a true reflection of someone who is discovering more about herself. On top of that, being [given] this responsibility of, like, saving the world and being a superhero, but making sure she was [still herself].
"Trini was, like, a real girl — a real girl in high school, figuring out who she is and where she’s going with her life."
In recent years, we've seen a positive improvement in the representation of LGBTQ characters in movies and on TV - especially with shows and films aimed at younger audiences. Steven Universe, Legend of Korra and the 2017 remake of Beauty and the Beast all feature canonically queer figures.
However, even with this significant growth in showing and supporting diversity on screen, LGBTQ relationships have still been pushed to the background of shows. The truth is that affection between gay, lesbian or bisexual figures is almost never explicitly shown in the same way that it is with heterosexual couples.
Fortunately, it looks like that's about to change.
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Andi Mack, a comedy-drama that focuses on the life of the titular 13-year-old character, will make Disney Channel history on Friday with its season two premier. During the episode, Cyrus Goodman, who is played by 15-year-old Joshua Rush, grapples with his sexuality as he realises his feelings for another boy in his friendship group are a little more than platonic.
This will be the first time that the Disney Channel has featured an explicitly queer character and a "coming out" narrative.
A statement released by the network expressed their belief that showing a young person struggling with their feelings is a "powerful message":
"Andi Mack is a story about ‘tweens’ figuring out who they are. [The show's creator] Terri Minsky, the cast and everyone involved in the show takes great care in ensuring that it’s appropriate for all audiences and sends a powerful message about inclusion and respect for humanity."
But why is it important that narratives like this get included on kids' shows?
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For many young people, the concept of relationships between anyone other than one man and one woman can be confusing, simply because heterosexuality is most common across society. For children who grow up to be straight, this can lead to feelings of animosity towards LGBTQ couples - as they were never taught that it is perfectly normal.
And for kids who realise that they are not straight, it's even worse. A lack of representation across the media and other sectors such as education, leads them to believe that they are not an accepted part of society. In reality, queer people comprise between three and five per cent of everybody in the world (which makes it more common than having red hair), and LGBTQ relationships are only misrepresented due to a long history of prejudice and homophobia.
“Television reflects the real life world and today that includes LGBTQ youth who deserve to see their lives depicted on their favorite shows," said Sarah Kate Ellis, the President and CEO of the queer organisation, GLAAD. "Disney has been a leader in LGBTQ inclusion and there are so many young people who will be excited to see Cyrus’ story unfold.”
Walt Disney Co. also released the statement about Andi Mack's portrayal of a gay character, saying that:
"Our stories are timeless because they speak to the heart; our characters appeal to children across gender, ability, and experience because they're defined by kindness, loyalty, humor, courage, wit and other traits that make a good friend. Disney remains committed to continuing to create characters that are accessible and relatable to all children."
No doubt some people will see this and argue that homosexuality is being 'forced' on children; but, in reality, it's always been the opposite. Gay relationships have always been hidden away, and parents find it difficult to explain LGBTQ people to their kids because they have no age-appropriate resources to draw on. Meanwhile, children who do grow up to be queer tend to reject the notion, as they have had straight relationships forced on them for their entire lives.
Hopefully, this will be a turning point.
Owl House has just made history by announcing the Disney channel's first leading bisexual character - an important move toward increased representation in children's television.
The news was confirmed by series creator Dana Terrace, who revealed that 14-year-old lead character Luz Noceda is bisexual.
Luz's bisexuality will be the subject of two episodes 'Enchanting Grom Fright' and 'Wing It Like Witches', which show her developing a relationship with another female character, Amity Blight.
Noceda had previously expressed an interest in male characters in the show and later asked out Blight to the "grom" - the witch world’s version of prom - where they danced together.
"In [development] I was very open about my intention to put queer kids in the main cast. I'm a horrible liar so sneaking it in would've been hard," Terrace, 29, wrote on Twitter. "When we were greenlit I was told by certain Disney leadership that I could not represent any form of bi or gay relationship on the channel."
She added: "I'm bi! I want to write a bi character, dammit!"
Until now, Disney has had a few openly LGBTQ+ characters, however, they have only ever occupied minor roles.
This comes after Disney recently made another move towards a better future by reimagining the iconic Splash Mountain attraction in response to backlash over the ride's "racist" origins.
Splash Mountain first opened in Disneyland back in 1989, and subsequent Splash Mountain rides then opened at the Magic Kingdom and Tokyo Disneyland in October 1992.
Now, the rides at both Disneyland in California and the Magic Kingdom in Florida will be stripped of their Song of the South theming and reimagined to a Princess and the Frog story.
Writing on the official Walt Disney Imagineering Instagram account, officials wrote:
"As Imagineers, we have a deep passion for evolving our parks with new ideas and relevant stories that guests from all over the world can enjoy. And we want these stories to reflect and celebrate the diversity of our world infused with Disney magic.
"We’re thrilled to share that Splash Mountain – at both @Disneyland Resort in California and @WaltDisneyWorld Resort in Florida – will soon be completely reimagined with a new story inspired by an all-time favorite @DisneyAnimation film 'The Princess and The Frog.'"
And writing on the official Disney Parks website, the company provided more information regarding the ride's new story, writing:
"We pick up this story after the final kiss, and join Princess Tiana and Louis on a musical adventure – featuring some of the powerful music from the film – as they prepare for their first-ever Mardi Gras performance."
Explaining why Princess Tiana is the perfect character to have a ride themed after her, Disney officials said:
"Tiana is a modern, courageous, and empowered woman, who pursues her dreams and never loses sight of what’s really important. It’s a great story with a strong lead character, set against the backdrop of New Orleans and the Louisiana bayou."
Currently, Splash Mountain tells the story of Br'er Rabbit, as he attempts to avoid capture from Br'er Fox and Br'er Bear, and earlier this month, Disney was under pressure from fans to retheme the ride as a result of its source material.
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The issue is that the songs and characters featured on the ride stem from Disney's 1946 movie Song of the South. The problematic movie tells the story of African-American former slave Uncle Remus, as he delights a child named Johnny about the adventures of Br'er Rabbit, Br'er Fox, and Br'er Bear.
However, Johnny soon learns that the stories are a way of coping with the challenges of working on a plantation.
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Since the movie was released, Disney has been criticized for its poor handling of race and slavery.
An article by Slate highlights some of the problematic elements of the movie, explaining that "it's implied that the black workers are no longer Johnny's family's property, [but] they are still completely subservient, and happily so."
Because of it's past, Song of the South does not appear on Disney+ and has never been released in full on DVD or Blu Ray.
And in the wake of the BLM protests, petitions were set up calling for Disney to retheme the Splash Mountain attractions.
One petition, titled "Re-theme Splash Mountain to Princess and the Frog" was signed by tens of thousands of people.
As its description explains: "While [Splash Mountain] is considered a beloved classic it’s history and storyline are steeped in extremely problematic and stereotypical racist tropes from the 1946 film Song of the South."
Chucky, one of the most iconic characters in horror movie history, has come out as an LGBTQ+ ally.
The murderous red-headed doll recently returned to our screens in the aptly named series, Chucky - a new Syfy show which delves into the gripping story behind the sinister doll.
In a clip from the series, which was shared on Syfy's official TikTok account, Chucky (Brad Dourif) tells Jake Wheeler (Zachary Arthur), the boy who found him at a yard sale, that his own child is a part of the LGBTQ+ community.
Check out the moment Chucky comes out as an LGBTQ+ ally:
He tells Jake: "You know, I have a queer kid."
To which a visibly surprised Jake asks: "You have a kid?"
The doll, who made his film debut in the 1988 movie Child Play, then confirms that he indeed has a child and that his child is gender fluid.
"And you're cool with that?" Jake asks his plastic companion, who eerily responds: "I'm not a monster, Jake."
The scene is from episode two of Chucky and sees Jake confront the doll who read the teen's diary and discovered that he has a thing for one of his school peers, a boy named Devon.
Fans of Chucky have since taken to social media to praise the show for making the iconic character tolerant towards gender minorities.
One excited viewer wrote: "Wait there is a chucky tv series and chucky is a supportive dad to his gender fluid kid Bruh what did I miss ?!?!?!???? When did all of this happen."
Another said: "Chucky is an equal opportunity psychotic murder doll! He doesn't discriminate based on age, race, sexual orientation, religion, gender identity, veteran status, or political affiliation. Now THAT'S progressive as fuq!"
A third wrote: "I always appreciate when villains in media are respectful to someone's gender identity, like Chucky being cool with his kid being genderfluid or the big bad of Deadly Premonition 2 using proper pronouns for a trans character, because it just makes those who won't look like a**es."
A final person said: "[Chucky] may be an evil killing doll but he is pro gender fluid people, so not a true monster."
If the word gay is simply taken to mean happy, then Spongebob Squarepants is one of the gayest, if not the gayest cartoon characters in existence.
But now, to celebrate Pride Month, Nickelodeon has implied that the pineapple-dwelling cartoon character is a member of the LGBQ+ community.
The revelation was made on Twitter where the studio wrote: "Celebrating #Pride with the LGBTQ+ community and their allies this month and every month ?."
The tweet also included pictured of Schwoz Schwartz from Henry Danger, and Korra from the Avatar spin-off show Legend of Korra.
Now, Korra is canonically queer as per their script, and Michael D. Cohen, the actor who plays Schwoz, revealed that he is a transgender man back in 2019. So that explains their inclusion in the post.
But what about Spongebob (who is rather beautifully highlighted by a rainbow background)?
Cast your mind back to the forever catchy Spongebob Squarepants theme song:
With Spongebob being one of the most well-known and highly recognizable cartoon characters in the world, the implied revelation did not go unnoticed by social media users - even though Nickelodeon later turned off comments on the post.
One Twitter user joked about how unsurprising they found the revelation, writing: "Spongebob gay? I mean he literally had a baby with Patrick."
However, another said that the tweet shouldn't be taken as evidence that Spongebob is gay, writing: "since i'm one of few people who can reply to this tweet i gotta say this: did any of you read the part where it says 'lgbtq+ AND their ALLIES'??? they never said spongebob was gay and why would it matter if he was?"
Whereas one person simply wrote: "I don't care if Spongebob is gay, straight, bi, or poly he taught me that 'I'm ugly and I'm proud' for that I owe him my life."
This tweet comes after Spongebob's creator Stephen Hillenburg stated in 2005 that SpongeBob was more "asexual" in 2005.
"We never intended them to be gay. I consider them to be almost asexual. We're just trying to be funny and this has got nothing to do with the show," he said in an interview with Reuters cited by the Daily Mail.
Amy Jo Johnson, who starred as Pink Ranger Kimberly Hart in the Power Rangers universe, has revealed why she's skipping Netflix's upcoming 30th anniversary special.
Per Deadline, some of the original Mighty Morphin Power Rangers cast will be reuniting for a three-decade anniversary special that will honor the entire franchise with a huge crossover episode on the streaming giant.
The special will arrive on the platform in April and will see David Yost and Walter Emanuel Jones - the two men that originated the roles of the Blue Ranger Billy Cranston and Black Ranger Zack Taylor respectively - return to the beloved franchise
However, one person who wasn't announced among the returning actors is 52-year-old Johnson, and many fans on social media began speculating why she was missing out.
Check out the first look of the Power Rangers special below:
Taking to Twitter on January 18, Johnson addressed her absence and explained that she wasn't offered enough to suit up again, but, she's still excited to see her friends on screen.
"For the record, I never said no… I just didn't say yes to what was offered. But other fun stuff is in store! Looking forward to watching my friends kick a**," she wrote.
Despite being clearly disappointed, the star's fanbase admired her transparency, as one person commented: "You are going to be missed, but I do respect your decision."
Another chimed in and said: "Shame on @PowerRangers for not offering you more. I mean, @netflix & @Hasbro certainly have the money to do so. And it is deserved. Every casual MMPR fan who watched with me back in 1993 looked at the #PowerRangers30 trailer and did scoff with 'Where's Jason, Tommy and Kimberly?'"
Lastly, a third user remarked: "Would have been cool, but it would have been cool if they actually cared and paid you more."
The last time the Susie Q actress showed up alongside the team was in the Turbo: A Power Rangers movie, which was back in 1997.
She left Mighty Morphin Power Rangers during season two and passed the Pink Ranger mantle to Catherine Sutherland - who played Kat Hillard - and is also set to reprise her role in the forthcoming special.
However, Johnson did have a small appearance in the 2017 Power Rangers movie as an Angel Grove citizen alongside the late Green Ranger Jason David Frank, who passed away in November 2022.
The Mighty Morphin cast: David Yost, Thuy Trang, Jason David Frank, Austin St. John, Amy Jo Johnson, Walter Jones. Credit: Everett Collection Inc / Alamy
Meanwhile, in the first look trailer, actor Yost revealed to fans what they can expect and said: "It's such a different take on what we've done before, but a lot of the same elements are there."
"I think what I'm most excited for the fans to see in this 30th-anniversary special is for them to see us all together and our chemistry and our growth," he added.
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Once and Always premieres on Netflix on April 19.
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