Disney: ‘The Nightmare Before Christmas’ is the Perfect Halloween Movie

Screenshot from Henry Selick’s ‘The Nightmare Before Christmas’. Copyright goes to Touchstone Pictures, Skellington Productions, and Walt Disney Productions.

Hey! Hallie here!

We’re finally into spooky season and, of course, that means I’m going to talk about my favorite movie of all time. ‘The Nightmare Before Christmas’ is a masterpiece that is absolutely essential to both the Halloween and Christmas holidays. I’ll probably make a post closer to December about why you should be watching this movie around Christmas time, but today I’m going to cover why this should be on your “must watch” list of Halloween movies. On top of that, I’m not just going to keep this post focused on it’s obvious Halloween themes. There are some things I’ve come to appreciate about this film that really can be enjoyed at any part of the year. So let’s get into why this “kids” movie deserves to be up there with all the rest of the best Halloween movies.

The Animation: Stop motion animation is very rarely used in animated movies. That’s because it takes a very, very, very, long time to complete a film of this nature. Between creating actual sets and moveable figures, and then moving all of these things a miniscule amount before having to immediately rearrange a scene, it isn’t difficult to imagine how long and painstaking a process like this is. The thing is, it pays off. This film is gorgeous and the stop motion quality adds a creepy effect to the way the characters move. It’s almost unbelievable that a place like Spiral Hill was actually hand made, but there’s also a realness to it that other animated films lack. The audience really feels like they could travel to Halloweentown. The careful detail that goes into everything, even something as small as the fabrics in Sally’s dress, transport the audience. This especially works for the little creepy details in Halloweentown, like all of the bat or spider bowties worn by some of the characters. This animation never fails to bring me to a spooky place every time I watch it.

The Music: Danny Elfman is a musical genius. He’s known for composing all kinds of movie soundtracks. That being said, he is by far best known for his spooky soundtracks. He was the front man for the creepy band Oingo Boingo as well as the main composer for most of Tim Burton’s films. It really is a joy to hear both his music and his singing throughout the entire film. While it would have been nice if he had been allowed to do the speaking voice of Jack, it’s still nice to hear him when Jack is singing (He IS the singing and speaking voice of Barrel, however). And let’s be honest, no Halloween playlist is complete without “This is Halloween”. Ok, no Halloween playlist is complete without this movie’s entire soundtrack. It’s the perfect amount of creepy and fun with some incredibly heartfelt moments thrown in there. There’s no way you can listen to any one of the songs in this movie without having a good time.

The Main Character: Jack is a skeleton. What more can you want? The Pumpkin King is both creepy and relatable. He has everything in his life that could possibly make him happy and yet, he isn’t. He still struggles with thoughts that what he’s doing isn’t enough. He also desires a difference from the general monotony of his life, which, with all of us in quarantine, who hasn’t experienced this? The thing that makes Jack Skellington truly special, however, is the fact that he is his own villain. Oogie Boogie is definitely a threatening presence, but he doesn’t create any of the major problems in the film. Jack does. Jack’s desire for more turns into a single-minded obsession that ends up harming more people than it ends up helping. While Sally tries to help him avoid the inevitable catastrophe he creates, she’s only one voice in a sea of supporters. He truly believes what he’s doing is right. By the end he discovers his wrong-doings and rights them. But he also notes that his mistakes caused him to learn how to love himself. Jack is both able to acknowledge his mistakes and love himself for them, regardless. It’s an important lesson many of us still need to learn.

It’s a Halloween Movie: There’s a lot of debate on whether or not this movie is a Halloween movie or a Christmas movie. As someone who likes to watch this movie as many times as possible throughout the year without being judged, I’m in the camp that says it’s both. But if we’re looking at this from a storytelling standpoint, the movie spends most of it’s time in Halloweentown. All of it’s main characters are Halloween themed with Santa being the only exception. The movie opens with the characters celebrating Halloween, and while we experience Christmas as well in the movie, Jack’s creation of his own Christmas happens in Halloweentown. The final battle and end of the movie takes Jack back to Halloweentown. So it should definitely be pointed out that the story spends most of it’s time celebrating the Halloween characters and locations. I have an equally valid explanation for why this is a Christmas movie, but you’ll have to wait for December to hear that one.

I appreciate all of you who are still with me at the end of this post. I honestly would have gotten so excited to watch this movie I would have left halfway through. But now that you’re finished reading this: What are you waiting for? Don’t just leave this movie for October 31st. It’s a great movie to help you get into the spooky mood. And you can, and should, revisit it on Halloween night. There’s no better movie to celebrate Halloween! So let’s all thank the lovely Henry Selick for this amazing movie, because we all know he doesn’t get nearly enough recognition for this movie, and enjoy this movie as it should be enjoyed. With something pumpkin flavored to eat and loud, obnoxious singing.

Don’t do anything fun until I get back!

Hallie

Twins in Media: Dipper and Mabel Pines

Screenshot of Dipper and Mabel from ‘Gravity Falls’ portrayed by Jason Ritter and Kristen Schaal. Copyright goes to ‘Disney Television Animation’ and ‘Disney Channel’.

Hi! It’s Annie!

TWINS! To those of you who just got that reference; thank you and I’m sorry that it was kind of cheap, but I had to go for it. Back to twins in media and this time I’m going for one of the most popular portrayals of twins recently. They also kind of fit with the Halloween season as we get into October! Dipper and Mabel Pines first came to my attention because of the unlikeliness of anything good coming out of Disney Channel for the past few years. When I first started watching some episodes of ‘Gravity Falls’, I was immediately shocked by the fact that the show was actually portraying twins. It wasn’t something I noticed at the beginning, I simply just thought of them as siblings. This having to be pointed out to me is one of the reasons I like these two so much. There are still a few concerning things (that may or may not actually have to do with the show), so let’s see how these two hold up in their portrayal of twins.

The Good:

  • Different personalities: They are not exactly the same, nor are they opposites. Mabel is adorable, loves all things adorable, and is very pleasantly insane. Dipper is more of a voice of reason, someone who is very inside his head, and is a bit quieter. Just different. They work well together but not in a way that is pointed out to have something to do with the fact that they are twins. They are just two different people.
  • Different lives: Mabel and Dipper have a lot of the same friends; which makes perfect sense. They spend a lot of their time hanging around the same people, so it would make sense that many of their friends would be the same. The important part here is that they each have different relationships with those people. Mabel and Dipper’s reactions to, Wendy for example, are extremely different. And in turn Wendy treats them both differently.
  • Realistic siblings: They don’t always get along or always fight. There is no example of the evil twin here. They fight sometimes, they get along at other times. They act like any siblings would. Which is just how twins act. We have similarities and differences and we react to each other based on those. They get along a lot of the time, but not all of the time. They also aren’t the opposite and all over each other either (like a certain superhero duo I talked about last week). They are somewhere in the middle, as most siblings actually are.
  • Best Friends: When you spend so much time around someone for almost all of your life, you’re going to have a close relationship with them. Dipper and Mabel are basically best friends, and it’s something I love to see. My sister is my best friend and it’s difficult when people tell me that I have to distance myself from my best friend in order to be seen as a different person. I shouldn’t have to. Just because we’re best friends, doesn’t mean we’re exactly the same. You don’t have to portray twins as being opposites in order for them to like each other. It feels rare anyways to see such a positive relationship for siblings. There are many siblings out there, not just twins, who are close in age and have become best friends in a way because they grew up with that person. You don’t see many depictions of that in media. It is definitely refreshing to see a pair of siblings who are just wholesome together and truly are also best friends. They care for each other, they’re able to have conversations without one of them getting annoyed very dramatically, and in the end they will always have each other’s backs. I will never be ashamed or embarrassed to call my sister my best friend, even with the idea that some people have that because I’m a twin it somehow means we are a one-minded entity. I would just really really like to be able to call her my best friend without anyone actually thinking that.
  • Twin representation: You want to know why the portrayal of twins is so accurate in this show compared to others? Because the creator of ‘Gravity Falls’, Alex Hirsch, is actually a twin. The series is written based on the childhood of himself and his twin sister Ariel. We have an actual twin writing twin characters, so of course this going to be more accurate than the average portrayal! Alex and Ariel have done several interviews talking about themselves and the show, which I highly recommend watching. It’s just incredibly wholesome to watch them both talk about their childhoods and you definitely see the similarities between them and their characters.

The Bad:

  • The Fandom: I’m not trying to attack everyone in this fandom, but there are a few groups in this fandom that concern me just a little bit. Of course, this has nothing to do with the show and shouldn’t be pinned on the show whatsoever, but it is still something that should be addressed. This fandom happens to have one of the biggest twincest ships I have ever seen in my life; and that’s with me being familiar with ‘Ouran Highschool Host Club’. No, it is not innocent to ship Dipper and Mabel together. It’s not in any way acceptable to ship any siblings together ever. If you are part of the group of people who ship these two, I would like to please ask you to reconsider. It’s sick and I’m really tired of seeing it. I’m pretty sure the vast majority of twins are really tired of seeing it. I have no idea why it is somehow more socially acceptable to ship twins together than regular siblings; but it shouldn’t be. The fact that it is, is another great example of twin fetishization. I’m sorry, but if you support any twincest you are a part of the problem here.

So, are Dipper and Mabel a good representation of twins in media or not?

Going exactly against what happened in my post last week, I am very glad and relieved to say that the answer is; yes, absolutely. Dipper and Mabel are some of the most realistic siblings I have ever seen in media, never mind twins. They are supportive of each other without being clingy, best friends without being exactly the same, and understanding of each other consistently throughout the series. The traditional twin tropes have been rightfully thrown out the window. There are basically none to be found here. That was probably clear by the fact that I didn’t even mention the show when I talked about the bad in this post. They are regular siblings who also happen to be best friends because they grew up having a close relationship. And growing up close doesn’t mean that they are the same. The word ‘twin’ for these two is a descriptor, it isn’t who they are as people. And that is how every single twin in the world is. It’s incredibly comforting to know that these two have secured themselves among some of the most popular twins to be featured in media. This is, without a doubt in my mind, the best portrayal of twins I have ever seen in my life. I hope more twins in the future will be written like these two.

See you across the pond!

Sincerely, Annie

Twins in Media: Robert and Rosalind Lutece

Screenshot of Robert and Rosalind Lutece from ‘Bioshock: Infinite’. Copyright goes to Irrational Games and 2K Games.

Hey! Hallie here!

We’re starting out this weeks ‘Twins in Media’ with some video game representation! Finally! If you know anything about the Lutece twins, you know this conversation might get a bit confusing. For one, they aren’t actually twins. I’ll get to that whole thing in a second because there’s a lot to talk about. Regardless of the technicality, the plot treats them as twins. Rosalind and Robert refer to each other as brother and sister, and they are officially referred to as the Lutece twins. So I am going to treat them as such in this analysis. As for spoilers, I probably won’t be referring much to the main plot, but I will be using everything and anything of the Lutece’s story at my disposal to decide whether or not they are a good representation of twins in media. So this is somewhat of a SPOILER warning for ‘Bioshock: Infinite’. With that out of the way, lets look at this odd pair!

The Bad:

  • The same person: Literally. I’m not even kidding. This is what I was talking about when I said they aren’t technically twins. Robert and Rosalind Lutece are the same person, just from different realities. This is also what I meant when I said this might get confusing. Rosalind Lutece is a well known scientist within the universe the player is in for the majority of the game. She’s known mostly for her discovery of parallel universes, caused by her desire to have a sister. Since she was a young girl she imagined befriending a girl, like herself but slightly different, so that she wouldn’t be so alone. When she finally found a way to communicate across parallel universes she found a brother instead, or rather, what she would have been if she had been born male. Fortunately, she found this discovery just as satisfying as if she had found a sister. But this right here is the biggest problem with the Lutece twins. There is already a common misconception that twins are basically the same person. Rosalind and Robert further promote this theory by their portrayal as twins. They didn’t have to be twins. They didn’t have to do the whole ‘Rosalind wanted a sibling’ storyline. The writers could have simply made them what they are; the same person but from different universes. But they didn’t. Instead of avoiding this trope altogether or, heaven forbid, actually writing twin characters, they stuck the twin title on them to make them seem more weird and mysterious. I don’t know how many times I have to say this, but, SURPRISE, twins are normal people. There’s nothing weird or mysterious about the fact that we have some physical similarities.
  • Finishing each others sentences: This is ALL of their dialogue. That isn’t an exaggeration. Once again to emphasize their weird and mysterious characters, the writers use a common twin trope. Rosalind and Robert never have a singular thought of their own, or at least they appear not to. That’s because every time you go up to talk to them all they do is communicate the same idea, just while switching off who says what. Not only is this unrealistic, but it happens so often that the player becomes pretty convinced they don’t have anything original to say singularly. As someone who constantly experiences having my opinion ignored because someone assumes my opinion is the same as my sister’s, it’s annoying to see this promoted so blatantly with these two. I can have similar thoughts as my sister. But I can also have completely different thoughts as my sister. Because we’re different people. And we most definitely aren’t on the same page enough to constantly finish each others sentences. I’ve talked about how unlikely it is for my sister and I to say something at the same time before. Well, it’s even less likely for us to finish each others sentences.

The Good:

  • Different opinions: After bashing them for having basically the same brain, I bet you’re wondering why I put this here. Well, if you put in the work to collect all of Rosalind’s Voxophones, which record her scientific discoveries and life overall, you get a bit more information. The reason why I didn’t mention this above is because you can’t collect all of them, especially not the most interesting ones, without unlocking their house within a minigame included with the game. So it isn’t in the main game. In the main game the most you get to hint at their differing opinions is small bickering. “Heads or tails?” or “The bird or the cage?”. That tells you nothing about them as individuals. I’d also like to point out that they’re finishing each others sentences when they ask you these questions. Ok, I’ll move on. Anyway, when you collect all of Rosalind’s Voxophones you learn about their biggest dispute. Robert and Rosalind helped the main villain do something that changed Booker, the player character, for the rest of his life. While Booker doesn’t remember any of it, Robert becomes guilty and decides to use his knowledge of parallel universes to help Booker. Rosalind doesn’t care. She mentions several times in her recordings that she has only ever cared about herself and Robert. Robert, however, is a very empathetic person. The dispute ends when Robert threatens to leave Rosalind forever, making her lonely once again, if she doesn’t help him with his plan. This is the entire reason why the Lutece twins help the player throughout the entire game. It’s also the only major example of their different personalities and it’s a major one at that. If only it wasn’t just a fun Easter egg.

So are the Lutece twins a good representation of twins in media? You probably know the answer to this one. No. In no universe are they a good representation of twins. The main issue here is that the writers stuck the label of ‘twins’ on characters that weren’t twins. By doing that they turned something that could have been innocently odd into something that perpetuated harmful stereotypes. But does this mean you have to hate these two, or even ‘Bioshock: Infinite’? Of course not! Even hating all of these tropes I found these two one of the best parts of the game. They always had a delightfully weird riddle to tell and I could never determine when they were going to randomly pop up. I found enjoyment in hearing them heckle me every time I died in the DLC. I just wish, very very much, that the writers hadn’t decided to ingrain some of the worst twin tropes media has to offer in their writing.

Don’t do anything fun until I get back!

Hallie

K-Pop and K-Dramas: BTS and the Teenage Girl Argument

Shot from a BTS photoshoot. (From left) Park Jimin (Jimin), Kim Taehyung (V), Jeon Jungkook (Jungkook), Kim Seokjin (Jin), Kim Namjoon (RM), Min Yoongi (Suga), and Jung Hoseok (J-Hope). All rights go to BTS’s Instagram and social media as well as ‘Big Hit Entertainment’.

Hi! It’s Annie!

Sick of BTS yet? Unlikely. Recently I’ve been expanding my collection of BTS merch and I came across a magazine that made me want to address this topic even more than I already wanted to. It has become increasingly clear that we have to have this conversation, and what better way than through BTS? Because they are the newest example of a group being looked down on by a certain group of people for specific things that really don’t make any sense whatsoever. Specifically, I’m talking here about the teenage girl argument. This phenomenon seems to occur largely around what society has labeled ‘boy bands’, but can sometimes also occur surrounding fiction like ‘Twilight’. So why does being associated with teenage girls cause a specific piece of media to be looked down on? And what exactly does this have to do with BTS?

Society’s Punching Bags:

If you haven’t heard the phrase “Teenage girls are society’s punching bags”, I’ll give you a brief explanation of what that means right now. Do you remember the ‘Twilight’ or Justin Bieber fiascos? It’s unlikely that you don’t. People were ruthlessly bullied in middle schools and high schools alike for liking either one of these things, and god forbid you like them both. Yes, they both had their problems. Sometimes a lot of problems. But that wasn’t what initially drew the ire of the public. People were taught to look down on these things specifically because tween and teenage girls liked them. I remember this so clearly because I was a part of this. Though I never shared these opinions to anyone who had a true love of either of these things, I possessed an irrational hatred for them both. I cringed at the name of either and I blanched at the thought of reading or listening to these things. I called them stupid along with everyone else. Why was this so different from things that I just deemed as ‘not really my thing’? Because teenage girls are society’s punching bags. Teenage girls have always been intensely scrutinized in comparison to teenage boys. Why are you wearing make-up? Why aren’t you wearing make-up? Why do you have a boyfriend? Why don’t you have a boyfriend? Society has set up a system where a teenage girl cannot do well for herself because there is no right choice. Every choice you will ever make as a teenage girl will probably be seen as wrong by society. Society has deemed that teenage girls are too “stupid” and “emotional” to have taste; so if something has a massive fan base that is made up of teenage girls, even if it isn’t just teenage girls, it somehow becomes without taste or class.

Boy Bands:

This has become it’s own genre in America, and simply belonging to that genre can change the public’s outlook on an artist or band. For example, when One Direction was a boy band, liking Harry Styles was a teenage girl thing. As soon as he made a solo career for himself he was socially acceptable to be liked by everyone. Why? Harry Styles is around the same age as all of the men in BTS, isn’t he? Because boy bands are a teenage girl thing. Not all boy bands are created to be for this purpose exactly, but many boy bands have in recent years been cultivated to appeal to teenage girls. And it works, every time. This is because we still live in a society where we teach girls that they have to be careful about the way they treat boys but we teach boys that they don’t have to be careful about the way that they treat girls. With boy bands, companies will sometimes attempt to give female audiences something they’ve been lacking. Boy bands often carry with them the feeling of being the best a woman may ever be treated by a man in her entire life. Often, they are just that. This leaves companies to again turn their backs on teenage girls for falling for such a trick as believing they could actually be treated well in a relationship.

Media Labeling:

I’m going to say this once; BTS isn’t a boy band. One of the things about the magazine that I mentioned before that angered me was all of the comparisons to European boy bands. Especially The Beatles. South Korea is half way around the world from where we are and America really needs to stop taking music from other countries and forcing it under labels that Americans find comfortable. BTS isn’t a boy band like the Beatles. BTS is BTS. Artists should not be pinned down because we think they belong under a specific genre. Many artists actually explore multiple genres, which makes it absolutely nonsensical to label all of their music under one. Just because a large part of their fanbase consists of teenage girls, doesn’t mean you can label them a boy band. What you are failing to understand is that BTS is quite possibly the most popular band in the world. Their fanbase can’t only be teenage girls. In fact, as this band grows the fan base has become more diverse; now growing to include thousands of men and just as many adults as teenagers. BTS is their own thing and neither them or their fanbase should be judged because of America’s media labeling system that has been problematic for years.

Racism:

The other reason why this band is looked down on by many popular people in the media and thus shoved onto teenage girls. You thought BTS was exempt from racism because they’re so popular? I really hope you didn’t. Several journalists have faced backlash for racist comments made against BTS. Everything from making fun of them for being able to speak on the behalf of youth at the UN Assembly in Korean instead of English to joking that this wasn’t the type of Korean news they were expecting to “blow up” in America. Despite the fact that North and South Korea are very different places who do not get along. These comments are beyond disgusting and a great example of just how unequal and unfair America can still be. Especially when it comes to media. And somehow these people are also able to throw sexism into the mix by shrugging their shoulders and using “teenage girls like them” as some sort of excuse for their behavior and racism.

In no way am I trying to say that you’re wrong or bad for not liking BTS. It isn’t everyone’s thing, and that’s perfectly fine! What I’m saying is; don’t shame other people for liking BTS. And especially don’t shame them for the absolutely nonsensical reasons that the media already does. Unless someone likes something really harmful and problematic, we should all be supportive of each other’s preferences. We need to be mindful of the fact that we still live with many people in entertainment media that train the public into buying their products while still trying to keep their thumb on societal perceptions. The issues any minority group is having with getting representation in movies, television shows, music, etc. is proof of this. Everyone should be free to like what they like without the fear of being judged. Frankly, neither BTS or ARMY should be getting anything near this reaction. BTS puts more hard work into their songs and performances than many ever will in their entire lives and ARMY supports the work of these men as artists. They should be seen as the artists and people they are rather than just another ‘boy band’. If anything, I hope this has changed your perception on how much American media still needs to change.

See you across the pond!

Sincerely, Annie

Disney: The Only Live Action Remake That Should Be Made

Screenshot from ‘Atlantis: The Lost Empire’. Copyright goes to Walt Disney Pictures.

Hey! Hallie here!

Coming right out of the disaster that was the ‘Mulan’ remake, I happened to revisit one of my favorite underrated Disney films also available on Disney+. Of course I mean ‘Atlantis: The Lost Empire’. Between it’s hilarious side-characters, it’s underdog hero, it’s awesome female lead, and it’s amazing visuals, there’s not much not to love in this movie. There’s also one glaringly obvious thing many notice when they watch the movie. Much of it already feels like a live action film. The action within the movie feels much more like a modern action movie than a Disney animated feature, and the characters are written more like real people than most of the movies Disney came out with during this time. So what’s stopping them from actually making this a live action film? I honestly don’t know. Rumors that Disney has been working on a live action adaptation have been floating around for years. Sometimes the creatives behind ‘Atlantis: The Lost Empire’ have gotten involved in the conversation, some hopeful and others…not so much. Regardless, this movie could really use a remake. Let’s go through the reasons why.

Kida: I’m not just putting Kida up here because she’s amazing. She is, but there’s something that a remake of this movie really could do for her. It could give her more of a personality. Don’t get me wrong, I love Kida. However, if I’m being honest here, we don’t get a whole lot of her throughout the movie. At the beginning of the movie we see her as a small child while Atlantis is being attacked. Then she appears again half-way through to meet Milo. She goes with Milo to figure out a few things about her past, the two of them get caught by the main villains, and then Kida basically becomes the Heart of Atlantis. For the entire rest of the movie she is a silent blue deity. She’s powerful, sure, but none of her personality comes through. By the time the movie ends, Kida has spent half of her time on screen as an object for the heroes and villains to play keep-away with. Not to mention, she was only in about half of the movie to begin with. What we do see of Kida’s personality is engaging and we need more of it. A live-action remake could provide that. The longer screen time a live action remake provides gives the audience more than enough time to get to know Kida a whole lot more than we did in the original.

The Side Characters: ‘Atlantis: The Lost Empire’ has a really entertaining cast of side characters. The movie wouldn’t be nearly as good without Sweet, Audrey, Vinny, Mole, Wilhelmina, and Cookie. On top of that, a lot of these characters are POC representation we could desperately use in live action movies right now. All of these characters are briefly explored to an extent, especially Audrey, Vinny, and Sweet, who at one point explain why they took the job to go to Atlantis in the first place. I would love to learn more about these characters, although Sweet might warn against trying to learn about Mole’s past. Still, I laughed the loudest and enjoyed myself the most when these characters were on screen. It was unfortunate the original movie didn’t have enough time to focus on these characters more. The live action remake would have more time to do just that.

Helga: Helga had all the makings of an amazing Disney villain. She was intimidating, intelligent, and absolutely untrustworthy. So why she didn’t completely turn on Rourke earlier in the movie is absolutely beyond me. She puts up a good fight against him when he inevitably turns on her, but she ultimately dies. Although she does make sure it won’t be long before he follows by shooting down his blimp with her last breath. Still, her character promised much more than what the movie actually gave us. A live action movie could make Helga the villain she deserves to be. Who needs the stereotypical greedy, old man when you can have a much more capable woman betraying him and proving herself the bigger threat? Let’s be honest, we’ve all seen a thousand villains like Rourke. Even when the movie was made he wasn’t intimidating anymore. Helga is a completely different story.

Atlantis: The world of Atlantis is beautiful. A lot of it was also animated with CG effects. With improved visual effects, especially when it comes to live action movies, a redo of Atlantis with newer technology would be absolutely stunning. There’s much of the world that could be more practical, such as the more foresty or rocky areas. Also, there’s an entire village we only briefly see Kida and Milo exploring that could absolutely be made into a colorful practical set. But when it comes to the water effects and the glowing blue ruins, todays visual effects could turn the movie into something breathtaking. I also really want to see the final conflict redone. Blimps, flying fish vehicles, and the Heart of Atlantis all inside a dormant volcano? That sounds like the most fun I’d have in the theater for the next decade.

This movie is really excellent, but there’s so much more to explore in the world of ‘Atlantis: The Lost Empire’. This movie is still criminally underrated. Even with the accessibility Disney+ gave it, the movie still flies under the radar. Everyone has seen ‘Mulan’ and ‘Beauty and the Beast’. The amount of people that have seen ‘Atlantis: The Lost Empire’ or ‘Treasure Planet’ is significantly slimmer. Instead of redoing beloved movies that are already as close to perfection as you can get, Disney needs to take some of these movies, the ones that weren’t as well received when they were released, and make them better. Find what went wrong and grow a new audience around a previously failed franchise. Both Disney fans and people who are frankly tired of all the remakes will thank you.

Don’t do anything fun until I get back!

Hallie

Superheroes: How Harley Quinn is Changing the Game

Screenshot of Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn in ‘Suicide Squad’ (2016). Copyright goes to ‘DC Films’ and ‘Warner Bros. Pictures’.

Hi! It’s Annie!

I have never been the type to participate in those ‘Star Trek’ vs ‘Star Wars’ or ‘Marvel’ vs ‘DC’ debates. I always felt that, though the franchises are comparable, they are still different and there really is no reason to compare them. I will admit that, despite this, I definitely preferred Marvel simply because I liked the movies. Though I still think that they have been a bit better at movies, I have to do the unlikely, and give my favorite superhero title to none other than Harley Quinn. Because why wouldn’t I? Not only is she a badass as a character, but she has completely changed superhero movies for the better when it comes to female portrayals in action films. It’s been a long process, so let’s take a look at how Harley Quinn was able to shove her foot in the door of best superhero characters despite the fact that the title is incredibly male dominated.

Batman: The Animated Series:

For those of you who don’t know, the popularity of Harley Quinn was completely an accident. Harley Quinn was created to be a one-off character in a random episode of this series as a quirky side-kick to the Joker. The creators were not expecting the reaction they got from the fans. It wasn’t long after the episode aired that fans began to complain whenever she wasn’t present. It was instant love between the fans and the red and black jester, and the creators actually listened. Harley Quinn ascended quickly in the show, eventually becoming something equivalent of a main character among the main cast. When the series ended, Harley Quinn had already become one of the most popular characters in all of ‘Batman’ despite the fact that she had never before been in a comic book. This portrayal allowed for her to be featured as a major villain in countless ‘Batman’ games and even inspired DC to give her her own comic book series. Her popularity and relationship with the Joker even started a conversation about domestic abuse against women in media, causing her writers to actually write her dealing with her trauma into the comics. Harley Quinn is quite possibly one of the most popular accidents to ever exist, and it gives me joy to think that any adaptation of Harley Quinn would probably love that description of her.

Suicide Squad:

Harley Quinn was already more than popular when this movie decided to take on the beloved character, so it was only natural that the decision to adapt her was met with both skepticism and excitement from fans. Let’s be honest with ourselves, this movie wasn’t great. The plot was all over the place and it just felt like you were watching a mess. But almost everyone who saw that movie could at least agree on one point. Margot Robbie as Harley Quinn was absolutely perfect. Even if you thought her costume was way too much or way too little, you couldn’t deny that the acting for this character was absolutely spot on. Margot Robbie did what few others have ever done for the superhero character they portray. She breathed life into Harley Quinn so much that she was Harley Quinn; nobody could imagine anyone else playing that role. Some actors are great in their superhero roles, but others own their roles. Like RDJ as Iron Man. She did that. It was the best thing that could have happened to the character of Harley Quinn and one of the best things that could have happened for female superhero characters.

How Deadpool Helped:

If ‘Deadpool’ starring Ryan Reynolds hadn’t come out, this progression of Harley Quinn might have stopped. Superhero movies for a long time were seen as family movies only. ‘Deadpool’ absolutely destroyed this stigma. It proved that a superhero movies don’t have to be a genre by themselves, but they can be a subject that falls into multiple genres. When ‘Deadpool’ finally got his rightful time to shine without being censored, many Harley Quinn fans began pointing out that she held a similar role for the uncensored ridiculous in DC comics. Margot Robbie immediately took this idea and ran with it. Why couldn’t a female character also be a badass while being uncensored? Hollywood generally tries to stick women into this overly innocent box, but that’s not what’s realistic or what female audiences want to see anymore. If DC wanted to compete with Marvel, ‘Deadpool’ made it so that their only option was to use Harley Quinn to do so.

Birds of Prey:

It doesn’t matter whether or not you liked this movie, you have to admit that it was important. We got a superhero ensemble film where the entire ensemble was made up of women. There is only one main male character to be seen in this film in contrast to the five female characters. Not to mention, that the female characters in this film aren’t really intimidated by the male villain, meaning that very few of their conversations are them even mentioning men. Add on the Asian female director, Cathy Yan, and you’ve got even more for this movie to be proud of. Harley Quinn in this movie isn’t a tomboy. None of the girls are. They are all realistic women with different personalities. At no point are any of the women in this movie devalued for acting feminine. They are. That in itself is badass. Not only that, but it proved that just the name Harley Quinn could garner so much of a frenzy around a movie that even her presence could get a sizable audience to watch it. It was clear after this movie that Harley Quinn might just be the most popular DC character of this generation. This would have never been expected of a female character a few years ago. Everything about ‘Birds of Prey’ was important for female representation in Hollywood, and we’ve had a surge of female ensemble films since it came out.

Margot Robbie Herself:

There is really no other person that could have been cast in this role. Truly. Margot Robbie fell so much in love with this role, that she’s begun taking on a producer role for many of the movies she plays Harley Quinn in. She was one of the driving forces behind the existence of ‘Birds of Prey’. She has a say in much of how Harley Quinn is portrayed, which is why it has only been getting better. As long as she’s pushing for Harley Quinn to be portrayed authentically, we have an iconic female character in Hollywood movies.

The Merchandising:

The year ‘Suicide Squad’ came out, the amount of people who bought costumes to be Harley Quinn for Halloween skyrocketed to the point where it was the most popular costume that year. Unfortunately, this brought out all the male, gate-keeping, comic book fans. Women were almost instantly shamed for wearing this costume for years after; which prompted a different response than these men were probably used to. More women started dressing up as Harley Quinn and those that didn’t fought for those who did. The Harley Quinn costume fiasco brought a shining spotlight to the conversation on how women have always been questioned and scrutinized for liking absolutely anything from a young age. When the ‘Joker’ movie came out and men began buying Joker costumes in mass for Halloween, they were met with instant backlash because of their hypocrisy. This is ongoing, but this was one of the major events that led to this conversation being re-opened permanently.

What exactly is she changing?:

Absolutely everything. We’ve all known about the popularity of characters such as Batman, Superman, Iron Man, and Spider-Man. They are some of the most popular characters to ever be created. Sometimes Wonder Woman was thrown into that mix, but it felt for a long time as though no female comic book character would ever be able to permanently join that list. Harley Quinn is one of the main examples that has proven that idea wrong. She has become an icon in her own right. Superhero movies have always been a pinnacle of the action genre, and it feels like women are finally breaking into that world led by such legendary characters as Wonder Woman and Harley Quinn. I can feel badass wearing my pink pastels and bows knowing that Harley Quinn is wearing them in her own television shows and movies and is still massively respected for that femininity. Because femininity has never been and will never be bad or worthy of less respect.

See you across the pond!

Sincerely, Annie

Video Games: Handsome Jack is Still the Best Villain in All of Gaming.

Screenshot of Handsome Jack from Borderlands 2. Copyright goes to 2K Games.

Hey! Hallie here!

Let’s be honest, you can’t have a good game without a good villain. Whether the villain is an actual person, a situation, or the main character themselves, no story is complete without a force of evil to challenge the main heroes. We’ve seen a lot of villains in games. Mostly we’ve seen villains who are just evil to be evil. Classic examples of this are Bowser and Ganondorf, while more modern examples are Corypheus from ‘Dragon Age: Inquisition’ and Xehanort from the ‘Kingdom Hearts’ franchise. So when a villain like Handsome Jack comes along, you can’t help but be blown away. I’ll be honest, as a huge ‘Dragon Age’ fan I was pretty sure that the silent (soon to be much louder) evil of Solas was never going to be matched by any villain I came cross. And then I FINALLY got my hands on the ‘Borderlands’ games and guys. I was so, so, wrong. So let’s get into why Handsome Jack holds the title for best video game villain. SPOILERS for ‘Borderlands 2’ and ‘Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel’.

He’s Funny: ‘Borderlands’ is known for being a more comedic franchise than most of the popular first-person shooters out there. Handsome Jack is behind a lot of this comedy. I mean, the diamond pony named Butt Stallion is kind of infamous at this point. The thing with Handsome Jack is that he doesn’t only get a few occasions to show off his hilarious one-liners. The amount of time you spend with Jack isn’t limited to just the occasions you meet him in person. He’s constantly communicating with you throughout the entire game, criticizing what you’re doing and offering to pay you money if you kill yourself. (You can take him up on this offer and you’ll respawn, but he’ll make fun of you whatever option you choose.) Handsome Jack never ceases to be the most entertaining part of ‘Borderlands 2’. When he’s not telling you about the hilarious time he killed someone’s entire family, you kind of miss him.

He’s Scary: The thing with comedic villains like Handsome Jack is that they can very quickly take a turn for the un-intimidating. I’ve seen many a funny villain come off as dumb or too light-hearted. Often times this can be completely countered with a frightening appearance, the Joker is a good example of this, but what do you do when you have a normal looking guy like Jack? You make him a murderous psychopath. There is no doubt in your mind at any point in the game that Handsome Jack could kill you or your friends the minute he is given the chance. For one, you can’t go very far exploring Pandora without finding some audio evidence of him murdering innocent people in cold blood and laughing at it afterwards. Not to mention the experiments he conducted on entire families to test Slag mutation, resulting in the death of Tiny Tina’s parents. But those things happen to other people right? It doesn’t affect the player. At least until he kidnaps and brainwashes Mordecai’s bird, Bloodwing, to attack you. When you manage to defeat Bloodwing without killing Mordecai’s pet, Jack blows the bird’s head off. Even in those situations there’s still a joking tone to Handsome Jack’s voice. You don’t actually hear him get angry. At least not yet.

His Daughter: One of the biggest reveals in ‘Borderlands 2’ is that Angel, the siren, is Handsome Jack’s daughter. That disembodied voice who’s been trying to help you, even after she betrays your location to Handsome Jack, is related to the man who’s been trying to kill you for the entire game. Not only that, but after her time using her siren powers to serve her father, she wants him dead just as much as you. Unfortunately, the only way to keep Handsome Jack out of the picture is to prevent him from using Angel as a means to get what he wants. I’d argue the most heartbreaking part of the game is the mission where you’re forced to kill Angel, per her request, as Jack screams at you to spare her. You finally see a human behind Jack’s haughty and sarcastic mask. And then you succeed in killing her and you finally get to see Handsome Jack in person…as he stabs Roland, one of the main characters, in the back. Needless to say, Roland doesn’t make it. This is when you finally get to see Handsome Jack angry and it’s truly terrifying. His love for his daughter changes the entire dynamic between the player and Handsome Jack. Not many video game moments have made me shiver the way this one did.

John: Who’s this random John I’m mentioning in a post about Handsome Jack? It’s Handsome Jack of course! It’s Jack before he opened the first vault and had his face permanently scarred, which is why his face looks like it’s been pasted on in every other game. His name was John when he was actually a good guy. In fact, all the events that let to him becoming the Handsome Jack we know and love were caused by his desire to protect Elpis and the people that lived there. Unfortunately, the destroying of Elpis was to prevent anyone from reaching the power kept in the vault inside the moon. When John stopped these plans and reached the vault he became someone completely different. Not that this was his first change. The more people betrayed him on his quest to save the moon of Elpis, the more warped he became. To the point that he vaulted an entire group of scientists into space to die because he didn’t trust them. Note that this happened way before he reached the vault. What’s fun about John’s story is that the player helps him, even after he begins to warp into a crazy dictator. In that way you question John’s actions as well as your own and you begin to understand why his choices became more and more morally ambiguous. He once wanted to be a hero. The player gets to stand by his side as he becomes the villain.

I don’t think any game made me fall in love with a villain as fast as ‘Borderlands 2’ did and ‘Borderlands the Pre-Sequel’ made me develop emotional attachment to him on top of all that. Handsome Jack is masterfully written. He’s amusing but he’s also terrifying. Just when you feel you can never feel sorry for a guy like him, the game makes you feel sorry for him. At some point the player has to admit they have more in common with Handsome Jack than they probably want to believe. After all, he did start out in the same position as the player. His life is a huge tragedy, and I didn’t even mention above that his daughter accidentally killed his wife. That’s life-scarring stuff. Yet he came out of all that with confidence and sass. Granted, way too much confidence and sass given that he’s a dictator. But you can’t help but admire the guy. Even when you land the satisfying final blow.

Don’t do anything fun until I get back!

Hallie

Superheroes: Why Peggy Carter Should Not Have Ended Up With Steve

Screenshot from ‘Captain America: The First Avenger’ starring Haley Atwell and Chris Evans. Copyright goes to ‘Marvel Studios’, ‘Paramount Pictures’ and ‘The Walt Disney Company’.

Hi! It’s Annie!

MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD FOR ‘AVENGERS: ENDGAME’ AND ‘AGENT CARTER’!

If you’re anything like me, you were thrilled when Hayley Atwell was confirmed for a cameo in ‘Avengers: Endgame’. Who wasn’t? Peggy Carter is definitely one of the best female characters in all of Marvel and even one of the most badass women to ever grace cinema screens. I have to admit, the first time I watched ‘Avengers: Endgame’, I thought the ending was adorable. It just felt so cute! Steve and Peggy finally got their dance and Steve was able to rest after long years of soldiering. But walking out of the theatre, there was something that didn’t quite sit right with me about the pairing at the end of the movie. I wasn’t able to pinpoint what exactly was holding me back from liking this couple until I decided to watch ‘Agent Carter’, one of my favorite television shows of all time, again to dive back into the bright lights and unfortunate sexism of 1940’s America. It was clear after re-watching only a few episodes that the ending of ‘Avengers: Endgame’ was incredibly misguided and really didn’t suit either character. Let’s go over why this ending was so messed up.

Peggy Carter:

One of the major plot points of both seasons of ‘Agent Carter’ is Peggy dealing with the fact that Steve Rogers, the love of her life, is gone. Through this grief, Peggy realizes that people have a lot less sympathy for her after Steve dies. She is Steve’s girl rather than a human being of her own. Peggy has to deal with grieving over Steve at the same time she has to deal with her relationship with Steve being used against her at every moment possible. The end of Season 1 of ‘Agent Carter’ is even about everyone letting go of Steve. Howard almost dies for it, and we see Peggy pour the last vial of Steve’s blood out, finally symbolically letting go of Steve. Having Steve come back completely retcons this arc. There’s also the issue of Steve visiting an old Peggy with dementia and Peggy reacts several times as though she has just seen Steve after a long time of thinking he’s dead. Some argue that Peggy is lying to Steve here when she talks about having lived a life without him later in the conversation; but that argument doesn’t necessarily track, especially with her having dementia. But that’s just taking that at face value. It is possible that Steve went back and created an entirely different timeline where Peggy never had to do any of that. Steve might have made it to their dance and everything after that would be fine, wouldn’t it? Well…no. If this happened it effectively erases all of ‘Agent Carter’. ‘Agent Carter’ is the first major female led media that Marvel created in recent history; it might have even been the kicking off point for seeing so many other women lead actual superhero movies rather than just television shows. Why would you effectively erase one of the only examples of female led media in the superhero genre? There is a giant argument going on between the director and writers of ‘Avengers: Endgame’ as to whether or not Steve created a separate timeline or if he just changed the original. Whatever the answer to this argument is, it’s very unclear. It really could go either way. But either way you want to look at it, Peggy seems to be robbed of telling her own story.

Steve Rogers:

Take a first look at this ending and it looks cute. Take a second look and you may realize just how out of character it is for Steve Rogers. Let’s take a look back at ‘Captain America: The Winter Solider’ where Steve finds out that Peggy had a family. He’s happy for her! She seems happy with her own life as well and even says that her only regret is that Steve didn’t get to live a life like she did. When did Steve Rogers become a selfish home-wrecker? Did he and Peggy ever have that conversation? You know, the one where he mentions that she had a happy life without him but he just REALLY wanted her so he went back and either destroyed or erased the life she lived without him? That’s on top of the conversation they would have had to have about Steve kissing her niece. Because…that’s really gross. Does noble, puppy-dog, Steve Rogers really seem like the home-wrecking type? Definitely not to me. I can definitely see him retiring after everything he went through, but I think the way they portrayed his retirement was a serious misstep and really didn’t make sense for either character.

Bucky Barnes:

Here is where I should point out that Steve and Peggy knew each other for only a few years. And that was on and off because Peggy and Steve had very different roles to play in the war. Peggy spent much more time with her colleagues in ‘Agent Carter’ and Steve spent much more time with the Avengers. But, you know who Steve spent even more time with? Bucky Barnes. Bucky was the person who knew Steve best and was, of everyone, closest to Steve. A lot of people were hoping that this would turn into a romantic involvement, and I kind of hoped for that too. I do feel we were all jipped when it comes to that. But even if you aren’t going to look at that, there is no way Steve would have ever left Bucky. Who did Steve say “I’m with you ’til the end of the line” to? Not Peggy, that’s for sure. I’m not entirely sure Steve can be with Bucky ” ’til the end of the line” if he goes back in time, effectively stranding Bucky in an unfamiliar time period and still leaving him with so much untouched trauma. What if Bucky had somehow gotten stuck in the ice with Steve, traveled with him to the future in ‘Avengers’, found a time machine, and then just left Steve behind? Bucky always meant more to Steve than Peggy, who he had only just barely started dating. This doesn’t make any sense.

Daniel Sousa:

If you’ve watched ‘Agent Carter’, you know that this was basically the endgame for Peggy in the show. We all know this would have been the husband she talked to Steve about in the hospital. Daniel Sousa was a raging feminist with a gimp leg and was still portrayed as a complete badass. This was one of the best examples I’ve seen of somebody with a disability not being portrayed as ‘that person with the disability’ in anything ever. But there is something seriously messed up that happens in Season 1 because of Daniel Sousa’s obvious crush on Peggy. Another detective tells him that no one would give up “a red, white, and blue shield for an aluminum crutch.” Way to go, Marvel! You just proved right someone who bullied a disabled character about their disability! They later tried to settle the fans by adding Agent Sousa into ‘Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D’ and pairing him off with Daisy, another badass character. But he had so much more chemistry with Peggy, not to mention that show effectively writes out his disability. Little tip when dealing with disabled characters; don’t write out their disability because it’s inconvenient for you.

Marvel’s Awful Relationship Track Record:

I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but Marvel can be really really bad when it comes to writing relationships. Steve and Sharon? No chemistry. Natasha and Bruce? Oh my god. Let’s all take a moment to remember how Joss Whedon compared women who can’t have children to monsters. Thanks for that one Joss. They even managed to screw up Peggy and Steve’s relationship, which almost all of us were fine with until we actually saw what they did with that. One of the only relationships that I liked was Daniel and Peggy, which was partly because this relationship was written by different people than the ones who write on the movies. Marvel keeps effectively tearing apart all of their good couples either because of plot for drama or because they screw the couple up so badly that they just don’t work together anymore. Wanda and Vision are quite possibly the only semi-functional, plot relevant, good couple left. Which is probably scarier than you think.

I think it’s clear to most of us that female representation in especially action movies has a long way to go. The fact that Marvel decided to interfere in one of their only female led pieces of media is kind of scary. Marvel movies have generally been portrayed as being the better movies versus DC, which I largely agree with. But it’s hard to not see that DC is worlds better at female representation than Marvel is. (Except for ‘Justice League’ because that’s more Joss Whedon.) ‘Wonder Woman’ and ‘Birds of Prey’ are some of the most important movies for female representation in superhero movies and in action movies. Marvel is seriously lagging behind when it comes to this, and ‘Agent Carter’ was one of their only defending points when it came to female led media. Then they effectively erased both it and the voice of Peggy Carter. I’d like to live in the happy fake reality where the ending of ‘Avengers: Endgame’ didn’t actually happen; but the fact is that it did. And it is an excellent example of how women in action movies are still, first and foremost, seen as love interests rather than their own characters.

See you across the pond!

Sincerely, Annie

Twins in Media: Zack and Cody

Screenshot of Cole and Dylan Sprouse in ‘Suite Life of Zack and Cody’. Copyright goes to It’s a Laugh Productions and Disney Channel.

Hey! Hallie here!

Well, there was no way we’d be able to do this series for long without mentioning the twins that made up all of our childhoods. Zack and Cody were THE twins growing up. Anytime someone identified my sister and I as twins, we instantly expected the inevitable comparison to these two. We didn’t mind it either! We liked these two a lot, and any of the other sets of twins we knew when we were little liked them too. So was our love of Zack and Cody justified? Or are they just another example of media’s misunderstanding of twins?

The Bad:

  • Opposite personalities: I’ve talked about this trope before, but I’d argue that Zack and Cody are the biggest example of this so far. While this is nice in the way that it allows both Zack and Cody to have different personalities, it falls short on it’s heavy reliance on this trope. The problem with this trope as a whole is that it thinks that the twin characters have to be absolute opposites in order to convince the audience that they’re not the same person. Everything Zack and Cody like or do is shown to be absolutely different from their twin. Zack is a troublemaker who bullies Cody for his admiration of rules. Zack is a ladies man while Cody is bookish and awkward. As a real twin, I actually have a lot in common with my sister. Keep in mind the similarities between regular siblings, because twins are basically just regular siblings who look similar. Normal siblings may have large differences, but they grow up in the same household, likely consuming and experiencing a lot of the same things. As a result they grow up with some similarities. Twins do as well. While giving twins two separate personalities is much more realistic than giving them the same personality, giving them opposite interests is also extremely unrealistic.
  • Simultaneous speaking: This just doesn’t happen consistently. Sometimes it happens on accident, but that’s a rare occasion. ‘Suite Life of Zack and Cody’ didn’t do this all the time, if they had the show would have gotten old very quickly, but it does happen nearly once an episode for comedic purposes. Almost every show that involves twins has some form of this at some point, so I guess I’m just glad that this show cuts down on it a bit more. The point is; it would be nice if everyone would just stop with this trope altogether. Zack and Cody don’t do anything to help this goal along.
  • Twin telepathy: This is only hinted at on occasion in this show, but it’s here anyways. On one occasion Zack claims to share twin telepathy with Cody because he felt when Cody broke his arm, although this is instantly challenged and proved untrue. There’s also one occasion where Zack and Cody share a dream. This one is more problematic because it’s never challenged. It’s just there as a weird supernatural element to an otherwise real-life based show. Not that this was the only supernatural element, but it’s still harmful that they just left this one alone. Twin telepathy isn’t a thing. It just isn’t. I have never had a dream mildly similar to my sister’s. And we absolutely can’t feel each others pain. This is just an odd trope used to try to make twins seem like they share a brain.

The Good:

  • Different lives: We bring this one up a lot but it’s really important to show in every piece of media. Twins lead very different lives, even when they’re in similar situations. Zack has different friends than Cody. The residents of the hotel treat Zack and Cody differently based on their personalities. There’s even an episode that entirely avoids the whole ‘interchangeable’ trope. Yes, I’m talking about the ‘Midsummer Night’s Dream’ episode. Cody has a girlfriend who, upon being cast opposite Zack, begins to develop feelings for him. At no point does Zack reciprocate these feelings. In fact, he feels weird about it and brushes her off. Meanwhile the girl Zack has a crush on develops a crush on Cody. While this is more understandable because she isn’t shown to like Zack at all, it’s still nice that Cody doesn’t reciprocate these feelings. The most problematic character in this entire scenario is Cody’s girlfriend, who is at no point rewarded for her behavior. In fact, by the end of the episode, both Zack and Cody are no longer in romantic relationships. It’s nice to see when writers tackle situations that can easily incorporate twin tropes, but ultimately decide not to go in that direction.
  • Different actors: Dylan and Cole Sprouse are actually twins! They look similar, but you can absolutely tell the difference between them. This makes a world of difference. To twins, it’s painfully obvious when you’re using one person to play two twin roles. There are always differences between twins, even if you can’t see them at first. Dylan and Cole Sprouse are a great example of that. They might have the same strange bowl cut in the show, but I can always tell the difference between them regardless of what they’re wearing. Audiences were able to tell the difference as well as the show went on. As a kid, it was nice for me to see these twins grow up and audiences notice their differences as they aged. It felt like everyone was finally making an effort to tell a set of twins apart.
  • A lack of tropes: Honestly, for a show about twins, Zack and Cody are written with a serious lack of harmful tropes. Zack and Cody do a lot of the same things but have very different interests. They fight a lot, but overall they like to hang out together. They aren’t connected by something special or supernatural. They grew up in the same household and still demonstrated very different personalities. In the writing of Zack and Cody I see both a heavy reliance on their opposite personalities and an otherwise light sprinkling of other tropes. They were written as two separate characters that any pair of siblings could relate to. It makes them a pretty refreshing representation of twins.

So are Zack and Cody a good representation of twins? I’d actually say yes! They aren’t perfect by any means. ‘Suite Life of Zack and Cody’ does use twin tropes for laughs throughout the show. They also spread the belief that twins have to be exact opposites for audiences to connect with them as separate characters. But the amount of times they use twin tropes is pretty small compared to some movies I’ve seen, and ‘Suite Life of Zack and Cody’ encompasses two different TV series. The writers had a lot of time to mess things up for these boys and they chose not to. I appreciate that. I’d appreciate it more if Janice and Jessica didn’t exist, but I don’t need to talk about that any more than it’s already been talked about. Zack and Cody are by no means the best twin representation in media we’ve covered, but they accomplished more than many others did.

Don’t do anything fun until I get back!

Hallie

Twins in Media: Janice and Jessica

Screenshot from ‘The Suite Life on Deck’ starring Rebecca Rosso, Camilla Rosso, and Cole Sprouse. Copyright goes to It’s a Laugh Productions and Disney Channel.

Hi! It’s Annie!

We’re really going to dive into nostalgia for this week’s Twins in Media posts. ‘The Suite Life of Zack and Cody’ was one of those shows my sister and I watched a lot when we were younger. I mean, it was one of those shows that most kids at the time watched a lot. This show followed two brothers who would eventually become one of the most popular representations of twins in media. So why not start with Zack and Cody if you’re the one posting first? Wouldn’t that make more sense? You may be right, but I have serious beef with Janice and Jessica. Why? This portrayal made me cry. If you were looking for one of us to absolutely trash a portrayal of twins in media, strap in folks. I’m not going to go easy on these two.

The Bad (Almost All of It):

  • Female twin fetishization. This is one of the most noticeable portrayals of this in media, but it’s everywhere. Let me set the stage for you. My sister and I are six or seven when we’re watching an episode of ‘The Suite Life of Zack and Cody’ and are very excited to finally see female twins on the show. The show then reveals that Zack is attracted to both girls and, upon realizing that they are different people, forces Cody to go on a double date with him. When Cody proves to be too nervous and anxious, Zack decides to take them both out. Throughout the course of the episode they find Cody to be more sensitive and by the end of the episode both show interest in Cody instead. My sister and I look at each other as the episode ends and six year old me immediately bursts into tears. My Mom, hearing the commotion, rushes over to see what’s wrong only for me to wail at her about how I didn’t want to be dating the same boy as my sister when we grew up. I hope you see the problem here. Janice and Jessica are twins portrayed as the exact same character in two bodies, and for some reason this has convinced audiences to allow television and media to portray these relationships as somehow monogamous even when they obviously are not. This is definitely not the only example of this. Ever watched ‘Supernatural’? How many times has Dean Winchester talked about his conquests being twins? Ever watched ‘The Umbrella Academy’? There was a throw away line where Klaus also mentioned having twins as a conquest. Ever watched anything ‘Star Trek’ ever? If you know anything about Captain Kirk, I don’t have to say anything more here. These are only a few examples. Notice how it happens to women more than men? This is because the fetishization of female twins is part of a bigger conversation about the continued fetishization of women in media in general. Not to say that male twins don’t get fetishized, because they definitely do. People seem to like the idea of having two people for the price of one; which will NEVER HAPPEN. There will never be a situation where there are any two human beings for the price of one. But, it does happen significantly more to women. If you think that people know the difference between reality and media and this has not effected the way my sister and I have been treated, guess again. I had a classmate in college heavily hint at me that they would be interested in a threesome the minute they found out I had a twin sister. I have said this before, and I will say it again. If you wouldn’t do it with your sibling; WHY ON EARTH WOULD YOU THINK WE WOULD BE INTERESTED? We never have and never will be two for the price of one. We haven’t ever been interested in the same guy! Twins are still two different people with different tastes. We are also not sexual objects for television shows to continuously portray as conquests. Stop fetishizing us and portraying us as the same person.
  • Synchronized twins. Both of us have already talked about this a lot in other posts and I addressed it a little above, so I’ll only touch on this trope. They say the exact same things and they are portrayed as having the same mindset. Everything you might think you would find is present here. They basically are portrayed as having a shared brain, and I’m just emotionally exhausted by seeing so much of this trope.
  • Same person in two bodies. I’ve also touched on this a little already. They are two of the worst portrayed twins in media simply for basically being written as the same character. They really have no distinguishable personality traits. There is no telling them apart because there’s nothing different about them. Even if you spent time seeing which actress was which character, it wouldn’t matter. Because Janice and Jessica are interchangeable. There are no differences here and it’s so depressing to see. They might as well be aliens operating under a hive brain. There are no human beings to be found in this twin portrayal.

The Good (There’s Something Good?):

  • Different relationships. I have to give some credit where it’s due, but not much. When ‘Suite Life on Deck’ came out the writers seemed to recognize their mistake in making both girls be interested in the same guy. They at least had the two date Zack and Cody respectively instead of having them both date the same guy. But I will give very little credit here because they barely showed up in the sequel show and they still acted like the exact same person. This doesn’t even begin to apologize for what they did with these two at the beginning of the show.
  • Different actresses. The absolute best thing I can say about Janice and Jessica is that they were portrayed by actual twins and not the same person. It’s always nice to see twins, or even just two vaguely similar looking actors, play twins rather than just one person. It helps distinguish the two enough to make audiences look at them more like two different human beings in most cases. Unfortunately, these actresses weren’t enough to save the writing of their characters.

So, are Janice and Jessica a good representation of twins in media or not?

You probably didn’t even ask this question after reading the rest of this article. The obvious answer is NO. They are, in fact, some of the worst twins I have ever seen in media in my life. They are great examples of some of the worst parts of media portraying twins. In fact, they also set women in media in general back. You really have to ask yourself; how could a show with twins as their main characters screw up so much? Zack and Cody are sort of opposites, which isn’t good, but they aren’t presented as some sort of hive mind creature. Why is it that once they introduced a pair of female twins, they had to pull out all of the tropes as well as sexism? The fact that these two exist make me both depressed and angry. They also made six year old me depressed and angry. If anyone ever wants proof that twins are fetishized or treated unfairly in media, I would point them directly to Janice and Jessica. They are absolutely awful and a great example of just how far media has to go on this topic and on the topic of fetishizing women in media. Because, I hate to say it, but when it comes to this, media hasn’t gotten much better since Janice and Jessica regularly appeared on our television screens.

See you across the pond!

Sincerely, Annie