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This is a smaller transgression in the mess that is Kataang, but it’s so baffling to me. Like, wouldn’t you want to find your (future) significant other funny? And his response is quite rude and unnecessary. I made a comment on a post the other day about how Aang doesn’t seem to like Katara, and this is just one of several examples of him not seeing her as a normal human being, one who makes silly jokes so that her friends don’t miss her brother as much. He doesn’t even bother to pretend to be amused.

There’s been an uptick in discussion regarding Aang seeing nothing wrong with how Katara is portrayed in the Ember Island Players, and it goes to show how Aang just…doesn’t seem to enjoy Katara’s essence and personality. He’s so worked up about being played by a girl that he doesn’t give a damn about Katara being shown as an over emotional woman who lusts over the “enemy.” No matter that Katara’s passion, optimism, and hope is what fuels the plot and enables other characters to overcome their obstacles. In fact, he agrees with this slut shaming portrayal of her, and blows up at her during their conversation on the balcony.

Aang is such a terrible partner to Katara. He doesn’t stand up for her, thinks she’ll jump straight to murder when it comes to Yon Rah, doesn’t find her funny, abandons her when things get tough, and overall rarely provides her with the support that she lends him. Apart from thinking she’s pretty and can be his mommy-wife, he rarely thinks of her highly.

This is a smaller transgression in the mess that is Kataang, but it’s so baffling to me. Like, wouldn’t you want to find your (future) significant other funny? And his response is quite rude and unnecessary. I made a comment on a post the other day about how Aang doesn’t seem to like Katara, and this is just one of several examples of him not seeing her as a normal human being, one who makes silly jokes so that her friends don’t miss her brother as much. He doesn’t even bother to pretend to be amused.

There’s been an uptick in discussion regarding Aang seeing nothing wrong with how Katara is portrayed in the Ember Island Players, and it goes to show how Aang just…doesn’t seem to enjoy Katara’s essence and personality. He’s so worked up about being played by a girl that he doesn’t give a damn about Katara being shown as an over emotional woman who lusts over the “enemy.” No matter that Katara’s passion, optimism, and hope is what fuels the plot and enables other characters to overcome their obstacles. In fact, he agrees with this slut shaming portrayal of her, and blows up at her during their conversation on the balcony.

Aang is such a terrible partner to Katara. He doesn’t stand up for her, thinks she’ll jump straight to murder when it comes to Yon Rah, doesn’t find her funny, abandons her when things get tough, and overall rarely provides her with the support that she lends him. Apart from thinking she’s pretty and can be his mommy-wife, he rarely thinks of her highly.

to this

thats. not. the. point!!! jax's pronouns are not the point of my post. the point is that regardless of jax's identity, he/she should apologize and take accountability instead of everyone just feeling bad for him/her and the show trying to get us to feel sorry for him/her out of the blue. where did pronouns come from? genuinely i don't get people sometimes.

Likes pink = transfem.

Blushes in a dress = transfem.

Wears a maid outfit = transfem.

Crosses their legs a certain way = transfem.

Has long hair or eyelashes = transfem.

Gets embarrassed by feminine clothing = transfem.

Doesn't fit traditional masculinity = transfem.

calls themselves "the peak of masculinity" = obviously overcompensating, so transfem.

gets unusually defensive when someone says a feminine outfit "fits" them = transfem.

has a bedroom decorated with pink or pastel colors = transfem.

has rainbow decorations in their room = transfem.

compares themselves to an egg = transfem.

doesn't change at the beach = transfem.

has issues with femininity or with characters that are women = transfem.

acts even slightly gender-nonconforming = transfem.

At some point it stops being representation and starts relying on stereotypes.

Jax can be read as a closeted trans woman, a gender-nonconforming cis man, non-binary, genderfluid, agender, or something else entirely. Fiction allows for multiple interpretations

What I find especially frustrating is that people keep treating every « feminine-coded » trait as evidence that someone is « obviously » a trans woman. That's not progressive it's recycling the same stereotypes we've been trying to get rid of for years. Men can be feminine without secretly being women…

And trans women are more than a checklist of dresses, bows, pink, and blushing…

I never said « Jax is a man because I want my baby boy to stay a man bla-bla-bla »

In fact, I explicitly said Jax can be interpreted as a closeted trans woman, a gender-nonconforming cis man, non-binary, genderfluid, agender, or something else entirely. My entire point was that multiple readings can coexist, especially when the text itself leaves room for interpretation

The fact that you immediately assumed my disagreement must come from me wanting a cis male Jax says more about your assumptions than about my post you know

My criticism was never « Jax can't be trans » It was about the reasoning people use when they argue that a character is « obviously » transfem because they like pink, blush in a dress, have long hair, don't fit masculine stereotypes, or show discomfort around femininity. Those are stereotypes, not proof of someone's gender identity…

Gooseworx has said outside the show that that either he/him or she/her pronouns are acceptable, that's a separate discussion from the one I was having. Again, my post was criticizing the idea that feminine-coded traits automatically make someone a trans woman, and that fans who don't reach the same conclusion from the show's content are « media illiterate » or « transphobic » Ironically, your response is doing exactly what I was talking about, you're illustrating the exact behavior I was criticizing: arguing against an assumption instead of responding to what I actually said