hey! some of y’all seem confused as to what is queerbaiting. let me explain.
queerbaiting is, as you can guess, making the viewers believe a romance between two leads of the same sex (often men) is possible. this is done through editing and dialogue. the cast and crew may often join in.
pictured are two very famous exemples. both supernatural and sherlock have delved quite deep into making romantic subtext for both these ships while having no intentions of ever confirming them to be anything more than just buddies.
obviously, this is a problem. companies want you to watch the show they produce but do not want to be too bold or too daring. after all, this can be just passed as friendship and we’re seeing too much – can’t two men be just friends in this day and age?
now, where do i want to go with this?
now that i have your attention…
voltron isn’t queerbaiting.
shiro being lgbt was always the plan. it was always something they wanted to do, not something they added to appeal to a community they never wanted to please but rather, profit off.
this is not and never was what voltron aimed for.
the showrunners have said this was something they had to fight for. bex, who is part of our community, had to fight for adam and shiro to not be only reduced to only roomates. is the scene subtle? yes! like a few things in voltron, but it’s about as subtle as keith’s father’s grave. even more with the scene where shiro, who is usually quite stoical, shows a great deal of emotion seeing adam among the victims.
subtelty is not a bad thing. remember, dreamworks airs voltron in deeply homophobic countries. we can condemn them for being skittish when their boldness could get them so much praise? yes. but a company wants to make money first and be held in high regards second.
the showrunners had to work around these censors. they told us too, that shiro was a man in a relationship with another man and that they were about to be engaged when they went on separate ways. shiro, alone, is amazing representation. he doesn’t need to be in a relationship to still be mlm and still be one of the main characters, a man who leads a warship and the resistance of earth against the invaders, shown to be capable and courageous at all times. adam dying, if a plot device, just rattaches him even more personally to the fight. casualties happen in war – adam himself, on the forefront of the defense of earth, is himsef a hero who gave his life for that fight. to have a man in an openly gay relationship be shown like this is also undoubtedly positive.
voltron isn’t queerbaiting you because shows who are will never confirm that the characters are in a relationship. lauren and joaquim did just that – they told us, just to make sure that, if we didn’t understand, there would be easily found records on the internet of this. the press talked about it. it’s a bold move, especially seeing how the scenes are not so subtle.
anyway. to end this, be kind. you can be disappointed that shiro and adam will not meet again and pick up the loose ends but voltron isn’t queerbaiting you. it always wanted to have a gay lead. it’s not profiting off you, they were honest and clear.
shiro himself is amazing representation – lgbt, japanese and masculine, disabled veteran, mentally and chronically ill. be good to the people who made him and fought for him to be able to present him to us, without having to closet him.
