Wanted to ask this anonymously since I'm little scared but here goes:
I've been feeling a little down since this morning when goose confirmed jax is canonically transfem. NOW HEAR ME OUT: ppl will probably call me transphobic no matter what I say but I do want to clarify I love trans characters in any media, and my issue isn't Jax being transfem. I think I'm just conflicted because I never got the hints of him being trans? I read him as a guy who was bi and liked crossdressing a bit too much for his parents' comfort, so they always treated him poorly bc of how he expressed himseld (back when we were allowed to have headcanons i guess?).
Now Goose has confirmed it and while I celebrate there's such an openness to it, I can't help but feel a little scared bc of how ppl are reacting :/ I know trans representation is important, and I love that, but I feel SO weird bc I just can't see Jax fully as a girl, at most I see him as genderfluid, but would never use she/her pronouns with him;; And I now ppl would surely call me dumb, thick in the head, and even hateful for saying he's anything other than a girl.
I had other interpretations of him, not saying that mine were better or more interesting. But now I can't help but feel a little unmotivated bc if I so much say that I prefer AUs where Jax is a guy who just happens to like dresses, I'll get called every evil name in the book.
It feels a little heavy. Have you dealt with this recently? How do you manage to keep the motivation and love for funnybunny intact?
That's totally valid and I think a lot of people are feeling the same way right now.
From what I've seen, even people who support the canon interpretation agree that it's a bit of a gray area, since it wasn't explicitly shown in the series itself. For viewers who don't follow social media, they'd never even know about this confirmation so it's completely understandable that many people didn't pick up on it.
The way I see it, Goose's post is more about her personal vision and the character's potential, rather than something that was fully realized in the show. Since Jax never got to explore or act on that part of himself, he/him Jax and she/her Jax can coexist.
IMO its important to respect the message Goose was trying to convey and not dismiss it. But that doesn't mean you have to erase your own understanding of the character, especially since the Jax we spent the whole show with is still struggling version of himself.
So yeah, you're not alone in feeling conflicted. It's okay to prefer AUs where Jax is a guy who likes feminine things, that interpretation is still valid, because the ending of the show is open to interpretation.
No one should feel ashamed for enjoying Jax as we know him. Everyone is still free to enjoy him the way they always did.
Headcanons are headcanons. In my opinion, the main thing is not to deny that we now know the creator's intended canon, but it's perfectly okay if you don't personally connect with the character the way the author envisioned them. I think Jax resonates with a lot of people for many different reasons.
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