The specific problem I have with trans Vriska isn't just that she does bad things, it's that those bad things include a drawn-out on-screen prior-planned sexual assault of a disabled fellow child (the sequence after "Vriska: Wake up" - Tavros was NOT HAPPY in that scene at all, as shown clearly by the fact that she had to MIND CONTROL HIM) which we're supposed to think is funny. "Sexual assailant" is quite possibly THE absolute most widespread and harmful stereotype of trans women. Not good!
I forgot about this scene! It’s the one where Vriska plays out Pupa Pan while degrading Tavros about his disability that she caused him the entire time, and upon kissing him and not having him kiss back - because he can’t tell if she’s callignious or flushed for him - she dumps him on the floor! Then, wonder of all wonders, she manipulates him into not just kissing her, but actually being FLUSHED for her! The only reason she gives up is the realisation that, yes, he is still disabled and can’t actually stand up. Again. Because she paralysed him.
This is definitely one of the deeper problems with trying to put trans rep into characters who were never originally written as trans. No trans writer would write this scene about a transwomen in their goddamn life. Noone trying to represent a genuine and accurate portrayal of a trans woman would even THINK about writing a scene wherein she forces her abuse victim into a kiss - not just once, but twice.
I honestly don’t think I could put it better than you did. Sexual violence is the most prominent and harmful stereotype of trans women. Nobody in their right mind would write this for a trans women unless they were actively trying to write into that stereotype. Or, as is the case here, unless that character was never written as trans to begin with and trying to retcon a trans identity on them now has deeply unfortunate implications.
When you read this piece, the comedic effect is meant to be at Tavros’ expense - that he’s a weak and weedy boy who can’t even kiss a girl he’s actively interested in when she’s trying to instigate - and not meant to be a slight against Vriska’s character. We’re meant to laugh because a female abuser is abusing her male abuse victim, and that makes Tavros pathetic. They’re not trying to shine a negative light on Vriska herself; you can tell this by how much they focus on her genuine disappointment that her plan fails. You’re meant to sympathise with her, somehow.
This is bad enough when Vriska is seen as a cis woman. When you put the trans identity on top of that, oh, boy does it become just ten times worse. Becuse not only does it focus on this deeply harmful stereotype, it also tries to make you think that stereotype is actively okay! That it’s funny! Again, no shit do people like Kate say Vriska can do no wrong as a trans woman; scenes like this only emphasise that fact.
This admittedly is the difference between having a headcanon and genuinely making those things canon.
When you headcanon someone as trans, you tend to put things into them that don’t actually happen in the comic, or you retcon out certain things because a trans person wouldn’t actually do them, or you slightly change others because a trans person would see them in a different light. Headcanon!Vriska still isn’t perfect, not by a long shot, but transwomen aren’t going to perpetuate this scene in their headcanons when it’s so genuinely harmful to them. They’re going to create scenes for her instead; experiences they’ve been through to replace some of the worst shit she’s done.
When you canonise that identity, however, you are explicitly taking them out of that headcanoned context. You have to see them in their canonical light. You have to accept literally everything that character has done, said, thought, achieved, whether it would come across as inherently transphobic or not. Headcanon!Vriska might never do what canon!Vriska did to Tavros, but canon!Vriska can never undo that. So she becomes a transmisogynistic stereotype instead of a genuinely cared for and built up piece of representation that the fandom loves.
This is why we need more trans representation that was always legitimately meant to be trans - and good trans representation at that. The issue I just described is always, always going to be a problem unless Hussie and co. start writing trans characters from day 1, and not just writing cis characters and slapping on an identity when the fandom attaches a headcanon to one long enough. They need to start being genuinely aware of how they’re writing their trans characters and if they’re falling into - or ever fell into - transphobic/transmisogynistic stereotypes.
Trans representation isn’t good enough if it perpetuates hatred and violence against trans people.
Unfortunately on Vriska’s behalf, there’s nothing we can do about that scene. It’s canonical. It’s always going to be there, and it’s always going to be a transmisogynistic slight on her character. I think the best we can hope for is that future trans women aren’t written like this.
Dear god do I hope future trans women aren’t written like this.
