Last month, I Back to the rock In the episode “I'm Pogey,” I said that there was too much to tell about the main Wembley storyline and not enough time to tell the Junior Gorges' Boxing Day storyline, but that I hope I'll get the chance to tell that storyline one day.
Well, since it's Pride Month, it's a great time to discuss Junior Gorg's binary-busting B-story. In this segment, Papa Gorg explains that for every Gorg's 500th birthday, he must choose to stand on one of two fabric boxes. But Junior can't decide which box he likes best. How can he choose only one and not the other? What if neither is right? It seems like Papa wants Junior to decide, but Junior can't. In the end, instead of choosing a box, Junior does his own thing and dances on both boxes. In other words, Junior rejects binary ideas and finds his own path. It's a classic queer trope told through a flimsy box.
But when the Tough Pigs staff saw this episode for the first time, we all had a lot to say about Junior's storyline. Is it too explicit, or is it just the right amount of explicit? We talked about it for hours in our group chat. So we decided to invite one of our other Tough Pigs buddies to join us in discussing this topic, to see what the Junior Gorgon storyline is like. Katie Lynn Miller My husband and I both have experience with circumventing the gender binary, so we decided to sit down and discuss Boxing Day…
Becca: Katielynn, I personally loved the Boxing Day storyline. I think it was effective in making the idea of duality seem ridiculous, which is an important thing that a lot of queer people need to understand before coming out. But what about you? What were your thoughts on it overall?
Catiline: While I think this framing is helpful for those who are already struggling with the dualistic forces of society, I don't think it's very helpful for other viewers. Furthermore, this message overlaps with the very situation of Poggy's “Go, Bo” and can really undermine the importance of the topic.
Becca: Well, I think one of the key things here is whether or not we even need a B-story at all. As you said, that was already covered by the C-plot of “Go, Bo.” And even that Also It's not covered in the main storyline. I think it reinforces the theme. But I think it would have been better if Gorg hadn't been involved at all this week. Do you think the time spent on Junior would have been better spent on other things? I remember that was a common complaint a lot of us had.
Catiline: As I watched, I began to ask myself whether this plot would have worked better as a Doozer story, because one of the biggest factors in exploring gender is how your social group sees you. This is explored somewhat in Wembley, but with Junior he only has his mum and dad, so there's less of a risk that Doozer faces when, for example, he lives in one dome with all his family and friends, who will probably have kind and unkind opinions about him. But is it too similar to the Fraggle plotline?
Becca: It's interesting because I So I had no idea that Turbo Doozer would be revealed to be non-binary this season. As far as I know, Turbo is the only recurring character with lines played by Ali J. Eisner, who is non-binary. Turbo is actually I never have In either season, he is never referred to by pronouns, which is why I was really surprised to see Turbo make only a brief appearance in this episode.
It's interesting that Doozer lives in a society and Gorg doesn't, but there may be real concerns to explore that aren't explored as much in Junior about parents coming to accept their children. It's addressed to an extent, but not really explored in depth. Do you think Dad's reaction to Junior explores this issue sufficiently?
Catiline: Oh, Dad. He's had a lot of forced moments as a character this season. He's obviously supposed to represent someone in society who has preconceived ideas about how kids should behave and the choices they should make, and he seems to favor one of the boxes. But there are little details in Gorg's scene that don't reflect that prejudice.
First, juniors are given the choice. Meanwhile, from the moment a child is born, they are forced into situations, clothing, and activities that adults deem appropriate, often based on their gender. This often makes it even harder to make choices later in life. There is a history already established that they have to fight against.
Then there's the legend of Boxing Day, which Dad presents as a very clear story: Junior says that the box he chooses will define his character forever. What does that mean?
Becca: Well, it's not clear what these boxes represent. And that's a good thing. After all, your gender box is do not What defines you. But personally, I find it hard to even understand what Dad is trying to say here. I understand that the box is silly and makes no sense, but P If he represents a point of view that choices matter, that's kind of the problem with Dad in the show as a whole, to me: He needs to be some kind of antagonist, but not so much that he's irredeemable, so he can't be antagonistic enough.
But one thing I definitely loved was the line that Mom says at the end of the episode, that Dad doesn't have to understand Junior, he just has to be supportive. That's a big theme that I try to get across to cisgender people in my transgender advocacy work. Dad can't feel what Junior feels because he's not Junior. But he can still support his son. So I think that was a really, really important touch.
Catiline: Agreed! If there's one thing that worked well about this storyline, it's the ending. Mom hits exactly the right spot in supporting her kid and teaching Dad the right way to respond. Dad's behavior isn't simply ignored or viewed as situational. And, of course, the most important lesson is that no matter what gender non-conforming (GNC) people do, the rest of the world can still have cupcakes.
Becca: Especially when The Fraggle Foodie makes onion cupcakes.
Anyway, one thing that Junior's storyline can't do with any other character is end that particular way. It wouldn't feel right for the main Fraggles to have to be coached into loving Wembley. In fact, one of the things I mentioned was Affectionate What was striking was how quickly the other Fraggles accepted Wembley when he spoke about “I Am Poggy.” Any doubts he had about his friends were entirely in his own mind, because that's exactly what happened when I came out to my friends as transgender, especially when I came out to the Tough Pigs team.
Catiline: I think another big issue among the Tough Pigs staff was the use of actual boxes. A lot of gender language uses the word “box” to describe how gender is limiting, as well as the checkboxes that exist on a lot of forms. And was this choice by the writers too blatant? Like “Echo Chamber” in Season 1, there was a growing concern among adults in the audience that this episode was too explicit. Do you think so? Couldn't they have used some other means other than boxes?
Becca: I have two thoughts on this: First, I really hated the Echo Chamber episode in season 1. It's kind of “embarrassing” to see young people take a phrase they love and then use it so literally.
Well, the team was right. The boxes are also very self-explanatory. Like you said, I've heard that quote a lot of times. It's also very awkwardly thrown into the Gorg lore. These boxes don't feel special. And I like it because the gender is what you make it. But it does feel like it was thrown together. I'm sure it wasn't, but it kind of feels that way, and I wonder if it would have felt that way if it was like, “Each Gorg must choose one of two crowns!” or something like that.
But as a teacher and trans activist, I also find this episode revealing. sufficientYou can't walk away from this episode saying “our friend Junior is queer.” He's a queer symbol at best, but only in a metaphorical sense. I think kids need to see this gender stuff explained to them very explicitly sometimes. adult Jane Schonbrunn's recent confusing review I saw the TV on It's a sign of something. So I personally wish they'd made it clearer. It might have been easier with a new character like Turbo, who was in a one episode 80s show.
Catiline: Indeed. I can't imagine the writers will explore Junior's non-conformism in the same way they did with Poggy and Wembley, so it seems like a mostly wasted plot element unless it becomes important again. I also think this storyline is hurt by the episodes other reviewers have pointed out. Back to the rock This season seems more focused on raising awareness of the issue than showing its impact or danger.
As we said in our review of “This for That,” the introduction of this new economy definitely changes how the Fraggles operate, but they realize their mistake and go back to their old ways before any real impact is made. So we never look the difficult situations it can cause.
Similarly, again with Junior's storyline we only know that this is a situation that could happen and one way of dealing with it. We don't know what the consequences of that choice would be if it's dealt with poorly, or if Junior chooses the box. Obviously it would require more time in the episode to explore that – more time than was allotted to Wembley's main storyline. Do you think a 30 minute episode devoted to something like this is enough to fully convey and give a deeper understanding of the experiences of GNC kids in Western society?
Becca: I think it's important to try, and I think a whole episode would be helpful. Honestly, I'd love to watch an entire kid's show on the subject, but I know that's not the point. Fraggle RockBut I think this episode was a good step forward, even if it wasn't perfect. Which brings me to my final question: There was a nice evolution from the mostly metaphorical “The Glow” in Season 1 to the more literal “I'm Pogey” in Season 2. Where would you like to see the show go in Season 3?
Catiline: I think I speak for at least two people when it comes to queer representation: that asexual identities should be explored. But that can pose a sticky problem in that they have to explore sexual identities as well. And in a kids' show, that can be a big ask. But if anyone can do that, it's Fraggle RockIt would be great to see the true identities of Wembley and Porgy continue to be explored from all angles, keeping these topics in the viewers' minds.
Becca: I agree. There is still a lot to be said about these two characters. I think it's brave of me as a fan, not as a writer or performer, to do so. Again, I would like to see some terminology (like “non-binary” or “transgender”) be used explicitly for what Fraggles did, even if it was just for a portion of the documentary. I admit that the Junior Gorgs part could have been better, but I think the show is heading in a good direction.
In the end, we Fraggle Rock Writers, we can make the world a little better. Remember the lesson your mama taught you: You don't have to understand exactly what someone is going through to love and support them. Call on the pa-gougers in your life. You can make the world a little more flagly.
(And as of the publication of this article, there are still two days left to donate to Pride Month charities! Click here to find out how you can support LGBTQ+ charities while also winning some awesome Muppet prizes!)
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Becca Petunia and Katie Lynn Miller
