just found this post in my drafts that i'm pretty sure i never posted and i'm mad because it's good. here it is
my girlfriend daria is an expert on the 1997-2002 TV show daria, which i think will come as no surprise. we've talked this over and decided that it's ironclad: none of the characters on the show would be transphobes. if they had an episode about a new student who's trans, here's how it would have worked:
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daria and jane: don't care in any way. why would they. they hope things go well for the new girl.
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quinn: only concerned if there's an impact on the fashion club. yes the new girl joins the fashion club yes she dresses better yes quinn hates her but only for that reason
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helen (daria's mom): [on phone] "that's nice, honey- jim! jim! don't you DARE put us on hold, this conference call with china is costing me ten dollars a minute!"
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jake (daria's dad): okay admittedly he Doesn't Get It, and makes this clear, but only in the form of a lot of well meaning "HEY, DOES THAT MEAN-" type questions that cut away or a door gets slammed in his face before anyone has to answer them
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brittany and kevin: new girl has nothing to do with their relationship or football, therefore she does not exist
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trent: "that's cool. hey can you help me out with something: is it tuesday"
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jodie and michael: supportive, goes without saying
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sandi: considering kicking quinn out of the fashion club because she can't keep up with the new girl
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upchuck: chaser. come on. obviously.
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joey, jeffy and jamie: new girl isn't quinn, therefore she does not exist
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teachers: all trying to be supportive in distinctly awful ways
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principal: oh she is trying to exploit this you better believe it
if you think about it, this is all self evident. the entire theme of the show was that nobody in the 90s cared about anything other than their own immediate interests. since trans people don't impact anyone but themselves, there's no reason any of the characters would have given a shit
