I still get up for Saturday Morning Cartoons. I admit it. I love cartoons and where I can't wake up before noon on weekdays, on Saturdays, I jump up and wake up at the crack of dawn to catch my cartoons.
However…
I have not owned a doll since my uncle bought me a Cabbage Patch Kid doll when I was in the fifth grade! I owned GI Joes, and Voltron, and Smurfs and every He-Man action figure. I owned the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (in all their various battle gear), and devoutly collected every new Transformer that the toy store carried.
However…
Growing up (and even now, in the privacy of my own mind), I wanted to be Batman, whipping through the Gotham City night, knowing that my presence is the sleeping denizens only protection. I wanted to be Godzilla, and battle Mothra for supremacy. I wanted to join the Justice League of America and fight crime and defeat evil space aliens. I wanted to be a super hero in the worse way.
However…
All of my heroes and idols were male.
No wonder I'm confused. Oh, I'm not confused, as in, I don't know that I'm a girl and proud of it. Confused in that, when I was a child, and anyone asked me what I wanted to be, I would proudly announce "a good husband by day, and a superhero by night". Naturally, my parents' friends all laughed, and patted me on the head and thought that I was cute. But then, it raises the question --- why are there no female oriented cartoons on television? No wonder so many women are in abusive relationships and despite all the love and care they may receive from their families, they have low self-esteem and confidence problems.
In Batman, the two main heroes, Batman and Robin, were guys. Their part time sidekick, Batgirl was ineffectual, and generally needed to be rescued. Superman, the brave man of steel, whose sole purpose in life seemed to be either saving the world, or the frail and rather clueless, Lois Lane, the ultimate Damsel in Distress. GI Joe, the original All Boys' Club. The only three females on that show, got a grand total of 1 1/2 minutes of airtime per show (this is including the opening sequence). Even the sweet, lovable Smurfs --- 100 male smurfs...and one female, blonde smurfette, that wasn't even a REAL Smurf, but a creation of the Evil Azreal. Am I the only one that is becoming disturbed by this?
Even newer cartoons, such as Batman Beyond, plays up this subtle female bashing. The hero, Terry McGinnis, is a headstrong, stubborn, moody student, with female friends that he relies on heavily, but always ultimately end up just standing on the sidelines and occasionally hand him a club, or hit some evil doer with their purse. Can you imagine that in this day in age (in addition to Batman Beyond is supposed to be set in the future) where women are still portrayed as nothing more then wall decoration?
So where does that leave the girls? Oh sure - the networks all proclaim that 70% of their Saturday Morning viewers are little boys, thus, they reason, they must pander to their audience. But with the surging popularity of shows like "Xena: Warrior Princess" and "The PowerPuff Girls"…could it be conceivable that, yes, little girls ALSO watch television? Could it be that the reason why they are not glued to the television set every Saturday, is due to the lack of programming that is targeted at them?
Could it be, that there would be more female viewers - if there were more QUALITY cartoons the girls can identify with?
And NOT fluff like "Barbie" or "Jem". Good, decent, quality animation, with a strong and engaging story line, that highlight girls and show that they are equally strong and smart and able as the boys. Why does Xena do so well? Because she fights big burley villains and evil masculine gods with nothing more then he faith in herself. Why is the Power Puff Girls over taking the Cartoon Network airwaves, and is one of the highest selling merchandise in the WB stores? Maybe because they are three little girls that can defeat evil villains?
Even look at the villainesses on Batman, Poison Ivy and Harley Quinn rival classics such as The Penguin, Riddler and Joker for fans and devotees. Could this mean that shows that have women featured prominently in them, not only attracts the female populace, but retains their 70% male viewers as well?
This phenomenon suggests that female cartoon viewers are not nearly as rare as the television networks and advertisers think. It is just that nothing is targeted at them, and the social implications of this trend is disturbing to say the least.
I'm not protesting my happy childhood of Spiderman and The Incredible Hulk. I'm not angry over the Thundercats or Scooby Doo, or the Jetsons. I am merely asking for some boldness from these hidebound television executives and some daring from their advertisers! While my mother bought me the toys I demanded, I also know that she would have been more willing to buy toys that didn't always reflect destruction and mayhem.
And maybe, just maybe, a toy that would appeal to both her feminist heart, and my desire to emulate what I saw on TV. And finally have, cartoon equality.