#Gender #WanderingSon #GenderBender
Seemingly for as long as there has been a line drawn between genders there have been attempts to explain, blur and cross it. Across continents and centuries, there are countless examples of ways people have used fiction to bend and break conceptions of gender from ancient mythology all the way to modern media. Growing up, these kinds of stories helped me imagine different possibilities for myself without getting caught in the complicated reality we live in.
Even though these stories may resonate with trans readers, surprisingly few of these stories center on the experience of transgender characters. Of those few, Takako Shimura’s Wandering Son has won awards and been banned from schools for its empathic depiction of the kinds of issues facing transgender kids. Set in Japan in the mid 2000’s, it’s a series impacted by and in conversation with Japanese LGBT history. Majorly ahead of its time on release, let’s talk about the historical context of the story, where it succeeds, where it fails, and how it differs from more recent depictions in media.
Brief flashing light warning at 12:26 for photosensitive viewers.
0:00 Introduction
1:55 Gender bending myths, legends
7:03 The Takarazuka Revue and You
14:58 Shishunki Bitter Change
18:40 Until I Become Me (Ore ga Watashi ni Naru made)
26:34 Some background and a history lesson
49:20 Wandering Son
1:04:44 A story of high highs and low lows
1:33:32 Bokura no Hentai: Shuu and Marika
1:42:14 Coming to terms with dreams
1:47:36 Outro
🎥: Pixabay and Pexels
🎨: irasutoya
🎶 via DOVA SYNDROME:
青空空港 by かずち
se-no-bi by Noru
Somebody (Prod. Khaim) by Khaim
Coral Ambience by ハヤシユウ
flowers pouring down by shimtone
沁みTIME by 蛍原ゆうき
青空空港 by かずち
Everything has an end. by brightwaltz
The Window Overlooking All Things. by brightwaltz
Works Cited: https://shorturl.at/6ahuU