AUST ABC TV Program - Crownies

TMT 387 28^th September 2011

TV – Crownies

Review of last weeks episode of Crownies

Rebecca
Drag Queens at war, was used as a "C" storyline in the episode. It was a self contained story arch, intended only to break up the "A" story (child sociopath) and the "B" story (rape victim). It was used for comic relief as the other two stories were heavy subjects.

Because this was a throw away storyline, the producers appealed to the lowest common denominator of blatant stereotype.

One character is flirty, melodramatic, a bit arrogant, and while dressed conservatively (but understandable for a court room) is still a bit over the top. The other is portrayed as a bitchy femme gay guy, out for revenge, and anything anyone asks of her is just way below her and too much of an ask.

There was no continuity to when the storyline was placed into the show, it was almost like it was used as a filler for where the commercials would go, if Crownies was on a commercial broadcaster.

One character Ben McMahon makes comments about how he loves a good scrag fight", but then questions if you call them by their real name or drag name in court. I can see why this was done, as it was required for people to understand that the two drag characters would be presented under different names later in the show, but it was still an offensive comment to make, as perpetuated the stereotype that the drag characters are just guys in dresses.

When we finally get to the court scene, the two drag characters use bitchy terms towards each other, and the judge is more interested in getting Facebook on an iPad he has been handed as evidence, than the case itself. In fact the judge is just as guilty as the rest of the characters in using inappropriate names and gender markers in the court room.

In last scene the lawyer is shown to have been taken for a ride by the drag queens, all for a publicity stunt, and that the drag queens have no issue at all with doing that, because that's the way things work. It paints drag queens as being untrustworthy, and willing to waste public resources on a frivolous matter. It's not a clean ending to the story, but merely another stab by the show at a minority.

While I can understand the need of the show to have a self contained story, this story arch showed a lack of understanding from the show. They could have used a trans storyline to highlight issues, and still kept it light and self contained, but instead they wasted the time on yet another negative story about trans people in the community.