Agreed, agreed, agreed! It's such an amazing show in so many respects. My main criticism is that the girls had skimpier outfits, which also annoyed me as a kid because wouldn't Sheila and Diana get cold? HOWEVER, given the amount of sexism in anything, if that's the only complaint about this show, it still makes it better than pretty much everything else. And I'm willing to bet that was the network's doing, not the writers'.
What I was also wanted to say was that even though the diversity could have been better, it was definitely a case of quality over quantity. The girls had as much depth as the boys. They had their own storylines. Sometimes they were the heroines, sometimes they needed help. That's rare, even today.
First of all, the characters were about as fully-3D as you could get in a 22-minute show. They had personalities. It wasn't just "One's a brave fearless leader" — Because Hank could get scared. He was easy-going, but sometimes he lost his temper or shrugged off his responsibilities.
YES. I LOVED seeing that as a kid (and as an adult). Being the leader isn't as easy as people might think and the pressure can get to a person.
I LOVE all your Eric analysis. He was probably my favourite for all the reasons you mentioned. He made me laugh and he was a pain in the butt. In real life, I'd have hated him. But he grew so much, and the show taught me something about looking below the surface to find a person's worth. I'm blanking on the episode title but the one where he becomes Dungeon Master is fantastic. My favourite part is when his voice starts to change and he starts to sound like Dungeon Master.
Second, the girls weren't any more prone to messing up/getting captured than guys were. Sheila was a bit timid, but then, so were Presto and Eric.
This is something that really struck me upon watching it as an adult. Part of the appeal for me was that Eric and Presto weren't stereotypically masculine. But each exhibited strength in their own way, and it wasn't from being violent. It was by being smart or doing something that scared them. In fact, I'm pretty sure all the boys admitted they were scared at some point or another. Hank and Bobby were more the 'tough guys', but they weren't mindless or cruel. Bobby had moments where he was just a kid and Hank's strength came from his ability to care about other people.
It's a very subversive show, if you think about it (which I clearly have).
PLEASE let me know if you write fic! I'd love to read it. I once started a D&D fic but I was twelve years old at the time, so it was about someone a lot like me waking up in the Realm and Dungeon Master gave me a magical bracelet as my weapon. It could both heal and shoot energy bolts. Plus, because I was super special, it also gave me telepathy and telekinesis. I don't think I got any further than that, but my character was totally going to get together with Eric, so you know it was going to be good.
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What I was also wanted to say was that even though the diversity could have been better, it was definitely a case of quality over quantity. The girls had as much depth as the boys. They had their own storylines. Sometimes they were the heroines, sometimes they needed help. That's rare, even today.
First of all, the characters were about as fully-3D as you could get in a 22-minute show. They had personalities. It wasn't just "One's a brave fearless leader" — Because Hank could get scared. He was easy-going, but sometimes he lost his temper or shrugged off his responsibilities.
YES. I LOVED seeing that as a kid (and as an adult). Being the leader isn't as easy as people might think and the pressure can get to a person.
I LOVE all your Eric analysis. He was probably my favourite for all the reasons you mentioned. He made me laugh and he was a pain in the butt. In real life, I'd have hated him. But he grew so much, and the show taught me something about looking below the surface to find a person's worth. I'm blanking on the episode title but the one where he becomes Dungeon Master is fantastic. My favourite part is when his voice starts to change and he starts to sound like Dungeon Master.
Second, the girls weren't any more prone to messing up/getting captured than guys were. Sheila was a bit timid, but then, so were Presto and Eric.
This is something that really struck me upon watching it as an adult. Part of the appeal for me was that Eric and Presto weren't stereotypically masculine. But each exhibited strength in their own way, and it wasn't from being violent. It was by being smart or doing something that scared them. In fact, I'm pretty sure all the boys admitted they were scared at some point or another. Hank and Bobby were more the 'tough guys', but they weren't mindless or cruel. Bobby had moments where he was just a kid and Hank's strength came from his ability to care about other people.
It's a very subversive show, if you think about it (which I clearly have).
PLEASE let me know if you write fic! I'd love to read it. I once started a D&D fic but I was twelve years old at the time, so it was about someone a lot like me waking up in the Realm and Dungeon Master gave me a magical bracelet as my weapon. It could both heal and shoot energy bolts. Plus, because I was super special, it also gave me telepathy and telekinesis. I don't think I got any further than that, but my character was totally going to get together with Eric, so you know it was going to be good.