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Krod Mandoon and the Flaming Gay StereotypeDespite the fact that Krod himself is clearly heterosexual (he’s infatuated with Aneka), Bruce is constantly touching and caressing him, something which clearly unsettles the warrior.
Marques Ray as Bruce Frankly, I was very disappointed in both Bruce, who is obsessed with sex and fashion and has a thick faux-Latin accent, and Aneka, Krod’s sexually liberated pagan girlfriend. As part of a pagan ritual, Aneka agrees to have sex with 300 men. When she decides to call it off in mid-gang-bang, Bruce happily takes over servicing the rest of the randy men. It’s not that I was terribly offended – the show makes its raciness clear from the outset. But it disappointed me that a show created by a heterosexual man has the two non-heterosexual male characters – basically the only two non-heterosexual male characters – obsessed with, and defined by, sex. Which I suppose is how a lot of straight men still think of women and gay guys. But this is the one part of the show that seemed decidedly retro to me – not contemporary at all. In fact, it seems like something straight out of a 1980s sex comedy: Revenge of the Nerds, basically.
That said, it’s nice to have a gay character, any gay character, in a fantasy setting that has traditionally be been so completely heterosexual. Peter Knight, the show's creator, promises that the character will be more than just a stereotype. "The number one objective – judge me on this – is Bruce funny?" he says. "And if he’s not, then we’ve got a problem. But secondarily, in the characterization of Bruce...hopefully I can get you thinking about a gay character as just one of the people that you really want to be around who’s just funny and proud and off-the-cuff and liberated." And sure enough, some of the show's gay humor is definitely funny. “Take Barnabus!” Dongalor says at one point, offering up his right-hand man to an assassin. “Do anything you want – even the gay stuff!” Krod – whose full name, we learn in one scene, is the appropriately ridiculous “Krodford J. Mandoon” – is played by Sean Maguire, the actor who was the gay guy in The Class and seriously buffed out to play the lead in the 300 (2006) spoof Meet the Spartans (2008). He has a very easy-going charm and nice comic timing.
Sean Maguire as Krod The series is a co-production between Comedy Central and the BBC, which will air slightly longer episodes later this month.
Submitted by on Wed, 2009-04-08 21:56. |
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News, Reviews & Commentary on Gay and Bisexual Men in Entertainment and the Media
You Need Not Worry...
I have seen the previews everytime I watch the Daily Show (which I'm actually watching as I type this), and THE SHOW WILL NOT LAST! It looks like another STALE "Scary Movie" spin-off, but unfunny like "Date Movie" or "Epic Movie" or "Superhero Movie" or "Disaster Movie" or "Meet the Spartans", but made-for-TV. Yeah so, with or without the gay element, it looks insufferable, and you need not worry. Within the next couple weeks (or months, take your pick), we'll be reading about it's cancellation in the "AfterElton Briefs". That's it, I'm done.
Kitty
Stereotypes
Unfortunately...
"... the gay guy likes fashion and sex. A lot." "People know gays aren't like that."
Unfortunately, there are a lot of people that do think gay guys are exactly like that. With straight guys writing characters like this again and again, that perception isn't going to change.
It might have been a nice change to have Krod Mandoon actually okay with Bruce's advances. Having Krod go out of his way to turn on Bruce could be just as funny as the typical 'gay panic' straight guy character.
Hopefully the show won't be as cringe inducing as the preview indicates. I was really looking forward to watching Sean Maguire. Yes... he is very pretty.
Just to be clear. Krod doesn't turn
Thanks to the far right ???
Pardon, you must have missed the Gay writers out there writing the same thing as those "far right / heterosexual's" on the addicted to sex/drugs gay male... you did watch QAF as well as a lot of other Gay movies written by Gay writers. Not just the "far right", so don't put all the blame on them. I mean even Dr. Who and Torchwood is still "sex addicted" gay male.
If i remember correctly many people were all up in arms with Meet the Spartans being "homophobic". I'm sorry, I for one am a gay man that actually laughed my back side off when I saw the movie in the theater. I did not find anything "homophobic" about it. I did go in knowing it was a "Comedy" not a drama.
As for the series.., looks fun. And as for the stereotypical stuff... ALL writers need to be molding characters from more "normal" stock. I agree that this type of character is not helping the cause.
Stereotypes and gay men obsessed with sex
Men are Men
Well put!
I know five guys who display the stereotypes
But frankly, I think this discussion of stereotypes is a distraction. It's not about whether a character is butch or fem, and whether or not he's into fashion and Broadway musicals. That's all just superficial stuff, and definitely isn't offensive if done right. What matters to me is whether the character seems authentic, or if it's JUST a collection of stereotypes, and if those stereotypes are being used to get cheap, easy laughs. I didn't think this character passed that test.Check out my new fantasy website: TheTorchOnline.com. It's like AfterElton.com for fantasy geeks! And I Twitter
Sean Maguire is so dateable!
If they were going to have a
Seriously?
That would've been freakin' awesome!!!
We Stand In Awe Before That Which Cannot Be Seen
Lazy writing
It just sounds Kröddy
If I look at just the pieces of the stereotypes, sex, cloths, etc -individually they aren't so horrid. But when you put it together in a really stereotypical way, like this, it usually becomes offensive.
Obsessed with sex? Why does it have to be a mincing preening gay man who is sex obsessed? Think about that and what the humor implies. What if he were gay, but a buff, serious, "mans man" who was obsessed with sex? Or what if he were a style obsessed, lisping, opera singing, vapid interior decorator who was practically a eunuch? Could either of those characters be funny in the Krod world? There is a black character, um, nobody said but I assume that he is lazy, lies, steals and eats water melon? This is suppose to be humor about stereotypes, right? Or is it just pick on gays? I mean if Bruce is just the butt of the jokes and so are gays, then ...
"Do anything you want – even the gay stuff!" is funny because we all know that the gay stuff is worse than being dragged behind a horse, say? Or we kinda feel that way about it?
I'll have to see it but what you describe sounds like backlash. I suppose that's just more of the progress I've been hearing so much about, lately..
Stupid
I've just watched the hour-long pilot of Krod, and man am I unimpressed. The gay character was a stupid stereotype; I'm kind of fed up with this sort of portrayal. Though honestly, this sort of humour isn't my thing at all in the first place; a bit too seedy for my taste, so perhaps I would not have cared for the gay character no matter what. But I know I won't be bothering to watch any more episodes of this programme, for sure...
I'm like a superhero, with no powers or motivation...
Just finished watching it...
the black character
I Actually Kinda Liked It
Loved it
Now Steve's New & Improved with Andre Norton Award Finalist power for Vintage!
www.steveberman.com
Also Loved It
I agree most of the comments already made especially Gay Spouse and Steve Berman: yes Bruce is a stereotype, but so is Loquasto the Oaf, Anekas the pagan chick, Zezelrych the black mage who can’t throw spells, but constantly talks his way out of trouble and Krod himself (Dork spelled backwards). As Brent and Gay Spouse so aptly observed, the show is very Monty Pythonesk, which I love. The funniest guy on the show is the evil Chancellor Dongalor played brilliantly by Matt Lukas. (He reminds me of Dr. Evil from Austin Powers). I take some issue with Brent, in characterizing Dongalor as gay. Lucas is, but Dongalor, while effeminate, is infatuated with women and has no sexual interest in any of male characters, especially his lackey Barnabus. But, he is very funny; pretends to be so smart, but is constantly making mistakes with horrible consequences to those around him (but not to himself of course).
Unlike Octobercountry, and most others here I suspect, I grew up on Lord of the Rings (the books), playing Dungeons and Dragons, and was totally into the Hercules, Xena genre, so a parody of it hits my funny bone spot on. I suspect that there are enough viewers like me to keep this series going at least three seasons, sorry Kitty and Sean. Everyone I used to play D&D with is watching and loves it. If it were just Naked Gun, Airplane! or Scary Movie, I might agree that the jokes could get repetitive and stale quickly, but because of the genre, and the sexual humor (loved the coconut milk), this is the only show currently on television that I make a special effort to see each week (since Queer As Folk), and I really enjoy it.
One thing I have noticed about Bruce: other than his occasional one-liners, he does not do anything except tag along. I hope the writers give him a meaningful role in the freedom fight somewhere along the way and he does something important to save Krod and/or the others or foils Dongalor by his courage, actions or quick thinking. That would go along way toward making the gay/fem stereotyping more palatable.
Krod was Mantastic...
I watched it and found it quite entertaining. A few things stuck out...
One, it was VERY Monty Python which was terrific.
Two, I couldn't stand Matt Lucas in Little Britain (American version) but here he is hilarious as the scheming bad guy; and I like that he plays a relatively-intelligent bad guy rather than an idiot-type bad guy, which in itself is a send-up twist on all "fantasy" genre films of the 80's, 90's and 00's.
Three, I think Krod's reaction to Bruce was that Bruce is a complete stranger to his group while the rest of his band is composed of longtime friends (note at the campfire he references his "friends, oh and Bruce". I also thought it entertaining that the "greatest general ever" is unapologetically queer and even comes back from the beyond to inspire Krod on his destiny... how many gay spirits of Fate have there been on tv?
Four, I think that Bruce is a femme-gay character and that doesn't mean he should be dismissed as a complete stereotype. I and many gay people I know are not femme, but some of my friends are and so making Bruce more femme yet joining a band of daring adventurers (not to mention landing the "greatest general ever") is a great comedic stereotype-twist. All of the characters are lampooning their "fantasy genre" character roles, and I'm glad they are showing that Bruce in all his femme-leaning-glory is as unapologetically sexual as Krod's pagan girlfriend who also takes no grief.
And finally, all this has to be taken in context since this show is set in a universe with a "mass death dealing ancient eye weapon" and even a "flaming sword" whose power is revealed to the hero by the proudly-homosexual ghost of the greatest general who ever lived.
I agree with Steve &
Meh.