Syfy’s Lost Girl accused of anti-transgender scene

Lost Girl which follows a bisexual lead character has been taken to task by some LGBT viewer for screening a sequence which is deemed as anti-trans violence.

Bo is the series’ supernatural heroine who happens to be bisexual. The storylines follow the character as she investigates crimes of a supernatural nature. In the first episode of the third run of the show a sequence between Bo and a prison officer, who is ‘male’ but is disguised as a ‘woman’.

The scene shows Bo informing the guard ‘she’ has stubble and kisses ‘her’ in order to prove ‘she’ is a ‘he’, then the supposed female has his crotch grabbed ‘violently’ before being dragged away.

 “We want to let you know that the Lost Girl writers base all episodic characters off of researched folklore, and that the character of The Warden in the premiere of Season 3 is a character based off the mythological shapeshifter known as the Liderc. The Warden was only intended to represent this mythic being,

“We did not intend this character to be seen as a transgender person, we apologize if the character was seen as such. We do hope that you accept that no comparison or discrimination toward the transgender community was intended by the depiction of this mythological character.”, it continued.

“Lost Girl prides itself on being open and accepting to everyone, and are enthusiastic supporters of the GLBT community. We want to encourage a society in which everyone can feel comfortable to express and be who they are without judgment. Equality and a world without labels is important to all of us at the series. We strive to create three dimensional characters, who empower all viewers regardless of sexuality or gender.” Producers of the programme said in a statement.

LGBT viewers, along with action group GLAAD, have aired their views, which criticise the sequence, with some suggesting the scene is similar to violent attacks when transsexuals are ‘discovered’ not to be of the sex they appear to be.

“It’s especially unfortunate that this scene took place on a show with strong bisexual and lesbian lead characters, including the Lost Girl herself, Bo, who began a relationship with a woman in this same episode… Lost Girl has a very loyal fanbase among lesbian and bisexual women, and with good reason, as it’s one of the few shows on television to make their stories the focus rather than supplementary plot, not to mention one featuring well-rounded, out characters. We hope that they will continue to set a good example in future episodes.” Said GLAAD in a statement.

However ATV Today’s showiz reporter Vivian Summers notes,

“Would Coronation Street showing two straight men in a fight be anti-hetro? Programmes should address these topics and issues if needed. But really it doesn’t seem anti anything. It’s like someone disguised as a chicken, getting slapped, is that anti-hen?”.