i finally figured out this gif
in this first clip, we see brock and ash, metaphorically representing cissexist gatekeeping doctors, “assigning” staryu, a gender-ambiguous entity, with water, a representation of binary gender roles. staryu, however, as we see, neither becomes male or female with the assignment of the water, but remains the same, a staryu.
here, we see Ash, the excited yet binarist parent, looking on excitedly as it unconsciously assumes that staryu will take on the role of a boy or a girl. Oh, happy day! My staryu will be the best boy/girl ever! little does he realize that gender is not biology or chromosomes, but rather a series of expressions and interconnected modes of identity that staryu will now have to struggle with for the rest of its existence after being assigned a gender at birth.
In Brock’s less enthusiastic expression, however, we can see a representation of cisnormative institutions and the expectations they place on the individual. in a society in which individuals are judged by how well they “perform” their assigned gender, we can see in Brock’s countenance the weighing of numerous social and cultural factors in his gaze directed upon staryu, a means of shaming staryu into accepting assigned roles instead of staking out its own expression and identity. in this sense, pokemon becomes not merely an anime about kids making animals kill one another, but an extended discussion on the pervasive assumptions of cisnormative culture and their affect on the individual psyche. Pokemon: gotta gender ‘em all.
