Tremira Mitchell | Recently, I’ve been looking back at shows from my childhood. I long for these shows to make a return on TV, as I very much enjoyed them when I was younger. These shows are very entertaining to watch, and I’ve grown attached to many of the characters. However, as I look back on these shows, I increasingly notice their problematic writing, especially toward Black and POC characters.
The first show I would like to discuss is Danny Phantom, a cartoon created by Butch Hartman for Nickelodeon. It tells the story of a high school student who becomes half ghost and has to protect his town from other vengeful ghosts. I enjoyed watching the fight scenes and the various designs of the ghosts. However, some of the choices the writers made were quite questionable.
One of the questionable aspects of this show is the villain named Desiree, a ghost who can grant wishes. I remember being drawn to her powers and her design, which resembles a genie. But as I got older, I began to realize that her design and backstory are very orientalist. Apparently, she was a harem girl who seduced a sultan and later died of a broken heart after being overthrown by the sultan’s wife. I can’t say whether this was racist or not as I am not Middle Eastern. But it looks bad on the writer’s part.
Another character who I believe was done horribly in the show was the recurring character Valerie Gray. Valerie was my favorite character; I really liked her design and her unique backstory. It is interesting to see one of the most popular girls in school later become a ghost hunter full of vengeance. But what upsets me about her is how her relationships are handled in the show, specifically her romance with the main character, Danny. As the show progresses, Valerie and Danny start off as enemies, later become mutuals, and eventually start dating. I really liked their romantic couple scenes as well as their dynamic. However, by season 3 of the show, some writers left the team which led to many changes.
The remaining staff thought that it would be best to have Danny and Valerie break up in favor of pairing Danny with his white female friend, Sam. It feels so unfair to Valerie, as a Black girl, to have gotten sidelined like that. She felt like a disposable girlfriend; I remember being so upset when the two of them broke up in Season 3. This is especially harmful because she is Black. The writers demonstrated their lack of faith in the character and basically deemed her unworthy of being Danny’s girlfriend because of her race.
Another Nickelodeon show I would like to discuss is My Life as A Teenage Robot, an animated series about a robot who yearns to live her life like a normal human teenager. The episodes always made me laugh and I could relate to the main character, Jenny. However, Jenny’s rivals always left me feeling uncomfortable. At school, Jenny was bullied by a duo of cousins named Britt and Tiff Crust. Britt and Tiff were the popular girls who I remember had amazing fashion in each episode they were featured in. But it always irked me that these girls of color were the bullies. It was never explained in the show what the Crust cousins’ race was, but many fans have “headcanoned” them as either Black or Asian. I’m not saying that girls of color can’t be bullies; it’s just an odd choice to have one of the darkest characters in the show play that
archetype.
While I do feel bad for tearing down Nickelodeon like this, my disappointment in them is greater since the program played such a large part in my childhood. Nickelodeon was the main channel that I turned to for entertainment. I formed more attachments and memories with Nickelodeon shows than with others. Nowadays, the company feels like a mixed bag. Their newer shows are more diverse, however there are still plenty of issues within their practices. I still have a soft spot for Nickleodeon, and I just want them to do better.
Nickelodeon shows were meant for fun. Not to be looked at with Gender Studies analysts.
The target demographic for Danny Phantom is are males. Men and women have different mindsets.
The fact that you feel “offended” while watching action shows with a male target audience is a negative stereotype on women alone.
Women are stereotypically expected to take offense watching men’s programs. Whether its Shonen anime or battle cartoons.
Hence the “watered down for women” phrase is used negatively for a variety of shows.
If you are going to say that Danny Phantom of all things is harmful, you either lost the plot, or you fully affirmed that women should not be watching or reviewing male programming.
The 1990s and 2000s were the most popular and most rewatched era of cartoons because there was no political preaching or what people call “woke.” Yes, you are right that modern media is “politically correct”.
But Modern Media lost most of its viewership to the point that companies have to remake the more loved 2000s shows. Snow White tried so hard to pander to you, Gender Studies activists that it lost most of its viewership. And now She Hulk did the same thing.
With journalists or writers like yourself; you fail to understand that not every show has to be for you. And you are incapable of being open minded
We are in 2026, and media communities are divided more than ever. With articles like this, you actually HARMED the overall community more than helped it. You created the division where it wasnt here before.
You are the reason Asmongold and others became so popular. Because no matter how you put it, more than 80% of the people accused of misogyny or Griftimg are only defending their media.
In a show like Danny Phantom, it was hugely popular because its target male demographic watched it for fun. You watch it while checking what to be offended by.
Which causes people to Gatekeep women and drive them out of alot of fanbases.
Men don’t target The View. Its a show made for women’s preferences, even though its insulting to men. You on the other hand are part of the reason modern media and even videogames are flopping in popularity. Catering to the woke crowd who arent even part of the fanbase.
And now, in 2026, anime and asian videogames have taken over animation and the videogame industry. Japanese anime that are anti-Politically correct, do the opposite of what you suggest, and asian videogames dominate the market.
Why? Because the actual target audience never wanted media watered down for political correctness. Any popularity Danny Phantom had in the 2000s is now upped by Japanese animation. American made “politically correct” movies and cartoons are quickly getting cancelled. Because the target male audience will never enjoy the woke watering down you demand.
Yes, there are definitely cartoons made for you. No fun, just appropriately depicting every minority and struggles, with minimal senseless violence. And yet all these shows are quickly cancelled due to lack of views, even though journalists like yourself praise it in your gender studies oriented feminist reviews.
What does that tell you? Maybe you should just find a husband to nag and annoy, though I doubt any marriage you have would last more than 6 months. Must be annoying for a guy to hear complaining and whining 5 minutes into any TV show or film he watches.
But you are proving to be the negative female stereotype you claim to fight against.
You are reviewing shows not intended for political correctness inorder to complain about lack of political correctness.
How is it that you manage to have every negative personality trait people have about women at once?