I'm all for nostalgic reboots of things. Even ones that are unnecessary. Which is every reboot because let's be honest, when do we actually need a reboot of something? However, when the new "Powerpuff Girls" premieres, I will not be watching. You see, I have a bone to pick with Cartoon Network and their treatment of female viewers.
In 2011, Cartoon Network released a handful of live action shows on their channel, which, in their defense, weren't going to be too popular on a TV network with "cartoon" in the name. So after one season, the show's "Unnatural History" and "Tower Prep" were not renewed. It seemed all was fine—just two shows were getting canceled for lack of views. But then the cartoons "Young Justice" and "Green Lantern: The Animated Series" also were cancelled out of the blue as well. These shows were actually popular and were canceled with less clear reasoning. So why did they get the plug pulled?
Unfortunately, the reasoning is because these shows had a strong female audience. In an interview on the podcast "Shadow of the Bat", one of the creators of the original "Batman: The Animated Series" and "Tower Prep," Paul Dini, revealed that the executives only cared about being able to market toys for these shows. The big pull for these executives was that if they could have a large audience of young boys, they would be able to market toys of the characters to them. The mentality Paul was accusing Cartoon Network of having was: "girls buy princesses; we're not selling princesses."
Cartoon Network doesn't care about the viewers; they care about the money they can get from other products. "Tower Prep" was actually a great show, with two main female characters who were independent but felt natural, rather than the stereotypical "I'm a tough girl who still looks like a perfect 10." Of course, a show like that will attract families and girls, but if they can't sell toys, no one cares about the plot. This happened with "Young Justice" as well, because a big portion of the audience was female, and since girls obviously don't read comics, why would they buy merchandise related to a show?
This point of view is highly infuriating, but the worst part about it all is that very few people have heard about this. This podcast came out in December of 2013. You know what else also happened during that time? The 10th anniversary special of "The Powerpuff Girls." It was a smart move on their part to try to cover up this disaster with a revival a few years ago, but that doesn't mean it still isn't a valid problem.
Has Cartoon Network gotten better in its programming and allowing shows girls will like continue? Yes! Look at shows like "Steven Universe" and "Adventure Time." These shows feature all-around strong female characters and have plenty of female fans, yet they've been on for a while now. Since the other shows were cancelled, the executives have also changed, and good news! The current president of Cartoon Network is female! Though this doesn't make up for the network's past actions, there have been improvements.
Am I still going to boycott Cartoon Network? Yes. It's humiliating that a channel I grew up watching on a daily basis could be so sexist in how they treat young girls and their favorite shows. Do I think that Cartoon Network is still sexist? Only time will tell. But if you watch the revival, please keep this in your mind. It can only be as good as those creating it.
