Monday, August 14, 2006

Abby Cadabby: New Sesame Street Female

Somehow I never noticed back in the day that all of the Sesame Street characters I was watching were male. This is especially funny because I distinctly remember that I liked Ernie because I assumed he was supposed to be a black child. Does this mean that race and ethnicity have always been a greater part of my identity than my gender? Probably.

Anyway, someone must’ve noticed, ‘cause the folks at Sesame Street finally have a female character on the show. Her name is Abby Cadabby. She is pink and lavender-colored, full of sparkles, and she’s a fairy. The creators of the show have made a point of having her be very vulnerable. She can’t fly unless she’s happy, or something.

Is this what girls want? Is this good for them? I wouldn’t have identified with this character at all.

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5 comments:

Jardena said...

Actually there has been another girl character, her name is Zoe, she's orange, doesn't seem all that delicate, and I always refer to her as Elmo's friend. I've watched more Sesme St as an sdult through baby sitting than I did as a kid. I don't know if that's a good thing or not

Michelle Pessoa said...

Maybe Abby is supposed to be a main character with her own story arcs. Zoe might exist to fill out Elmo's stories? I can't say.

Is it true that Elmo's father is in the military and he got deployed? Muppets are fighting the war on terror?

Jardena said...

Uhhhh, I have no idea. Muppets have parents?? That's news to me. I have a four year I could ask about that, but off the top of my head, I have no clue about possible Muppet Marines. Not exactly something that would strike fear into the heart of your opponet.

Anonymous said...

Did something happen to Prairie Dawn? Did she fall by the wayside or is she still around?

Michelle Pessoa said...

Prairie Dawn? Isn't that an exotic dancer? Wow, how sleazy. No wonder she's gone. ;)