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Riverdale’s Jughead is no longer asexual, and that’s a problem for fans


SkyWorld

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http://www.polygon.com/tv/2017/1/26/14403700/jughead-riverdale-asexual

 

Author: Julia Alexander

Publish Date: Jan 26, 2017

Quote

Almost one year ago, comic book writer Chip Zdarsky confirmed what many Archie Comics readers had assumed for a long time: Jughead is asexual.

 

It was a moment that comic readers and members of the asexual community were waiting for, which is why it was all the more confusing when Riverdale showrunner Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa decided not to make Jughead asexual in the show. Even more perplexing was the fact that Aguirre-Sacasa acknowledged the fact that Jughead was canonically asexual in the comics.

 

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Jeez why do they need to change things like a characters orientation? Seriously :/  

 

At the same time they are leaving it open for him to "discover" himself so there is possible hope :3 

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But it's not like there is that much representation of asexuality in the media. AND actually confirmed rather than "headcanon".

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I'm just hoping it's a situation where he discovers his asexuality but it's still there.  As they said, that he discovers himself.  I just don't want it to be a situation where he likes a girl (or boy) and they break up and then suddenly he swears off all dating and declares himself asexual.

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Galactic Turtle

noooooo I even watched the premiere last night and Jughead was pretty much the only cast member who wasn't looking to get into someone's pants. *sigh*

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Sleepy Skeleton

On the one hand I'm like, "So what, it's not even supposed to be an accurate adaption."

 

And on the other I'm like, "Literally why would they change it? Literally why?"

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4 hours ago, Galactic Turtle said:

noooooo I even watched the premiere last night and Jughead was pretty much the only cast member who wasn't looking to get into someone's pants. *sigh*

Is there a way to see it online?  I missed the premiere last night since I was out with friends.  Really want to see it now though.

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EmotionalAndroid

Aww man! I was excited when I heard that the actor playing him was going to portray him as asexual. What happened to that? ;_;

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43 minutes ago, EmotionalAndroid said:

Aww man! I was excited when I heard that the actor playing him was going to portray him as asexual. What happened to that? ;_;

He fought to try and portray it that way, but ultimately he can't control what the writers do.

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Personally, I'm not sure if I want to watch and support the show now... but I do want to watch and support Cole because I really appreciate how he fought for it, but he can't control the script. Much respect that he was actually trying.

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EmotionalAndroid
2 hours ago, SkyWorld said:

Personally, I'm not sure if I want to watch and support the show now... but I do want to watch and support Cole because I really appreciate how he fought for it, but he can't control the script. Much respect that he was actually trying.

Same here. I was so happy to hear that he was really fighting to play the character true to the comics, and while the show was not something I was interested in really, I considered watching it just to see an openly ace character and what they did with him. I probably won't bother now.

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Just finished watching the premiere episode.  Exactly what I expected from a CW show.  Jughead was barely in it so I have no idea how it'll play out.  I think I'll try and keep up with it and decide when/if they give Jughead a love interest.

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I watched the first episode of Riverdale the day after it premiered. I had seen a commercial for it, and knew Jughead is stated to be asexual in one of the comics, and was excited by the prospect of there being an asexual character on the show. Not that I watch T.V. shows solely for asexual characters. J.K., I totally do. Also I think Cole Sprouse is great. I watched the episode without doing any further research into the possibility of Jughead being asexual in the show. As already stated in this thread, Jughead was in very little of this episode.

      Jughead aside, I thought it was an extremely cliche high school drama (although cheesy dramas are a guilty pleasure T.V. genre for me). As for other diversity in sexuality, I thought the show did not do a very good job with portraying LGBTQ characters in the first episode.

Spoiler

Kevin is the stereotypical Gay Best Friend. Not only that, but he seems completely fine with this. When Veronica first meets him she says something along the lines of 'Thank goodness, I needed a GBF in Riverdale'. Kevin is not bothered at all that Veronica doesn't know him at all, and seems to have no interest in him as a person, only as The Gay Friend.

Then they have two girls kissing, who are not romantically/sexually interested in each other, for the sake of... just having girls kissing each other?

      Last night I did some research into what has been said about the sexuality of Jughead in the T.V. show. What was stated by showrunner was that the characters are young, and still exploring their sexuality, and that it would not be stated that Jughead is asexual in the first season as it is an introductory season. I also found something saying that there would be a female love interest for Jughead in the first season. I am alright with Jughead not knowing that he is asexual from the beginning (he is 15, the same age that I started to figure out I wasn't straight), I am alright with him being a romantic asexual (his romantic orientation was never stated in the comics). I even feel that the show's creators have the creative authority to make him straight if that is what they truly feel is best for their interpretation. What I am not ok with is Jughead being straight for the sake of creating more drama by giving him a love interest. I honestly hate this with all characters on T.V.. If being in a relationship is going to add to a story or character, great, but I don't want it to happen just for drama.

     I admire Cole Sprouse for advocating for Jughead to be portrayed as asexual on the show. I also would love to see this, as I think it is very important to have asexual representation in mainstream media.

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On 1/27/2017 at 1:37 PM, Joe Parrish said:

Eh, he's a cartoon character.

I know. It's kind of weird but as a preteen Jughead was my favorite Archie comic character because he was kind of like me in that he didn't care about all that mushy crush kissing  stuff. I remember there being something vaguely reassuring about the connection. Even though he *is* just a cartoon.

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WhenSummersGone

I couldn't get into this show but that sucks to hear. :(

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On ‎1‎/‎27‎/‎2017 at 2:37 PM, Joe Parrish said:

Eh, he's a cartoon character.

Exactly, our community should not have to rely on a cartoon character for validation.

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37 minutes ago, Xavy said:

Exactly, our community should not have to rely on a cartoon character for validation.

I'm a comic book character and Riverdale is a live action program. There is no cartoon. 

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They don't actually seem to be saying that he's not going to be asexual, just that he's not going to be all out-and-proud 'this is who I am' from episode one. Maybe there'll be a whole self-discovery storyline further down the track if the show continues. Personally I think that would be better visibility, especially for audience members still figuring themselves out, than someone who is totally comfortable in themselves from the get-go.

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