_This review contains spoilers for the show “Super Drags.”_
Among the monthly wave of Netflix arrivals and departures came Netflix Original “Super Drags,” on Oct. 10. The Brazilian cartoon show, created by Paulo Lescaut, Anderson Mahanski and Fernando Mendonça, takes place in a fictional town ruled by an extremely homophobic mayor bent on ending homosexuality. The show’s three main characters are gay men who, after transforming into drag versions of themselves, possess superpowers. Throughout the series, the trio faces off against the homophobic mayor and an evil drag queen on a mission to drain the LGBTQ community of their spirit.
The English version of “Super Drags” features “RuPaul’s Drag Race” contestants Trixie Mattel (Champagne) and Shangela Laquifa Wadley (Donizete/Scarlet).
Before even being released, “Super Drags” faced many obstacles. Conservative groups such as The Christian Film and Television Commission opposed the show, claiming that “Super Drags” is “clearly geared towards young and vulnerable children” which is “driven by a ‘politically correct’ transvestite agenda and is chock-full of sexual innuendos that are completely inappropriate for young audiences.” The commission even started a CitizenGo petition, which has received over 40,000 signatures. Such resistance has led to the show’s creators placing a banner over the show’s cover that reads, “Adults only, honey!”
From a purely political standpoint, “Super Drags” is making great progress in the field of diversity in media. Not only is the show heavily populated by LGBTQ characters, but characters of several gender identities, races and ethnicities. It also showcases these characters working together as a community and tackles topics prominent in the LGBTQ community such as fat-shaming through online dating and use of conversion therapy.
“Super Drags” breaks from the archetype of LGBTQ characters being downtrodden and unhappy by creating a show that the LGBTQ community can not only relate to, but find humor in.
As for the actual content of the show, it wasn’t the best. It seemed that many of the jokes were just the same punchline or concept repeated over and over again, which got boring after a certain amount of time. However, the overall campiness of the show was endearing and the five 30-minute episodes were easy to binge watch within one day.
Fans of shows such as “RuPaul’s Drag Race” and “Big Mouth” should definitely take the time to watch “Super Drags.” However, those who do not like sexual innuendos and profanity should not, because that is what the majority of the show is composed of.
_Edited by Siena DeBolt | sdebolt@themaneater.com_