History of LGBTQ characters in animation: 2000s

A person cosplaying as one of the protagonists of American Dad!, Stan Smith, in July 2010

A few shows aired on Cartoon Network in the 2000s which had LGBTQ representation. This included Time Squad which aired from 2001 to 2003, with the voice actor of Larry 3000, Mark Hamill, implying in 2012 that Larry could easily have been interpreted as gay in the cartoon,[12] due to his femininity and presentation as the "gay best friend" to Cleopatra in "Shop like an Egyptian", although Larry has stated on multiple occasions he dislikes humans in general. However, this show never stated his sexuality, although Hamill described him as fierce and flamboyant.[13] Other shows had outright representation, although some it was subtle. One of these shows was The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy. In a 2005 episode, "One Crazy Summoner", Dean Toadblatt and Squidhat, were revealed to be gay lovers, marrying each other in the episode. One critic noted that while you could call them Cartoon Network's "first gay couple," it was actually Steven Universe, also airing on Cartoon Network, that "broke down representation barriers" years later.[14]

Of the shows in the 2000s, one was most prominent, and continued to aired on FOX until 2014 when it moved to TBS: American Dad!. The show introduced Roger, a protagonist said to be pansexual,[15] due to the fact he assumed different aliases[16] and a carousel of seemingly-endless lives.[17] Later the show featured Linda Memari, neighbor of the Smith family and a bisexual Iranian-American woman.[18] The show also had a gay couple: Greg Corbin and Terry Bates, who were regular characters for many years.[19][20][21]

Additionally, Archer, which aired on FX and FXX, then owned by FOX, had LGBTQ characters too. In the show, Pam Poovey is the bisexual director of human resources.[22] In a behind-the-scenes feature, her voice actor, Amber Nash described Pam as "a sturdy bisexual".[23] Woodhouse, Archer's personal valet,[24] is of ambiguous sexuality. He had a romantic and sexual attraction to another man, Reggie, during the First World War, but it has not been specified whether he has ever had any sexual feelings for anyone since Reggie's death.[25] After his voice actor, George Coe passed away, the show did a tribute to Woodhouse,[26] who later had a funeral, becoming a plot thread followed up on in the show's eighth season.[27] At the same time, Ray Gillette is an openly gay secret agent, and a former Olympic medalist in skiing.[28][29] This was in keeping with previous years.

Apart from these shows, in Moral Orel, there were at least two LGBTQ+ characters. Coach Daniel Stopframe was Orel's bisexual coach as well as Shapey's biological father,[30] Daniel lusts after their father, Clay,[31] and at one point has sex with three women and a dog in episodes like "The Blessed Union." Stephanie Foamwire-Putty is a lesbian character who's revealed to have fallen in unrequited love with her old high school best friend, Kim Latchkey.[30] Superjail! was different. It featured Alice, a hulking and muscular head prison guard of Superjail and a trans woman[32] who regularly engages in sadomasochistic rituals with the prisoners, and rebuffs The Warden's constant advances as shown in episodes like "Jailbot 2.0." There's also Jean Baptiste Le Ghei and Paul Guaye, inmates and a recurring couple as shown in the episode "Superbar" and others. In an interview with the creators of the show, co-creator Christy Karacas called them well-rounded characters, who are a couple, with Paul as more feminine and intelligent than Jean who is "the bad boy."[33]

In 2000, Queer Duck premiered on Icebox. The show became relatively influential after its premiere and later streaming on Showtime. It was the first U.S. animated TV series to have homosexuality as a major theme[34] and was produced by Mike Reiss, a producer of Simpsons and The Critic.[35] beginning in 2000. It was received positively by some in the LGBTQ+ community since it had lesbian, gay, and bisexual characters. This included Adam Seymour Duckstein, the main character of the series. He is presented as a stereotypical gay duck[36] and has been a victim of gay bashing.[34] However, in the series finale, he wakes up to discover that he had sex with a woman. Steven Arlo Gator was Queer Duck's significant other,[34] and latter married Queer Duck in a Jewish Wedding in Vermont in one episode, "Wedding Bell Blues." Melissa Duckstein, is Adam's sister, is occasionally revealed to be lesbian throughout the series.[37] She is in a relationship with Yvette, in episodes such as "Homo for the Holidays," and the movie.

This show was not alone. Clone High, which aired on MTV and Teletoon from 2002 to 2003, featured a gay couple: the foster dads of JFK, named Wally and Carl in Clone High.[38] Additionally, Phil and Chris would say they are gay lovers if it was "convenient."[39] In 2007, a friendly and flirtatious Vietnamese trans woman, who runs a salon, named Cherry Pie, debuted in The Nutshack, which aired on Myx TV.[40]

There was also Rick & Steve: The Happiest Gay Couple in All the World on Logo TV, a satiric comedy which featured the "only Filipino-American and gay lead character on television" at the time.[41] It would feature a lesbian couple and two gay couples. During the series, the gay couple Rick Brocka, a Filipino-American, and Steve Ball have a baby with the lesbian couple Dana and Kirsten.[42][43] Chuck Masters and Evan Martinez are a male gay couple as indicated in episodes like "Mom Fight," with Chuck helping Evan with his drug addiction.[44][45] Dana Bernstein and Kirsten Kellogg additionally have a baby with the gay couple, Rick and Steve.[42] Finally, there were two lesbian couples (Mo and Trish, Souki and Jenn) which appeared in a June 19, 2009 episode of ABC's The Goode Family, "A Tale of Two Lesbians".[46][47] GLAAD praised this show, noting that Mo and Trish were as recurring characters.[6]

• List of animated series with LGBTQ characters
• History of homosexuality in American film
• History of anime
• Media portrayals of bisexuality
• Media portrayal of lesbianism
• History of LGBTQ characters in anime: 2000s
• History of LGBTQ characters in animated series: 2000s
• List of LGBT-related films by year
• Cross-dressing in film and television
• List of animated series with crossdressing characters
• List of anime by release date (1946–1959)