Disney Just Pulled a Controversial Episode of a Marvel Childen’s Cartoon
Who gets to be a hero?
Though most Marvel stories are filtered through its cinematic universe, a whole world still exists just outside of the MCU. Marvel’s Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur, an animated series on the Disney Channel, is designed to appeal to younger fans, so it’s not on everyone’s radar. But a recent controversy has unexpectedly put the series on the map. A yet-to-be-released Season 2 episode has been indefinitely shelved, kickstarting a new conversation about Disney and Marvel’s treatment of LGBTQ+ characters.
While the series revolves around Moon Girl (aka Lunella Lafayette), the unaired episode, “The Gatekeeper,” focuses on her classmate, Brooklyn, and the prejudice she faces as a trans girl. Early in the episode, Brooklyn recalls being forced to play on the boys’ soccer team, and the “darkness” it brought into her life. She’s much happier now on the girls’ volleyball team, but when a rival coach overhears her story, she resorts to dark magic to bar Brooklyn from competing in an upcoming game.
“The Gatekeeper” doesn’t shy away from its LGBTQ+ focus. With Pride-themed imagery and confirmation of Brooklyn’s trans identity, Moon Girl’s themes of tolerance and inclusivity are hard to miss, but according to artists who worked on the show, those themes are now making it a target of censorship. In a since-deleted Bluesky post, storyboard artist Derrick Malik Johnson inferred that “The Gatekeeper” was shelved “because of which party won the recent election,” suggesting that Disney pulled the episode to appease Republican politicians.
Moon Girl’s unaired episode has prompted censorship concerns.
“The Gatekeeper” could easily read as a response to the ongoing backlash against trans and non-binary athletes, but according to a source at Disney, the decision to pull the episode had nothing to do with current events.
Producers reportedly decided to shelve “The Gatekeeper” over a year ago, according to a Disney source’s conversation with Polygon. “This decision was based on this specific episode, not because of the character being trans,” the source said, although the precise reasoning wasn’t explained. That said, Disney noted that Moon Girl’s target audience is children between the ages of 6 and 12, and the company is “respectful of the role that parents play in the discussions they have with their children.”
Technically, Disney hasn’t “banned” the episode but is keeping it “held” indefinitely. There’s no telling if it will be cleared to air before the end of Season 2, the second half of which is slated to premiere on Disney Channel in 2025. “The Gatekeeper” isn’t in the line-up, and with Moon Girl not getting a third season, it feels like now or never.
The episode has been leaked on social media platforms, and there’s a chance a fan campaign could save it from purgatory. But this isn’t the first example of Disney decentering LGBTQ+ characters and themes the moment supporting them looks challenging, and it’s a disappointing decision now that such stories are more important than ever.
