themusicsweetly:

Excuse me while I get extremely emotional for a minute. Last night I was blown away how amazing The Doldrums was. Every single second was absolutely beautiful. But something that really astounded me, and has since his introduction in A. Malcolm, was how Yi Tien Cho’s character has been portrayed.

Representation matters. A lot. But what’s more important than simply having POC represented on in mainstream media is the production behind that understanding *why* it’s important. How it affects the people watching – both POC and non-POC alike. Because whether we like it or not, mainstream media – television in particular – shapes how people view the world and how they view cultures not their own. I was so moved by it I had to tweet this out to show my gratitude.

Maril + Caitriona liking this tweet is so much more than a simple like. It shows that the cast + crew alike understand that, yes there are people like me out there watching. People who were absolutely terrified that my culture was going to be reduced down to a caricature rendering of outdated stereotypical views. These likes were reassurance. These likes meant, “Yes, we see you. Yes, we understand. We see the value.” Simple statements that nearly moved me to tears.

This production not only understands these failings of an originally poorly and offensively drawn character, but they didn’t take the easy way out. Instead of taking out his character entirely, pushing him to the background with no lines or meaning to speak of, or whitewashing him to the point of unrecognizableness, they decide to go that extra mile. They gave his character depth, meaning, purpose – they gave him true life for the first time ever. And most importantly they gave him and all the viewers respect.

I will never not be grateful to the entire production for this change and never not applaud them for not caving to the pressures of a dominantly white Hollywood culture. All my praise and applause to you, Outlander. Thank you.