Tag: tv

Autism in Doctor Odyssey

Greetings Earthlings! 🙂

This week I’d like to discuss the recent depiction of an autistic character in the medical drama Doctor Odyssey.

For those who haven’t seen the show yet (not that I’d recommend it, I mainly stuck with it for closure on how the series ended 🫠), Doctor Odyssey follows Max Bankman (played by Dawson’s Creek alum Joshua Jackson) who has just taken a job as the on-board doctor for the luxury cruise ship ‘The Odyssey’. This overhyped drama from producer Ryan Murphy (known for Glee, American Horror Story, Monsters and 9-11) was 90% unrealistic rubbish, BUT it did provide us with a somewhat true depiction of autism.

During episodes 9 and 10 of the first series (which by current reports seems likely to be it’s last 🫠), the ship receives a distress call from a group who’s charter ship sank after a shark attack. Among the rescued is first mate Ray (played by AuDHD actor Liam Johnson), a straight talking, literal thinking, awkward autist who is a little out of sorts on the ship as his routine has been disrupted following the shark attack. Following a rocky start after inadvertently annoying staff on the ship, Ray quickly becomes an asset using his mathematic and marine skills to chart the quickest course to port, in addition to advising the ships captain when The Odyssey is besieged by a pod of orcas (as if the sharks weren’t enough…).

Now while Ray’s onscreen traits and manner are relatively stereotypical (there’s a lot of scenes about sound sensitivity around using sound cannons and fireworks to get rid of the orcas), what was refreshing was how the show chose to depict him as a handsome, stoic, naval character. When men are depicted with autism, they are generally overtly nerdy, skinny, outcasts working in some form of STEM, but here we find a jock-esque first mate confidently navigating the seas, showing us all that with a little support and understanding, autists can do anything they set their mind to.

All in all, while the show is rather far fetched, it does sort of get autism right (though I still wouldn’t recommend watching it- stick with The Pitt and The Good Doctor 😉).

Hope you enjoyed this post dear Earthlings!

Have a lovely weekend!

Aoife

0

Autism in ‘Elsbeth’

Greetings Earthlings! 🙂

This week I’d like to take a look at the neurodivergent character Elsbeth Tascioni, a character that I have been watching for years, first as a recurring guest on The Good Wife and it’s spin off The Good Fight, and now finally in her own show Elsbeth. Played by Carrie Preston, Elsbeth is a quirky, unconventional lawyer who has been assigned to oversee the NYPD as part of an anti-corruption decree, but quickly finds that she has a knack for solving murders! Unlike conventional crime solving dramas, we see the whodunnit portion at the start of each episode, refreshingly sitting back to watch how Elsbeth is going to catch her killer (spoiler alert- she always does🙃).

So to autism- how does this show fare?

Whilst this is another show that does not directly label their lead as autistic, Elsbeth certainly displays many traits of autism and ADHD, with many autistic fans praising the show for a positive female depiction of neurodivergence and executive dysfunction. She is an endearing, unique and highly eccentric character marching to her own beat at all times, never caring what anyone else thinks. Whilst Elsbeth doesn’t tend to display signs of sensory issues, she is often oblivious to social cues, overstepping boundaries, talking about unusual subjects and regularly making people uncomfortable (I mean she’s trying to catch killers- cages need to be rattled 🤣).

She get’s distracted very easily by shiny objects and other items of interest to her, going off on tangents mid conversation and explanations, floating around in her own little bubble without any notice of how the world perceives her. What I particularly like about Elsbeth is how she notices details that no one else does, a trait which makes her incredibly adept at crime solving. Too often we focus on disability, but this show really drives home the unique skills that neurodivergents can bring to the workplace. Elsbeth’s tendency to get distracted at first appears problematic, but it is this eye for detail that makes her an excellent detective. She’s constantly underestimated by her peers for her quirkiness, but always shows her worth by the end of each episode, proving there is method in her perceived “madness”.

Autistic or not, Elsbeth is a delightful and refreshing take on the crime solving drama genre, and I highly recommend it for anyone seeking a wholesome, easy watch- you will leave with a smile on your face for certain 😀

Hope you enjoyed this post dear Earthlings!

Have a lovely weekend! 🙂

Aoife

2

Autism in ‘Grey’s Anatomy’

Greetings Earthlings! 🙂

I’ve recently been re-watching clips from medical drama ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ on Facebook, and came across some old episodes featuring a doctor with Asperger’s syndrome. As I watched these episodes prior to my diagnosis (and never made any connection to my own experiences), this week I’d like to take a closer look at Dr. Dixon and the depiction of autism.

For those of you who are unfamiliar, Grey’s Anatomy is the longest running primetime medical drama of all time (entering into it’s 21st season in the coming weeks), following the personal and professional adventures of Dr. Meredith Grey through her surgical internship (and beyond).

In 2008 during it’s 5th season, the show introduced the character of Dr. Virginia Dixon for 3 episodes- a renowned heart surgeon with Asperger’s syndrome. This was perhaps the first on screen depiction of autism I had ever seen, and it’s easy to see why I didn’t connect with the character at the time.

Despite being a woman with autism (which given this was 2008 was quite progressive), Dr. Dixon’s character has been completely panned by the autistic community and branded as difficult to watch. She’s highly stereotyped with a high IQ, monotone voice, no social skills, rule oriented and completely emotionless– a particular pain point for misunderstood autists everywhere. In addition, the stereotyping isn’t even consistent with how most autistic women present as she doesn’t make any attempt to mask her differences whatsoever. A lot of autists were particularly irked by a scene where Dr. Dixon has a complete meltdown after a patient excitedly hugs her. Given that she is a high functioning adult with autism, her response to the incident has been seen as completely over the top given that most of us by this age have adapted coping mechanisms to deal with these sorts of situations.

Here’s a video with some clips of Dr. Dixon in action:

I personally didn’t find issue with the episodes when I initially watched the show, but given what I now know about autism, I would have to agree with the community. While I can appreciate the attempt to raise awareness about the condition, it really wasn’t handled the best. I found it particularly irksome during the meltdown scene, as when a fellow doctor was asked to hug Dr. Dixon to help calm her, she made a quip about giving a thorazine shot instead (a common anti-psychotic medication). Autists aren’t crazy, it’s just a different operating system 😒.

All in all, it will not be taking a spot on my recommendation list. Great show, bad autism.

Hope you enjoyed this post dear Earthlings!

Have a lovely weekend! 🙂

Aoife

0

Autism in ‘Geek Girl’

Greetings Earthling! 😀

This week I’d like to talk about the new young adult series Geek Girl on Netflix (they’re really on the ball with neurodiversity the last few years!) and it’s accurate depiction of the struggles of an autistic teenage girl.

Based on the Geek Girl books by Holly Smale (which I have purchased and will write about eventually), the series follows awkward “geek” Harriet Manners who’s life completely changes after being scouted by a modelling agency. Mercilessly bullied at school, she sets out on her modelling journey to reinvent herself. You can check out a trailer for the series here:

But you haven’t mentioned anything about autism yet Aoife?

So- the author Holly Smale wrote these books based on her own experiences of being an awkward teen model, BUT Holly was diagnosed with autism at the age of 39 and has retrospectively described Harriet as autistic. As such, it seems that the TV series is planning to incorporate an autism diagnosis down the line, as lead actress Emily Carey is autistic, and there have been many hints to her neurodivergence including a conversation between her agent and her father about seeking a professional and not wanting to label her.

So what did I make of the show?

Well I absolutely loved it- a lovely wholesome show with an authentic portrayal of neurodivergence, I was hooked! Harriet’s autistic traits were subtle (as they are for most high functioning autists)- stimming, coordination issues, minor issues reading social cues etc. What really sets the series apart from others though is Harriet’s narration. We get to see her internal monologue, how she thinks and processes, which really helps to give an insight into what we autists go through on the inside (though I will say that my internal monologues speak waaaaaaay faster than Harriet’s 😂). Harriet’s friend Toby is also clearly on the spectrum, albeit he presents far more like the traditional autistic oddball that we often see in media depictions of autism- which while a little stereotypical, really helps to show how different male and female presentations of autism can differ.

One of the other things I found most interesting was how Harriet’s dad also appears to be neurodivergent. He seems to struggle with work, is quite nerdy and eccentric (he drives Harriet to school in his PJs one day) and is described by his wife as very childish. At one point during an online job interview his wife holds up flashcards for him coaching him on what to say, reminding me of how people have tried to guide me in certain social situations. Very often with on screen portrayals of autism we focus on the child or the oddball single adult, we don’t tend to see neurodivergence in the wider family like between parent and child 0r other spectrum siblings. Autism is highly genetic with many parents discovering their neurodivergence after their child is diagnosed, and there can often be multiple autistic children within a family (I once came across a family with 5 sons on the spectrum).

My one criticism, again like Dinosaur, was Harriet’s stereotypical love of dinosaurs and desire to be a paleontologist, buuutttt as a real autist wrote the show, I can’t really argue with lived experience 😜. I’m really starting to wonder- did I miss the autism memo that you need to be obsessed with dinosaurs cause I have never really seen the fascination 🤣🙈 Dogs are much more my vibe!

Interestingly, many critics have branded the show an “inauthentic” representation of autism… to which Holly Smale had the following to say:

“It’s based on books written by me (autistic), about me as a teen (autistic). I wrote all of Harriet for the show (still autistic) and the lead actor is autistic. It’s the DEFINITION of authentic. I think people are so used to seeing inauthentic representation they don’t recognise it when it’s in front of them.”

You can’t get more authentic than that folks! 🤣🙈

All in all I highly recommend this show and look forward to seeing Harriet’s journey in future seasons!

Hope you enjoyed this post dear Earthlings! 🙂

Have a lovely weekend!

Aoife

0

Autism in ‘Dinosaur’

Greetings Earthlings! 🙂

As autism awareness month comes to a close, this week I’d like to talk about autism in the new BBC Scotland sitcom Dinosaur.

So what exactly is Dinosaur about?

Dinosaur follows autistic palaeontologist Nina (played by autistic actress, comedian and show co-writer Ashley Storrie) who is content with her life in Glasgow, but finds her life upended by her sister’s impulsive decision to marry a man she has known for only 6 weeks. Cue hilarious chaos as Nina tries to navigate this transition whilst balancing the pressures of work, love, and being her sisters maid of honour.

You can check out a trailer for the series here:

So what did I make of it?

Aside from the fact that Nina’s dinosaur obsessions is ever so slightly stereotypical, I loved this sitcom and found it a refreshingly honest portrayal of life on the spectrum. Too often scriptwriters tend towards the hyperbolic when it comes to autism, but this show hits the mark perfectly for what life is like for a high functioning autist.

The show is highly self-aware tackling common stereotypes head on in humorous fashion. When Evie’s fiancé Ranesh starts talking about Nina’s autism, Nina pre-empts his stereotypes muttering “Don’t’ say it!” under her breath, before Ranesh describes having autism as a “superpower!” Another episode see’s Nina’s boss, (while reprimanding her for saying that Jurassic Park should have been named ‘Cretaceous Park’), tell her that they don’t want to give the impression of paleontologists as being “rigid and a bit autistic” for her to respond, “But I am autistic!” leaving her boss completely mortified.

More importantly, Nina doesn’t take herself too seriously. In one conversation with her sister (in an episode where everyone was pretending to be something they were not for Evie’s soon to be father-in-law), Nina gives Evie a pep talk telling her that she can keep up the pretense if Nina can and ” [she is] literally autistic”! This particularly made me chuckle as I have often made this remark with regard to neurotypicals claiming they aren’t able to do some basic things that I as an autist have no issues doing! 🙈

Nina’s unfiltered moments land casually without the need for exaggeration. Her stimming is subtle, like playing with her necklace, and tapping and fidgeting with her fingers when she is getting overwhelmed. No stereotypical hand flapping or head banging here! I particularly liked how they showed Nina having a meltdown when trying on bridesmaid dresses- shopping being a situation where I often get overwhelmed. The pressure from the salespeople, being under pressure for time after she arrived late, the heat of the shop, the itchy fabric, being told a dress is fabulous on her that really does not suit her etc. Nina promptly had to exit the shop and scream into a bush from the pressure of the task- a feeling I know all too well.  In a later episode they showed Nina crying and struggling to breathe during a meltdown- finally showing a realistic portrayal of how most of my meltdowns manifest.

Another positive aspect of the show was the portrayal of Nina naturally pursuing a relationship. Often these types of storylines are forced like ‘I want to have/should have a girlfriend/boyfriend, so I’m on a mission to get one and here’s how I’m going to do it’, buuuuuuut that isn’t exactly realistic. In the show, Nina starts to connect with her new barista and bravely decides to ask him out. Her autism is casually discussed, it’s not a huge issue like in other shows- she’s just a neurospicy girl going out on an awkward first date like anyone else. Moreover, the show doesn’t portray her as a sexually inept weirdo as many shows tend to. In a particularly humorous moment during a spicy confession game at her sisters hen party, Nina’s mother tells her to cover her ears, only for Nina to boldly tell her mother that she’s done it 13 times (much to her mothers surprise)! 🤣🙈 The show truly does Nina justice by showing the world that we’re just out here living our lives like everyone else; we just think a little bit differently.

While it would have been nice if Nina had had a slightly more ordinary job, especially given that it tends to be more male autists that obsess over dinosaurs than women, all in all this show is an excellent depiction of autism with some great laugh out loud moments to boot.

Hope you enjoyed this post dear Earthlings! 😊

Have a lovely weekend!

Aoife

1

Autism on Screen- The Assembly

Greetings Earthlings! 🙂

This week I’d like to talk about a new TV interview show on BCC called ‘The Assembly’. The format of this show involves a celebrity being grilled by a panel of journalists over the course of 3 hours (30 minutes of which are broadcast). Sounds simple enough, however, the unique thing about this TV show is that the panel is comprised entirely of 35 neurodivergent novice journalists! Bucking the growing trend of highly scripted, edited, agenda driven interviews, the show is an un-filtered breath of fresh air where no question is out of bounds.

The Assembly is carefully recorded with autists in mind to prevent sensory overload, such as recording in a room with lots of natural light (to avoid fluorescent artificial lights). This show is the UK adaptation of the popular French show ‘Les Rencontres du Papotin‘ where many French public figures such as Emanuel Macron were interviewed by a neurodivergent panel run by the newspaper Le Papotin. In honour of Autism Acceptance Week, the BBC broadcast an interview with Welsh actor Michael Sheen on Friday the 5th of April. There are no further episodes currently scheduled, but showrunners have lots of eager celebrities wishing to be interviewed should The Assembly be picked up for series. You can see a trailer for the series here:

The show is a very heartwarming and wholesome affair that has had reviewers raving about it. The questions are so unexpected (ranging from Michael’s opinions on the royal family to the age gap between him and his partner) with delightful results. Michael is such a kind and patient interviewee providing insightful and hilarious answers to the delight of his audience. In one particularly touching moment, a very shy interviewer named Leo is struggling to get past his nerves to ask his question, but Michael is patient with him, allowing him the time and space to ask a very insightful question about Michaels favourite poet.

All in all the show is a wonderful change to your regularly scheduled BBC interview, with the added bonus that the show provides visibility and creates opportunities for the often marginalized autistic community.

Hope you enjoyed this post dear Earthlings! 🙂

Have a lovely weekend!

Aoife

0

Autism in Abbott Elementary

Greetings Earthlings! 🙂

This week I’d like to discuss a possible autistic character in the award winning mockumentary sitcom Abbott Elementary.

So what is Abbott Elementary about?

Abbott Elementary follows a misfit group of teachers in the fictional primary school Abbott Elementary, a severely underfunded, mismanaged public school in Philadelphia. The teachers try their best to make do with their limited resources, often with hilarious consequences.

If you haven’t seen it yet, here’s a trailer for the show:

Many viewers, myself included, believe that substitute (and later first grade) teacher Gregory Eddie, played by Tyler James Williams, is on the spectrum. While it is never discussed, Gregory displays many subtle autistic traits that add to the humour of the show, normalizing neurodiversity without the drama and labels.

Gregory is a meticulous planner (at one point he planned his entire school year literally down to minutes and seconds), that sometimes borders on OCD. There are times when it seems like he has sensory issues around colour, preferring clean walls in his classroom. He loves rules and structure, and hates anything illogical or unjust. Gregory often struggles to relate to his pupils, but is at ease with his adult colleagues as they are far more predictable than children.

He always wears his feelings on his face, with the documentary camera crew often panning to his sassy side eye to record his disapproving and uncomfortable reactions. You can get a taste of his side eye in these clips:

One episode in particular showcases Gregory’s issues with food which really resonated with me. In the episode, the staff are debating their favourite pizza places. To avoid conflict, Gregory makes up a fake pizza restaurant to throw them off the scent that he doesn’t like pizza as people never understand why. He admits to liking maybe 5 things as you can see in the clip below:

I particularly related to this episode as I often feel a similar need to lie around food related matters, like pretending that I’m not hungry when the food options are not to my tastes. It just get’s too awkward to explain.

All in all, while we cannot be sure that Gregory is autistic, he certainly paints a pretty good portrait of a high functioning autist.

Hope you enjoyed this post dear Earthlings!

Have a lovey weekend!

Aoife

2

Autism in ‘Not Dead Yet’

Greetings Earthlings! 🙂

This week I’d like to talk about an autistic character in the ABC sitcom ‘Not Dead Yet‘ starring Gina Rodriguez of ‘Jane the Virgin‘ fame.

So what’s the series about?

In a nutshell, Nell is an out of work journalist trying to get back in the game after leaving her job 5 years ago to move to London with her then boyfriend. She returns to the States with her tail between her legs, taking a job writing obituaries for her former employers. Things start to get interesting however, when Nell starts to see the ghosts of her subjects!

You can check out a trailer for the series here:

So back to autism.

Nell’s room mate Edward is on the autistic spectrum, played by autistic actor Rick Glassman. A nerdy, brutally honest, passionate environmental lawyer, Edward needs strict routines like the majority of autists, but for the most part he is a “normal” functioning member of society.

You can see a clip here where he opens up to Nell about his diagnosis here:

@menasimagination

played by autistic actor Rick Glassman (Not Dead Yet S1E1) #fypシ#viral#actuallyautistic#notdeadyet#notdeadyetabc#edwardnotdeadyet#rickglassman#autisticrepresentation#autisticcharacters#asd

♬ original sound – Mena 🧠

One of the interesting things about the character of Edward is that the casting director sent out a casting call for neurodivergent or autistic actors. The character wasn’t necessarily written as autistic, but they were open to making Edward autistic as they wanted to get extra ideas of people who aren’t normally represented- a very positive move for the entertainment industry. The writers also hired autism consultant David Finch to ensure that they were accurately depicting the day to day nuances of living as an autistic adult, something that really comes across in the series.

The show is quite refreshing as Edward is used as comic relief but not in the way you would expect. So often the autist is the butt of the joke in comedic TV shows, but in ‘Not Dead Yet‘, Edward flips the script and makes fun of everyone else with his neurodivergent asides and unfiltered comments. One of the things that I really connected with however was how the writers handled masking. When Edward’s girlfriend is in town, he takes on a completely different persona. He hides his nerdy toys, pretends to be spontaneous and nonchalant- the complete antithesis of the Edward we had seen thus far. Thankfully, Nell, despite preferring many of his false traits, encourages him to drop his mask and be himself which you can see in the clip below:

It’s really heartening to see this scene as so often autists are encouraged to mask to fit in, often at the loss of self. I spent much of my teenage years masking, often suppressing my true interests and quirks to fit in with my peer group. I feigned interest in girly things like pop bands and trashy TV shows just to have things to talk about, when what I really wanted was to talk gaming and rock n’ roll! It was only after I went to college and began to embrace my quirks and just be me that I made true friends like Edward has in Nell.

I highly recommend watching this series (it’s currently available on Disney +) as it’s a quirky easy watch with a lot of heart.

Hope you enjoyed this post dear Earthlings! 🙂

Have a lovely weekend!

Aoife

2

Autism in Girl Meets World

Greetings Earthlings! 🙂

This week I’d like to discuss the depiction of autism in the Disney + coming of age comedy series ‘Girl Meets World‘ (the spin-off/sequel to the 90’s classic ‘Boy Meets World‘) in an episode from 2015 that has been doing the rounds on Tik Tok in recent months.

The clip from the series depicts the shows protagonist Riley and her group of friends finding out that their best friend Farkle may be on the autistic spectrum, specifically he may have Asperger’s syndrome. Farkle was recently given an aptitude test that affirmed, what he always knew, that he is a genius. Following additional tests to confirm his IQ, it was decided that he should also be tested for autism as he presents with many traits such as touch aversion, social awkwardness, specialist interests etc. (we won’t get into how they automatically jumped to spectrum from a genius test 🙄).

Now while it’s great that such an important topic is getting airtime on a channel as big as Disney, the clip has been viewed quite negatively by the autistic community. After telling his friends that he may have autism, their reactions are somewhat overdramatic. Riley’s friend Maya automatically jumps off the couch and vehemently proclaims “You don’t!”, while Riley similarly jumps up saying “Let’s go tell them you don’t!” Moreover, Riley and Farkle’s parent’s set quite a serious and sombre tone in the room about his potential diagnosis which doesn’t help the vibe. Although not included in the original viral clip, the gang later study up on Asperger’s and every time that Farkle agrees with a trait and gives an example, Maya grabs him and tells him to “Stop doing that! He’s going to stop doing that!” Needless to say, autists everywhere have been highly offended by the reactions as they are treating autism like a terminal disease! This has even made many afraid to disclose their diagnosis to their friends based on this reaction (although I would argue that this is an overreaction as my friends have been nothing but accepting and supportive when I have disclosed my diagnosis).

The clip has since been edited/removed, but you can watch the episode in full on Disney + (Season 2 Episode 15). Here’s a clip instead introducing us to Farkle:

Ultimately, it turns out that Farkle isn’t on the spectrum, so there was a whole lot of hullabaloo about nothing, BUT it is revealed later on in the episode that Farkle’s female nemesis (and later girlfriend) Smackle was diagnosed with Asperger’s at 5 years old. She like Farkle is also a genius (whhhhyyy must we perpetuate these stereotypes!!!), with an aversion to hugs, difficulty reading social cues and struggles to make friends. Her depiction is very stereotypical Aspergers male and doesn’t tie in with how most women with autism actually present- although it is nice to see another woman on screen where autistic men are the media majority.

The episode ends with everyone accepting Smackle and showing her that none of them in the group identify as “normal” nor aspire to be “normal”, ending everything on a slightly better note of acceptance- something that most of the online chatter didn’t delve into following the disastrous reaction to Farkle’s potential diagnosis.

All in all, this type of representation is not great, but at least the tone does even out by the end of the episode. It’s a very stereotyped depiction and the initial reaction of the gang can be quite triggering for some autists, but I’ve definitely seen way worse handling of this issue. That being said, this episode does come from 2015 and media depictions have come a long way since then, with many shifting to cast autistic actors for accurate on screen portrayals- like the character of Quinni in Heartbreak High. As with history, we should learn from the past and look to examples like this as ‘what not to do’ so that media portrayals going forward will be far more reflective of the real autistic experience.

Hope you enjoyed this post dear Earthlings! 🙂

Have a lovely weekend!

Aoife

0

Autism in Stranger Things?

Greetings Earthlings! 🙂

Following the recent release of Netflix sensation ‘Stranger Things‘ Season 4 Vol., this week I’d like to discuss a possible autistic character that many fans have been discussing online since the season dropped (don’t worry- I’ll keep this spoiler free!).

So before I get into discussing this character, what’s Stranger Things about?

For those of you who may not have heard of Netflix’s all time most streamed TV show, Stranger Things is an 80’s nostalgia sci-fi/horror/drama series set in the fictional town of Hawkins Indiana. Secret government cold war experiments exploring psychokinesis have ripped a portal to an alternate dimension filled with monsters called the ‘Upside Down’, leading to a series of mysterious events in Hawkins which a young group of pre-teens set out to investigate after their friend Will disappears.

Now back to autism.

In the most recent series, one of the new characters introduced in the last season, now appears to be showing a lot of neurodivergent traits- Robin Buckley, played by Maya Hawke (daughter of Hollywood legends Uma Thurman and Ethan Hawke).

Robin is a highly intelligent high school student that befriends the main Stranger Things gang in season 3 when Russian scientists build a portal to the Upside Down in a secret lab beneath the mall that she works at. Described as “an alternative girl” when her casting was first announced, Robin has certainly captured the attention of autistic viewers as her character has developed in season 4. Throughout the season, Robin has been very quirky, exhibiting no filter and rambling constantly about random topics, but can also be quite easily distracted, suggesting that like many autists she has ADHD.

She mentions that she has no grasp of social cues and has awful coordination, claiming that she took 6 months longer to walk than the other babies which she says was not normal. Robin also claims to be a terrible liar and regularly addresses her weirdness and tendency to inadvertently come across as mean or condescending, constantly asking her friends if she is being annoying.

During one particularly memorable scene, Robin, a notorious tomboy, is dressed up in tight frilly clothing which she constantly complains about, arguing that the borrowed outfit is itchy, the bra is pinching her, and the blouse is strangling her, which could suggest that sensory sensitivities could be driving her penchant for baggy clothing.

Most autistic fans did not notice much in the line of neurodiversity in season 3, but other keen eyed viewers have noted traits prior to season 4 citing her ability to hyperfocus, her memory, her ability to connect dots the others can’t, her blunt truth bombs and that she is a member of the LGBTQ+ community (which a large proportion of autists are). Robin also remarked in season 3 “I feel like my whole life has been one big error“, a sentiment that many an autist can relate to. It could be argued that perhaps now that Robin is part of the gang, she is far more relaxed and doesn’t feel the need to mask as much as she did in season 3.

Whilst it is highly unlikely that Robin will have an autism story-line given how poorly understood autism was in women during the 1980’s, nevertheless it’s always nice for autistic fans to feel seen when watching our favourite shows. It will be interesting to see how her character develops in season 4 vol 2 and beyond!

Hope you enjoyed this post dear Earthlings!

Have a lovely weekend! 🙂

Aoife

2

Blog at WordPress.com.

Up ↑