This article contains spoilers for the following shows: Sailor Moon (1991-1997), Adventure Time (2010-2018), The Legend of Korra (2012-2014), Steven Universe (2013-2019), She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018-2020), The Owl House (2020-2023).
Animation has significantly impacted the landscape of sapphic representation over the years, and through this genre, we’ve been able to see some of the best sapphic characters and sapphic relationships over the last decade or so. Through this article, I want to take a dive into how animation has changed the game when it comes to sapphic representation, how there’s been a notable increase in these characters and relationships within the genre, and the evolution of said representation.
Starting us off, one of the first instances of sapphic representation in animation that I’m aware of is within the Japanese anime, Sailor Moon. A lot of representation can be found within Japanese anime, but Sailor Moon’s influence throughout the years has had a major impact on the era that we’re currently in with regards to sapphic representation.
Sailor Moon aired in the 90s, a time when censorship of LGBTQ+ relationships was even more prominent. In the dubbed version of the show, aired in the United States, Sailor Uranus—Haruka Tenou—and Sailor Neptune—Michiru Kaiou—don’t show off their relationship like they do in the original Japanese version. In the original version, these two are in a relationship from the get-go and are shown to be in love pretty openly. Although both of them flirt and talk with other characters, they’re dedicated to each other, and are definitely one of the most iconic cases of sapphic representation in animation that influenced works afterwards.
Deviating from the intent of the original Japanese series, the dubbed version of Sailor Moon was heavily censored and edited resulting in a more familial or platonic depiction of the relationship, which was a major detriment to the community and representation as a whole. It’s a case of people seeing sapphic couples as “they’re like sisters!” or “they’re gal pals!” which has caused a ripple effect over time, with many people still seeing canon couples or canon feelings between sapphic characters as familial or platonic.
Despite the censorship and obstacles, Sailor Moon is recognized and celebrated as a significant piece of sapphic media that many fans and sapphic people give credit to for the eventual acceptance of these relationships.
Skipping forward to the year 2012, The Legend of Korra aired and delivered one of the most subtle representations of a sapphic romance–and one of the most opposed.
Presently, Korra and Asami are happily in love within the comics connected to the original show, and the creators of the show as well as the illustrators for the comics make it no secret that they’re together after everything. However, they didn’t always start this way, and it’s clear that there were major obstacles put in place to not show any of it within the show. Korra and Asami both jump back and forth from being with Mako, a firebender that joins Korra’s Avatar team in the first season. For the majority of the show, eventually both women are single and leave Mako behind, but not for the sake of being together.
Korra is left traumatized—both physically and mentally—from her fight with Zaheer, a rebellious anarchist that believes in a new world order where there is freedom for all, with no Avatar cycle, faction leaders, or Government ruling over everyone. From Season 3 onwards, after the battle that almost kills Korra and ends the Avatar cycle, there are little hints here and there of the build up of Korra and Asami’s relationship while Korra works through her trauma. The fact that they only correspond with each other during Korra’s three year absence, the subtle flirting and blushing between the two when they finally reunite, and the way they seem to be even closer after their separation are all indicators that the creators knew what they were doing at the time. The cherry on top of the cake is the two women holding hands and walking into the Spirit World at the end of the series.
It’s notorious information that Nickelodeon was very against Korra and Asami, and the creators tried their best to work around that to ensure their relationship makes sense by the end of the series. The low point of Korra and Asami is that they weren't given the space to flesh out their love within the show itself, which is an unfortunate situation that many sapphic relationships deal with. However, it’s the comics that build that back up and show them as a happy couple, making it clear that this was the creators’ plan all along. It may not be a perfect representation, as they weren’t given a full chance, however, it’s another important layer to the evolution of sapphic representation that must be recognized for paving the way for future animations to include these relationships.
Next comes Steven Universe, an iconic animated show that aired in 2013 and is still well-beloved to this day. Through Steven Universe, we see the classic case of censorship yet again, but the team behind the show persisted in their efforts to make the central sapphic relationship between Ruby and Sapphire—among other sapphic characters—understood and seen as the show goes on.
Ruby and Sapphire are Gems—otherworldly, magical, humanoid beings that are based around real life gemstones/minerals– which can combine with one another to create stronger gems in a process called fusion. When Ruby and Sapphire fuse, they become one of the most beloved characters in the show: Garnet. And what’s amazing about Garnet is that although she’s her own Gem at the end of the day, outside of Ruby and Sapphire, she’s made up of two Gems that genuinely love each other and use their romantic connection to stay fused for as long as they want. A normal fusion between Gems only lasts for so long, as many of the fusions on the show, such as Pearl and Amethyst, or Pearl and Steven, are born from a place of a different kind of love, either familial or platonic.
Garnet is a different case altogether, as it’s the love between Ruby and Sapphire that keep them fused together and make them stronger Gems together and separately. Through a few other episodes in the series, we get to see small snippets of their relationship outside of being Garnet, including cheek kisses, embraces, affectionate words, and even a full-on wedding for them in Season 5. Although this wedding, and the other moments, were heavily influenced by censorship from the network, the team worked hard to keep these moments in there. Through the obstacles, Steven Universe was able to showcase more than Sailor Moon and The Legend of Korra, and although they weren’t a constant focus within the show, the love that we did see between them definitely helped pave the way for normalizing these relationships in shows afterwards.
Now we’ll jump to 2018 to talk about She-Ra and The Princesses of Power. When the show aired that year, I wasn’t sure what to expect when I came across a small clip on Twitter of the first episode. But then I saw Catra and Adora within the first minutes of the episode and what their dynamic was. This trailer changed the game for me and many other fans when it came to the show, as my friends and I right away went: “now, hold on, who are these two, and are they into each other?”
Turns out, they absolutely were. N.D Stevenson, the creator of the show, has been open about how difficult it was to portray this relationship, and as a massive fan of the show, I myself can’t believe how much twisting and turning Stevenson had to accomplish in order to have that big kiss in the series finale. The love confession in the very end of the show, the kiss that saved Etheria, almost wasn’t able to happen; Stevenson and the other writers had to weave this relationship so intricately into the storyline, that they had no choice but to show that love explicitly. After heartbreak, war, misunderstandings, and despair, both of these characters eventually come back together. It fights against the expected ending for sapphic couples, which tends to be heartache and pain, or someone dying, or someone cheating on the other. It shows genuine love and affection in the end, with them both being happy despite how much it took to get them there.
Although Catra and Adora fell victim to the last episode curse, much like Korra and Asami, it's evident that the shows that came before She-Ra allowed for the space to have this epic love confession and kiss at the end. She-Ra is proof of progress within the media as a whole, and the show will have a legacy of subverting problematic representation and opening a door to a new kind for media in the future.
Finally, let’s talk about The Owl House, which aired in 2020 and is set to have its final episode in 2023. Right from the get-go, series creator Dana Terrace wasn't playing around with the aspect of representation. With little dialogue slips here and there from the main character Luz, depicting her blushing at both boys and girls in the show, and her tentative, but compelling, friendship with Amity at the start, The Owl House makes it very clear that Luz must be a fan of NSync (that is, she’s bi, bi, bi, baby).
Over the course of the show, Luz slowly befriends another young girl named Amity in the Boiling Isles, the realm that Luz finds herself trapped in after going through a mysterious door. Although Amity starts off as a bully towards Luz and her friends, mostly Willow, the show takes steps to make it clear that Amity is more than what she seems on the surface. Through Season 1, we get to see her walls breaking down and eventually she and Luz become actual friends, with the explicit hint of Amity liking Luz as more than just a friend. Then finally in Season 2, the relationship progresses to the point of an adorable confession of feelings and hand holding, then asking each other to be girlfriends.
Disney is infamous for its horrible LGBTQ+ representation in general, and sapphic relationships don’t get let off easy either. Although Luz and Amity are the sweetest little couple at this point, having finally shared a kiss towards the end of Season 2 and continue to be pretty solid—shown in trailers and clips for the next season–the major downside of their relationship is the fact that The Owl House airs on Disney. Despite how popular and loved the show is, and despite how amazing it is, Disney axed the series and it is set to be canceled after Season 3 which ends in 2023.
It’s a heartbreaking situation, as the representation that Luz and Amity’s relationship provides for many people is something very special, for kids and adults alike, who may see themselves in the characters. Despite progress made in spec-fic media, specifically animation, sometimes there are things that still go wrong, and we take a million steps backwards. The representation of Luz and Amity, and other sapphic supporting characters such as Raine and Eda, is so important for kids to see on a Disney show, as kids shows have resisted LGBTQ+ pairings or characters in the past, and still attempt to do so. That message can be damaging to young queer people, who might believe that there’s something wrong with them for feeling the way that they do, or identifying the way they do. For adults watching the show, it means the world to see positive, proper representation that we didn’t get to see in our favourite cartoons growing up. For kids, it shows that from a young age, you can know who you are, and that there’s nothing wrong with it. Although The Owl House will be leaving us in 2023, the evolution continues beyond this point, and it’ll be remembered for all it’s done in terms of positive, non-stereotypical, happy depictions of sapphic love.
This is where we’ll leave off with sapphic representation in spec-fic animation. Although there are still obstacles in place on certain networks and within the general public, it’s clear that over time, things have slowly gotten better in terms of how much has been shown with these characters and relationships. From Sailor Moon to The Owl House, sapphic representation has been given the chance to shine more in the animated scene, and within this genre, I have high hopes for the future and believe that these pieces of media will continue to impact the sapphic representation going forward.