Vagrant Queen’s “Nobody’s Queen” felt the ideal episode that kept giving me what I needed while surprising me at every turn. And I fucking loved every second of it. This continues to prove that this show is the next best thing you should be watching if you need a bit of distraction, great representation, and a queen like no other.
Watching a young Elida felt magical. Young women of color, particularly of African descent, only have Tiana from The Princess and the Frog to look up to when it comes to princesses and queens. Now they have Elida to look up to as well. And that matters because what you see in TV is a reflection of what is acceptable and normal in life.
Having a queen of color is normalization of women of color in the world and in the scifi genre. It’s saying, “Hey, we are here, we have melanin, and we’re more than ready to conquer this world and everything that comes our way.” And that moment right there is so damn special that when I had it as a Latina it changed my whole perspective on who I was as a person.
And that matters.
Representation matters.
On a special side note, Elida having natural hair when she was younger really matters. To often we’ve seen stories of young women of color who have been told that their natural hair is not acceptable in school grounds or too distracting. Seeing young Elida with her natural hair is normalization of something women of color have been told that makes them different.
Then there’s the queer representation of it all.
It’s there. I see it when Elida looks at Amae or the way she took a moment to center herself before approaching her by the fire. I see it in the way her eyes light up and how she can’t keep her eyes off of the young mechanic. It’s not love (not yet) but it’s enough intrigue that Elida is interested in Amae, hence making her queer AF and the kind of representation I want to see in my scifi shows.
I even see Elida’s feelings for Amae growing in the way that she was worried that she’d offended her. You don’t worry about that unless, and to that degree where you’re asking your old royal buddies for advice, if it didn’t matter. And yes, it’s friendship, there’s no denying that. But it’s also something more that draws them towards each other and is absolutely positively queer.
Personally, I can’t wait. It’s slow burns like this that keep me grounded, entertained, and coming back for more. And Elida being the cynical, “I can’t have your blood on my hands” type of person, it’s going to take more than a couple glances to get them together and into actual territory where they’re more than friends.
So, bring it on Vagrant Queen. Continue giving me the representation that my little heart desires and needs to keep sated, sane, and fed during the hard times we’re all going through right now. I know it’s a big responsibility, but I think you’ve got. I hope you know that too.
Vagrant Queen airs Fridays at 10/9c on Syfy.
