Super Drags

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Super Drags
Genre
Created by
  • Anderson Mahanski
  • Paulo Lescaut
  • Fernando Mendonça
Written by
  • Paulo Lescaut
  • Marcelo Souza
  • Fernanda Brandalise
  • Chico Amorim
  • Vânia Matos
Directed by
  • Fernando Mendonça
Voices of
Opening theme"Highlight" by Pabllo Vittar
Country of originBrazil
Original languagesPortuguese
English
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes5
Production
Executive producer
  • Marcelo Pereira
ProducerMarcelo Pereira
Running time23–25 minutes
Production companyCombo Estúdio
Original release
NetworkNetflix
ReleaseNovember 9, 2018 (2018-11-09)

Super Drags is a Brazilian adult animated comedy television series created by Anderson Mahanski, Fernando Mendonça and Paulo Lescaut for Netflix.[1]

Produced by Combo Estúdio, the series follows the adventures of Donizete, Patrick, and Ralph, three friends working in a department store who are also drag queen superheroes: Scarlet Carmesim, Lemon Chiffon, and Safira Cyan, the Super Drags responsible for protecting the LGBT community.[2] and they need to combat with the homophobic villain Lady Elza.[3]

The series has an English dub featuring the voices of RuPaul's Drag Race contestants Trixie Mattel, Ginger Minj, Willam, and Shangela.[4]

Cancellation[edit]

Five episodes were released on November 9, 2018. The following month, Netflix cancelled the series after one season.[5][6]

Cast and characters[edit]

Cast and characters of Super Drags
Character Original voice English dub voice
Donizete / Scarlet Carmesim Fernando Mendonça Shangela
Patrick / Lemon Chiffon Sérgio Cantú Ginger Minj
Ralph / Safira Cyan Wagner Follare Rod Keller
Goldiva Pabllo Vittar Jeff Manabat
Vedete Champagne Silvetty Montilla Trixie Mattel
Lady Elza Rapha Vélez Willam Belli
Jezebel Sylvia Salustti Anna Stromberg
Sandoval Fernando Mendonça Marz Richards
Val Valadão Patrícia Garcia Jaquita Ta'le
Robertinho / Janjão Guilherme Briggs Henry Dittman

Episodes[edit]

Season 1 (2018)[edit]

No.TitleDirected byWritten byOriginal air date
1"Lipsync Time"Fernando MendonçaVânia MatosNovember 9, 2018 (2018-11-09)
To restore her beauty, Lady Elza steals all the "highlight" energy from LGBTQ concertgoers at a Goldiva show, spurring the Super Drags to save the day.
2"Image Is Everything"Fernando MendonçaChico AmorimNovember 9, 2018 (2018-11-09)
Disqualified from a mission to stop Lady Elza's new robot monster, which seems to target victims based on their looks, Patrick gives himself a makeover.
3"The Gay Cure"Fernando MendonçaFernanda BrandaliseNovember 9, 2018 (2018-11-09)
Rejected by his father after coming out to him, Ralph attends Sandoval's "gay cure" boot camp, where Donizete and Patrick are sent to work undercover.
4"Be Who You Are"Fernando MendonçaMarcelo SouzaNovember 9, 2018 (2018-11-09)
When Goldiva is kidnapped ahead of her next concert and the Super Drags are summoned to save her, Scarlet learns about the pop diva's past.
5"A Single Voice"Fernando MendonçaPaulo LescautNovember 9, 2018 (2018-11-09)
At Goldiva's concert, Lady Elza takes the stage and amps herself up by draining the audience's highlight, putting the Super Drags in serious danger.

Production[edit]

LGBTQ representation[edit]

Main article: Netflix and LGBTQ representation in other animations

A year after Castlevania began streaming, Super Drags was added to Netflix. The show focuses on Donizete, Patrick, and Ralph, three gay friends working in a department store,[7] who are also drag queen superheroes, named Scarlet Carmesim, Lemon Chiffon, and Safira Cyan are the Super Drags, and are responsible for protecting the LGBTQ community.[8] On December 30, 2020, Donnie Lopez published an article on Black Girl Nerds, lamenting the lack of an "animated gay Latino male superhero being the lead of his own show," saying that while there has been an increase in the number of "LGBT+ folks being presented on family animated superhero shows," this has mainly focused on lesbian and bisexual characters, without "gay male Latino/Hispanic superhero animated leads."[9] Lopez added that maintaining, popularizing, and creating gay characters can start to assuage harmful attitudes, noting that shows seldom "give gay male POC characters the title roles" in children's animation, leading them to perpetrate the idea that "gay male characters cannot be standalone titular characters." Even so, he gives the example of Aqualad in Season Three of Young Justice who is a bisexual Black man, while qualifying this by saying that Aqualad is "not the principal character of the show" and noting that while Super Drags did make gay men the protagonists, it "reinforced negative stereotypes" and hoped that the "lack of gay representation" in these animations could be remedied in the future.

Marketing and release[edit]

The first trailer was released on October 19, 2018.[10] A Halloween special short video entitled "Gag! Gross, but I love it" ("Credo Que Delícia", in the original version) was released on October 31, 2018 on the series' official Facebook page.[11] The music video "Highlight", performed by Pabllo Vittar, which features main characters of the series, was released on November 7, 2018.[12] The first season, consisting of five episodes, was officially released on November 9, 2018.[13]

Reception[edit]

Decider gave the show a positive review while noting that "We can’t deny we were hoping the humor here would be sharper."[3] Charles Puilliam-Moore of Io9 praised the show for its political commentary and condemnation of homophobia, while criticizing some of the raunchier aspects of its humor as a weak part of the show.[14] S.E. Fleenor wrote a positive review for SyFy Wire, calling it "an outrageous, adults-only, gay romp filled with sardonic condemnations of the rampant erasure and destruction of queer people told through harrowing exploits, hypersexual superpowers, and hilariously floppy cartoon bulges."[15]

Controversy[edit]

Before its release, the series was the subject of controversy. In July 2018, the Brazilian Society of Pediatrics issued an official statement, claiming that the series could be harmful for children. However, Netflix has stated that the series is only meant for adult audiences, subsequently releasing a red-band trailer with a TV-MA rating displayed throughout. Also, another video was released, where Champagne, one of the series' characters, warns viewers that even though the series is animated, it contains adult content and is only for people over the age of 16.[16][17][18][19]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Zahed, Ramin (June 1, 2018). "Netflix Unleashes Sassy 'Super Drags' Teaser". Animation Magazine. Retrieved October 19, 2018.
  2. ^ Enlow, Courtney (June 1, 2018). "THE NETFLIX TEASER FOR SUPER DRAGS COMBINES EVERYTHING WE LOVE". Syfy Wire. NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment Group. Archived from the original on May 25, 2019. Retrieved October 19, 2018.
  3. ^ a b "Stream It Or Skip It: 'Super Drags' on Netflix, Which Really Wants You to Know It's Not for Kids". Decider. 2018-11-09. Retrieved 2020-09-25.
  4. ^ Starkey, Adam (October 20, 2018). "Shangela and Trixie Mattel star in Netflix's raunchy cartoon Super Drags – watch first trailer". Metro. Retrieved October 22, 2018.
  5. ^ Jardim, Lauro (December 21, 2018). "A onda conservadora e as drag queens". O Globo (in Portuguese). Archived from the original on December 21, 2018. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
  6. ^ "Super Drags on Netflix Reportedly Canceled; No Season 2". What's on Netflix. 2019-01-11. Retrieved 2020-09-25.
  7. ^ "Super Drags". Netflix. October 19, 2018. Archived from the original on October 22, 2018. Retrieved July 9, 2020.
  8. ^ Adegoke, Yomi (June 1, 2018). "Netflix Unleashes Sassy 'Super Drags' Teaser". Animation Magazine. Archived from the original on July 9, 2019. Retrieved July 9, 2020.
  9. ^ Lopez, Donnie (December 30, 2020). "Creating Gay Latino Animated Superhero Leads Still Seems to Be Hollywood's Kryptonite". Black Girl Nerds. Archived from the original on December 30, 2020. Retrieved December 31, 2020.
  10. ^ Ribeiro, Lorena (October 19, 2018). "Featuring Pabllo Vittar as original voice for Goldiva, Super Drags premieres November 9th only on Netflix". Netflix. Retrieved October 22, 2018.
  11. ^ "Super Drags Halloween Special". Facebook. October 31, 2018. Retrieved October 31, 2018.
  12. ^ Portilho, Osmar (November 7, 2018). "Pabllo Vittar lança clipe de "Highlight" com animação das "Super Drags"". UOL (in Portuguese). Grupo Folha. Retrieved November 8, 2018.
  13. ^ Ribeiro, Lorena (October 19, 2018). "Featuring Pabllo Vittar as original voice for Goldiva, Super Drags premieres November 9th only on Netflix". Netflix. Retrieved October 22, 2018.
  14. ^ "Super Drags' Bawdy Queer Humor Is an Important Political Statement". io9. 21 November 2018. Retrieved 2020-09-25.
  15. ^ Fleenor, S. E. (2019-01-02). "Being queer is a superpower in Super Drags". SYFY WIRE. Archived from the original on 2020-12-02. Retrieved 2020-09-25.
  16. ^ "'Super Drags'. Netflix's first Brazilian animation causes controversy". Plataforma Media. July 20, 2018. Archived from the original on October 22, 2018. Retrieved October 22, 2018.
  17. ^ Neves, Marília (July 20, 2018). "Sociedade Brasileira de Pediatria condena 'Super Drags', animação brasileira que é voltada para adultos". G1 (in Portuguese). Retrieved October 22, 2018.
  18. ^ "Super Drags: Red Band Slayage Official Trailer [HD] Netflix". YouTube. October 19, 2018. Retrieved October 29, 2018.
  19. ^ Rudolph, Christopher (August 30, 2018). "Vedete Champagne Warns Children That "Super Drags" Is for Adults Only". NewNowNext. Retrieved October 31, 2018.

External links[edit]

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