In addition, some of the background characters seen at Grom are noticeably gay as well.
10: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
A full fledged reboot of the hit 80s cartoon of the same name, She-Ra is a show you cannot miss for gay rep. The queens embrace affectionately and plant a big lip-lock on each other.
Another season is rumoured to be in the worksand I dearly hope the creators course-correct on their LGBTQ representation for Season 3, because it is a great show in all other ways, and I want to be able to recommend it.
Top 10 LGBTQ+ Cartoons From this Past Decade
1: Adventure Time (2010)
Princess Bubblegum and Marceline have always had something going on between them in the show — with fans speculating that they were gay for years.
Along the way, they help Rachel Bighead, who came out as trans to adjust to her new life and help her reconcile with her dad Mr. Bighead.
Clarence (2014)
Clarence tells the story of a 4th grader Clarence, who along with his best friends Sumo and Jeff, explore the day to day life of middle school all while having crazy adventures.
They are the only other Startouch elf we know of at this point, as their kind are incredibly rare and not much is known about them.
It wasn’t until the series finale in 2018 that the duo got an on-screen kiss together, cementing their relationship status as a canon couple. The Dragon Prince takes a step -- a small one in some ways, yes, but a step vast in its importance.
Season 2 of The Dragon Prince is now available to stream on Netflix.
The Dragon Prince: Belated LGBTQ inclusion falls into a trope trap
Sometimes, you love a thing for everything it does right, even though it has flaws.
We were fans of the original Netflix series The Dragon Prince when it was first released.
There’s adventure, of course; magic and dragons and mythical creatures; plenty of humour and heart; the animation is sophisticated; and the series is chock-full of diverse characters. While this has come mainly from its live-action offerings, the platform-turned-content creator has also been working with creators to convey progressive messages via animated series and movies.
Despite recent mistakes, however, namely the mishandling of Shiro's homosexuality in Voltron: Legendary Defender, The Dragon Prince's recently released second season goes a long way in making up for previous missteps by finally giving us an inspirational lesbian power couple in a way that makes the world of difference.
RELATED: Voltron's Final Season Doesn't Make Up For Its LGBT Problem
The Dragon Prince's new season focuses on five human kingdoms uniting to fight off an incoming magical threat from the land of Xadia.
Pretty much all of the main characters are gay, queer, and everything in between — and its wonderful.
In summary, Bubbline walked so Catradora could run!
Special Mentions:
Rocko’s Modern Life: Static Cling (2019)
A Netflix reboot/special of the cult classic 90s Nick show, Rocko’s Modern Life, Rocko’s Modern Life: Static Cling is centered around the gang being transported to the future, in the late 2010s.
While trying to convince the young queen Aanya of Duren to send her warriors as well, her hesitance leads Viren to regale the group with the story about her mothers, Queen Neha and Queen Annika.
We learn the rulers partnered with Katolis nine years earlier to venture into Xadia to kill a Magma Titan (think of the volcanic Balrog monster from Lord of the Rings), so they could use its heart in a ritual and bring prosperity to the kingdoms plagued by famine.
It’s a pretty down to earth cartoon that should ring familiar to a lot of people’s fond childhood memories.
In season 2, it was revealed that the main character Adam is gay!
6: OK-K.O.! They even ended up having much more development given to their love life down the line in the official The Legend of Korra comic series.
3: Steven Universe (2013)
Steven Universe is hella queer, and undoubtedly laid the foundation for much of this decade’s later gay shows just from how casually open it was about gay characters and relationships.
In addition, one of the main kids of the Loud family, Luna Loud, is openly bi and has a girlfriend Sam.
5: The Hollow (2018)
A rather underrated Netflix cartoon, The Hollow is a show about kids who show up mysteriously in a strange world — many crazy plot twists and weird turns ensue; think of it like Lost for kids.
Thus, the sly Viren, temporarily acting as regent of Katolis, tries to form an alliance to hold back their enemies. Elves, dragons and other mythical creatures are encroaching on their lands. A bunch of teenagers stuck in a crazy post apocalyptic wasteland full of bizarre mutant animals — and it’s gay? We all squeed when finally – finally, finally!
These queens kissing like this, with no fear or worry, is a major step forward in pop culture history.
Commendations must go to The Dragon Prince creatives for how the white-haired Annika and the dark-skinned Neha are presented, not just as an interracial gay couple, but as two of the best warriors in the land. He has a coming out scene and is dating another main character, Claudia (she/her).
Kazi (they/them), a Sunfire sign language interpreter with a passion for research and linguistics.