Tinkerbell: The New “Butch Action Star”

Conservative writer Debbie Schlussel, best known for her anti-Islamic vitriol, has a new target: Disney’s Tinkerbell. Schussel criticizes the new look Tink is sporting for her latest movie, Tinker Bell and the Lost Treasure, calling it “butch and silly” and “not that different from Peter Pan.” (Clearly she’s forgotten that women played Peter Pan in many major productions of the story: Jean Arthur, Betty Bronson, Zena Dare, Sandy Duncan, Mia Farrow, Mary Martin, and Cathy Rigby, among others. There was already plenty of overlap between Peter and Tink.)

Schlussel says the new look “leaves a lot to be desired from the formerly cute and feminine minidress clad nymph. . . . The new Tinker Bell could be dating Rosie O’Donnell. Hey, maybe now she/he/it can ‘run’ the Department of Homeland Security.”

Hmm. If Schlussel thinks that look is butch, I’ve got a few flannel shirts to sell her. Besides, Disney seems to be going for the more feminine look on the DVD cover. I don’t think Tink is really abandoning her femme side.

Schlussel has more, including how this is all going to lead to an emasculated, matriarchical society that doesn’t have “staying power.” That’s right: putting Tink in anything other than a minidress will lead to the collapse of civilization as we know it.

I’m not going to boost Schlussel’s search-engine rankings with a live link. You can read her rant—complete with vile anti-Islamic comments here:

Tinkerbell Gone Butch: Disney Revamps Glamorous Nymph Into Tomboy

Thanks to Alas, a Blog, to whom I am happy to link, for noticing the story. Jeff Fecke makes a number of additional good points, so go have a read.

Me? I think Tink as a butch action star wouldn’t be such a bad thing. Disney has rather a surfeit of princesses these days. Maybe Tink could join Darby from Disney’s My Friends Tigger and Pooh and they could take out the power tools and build a treehouse. Of course, I simply pretended to be Peter Pan when I was little girl, so I’m good whichever way Tink decides to present herself.