Canon Asexual Characters - Those Three Little Words We All Want to Hear

Image caption: Jughead Jones (left) and Todd Chavez (right), two examples of canon asexual characters

If you asked me to list the characters I like to imagine, hope, pray, and wish are asexual, the list would be longer than my arm. On the other hand, if you asked me to list the characters that actually are asexual, that list would be considerably shorter. That is the difference between what we in fandom circles call “headcanon” and “canon”.

“Canon” refers to what actually happens in a piece of media – the actual plot events and character development. “Headcanon” is what fans imagine is canon in their minds. This happens a lot when specific details about a character or event are not clearly defined in the piece of media – such as when a character’s backstory is not revealed, for instance – allowing fans to imagine details themselves.

Because asexual characters are so rare in media, many characters that people identify with or hope are asexual are actually headcanons; however, there are a few instances of canon asexual characters – characters who are explicitly identified as asexual within their media. Although we are seeing the number of canon asexual characters grow the more asexuality becomes recognized, the number is still very low. When most people talk about canon aspec characters, therefore, they tend to zero in on two in particular: Jughead Jones from the Archie series of comics and Todd Chavez from Netflix’s BoJack Horseman.

[Full disclaimer, I have neither read the Archie comics nor watched BoJack Horseman, so most of my analysis is based solely on things I have read. Additionally, many of the gritty details about these two characters comes from Wikipedia, so bear that in mind. I do not own any of the pictures or video clips in this post.]

Spoiler warning! 

The "New Riverdale" comics by Chip Zdarsky

Riverdale, various episodes

BoJack Horseman, episodes "That Went Well" (season 3, episode 12) and "Hooray! Todd Episode!" (season 4, episode 3)

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Jughead Jones

Image caption: In this scene from one of the "New Riverdale" comics, Jughead Jones (left) is identified by another character specifically saying the words "you're asexual", the first time the character of Jughead is identified as such in any of the Archie comics.

 

The Archie Comics series (also known as just Archie) is a long running series of comics following the exploits of a character named Archie Andrews. First appearing in a comic called “Pep Comics” in 1941 before getting his own series in 1942, the series follows Archie and other typical small-town teenagers from the fictional town of Riverdale through situations as mundane as their love lives and as extraordinary as the zombie apocalypse (yes, I don’t entirely understand it either).

The main character, Archie, is portrayed as friendly, outgoing, and a team-player, but also very much a traditional “guy’s guy” – he likes sports, cars, and girls. Archie’s best friend Jughead Jones, on the other hand, is pretty much Archie’s polar opposite. Clever, but lazy, Jughead is a nonconformist with a snarky, sarcastic sense of humor and one true love – food. In contrast to Archie’s seemingly constant love triangles, Jughead is rarely seen as having any interest in dating, romance, or sex. Obviously, the Archie series began long before “asexuality” was a label people used, but apart from a few notable instances, Jughead has very aromantic asexual tendencies and has for decades.

In 2015 and 2016, the Archie Comics series began a relaunch of the classic series, under the name “New Riverdale”, in which the character of Jughead is explicitly identified as asexual through the dialogue. Writer Chip Zdarsky, who was responsible for the decision, even made the distinction between aromanticism, demiromanticism & demisexuality, and asexuality, which is really wonderful to see. Zdarsky specifically says that AroAce – possibly demiromantic ace later in life – Jughead is the way he prefers to conceptualize the character, but also left the possibility open that other future writers can interpret the character in a completely different manner. And unfortunately, that’s exactly what we see happen outside of “New Riverdale.”

The popularity of the Archie Comics series over the past several decades has not just spawned iterations of the comic book, but has also led to the characters appearing in various forms of media. Archie and his friends have appeared in radio plays, animated shows and movies, and, more recently, a live action television show – the 2017 CW show, Riverdale. Riverdale is a dark mystery take on the Archie series and, although the series adds some diversity to the typical cast of characters, it unfortunately erases the aromanticism and asexuality that was established for Jughead in the “New Riverdale” comics and shows him developing a relationship with the character of Betty Cooper. Both fans and Cole Sprouse, who plays Jughead in the show, expressed their desire to see the AroAce part of Jughead’s character retained; many fans even began a Twitter hashtag campaign centered around trying to get the showrunners to reconsider, using the hashtag “#AroAceJugheadOrBust.” Sadly, these efforts and desires were ignored by the show.

Image caption: Would you like your Jughead original or dark roast? A darker version of Jughead - and all of the Riverdale denizens - can be seen in CW's Riverdale. Despite Cole Sprouse (pictured) and the fans' requests, the show did not choose to make Jughead ace.

Riverdale is not the only piece of media to do this, however. In some Archie related media, Jughead does have romantic relationships; in some, he is even married and/or has children. These things, of course, do not preclude Jughead from being asexual, but it is slightly disappointing given most of Jughead’s character development makes it seem like even those things would be a stretch for him. In other comics, his disinterest in sex or romance stem from heartbreak or childhood trauma. Trauma is a perfectly valid reason why someone may identify as asexual and does not take away from their identity. However, given the general lack of good asexual representation, it is a bit of a letdown to think that an explicitly ace character like Jughead may only be asexual for that reason or that he may one day get married and have children, depending on what comics you read.

In general, having Jughead as an asexual character is a bit of a mixed bag. For a start, his lack of interest in women is often quite sexist (even in some of the more “modern” comics), a disappointing trend we see from other non-sexual male characters as well. At times, he can also be absurdly lazy, gluttonous, and generally a bit of an oddity, but depending on which version of Jughead you’re reading, he’s not without merit. In some comics, he is an intelligent, talented character, and at times he is shown to be incredibly kind and generous, even going so far as to share the foods he loves with those less fortunate. Overall, despite some of the flaws we see in the character and the unfortunate instances of erasure in the media he appears in, having Jughead be asexual is an excellent example of how a character who might have once just been a headcanon can become canon. For that reason, Jughead Jones demonstrates how ace people can fight for canon representation in an effort to get our identity to a more mainstream audience.

Todd Chavez

Image caption: Todd (right) from BoJack Horseman comes out as asexual to BoJack, who supports him with the declaration "That's great!" (Doesn't the color scheme of the room even accidentally look like the ace pride flag?)

Funny enough, there is another canon asexual character who is male, comes from an animated medium, has the “lazy but lovable” vibe down, and wears a signature hat – and that would be Todd Chavez. Todd is a weird but beloved character in Netflix's adult comedy BoJack Horseman, which is about a world where humans and anthropomorphized animals live side by side. As the titular character’s best friend, Todd is often used as a comic foil to BoJack and usually ends up in absurd situations or doing utterly ridiculous things. Nevertheless, he is considered a fan favorite character and so the eventual reveal that he is canonically asexual was celebrated by many people.

Todd’s asexual journey seemed to begin in the show’s third season. In one episode, Todd is pressured to have sex with his girlfriend and, when he subsequently backs out of the encounter at the last minute thanks to his discomfort with the entire situation, she inquires if he is gay or straight. Todd wrestles with the question, eventually saying he doesn't quite feel like he's either and that he thinks he "might be nothing". For many asexual fans, this moment felt like a meaningfully accurate reflection of how they themselves first discovered and started coming to terms with their own aspec identities. However, the show did not choose to merely leave the storyline there, and by season four Todd is shown identifying as asexual on screen and is accepted by his friends.

The scene in which Todd comes out is surprisingly perfect. Watching him start off unsure and then build steam until he’s beaming with pride is so rewarding and it is even more amazing to see BoJack say to him “that’s amazing!” and “that’s great!”. Coming out to people is extremely difficult – to some people it may feel, or even actually somewhat be, completely impossible – so to see Todd be able to do it in what feels like a completely organic and genuine way and be accepted for it is the stuff of dreams. The show also makes the clear distinction between asexual and aromantic, exploring the different romantic orientations and using actual terminology to do so! Todd even dates asexual women in subsequent episodes and goes to asexual meet-ups. In a world where so many pieces of media are afraid to even use the term "asexuality," it is exciting to see BoJack Horseman do so multiple times and also delve deeper into other aspec identities.

For those reasons, Todd and his storylines are important to many asexual people and most people agree his asexual storylines are treated with incredible respect and good exploration. However, just as asexuality is complex, so too is representation and the characters we choose to have be asexual. In an excellent opinion piece written for TV Guide during Pride Week 2019, writer Liz Henges points out that Todd’s journey, although poignant and well told, feels starkly at odds with how goofy the character often is. “While the writers take Todd's struggle to understand himself seriously,” Henges writes, “they don't usually take Todd seriously.”

Henges’s article points out that, when Todd and the show’s other asexual characters are pitted against hypersexual characters, the result is often absurdly slapstick. These plots are usually fueled by the type of jokes that can feel a little uncomfortable from an asexual perspective since we have lived real versions of the scenarios the show is trying to portray as so hilariously over-the-top. Additionally, having Todd always be the humor and the punchline can be tough. “It's hard to watch a show that's doing so much for ace representation do so little with its ace character. I don't like to think that I'm someone else's comic relief on their road to recovery or destruction,” Henges writes.

As I say earlier in this post about Jughead, Henges notes that these things would be all well good if it weren’t for Todd’s rare role as an ace character on TV, which requires him to be so much for so many people. There is so much depth and complexity to the asexual spectrum and the people who identify as a part of it – untold depths that should be explored in various media. Todd and Jughead both serve as good reminders to be thankful for and celebrate the representation we do have, but to also keep fighting for more so that a tiny handful of characters don’t have to do all the heavy lifting by themselves.

Honorable Mention

Although asexual representation in media is still desperately lacking, the good news is that Jughead and Todd are not the only examples of asexual characters out there. In recent years, several young adult novels have started featuring characters across various parts of the asexual and aromantic spectrums and explore their identities as an inherent part of the story. In fact, I’ll be reading and reviewing many of these books for the blog in upcoming weeks, including in my next post, so keep your eyes peeled for that. Many of the authors writing these characters are on the asexual or aromantic spectrums as well, giving even greater visibility to these communities. This is a wonderful and encouraging trend that I sincerely hope we see more of and hope that their works and the works of other aspec authors can become more mainstream.

Additionally, there are many instances where a character has aspec tendencies within their media and are then confirmed to be aspec by their creators. We call this type of identification “Word of God” – an instance in which the character is not explicitly mentioned as aspec in the media they’re in, but are sort of considered canon representation regardless because the creator has said so. A notable example of a “Word of God” aspec character is Charlie Weasley, Ron’s older brother in the Harry Potter series, who was confirmed by J.K. Rowling as being “more interested in dragons” than in a romantic relationship. As a huge Harry Potter nerd (and also someone who is more interested in dragons than dating) I personally think that’s an amazing example and love the idea of Charlie Weasley being an AroAce icon.

The TV Tropes Asexuality page is likewise full of similar examples of Word of God confirmed asexual characters, as well as aspec characters from lesser known media. If you do decide to take a look at their list, keep your wits about you if you’re sex repulsed like me, since some of the plot points are discussed in unflinching terms; also, some of the plot points can be a bit triggering, so scroll with caution. The list is a good one and gives insights on characters some of you may be curious about, such as Sherlock Holmes and The Doctor from Doctor Who. But honestly, on a personal level, a large majority of the examples on TV Tropes just make me sigh. Some, for instance, are evil or sociopathic, which makes some aspec people (myself included) uncomfortable, since there are already so many tropes that attempt to portray asexuality as the hallmark of a cold, unfeeling individual. Others are literally not human. There are inherent problems that exist when portraying non-human characters as aspec, some of which I will be discussing in future essays, but there can also be some merit to it as well. Even so, as I mentioned at the end of my Star Trek post, it would be nice to have human characters be asexual or aromantic to prove that aspec identities are valid parts of the human experience.

But on the whole, the trends we are starting to see in media are very encouraging. For example, in the second season of the Netflix show Sex Education (which I also have not watched due to its unsurprisingly sexual nature), there is a scene in which a teenage girl goes to the sex therapist, confessing she thinks she might be broken. Although I have not watched the show, I have seen that scene, and if you’ve never had Gillian Anderson kindly validate your asexuality, I really recommend it. In all seriousness, it really is a wonderful scene; much like Todd’s coming out scene in BoJack Horseman, it is beautiful to watch someone have the realization of who they are and embrace that realization with joy, and something I would desperately like to see more in various forms of media.

I know I am probably starting to sound like a broken record when I talk about hoping for asexual representation, but I think that, after visibility, the second most important thing for the asexual community is to have hope. I have spent a long time hoping characters are asexual, imagining what it will be like to find a character whose experiences chime with my own and who gets to be identified like me in their media. It hasn’t quite happened to me yet, but I am confident it will someday. If I have the time and the energy to keep looking at characters and headcanoning them as ace, I can certainly invest a little bit more time and energy in the continued belief that one day my headcanons will be canon.