If Noah openly disrespected black girls in the episode then everthing would've made sense. But attacking Zoey based off his dating preference when BOTH Dijonay & Penny had boyfriends made absolutely NO SENSE
Yes! I hate this trend in media of women taking their anger at not getting the guy out on "the other woman" why is the man in the scenario never called out for his bullshit? Yeah, he's a celebrity, and?
The worst part of the colorism episode? ZOEY was the one who apologized first, not the others! They so fumbled the bag. I feel like they made Penny’s friends SO much more toxic in the reboot. It’s just so frustrating
penny was the only one supportive i think?🤷♂, damn i don;t even like this show and it alread a fucked show if is was penny i would exspose lacienga and leave my fake friends who always diches me. oh yeah she left kareen so shes a bitch now forget what i said ok!!
Shiiid, Even Penny started being more toxic. Also can we talk about how Penny and Dijonay basically almost CHEATED on their boyfriends for that lightskin dude?
Zoey was representation of the white kids who lived in mostly black neighborhoods and went to mostly black schools. She was awkward, but she was trying. She new she didnt fit in but she loved her friends.
@@cherryblossom7120 I didn't mean she represented their experiences, just that there were white kids who grew up in those environments. Like Tony said, she was the "diversity" character in the situation. And I think it was nice for some of the white kids who grew up in black neighborhoods to see themselves in a cartoon. That's all
@@cherryblossom7120I'm sorry for that I understand to a point at a time I was the only black girl in my class and everyone spoke Spanish it was definitely hard...
@@SamRabbitxsadly this one is allowing the idea it's ok to subject children to such toxic treatment as if validating to act racist towards people who didn't do anything wrong for just existing
Isn’t it kinda funny how they simp over the light skin guy over their own boyfriends, then get mad when he has a preference for white skin? Kinda hypocritical.
Exactly! They had that colorism plot written out for them and they still went after Zoey!! This is an unpopular opinion but I feel like the reboot is worse. The original was written better and diversity and heavy subjects were handled better. It wasn’t perfect ofc, it was the 2000’s but somehow, it was taken more seriously.Like the racism episode when they swap households, it was innovative. The characters in the reboot feel like 1dimensional, caricatures of themselves.
@kakeemakeup5845 Problem with the new one is there's not enough diversity in the writing team. It is a show about a black family, but that doesn't mean the writing team shouldn't include diverse races. One white writer could have been able to fix this Zoey problem. It's like people say when an all white team tries to write a black character.
They went so woke it went full circle to "blame the girl for a guy's decision to date a said girl because her skin tone didn't match his" like full "date your own race only" "this is all the woman's fault somehow" and not even touching the fact they villainize someone purely because of her skin tone
@@sleepy_koko Add in that the show is implicitly saying that if you have a sexual preference in what you find attractive then that is wrong. Can't wait for the lesbian episode where they shame the girl for not going out with a guy because she only dates girls.
@@StevenTLawson Knowing the show I think it would rather attack bisexual girl dating one of the genders, most likely a boy. It's the old-new woke trend to harass bisexuals who date the opposite gender.
What's worse is that Penny and Dijonay already have boyfriends. Kareem and Darius, I feel bad for both of them because both of their girlfriends were thirsting over another dude, lol.
@j-boz5271 I was not a fan of her glow up. It doesn't even look like her. Like she could never be pretty as her. That they had to change her ehole face to be attractive.They could have kept her wide smile atleast
Dude liked white girls and trashed black girls. So, Zoeh broke up with him. But after what her friends did to her, uninviting her to a yearly social gathering, that really hurts deep.
What made me furious about the way they treated Zoey in that episode was the fact that in the original series the episode, Forbidden Date, when the girls paired off with those football players, Zoey got with the Black guy and Dijonay got with the White guy amd nobody said jack about it. Honestly, the whole plot point with Noah was just three girls being petty cause a celebrity didn't desire them.
To make it even worse, Penny and Dijonay already got whole ass boyfriends yet they're so thirsty over some celebrity boy. That episode made me dislike Penny, plus Kareem is so sweet and loyal to her yet she was about to risk it all for Noah.
@@tasmeenbaker9912exactly. I haven’t seen a show focused on black teens that didn’t have stereotypes and is actually enjoyable. Well there’s one show abt a guy who plays basketball I forgot the name
Penny and Dijonay and big foot def need get some karma returned in a future episode even the guys thought they were crazy for taking there anger out on Zoey and the dudes preference.....
@williampearson6299 There is a saying that an eye for an eye males the whole world blind. I get what you're saying, BUT someone else here was right. If you're gonna make someone the punching bag, do it in a way that makes sense. Make the jokes land, and don't shame them for just existing on the show when you can do the same jokes with 20 other characters.
The girls blaming Zoey for Noah gives the same energy as getting mad at the girl your boyfriend is cheating with instead of the boyfriend who is cheating behind everyone's backs Edit: The keywords here are "behind everyone's backs." Of course I mean both girls don't know about each other in this example
I hate bitches like that or when you tell them "Hey, I think your man is cheating" they get mad at you for "Ruining their relationship" instead of the nigga
@@johnsantos507 Should they have "blamed" Noah, though? Like what are we "blaming" him for? Do we have to "blame" him for liking Zoe over her friends, because no one should ever prefer her? Do we have to "blame" him for liking white girls? They SHOULD have not even cared, because they SHOULD have been happy with their own boyfriends, but instead they were trying to "upgrade". They were only mad that he rejected them. They should have only been EMBARRASSED by their own willingness to dismiss their boyfriends over the first light-skinned boy they came across. Having Noah only like white girls was a copout choice that distracted from how nasty the girls were and even gave them gross validation that no quality guy would like Zoe more than them in a genuine way.
Penny and Dijonay were expecting Noah to ask one of them out, completely ignoring their boyfriends. And yet, when he didn't ask them out, their boyfriends still took them to the dance... Yeah, if I were one of their boyfriends, I wouldn't take them to the dance after that.
dijonay didnt have a boyfriend... previous episode dude was only using her....penny wasnt that mad...and kareem wasnt boyfriend status just a crush...he also hung around lacianniga way to much knowing shes sneaky tbh
I feel like the episode also has a weird undertone of white people and black people shouldn’t date under the guise of colourism. They really dropped the ball on this episode.
Yeah, there's an odd amount of celebs now who seem to feel that way, the whole "Bl@ck should only date Bl@ck". Idk why, it seems counterproductive to solving race issues. BTW I only censored that bc youtube's bots can be a little funky and unable to read between the lines.
It's honestly sad how the whole "black should only date black" mentality is becoming popular but in the black community. I've been shamed for being with my white partner and people insinuating we're white supremacists or he's somehow keeping me down. We just love each other. I've seen way too many tiktoks with black creators just showing a happy couple and putting them down because one of them is white. It's the exact racism we we're fighting against for so long, why are people in our community doing this?? I've been baffled how a surprising amount of our community just wants to basically bring segregation back cause they feel the mere presence of white people is bad.
@@TonyTurnerEspecially since they went on nothing more than Maya's word alone, even Penny called her out on the rumour possibly being nothing but BS. But Maya just kept stoking the flames.
The show, and that episode in particular, have a ton of hypocrisy and double standards for the guys. If Kareem and Darius had showed up to that dance with other girls then Penny and Dijonay would have tried to pitch a fit despite the fact that both girls practically dumped them trying to chase someone famous.
It could've worked if they were concerned for Zoey, since feeling an 'ick' from someone's partner at that age can be almost impossible to articulate. An arc about Zoey's actor bf turning out to be toxic could've been something great for a show to explore, and a good message to show kids how to handle that sort of situation. But no. They ice their friend out then insult her because Maya's unnamed cousin said a rumor. Then they are awarded for isolating their friend who's possibly dating a creep.
Fighting racism in the 90's: "We should not judge each other by the colour of our skin" Fighting racism in 2023: "We need to judge everyone exclusively by the colour of their skin!"
also fighting racism in 2023: "especially if they're white, because everybody knows white people are automatically evil! but yeah favor everyone else."
Yeah I'm on the "oppressed" side and I've seen alarming videos of white people getting attacked mind you, they weren't being racist or anything, and people in the comments cheering.
If the show truly wants to tackle colorism, they could write an episode that addresses how Lacieniga, Penny, Trudy and Sunset benefit from it. Present real colorist ideals and show how it harms the darker skinned characters in the show.
“Why would he go with you?” That line made me so insecure. No one ever asked me out to prom, homecoming, or any sort of event. It makes you feel ugly. And the fact that like never got resolved makes me very upset. Thanks Proud Family
@@CloudyWolf713 Omg dude that made my heart swell in happiness thank you!! And yeah I’m doing okay! I was in a different mindset when I wrote that comment and honestly forgot about it. I think dating is gonna be easier when I get older since I’ll be away from high school and all the kids I grew up with, so I’ll have the change to meet new people. To be honest, when I watched that episode, I was already having a shitty day so it just added to that. It’s hard watching the show without feeling insecure, but I still appreciate what the team managed to do. It was super ahead of its time, even if they got a lot of things wrong about friendship
Same, that happened to me too. I was the nerdy girl nobody wanted to date- so seeing the lanky, “unattractive” girl- by their standards, being attractive to a popular and attractive guy for once and being punished for it! It was just “stay in your lane, date your own kind, and level” the episode. It disgusted me and left me feeling all depressed that it was framed like THAT was the correct way of thinking. Zoey got to see the “true nature” of her friends. And when someone shows you who they really are, believe them. So long as Zoey “stays with her kind and in her lane” her friends won’t be mad at her, and that’s disgusting. Too bad the series won’t be showing her getting better friends.
"Zoey, you just don't GET IT!" You're right Dijonay because I DON'T GET IT EITHER. Like what are you talking about?? It's not like Noah was making derogatory comments against darker-skinned girls or black girls period!
Hell if Noah acted like a douchebag I’d understand. But Noah literally didn’t do anything other then pick zoey and another girl who caught his attention. He wasn’t mean or a jerk.
@@Yoshixandir plus, they kept mentioning he only dates white girls, which sounds more like a preference than prejudice. Had they said "he doesn't date black girls" it would've hit different imo.
He walked past other white girls before choosing Zoey, so it makes "he only dates white girls" sound more like a rumor than facts. Not to mention Maya is the one who brought it up in the first place.
And she said that in response to Zoey accusing them of jealousy, which neatly sidestepped the fact that Zoey was right. They were all flinging themselves at the boy before he apporached Zoey, and they WERE jealous of her.
I will explain it. It's saying he doesn't like her for her if he chasing her skin in other words he would go for any white girl or woman not because Zoey stand out. Do you understand? It's a personhood thing. If he date all girls then him chasing after Zoey means it's for her because she is great for her. Thus if another white girl or black girl or Asian girl come along it won't matter because he loved her Zoey not her skin but her as a person. Get it? Same with dudes who don't date Hispanics girls or black girls or white girls but they are white or Hispanics or black. It's a red flag. It means that giving under any circumstances she would not be it. In other words It's a love thing. It's like men who girls or women that can cook. So if they can't anymore or someone better at cook comes along that's it? That's the problem.
Now that I look at Zoey as an adult I feel like I should have resonated more with her when I watched the OG show as a kid. I’m not white but growing up in school I was always the awkward, unattractive, follower girl who clung onto her nasty and more popular friend. At times they included me in activities but other times abused me and treated me poorly. It was even to the point where others who had bullied and picked on me told me to leave that toxic group. That’s how you knew my situation was bad. I never had a guy like Noah show interest in me like how he did with Zoey but I remember if I ever shared a win my friend would shout “LIAR” to my face and I felt bad about myself. I look back and I realized that she screeched that out of jealousy.
@@samflood5631 Zoe isn't the target demographic. Black girls are. And if Zoe has to take some licks then so be it. Have you watched content geared for white girls written by white girls? Yes, they have contempt for black women too, so I am fine with Zoe getting trashed. White people are NOT victims. This isn't the Zoe show
@@suezcontours6653 I know, but seeing how Penny's friends, except for Zoey, are real asshole, I wonder why Penny is still friends with them after all of the bull crap they've put her through.
The way the girls were written in that episode was also embarrassingly sexist. There are so many relevant ways the writers could’ve tackled colorism, and the girl group fighting over boys was the best they could do? Also, I think a colorism episode should’ve focused on Dijonay and empowering her identity as a dark skinned black girl, maybe address how the series itself has played into some colorist stereotypes in the past? But no, we gotta dump on poor Zoey.
I agree. But the show hates dark-skinned Black girls and writes Dijonay terribly so of course they wouldn’t do that. They probably thought that shitting on white people would make up for their unbridled racism and colorism.
I mean, i think even in this series they still have the colorist stereotypes- Penny is mixed (as in Trudy is lighter skinned while Oscar is darker) / lighter skinned and she's polite, well-mannered, and comes from a well off family, Dijonay is darker skinned and comes from a poor family while she is more 'ghetto' and throws herself to every man she meets. Heck, even Oscar and Sugar Mama are streotyped (Oscar is 'dumb' and Sugar Mama is abusive, while Trudy has a good paying job, is the 'reasonable' parent (at least in the OG series, etc) The colorism episode could still be have Noah, but maybe make it clear he treats them all differently (like barely pays attention to Maya and Dijonay or makes awful comments about them, is a lot nicer to Penny and Lacienega, maybe has an interest in Zoey) and just have him flat out have him say something about their skin tones
I know this has been beaten to death but to sum up Zoey apologizing first is like saying "I'm sorry that guy I liked had a prefrence for white girls and believing he was genuinely insterested in me and gave him the benefit of the doubt. You guys were right even though you didn't acknowledge how he was the one who decided to date me and he is the one who likes white girls. I hope we can still be friends after you shunned me and blamed me for someone else's actions :)"
I think this also has an interracial angle. By discrediting this guy for liking white girls, it kind of implies he SHOULDN'T be dating white girls. For something intended to support modern ideas, it sure has the values of the 70s.
I dated a very nice Black girl once. Tanisha was her name. We broke up because I literally didn't feel comfortable around her family. They were racist af. They didn't even get to know me. They would literally talk shit about me one room over like I couldn't hear them. Her grandmother was very nice. She was the only one who had my back. "He holds the door for her, buys her nice dinners, holds her hand in public, and stands up for her when needed. He's a hell of a lot nicer than the White folks were to me in my day!" I miss her. She passed away a few years back from old age. She was 91. Greta was her name, but I always called her Grandma.
@@joebaumgart1146 dude, that's some wholesome sh*t, also, that family is crap, i wish Tanisha is able of keeping herself out of those horrible parts of her family.
I feel like the main thing that nobody talks about is that MAYA is the one to start all this shxt based on secondhand information, not even damning facts. And then she just jumps down Penny and Dijonay’s BFs’ throats when they try to defend Noah by saying he’s allowed to have preferences. And at the end of the episode when Zoey (unjustifiably) apologizes, Maya says stuff like this is why “us sistas” have to stick together, as if she wasn’t the one that divided them in the first place. All this to say, congratulations, Disney. You’ve given us a second dark-skinned black girl in the main cast, and you’ve somehow made her more insufferable and stereotypical than the first one.
They could have had maya like pull out photos of him and all his EXs singed sense he’s a famous person better way to done that a rumor from the cousin of your uncle’s dogs next door neighbor
As a really nerdy black girl (glasses, braces, not lanky but not a “desirable”body shape.) I felt so bad for Zoey this episode. Like how do you fumble so hard as to make a “guy preferring white girls over black girls” episode (something I’ve experienced all my life with everyone I’ve wanted to date.) Then make me feel bad and relate to the white girl 😭😭
@@TonyTurner Totally agree with this. The End of Innocence could have been a great chance for us to see Zoey's main character flaw of cowardice be addressed head-on, but unfortunately I don't think the show really wants its characters to grow in any meaningful sense at all. The most development she gets is in Home School, which retreads the same development she already got in the movie about breaking out of her shell, and that's about it. Even Us Again, a crazy non-canon dream sequence episode, has better instances of character growth for her compared to The End of Innocence, with her busting in to the house to rescue Penny from the clones, as well as us getting to see both her parents for the first time.
@@naturalplayboy94 Zoe isn't the target demographic. Black girls are. And if Zoe has to take some licks then so be it. Have you watched content geared for white girls written by white girls? Yes, they have contempt for black women too, so I am fine with Zoe getting trashed.
Let’s be honest: Disney knew EXACTLY what they were doing when they rebooted this show in this current time. They just thought they could get away with it
I was a tall, redheaded, nerdy white girl who always felt like the odd one out (even though I think that was mostly in my head looking back on it as an adult) and Zoey in the original show resonated with me so much. I wanted to BE Penny, but Zoey WAS me. Except for the dancing thing. I can follow choreography but you won't ever catch me freestyling. 😅
Maybe he liked Zoey because she wasn’t throwing herself on him did they even think about that? Maybe he likes nerdy girls and her skin color had nothing to do with it. I am not excusing what Noah did but pointing out it may have not been about race.
This is why Maya is the worst character in the series: ALL of this starts because of some rumor that she herd and then carelessly blurted out. Even if it turned out to be 100% true,it was still just a rumor as far as she knew and she was basically just stating shit for the sake of stating shit.
@@JT5555 rumor was true tho.... writers couldve handled it better but we know there are way too many dudes celebrities/rappers black atheletes that exclusively date for color.... thats who they chose to poke at in the show
I am a white girl and have a coworker who I talked to everyday and we became friends, but she uninvited me to her bday because her and her friends were poc and she didn't think I could hang or keep up. I just told her if that's how she feels thats OK, I'm not mad. But it always made me sad since we havent really talked since. I try my best coming from a primarily white town. The reboot brought those feelings back. I always wonder did I say something? Was it my actions? She never told me
Girl. I had a friend in the 6th grade we were friends for YEARS. Me: mixed white black and Mexican. Her: black. We were so close I would spend SUMMERS over her house. We were together all the time. Then when BLM got hyped up and she was on her page talking about looting for hair and TVs I told her that that was bs and she and someone I went to high school with started hanging up on me. And my so called best friend for years called me half breed. (they didn’t even know each other. Both of them were black and wanted to loot) I stopped fuckign with her. And one day she was on my page trying to say something (trying to disagree with something I had to say) I said whatever you have to say to me has no value ever since you called me half breed. And she was like “you still mad about that?” Like I should just get over it. I still don’t talk to her and I’m 30.
@@simhedanot only was that so-called former friend colorist, when you called her out for her crazy social media posts, did you notice she started referring to you in a manner that sounded suspiciously like a white supremacist? I’ve often noticed that in shows like Louder and Prouder, the writing suggests the writers are quick to complain about something happening and will fight for “justice” but then act just like the people they say they hate.
Zoey's treated as a punching bag even moreso because they're framing it as "punching up." Which is just sad. It's trying to address modern societal issues but they're injecting a lot of "us vs them" mentality when the girls are supposed to be friends. Instead of writing the girls more mature and unpacking the real issues of colorism you could get with Dijonay and Penny, they load it all on Zoey. They're supposed to be older but they're still immature and cruel to each other. Everyone has been BEGGING the writers to go through some growth and become better but they're worse than before.
I think what's also gross is that they have LaCienega flat out say 'youre ugly! Why would a hot guy like Noah wanna date YOU other than the fact youre white?!" and then when Myron asks Zoey to dance at the end, nobody says a thing about him being black because 'oh its okay, the creepy unattractive guy can ask out our unattractive white friend because none of us like him : ) and he likes you for your brain' (even though that was never stated before). Like I know he and Zoey have some kind of friendship in the OG series (the party episode where she was handing him an invite before Dijonay took it away and chewed her out for inviting the 'weird' kid). And the fact in the colorism episode we're supposed to side with the group who is 60-80% toxic people (Dijonay for outing Maya and her bro for having gay dads and pretty much every single time she gossips and ruins somebody's life, Lacienega for trying to be a homewrecker when Penny and Kareem started hanging out, Penny for when she went on the social media tirade cancelling people left and right, Maya was pretty much hating Penny from the start for one reason or another and clearly doesnt like her, Michael- I have no idea, he seems pretty innocent in this) rather than Zoey. Also as people pointed out, Penny and Dijonay both have boyfriends and they just talked about dating Noah right in front of them. I dont think they even apologize to them for pretty much admitting theyd dump them when a better man came along
I think they didn't put Penny at the center of the "colorism" issue because then the writers (or rather, Bruce Smith) would have to confront their own issues with colorism within the show.
They introduce a random new who we're not supposed to like but then don't even give him that much screentime or a clear motive??? Its almost like this episode is actually from the POV of everyone in the friend group rather than Zoey
I'll be honest, the moment I heard what this episode was about I dropped the show. The proud family I grew up with wasn't so callously cruel and tone deaf.
Yeah, like, from the few episodes I watched out of it as a kid, the friendship was more "teenage girl toxic, amiright?" than *"PLEASE CUT THESE TONE-DEAF SHITSTAINS OUT OF YOUR LIFE."*
I’m glad I never watched it. Shows today (Disney channel today) are horrible becaus they have no story. Just you’re white and straight! And we can treat you however we want. Most shows today are like that. I’m hoping this drives people to stop watching tv and we see the downfall of streaming services or tv in general and people start getting healthy and outside 😂
I was the Zoey in my highschool friend group. I was accused of being a snowbunny and a fetishizer when I was asked out by the popular drama student. When we all went to prom as a group, the girls all got ready together at a salon and got dressed together at one of their houses and I got dressed and did my own makeup in the bathroom of the youth shelter I lived in at the time. They showed up late to get me and took photos all together with my date as well, but I was only included in one photo. I really thought I deserved to be treated as an other and an outsider, so I let it happen until they started excluding me completely from events because I’m white. It hurt seeing this episode because it was like watching myself on screen getting bullied again. I even had to apologize for being asked out by the man
Must be an honor to get ignored but a bunch of jealous insecure girls. The power you have. Hoping you get scouted for modeling or something better because I feel like you deserve something nice. Weird and terrible things happen, gotta find a way to flip it and make it to your advantage
Also the girls had no evidence that Noah only dates white girls beyond what Maya’s cousin said. Which isn’t really reliable since Noah was stated to be new in town, so how could the cousin already know him well enough to say that with any certainty? The girls never made any real effort to find out if the rumors were even true before shutting Zoey out of the group. How do you think it would’ve looked if at the end they reveal that he actually was interested in Zoey as a person, and the girls were just looking for a reason to hate on Zoey for going out with a popular kid? If they wanted this episode to work, maybe have the girls make an effort to see if the rumors are true. Maybe look at his social media for pictures of him with previous dates or have Penny’s boyfriend try to talk to Noah or his friends. Then have them confront Zoey about this, and if she tries to make an excuse for his behavior, then the others would feel more justified in their anger.
And even then, so what he only dates white girls? Unless he was racist about it, it's just a racial preference and clearly he doesn't go after every single white girl he goes by cause there was other white girls around Zoey and instead asked HER out.
As a white female who loved watching The Proud Family growing up and found it relatable because I lived in a diverse area, thank you!! After that reboot episode, I stopped watching. It made me, as a white viewer, feel like crap, and it turned into something I could no longer enjoy. Zoey is a sweet-natured character and didn't deserve that. She never should have had to apologize for being in the right place at the right time. That's literally what it came down to. And yes, I know it's only a cartoon, but this kind of thing happens in real life, too. These current writers are trash. The original series was so much better in pretty much every way.
They just get racially territorial and thats why they hate zoey. They dont like that she attracted what they deem to be a handsome black dude and so instead of her having confidence and character growth they stick her with Myron which they deem as an undesirable, he didn't like zoey for the way she was he was out here hitting on every single girl in the group and he decided to shoot his shot when Zoey was at her lowest and most vulnerable. Everyone in that show is shitty whether its in your face or subtle.
I haven't even seen the series but I'm aware of and floored by the fact that when it all happened, they jumped to colorism after one off-hand mention from another person and glommed on that Zoey wasn't pretty or good enough on her own to warrant the attention. Like, they were SO FAST to assume "it's because she's white" because they didn't have any reason aside from that. Maybe the guy likes nerdy girls, or braces, red heads or girls who eat? Maybe Zoey is nice or quirky, who knows (maybe he loves himself a tall queen)! But no, they list her faults that's she's too "Zoey" (ugly, bland, weird, etc) that it HAS to be she's white Like, wow, great friends/s
my fiance is my tall red haired king who eats like a champ, reads with me, and has had braces before..... i fell for male zoey and im so happy i have him
In the "colorism" episode, it was very fake of them to stop talking to Zoey just because Noah chose to date her. The fact she apologized for that was crazy. Facts Tony! Why did they ruin their friendship over dude? I will never understand... Then again, Zoey was just as fake as Penny's other friends.
How was Zoey fake if I could ask. She seemed to be the realest friend Penny had (Lacienega clearly hates Penny and is more on the 'we only hang out because our parents are friends' vibe. Dijonay constantly backstabs Penny and will betray her just to make herself better) I dont remember when Zoey did something bad unless she was roped into it by one of the other two
@@shipper-of-heart8898 She made some decisions and ditched Penny. I remember in one episode Dijonay and LaCienaga had ditched Penny for wanting to do what she felt was right and Penny was like "Well at least I have Zoey here" or something like that and Zoey was no where to be seen. She's made some bad decisions. In fact, it mind boggles me as an adult how Penny can stand her friends. They're all jerks and she deserved way better!
@@sapphirewriter8349 Zoe isn't the target demographic. Black girls are. And if Zoe has to take some licks then so be it. Have you watched content geared for white girls written by white girls? Yes, they have contempt for black women too, so I am fine with Zoe getting trashed.
Would've been really interesting if halfway through the episode it had been about the boyfriends being upset that their GIRLFRIENDS are more interested in a lighter-skinned dude than in them.
I really hoped that there would be the twist in the Noah episode that he just asked Zoe because she was the only one who didn't get IN HIS FACE, kinda like Victor Krum to Hermione - the one he felt genuine about not just because of his looks... but nah, that would be to deep and a "wrong lesson" in today's standard. Plus they were SO MEAN like they were like "no way he wants to date our friend, she's ugly af, it must be racism, no other reason" AND WERE PROVEN RIGHT?! LIKE WTF?!
They should have done that thing in joke "makeover" montages where they cycle through a bunch of ridiculous accessories and end up right back on the original one. Zoe with her glasses comes out Girls shake their head No glasses Head shake Big rimmed glasses Head shake Sun glasses Head shake Those fake moustache glasses Head shake Zoe's original glasses Enthusiastic nodding
I do want them to have an episode where a side character like Myron goes off and tells them that they are all awful people similar to what Sinjin did in victorious
The hardest thing to learn in life: When you're in a situation where everyone around you is so far removed from who you are and what you know, don't change. True friends will love and celebrate who you are. Your friendship won't come at the condition of you changing to conform to other people's standards, and they won't bully you for your differences.
Never watched The Proud Family, but I WAS Zoey growing up. Tall, awkward, nerdy, red hair and freckles. All my friends had boyfriends and no boys ever looked at me (I turned out to be gay but that's besides the point). You talked about how Zoey was treated as the punching bag, how her friends found her unattractive and therefore couldn't believe a popular boy would be interested in her. That really hit close to home honestly.
i hated the colorism episode it felt so hypcocritical of pennys friends to be going after zoey for dating th dude when THEY HAVE BOYFRIENDS,like who tf cares if the guy has preferences plus outting zoey because her skin felt so racist and discriminatory
Plus it was really weird that this famous guy is almost the exact opposite of the guys they’re dating. Maybe have some self reflection instead of making Zoey out to be evil when girl was just existing????
It technically wasn't colorism. What they do to zoey is full blown racist and to not only have them never get confronted with their sins but to have zoey apologize to THEM because she was white is insanely racist.
agreed it sucks they didnt have any karma for how they treated zoey worse is maya adding more to the fire and pinning zoeys friends gainst her the only one who even stood up for zoey was penny but she still tried to go after the guy even tho she has a very sweet loyal boyfriend who cares about her@@oblitusunum6979
I feel like Zoey has always been the show's punchingbag (besides Oscar) and the fact that she was a 2nd tier character despite being in the main character's friend group kind of proves that.
Immediately when I watched that colorism episode, I cringed and felt bad for Zoey. I literally want that episode wiped away from the series like it's so unbelievably bad. There were so many ways to could have approached it and the way it fell flat is so bizarre. Honestly, they should have did an episode where Zoey cuts them for good since they wanna be so damn fake.
What hurts most about some of these episodes is that you can so clearly see how little aspects of the story could be changed to make the plot and message work. There are just so many ways they could have tackled this issue.
What really annoyed me was the ''white people can't dance joke''. Besides that it's not true, there are many dances but because they don't involve shaking your ass they don't count. I'm exaggerating of course. But there was a moment in the Proud Family movie when Zoey dances ''like the Black people'' as in ''cool'' but suddenly now she can't just for that one joke. Even if the makers forgot they still showed her capable of dancing in a different episode.
In response to that episode I'm an African-American, and I'm attracted to Asians. (Vietnamese,Japanese,Chinese,Singaporean, etc) It's my preference/attraction, and I'm not ashamed for it In my High School Senior Year, there was an Asian (believe she was a Chinese or Japanese) student in my first two classes that I was attracted to. On Valentine's Day, I sent a note asking to be my valentine, but unfortunately, she responded, saying she was already taken. Day after Valentine's Day, most likely because I actually took the rejection well,didn't take the rejection as an act of malice and respected her choice (Learned from Hal Stewart/Tighten from Megamind) she gave me a pack of Trident gum and was the first person to come to me to sign my white shirt near the end of the school year, meaning I did something right. Told my whole family, and they were all surprised, BUT open when I told them I was attracted to someone outside my race and for what I did to that girl in my senior year even proud of me for what I've done So yeah, I wasn't mad I was done with this reboot when I saw this episode
@@moussacamara0614 Best way is to be careful. Asians care about is perfected just like Turning Red movie. We both know that being "perfect doesn't exist.
The problem with The Proud Family is that it's a bunch of middle aged men writing teenage girls. That's why Penny's friend group is toxic and catty and horrible. These writers don't know how young girls actually behave And it was straight up misogynistic for Zoey to be blamed for the behavior of a boy she barely knew. Especially since Noah's preference for White girls was a rumor that Maya pulled out of her butt to start drama (seriously, why is anyone friends with Maya? She sucks)
Definitely. The writers definitely think that all teenage girls are catty and jealous and boy-crazy, they’re written by men with hateful and backwards views of women and that’s why they act like bitter mean-spirited stereotypes. That’s why the show is so hard to watch.
hard nope! I haven't seen this reboot except parts of it here and there but having watched few of the og ,this show does put into view how young girls, especially back then, acted in not only school but just how they were in young development. it's always been like that cause it's abt survival amongst all the prejudices and perceptions you face and deal with amongst your peers ( and adults too). even if in some schools it wasn't prominent with such brutal attitudes , the ideals existed , just manifested themselves differently depending on environment and how the adults and people handle these ideals to the youth. all these shows, since the og was in 2000s, and even before then, may seem like an exaggeration or a mockery to us, especially girls if we believe that these issues are rooted in misogyny and women hating, but the truth is it is and society has proven its been like that; what people haven't understood is how that affected women. women internally as they develop, varying depending on factors but still done in some way, have been misogynistic to each other in order to survive and be accepted; in which ever ways. the thing is, because people don't look and deal with it, it manifests time and time again as petty, catty, conniving behavior. they're young and have no emotional maturity and the glimpses of self awareness they get are only triggered when it's spoon fed, but none are internally done by self autonomy. add that with no proper guidance? that's where we are.
@@chang3025 Not all teenage girls act like this. And you can't deny that there are teenage boys who act like this too and yet the boys in this show are never presented this way. It's obviously just a stereotype created by misogynistic men to claim that women are always in competition with each other. Girls can have good relationships with each other too. Watch Equestria Girls for instance, you'll see a realistic representation of teenage girls that doesn't portray them all as catty, bitchy, cliched stereotypes.
And even if a lot of teenage girls do act like that, it's not at all good behavior to present as normal to a younger audience. Like, we should be encouraging young people to be respectful to each other.
Yeah i feel like the colorism episode was less about colorism and more an example of it. Disappointing considering there's so much that could've been discussed instead
Great video! I always loved Zoey. She's the punching bag since day one. She has a beautiful, unique, quirky, and free spirited personality. She never liked drama and just wanted to be cool with everybody. I clearly feel her character is the reality of white chicks in general. She has a solid character in terms of quality. Her skin color of whiteness shouldn't be an issue. If she had a stank racist attitude that would've been a different story. I see how the episodes contradict her overall character in DIFFERENT ways. Her damn storyline DESERVES better. I hate how she gets the short end of the stick. The reboot just did her worse. Overall, Zoey has always been the main character just like her peers. She brings the bubbly and free spirited aura into fruition. I enjoyed your video. Keep up the amazing work!!!
I hate that these are saying that White people are bad, it’s FULL ON DISCRIMINATION!! I hate it! This needs to be called! It’s ok to be black or white!
Zoe isn't the target demographic. Black girls are. And if Zoe has to take some licks then so be it. Have you watched content geared for white girls written by white girls? Yes, they have contempt for black women too, so I am fine with Zoe getting trashed.
@@suezcontours6653 but at least make her deserving of getting trashed? I dunno, make her being an smartass, or a mean girl as much as the other characters, hell, they could separate her from the friend group and made her an antagonist alongside other characters, trashing on a well meaning inoffensive person that is literally the sweetest in the friendgroup just because doesn't send much of a good message, is way too meanspirited. All the other media that shows disdain at black girls as you say generally shows them as the popular rich mean girls and antagonists and try to justify it that way but in here, the only basis to trash Zoe is because she's nerdy, conventionally not very attractive and white
@@suezcontours6653 can you give me an exemple of a fiction where the mean girl has a black skin ? Because almost all exemple of that kind of character that I know are either asian or white (often with blond hair)
I hate how they painted her in the wrong and made her apologize in the reboot, but at the same time I also hate how fake and deceitful Zoe can be in the group in both the og and reboot. So it's a bit of a tough call on me for this one.
I dont think her being easily malleable to be a people pleaser and ride the waves is on par or evens out her friend's being nasty to her because a guy they found attractive liked her
You mention Zoey wasn’t always a good friend, and I agree… but in the same breath the others were SO much worse that Zoey seems better by comparison. XD
I think it’s so messed up that zoey is the one who is getting ragged on when it is directly Noah who is being colorist. It comes of as discriminatory against white girls and sexism from the writers to shift all the blame to the girl. Like Idc not only were the other girls just straight up hypocritical and wrong for getting pissy at zoey but like they also are holding her accountable for what this boy thinks. Zoey having to apologize when they were being the assholes and Noah was the one with preferences is actually the worst part of this episode. She did nothing wrong. If anything the girls just broke this more girl down by calling her ugly as hell and telling her that this guy would never actually like her. Then proceeding to straight up dogpile her and force her out of the friend group. The worst part is most of these character didn’t even have a reason to be against zoey they just did it to side with their darker friend. I’m pretty someone in the episode literally said it and it’s gross. Side with what is right not based off of who is the most similar to you. That’s just bandwagon if and it’s a horrible message to send to children. They legit called her ugly and said until she apologizes for even thinking this guy would like her for who she is they wouldn’t talk to her. If zoey was a black girl and the other girls were white this episode would have been banned.
Zoey's story is just so sad now. I feel like now the group just treats her so bad. I mean in the original series there was jokes towards Zoey, but now it seems like whenever she is one screen the jokes are all about her. The group now acts like Zoey is only allowed to hang out with them when she submits to them. Whenever she even shows being slightly upset they all turn on her and quickly toss her to the side not explaining anything to her just "Well, I should not have to explain myself you should read my mind and see you are wrong. I shouldn't have to listen to what you say" (like an abusive relationship). She is only allowed to be with the guy no one wants and the group damaged this girl's mind so much she got scared the nerd (too heavy with the flirting) guy asked her to dance. She was so worried she asked him if he only liked her because she was white. They told this girl no guy would ever like her because she is ugly. That is really bad her 'friends' gave her that complex then the friends are happy she ends up with the guy no one wanted and who was creepy. Those are not friends, those are bullies who found a way to keep their target close. The only time they are okay with her was when she talked down about white people. She brought up the term for a white person trying to forget that their ancestors were racists. The group is slowly teaching her that being white is the worst thing ever, she is too ugly to be with anyone, but the guy who creepy flirts with every girl.
If I were to just spitball a rewrite, I think the friends initially being ecstatic for Zoey's success but unfortunately finding out behind Zoey's back that colorism was afoot would have made for a better plot. Telling Zoey this could understandably cause conflict and so the hurt between her and her friends wouldn't be what we got, but Zoey being in denial initially before finding out the truth.
It’s so obvious that the Creators/Writers’ perspective on turning Zoey into a cheap laugh is just “Am I right, Black people?!?”, which has nothing to do with caring about their characters or wanting to give their audience a compelling story.
As a socially anxious nerdy person who wears glasses and doesn’t really like showing skin too much, I get so annoyed when people treat these sorts of things as “unattractive” and “something that needs to be fixed.” I’m not tall like Zoe is, but I can relate to having small eyes like her… in fact, mine are even worse in terms of beauty standards. I am East Asian and therefore don’t have the same kind of eyelids as most other people! It’s something I see being considered “undesirable” often and I hate it… the same way I don’t get why tall girls are considered unattractive. I love being me, and I want other nerdy, anxious kids who don’t conform to popular beauty standards to love being themselves too. The way Zoe is treated in that episode is… very, very frustrating to me, to put it mildly.
Oh, also, my take on having a white character in a show meant for POC: I think Zoe’s white privilege should be relevant to the show, but not in a way that blames her just for HAVING it. If her friends are gonna beat her down for it, she’s probably gonna have a much harder time accepting the reality of our oppressive society because she feels like the villain. I’ll try to explain: in a way, being unprivileged is kind of a privilege itself. It opens your eyes to things in the world that aren’t as easy to accept if you’re not thrown into them headfirst. It’s hard to try and swallow pills that 1. you doubt exist because you didn’t see them often growing up and 2. are really gross and bitter to swallow, so having to swallow them everyday already does make it a bit easier. So I try to be patient with people who don’t understand our struggles, and I don’t blame them because they’re not at fault for being born privileged. I understand it can take a lot, and I think that’s what makes the turnaround feel so worth it. Redemption is the best character arc.
Say it loud, say it proud! I was and still am a total nerd, now I have some muscle tone but I still prefer a night of videogames with my pals over one of clubbing, we're having a huge regression on the perception of nerds and geeks lately.
I feel so bad for Zoey, she's one of the only nice people of the group and yet they treat her like garbage. That colorism episode made me hate that toxic group more, I hope she and Penny will find new friends one day And yeah, even though she betrayed Penny a few times, I feel like she does it because she can be a follower or out of peer pressure since she's pushed around by them too.
Same girl At my high school everyone so mature it was a great experience i had tons of fun until i started collage thjs year it like im back at middle school everyone got sooo toxic suddenly hek no im not hanging out with these people!
It really felt like honestly they tried to de-ick Myron just so it'd be more palatable for the Nerd to stick with the Nerd, "learn your PLACE carrot top!" 🙄
Yeess!!! I love every point made in this video, and also what you said. I was so happy my girl Zoey for once got the attention of the a guy "out of her league" who thought she was beautiful. This episode was such a step backwards, and made the girls out to be so shallow and hypocritical, with no one to at least call everyone's behavior out in the end as a lesson, this whole season has been littered with bad takes and IMO very off moral compasses 🙁
I find it funny how this all started over some hearsay. Instead of the girls confronting the dude, they’d rather turn on and ostracize their “home girl” and basically call her ugly. Zoey had a point when she brought out how Byron was always hitting on her so if that meant he liked white girls. But see, Mustard and them didn’t care because Byron was ugly. They only had a probably with it when it was an ATTRACTIVE black guy. The hypocrisy… I’d understand their anger a lot more if Zoey knew the other dude liked white girls but didn’t care; the show could have spun it as Zoey finally being happy that a dude is throwing her some vibe. Then that would warrant everyone’s negative reaction.
The episode where the hot actor asks out Zoey is one of the most manipulative, hypocritical and double standard mess I have ever seen in a kid’s show. The amount of gall from the girl’s group to treat Zoey the way they do, make assumptions about the guy by taking Maya (the worst character in the entire show) stating that he prefers white girls, and then just automatically assume she agrees with this is ABSURD. Not to mention how they just use the very real issue of colorism as a selfish and misguided reason to just assume that no one would ask Zoey out for any other reason other than the fact she’s white just to cloud the real issue they have which is they’re jealous he didn’t want them. Which is is again MASSIVELY hypocritical on Penny and Dijonay’s parts because they have BOYFRIENDS who ironically are darker skinned than the actor in question. How are we supposed to realistically believe that Zoey should be in the wrong here when she hasn’t done anything wrong other than accept the guy’s invitation? It’s ridiculous. Again if you want to talk about colorism fine. But this is not the way to do it.
There’s a huge internalized misogyny aspect to this as well. They’re all blaming Zoey, their best friend for the shortcomings of a boy they don’t really know. Instead of calling out the guy for being a shallow jerk, they’re blaming her for getting caught in the crossfire.
There’s a million different ways the colorism episode could have been handled so much better. But here’s how I would have handled the story; Have Noah make it *incredibly* clear that he only likes white girls. Don’t be so subtle with it. We as the audience should know from the start that he’s colorist without having Maya spoon feed it to us, but Zoey doesn’t have to know that. Have her actively behave like a bitch and make excuses for him whenever he disrespects her friends. Or better yet, play into her own personal insecurities about being a tall, nerdy chick who managed to attract a hot celebrity, and have that be the basis for why she looks past or straight up ignores his colorist attitude. Because she thinks she can’t do any better and is willing to continue dating a jerk if only to make herself feel desirable. It probably wouldn’t excuse the rest of Penny’s friends being bitches to her, but it would at least level the playing field to have each party acting hostile toward one another for equally petty reasons regardless of the truth. Also, maybe have someone actually call out Penny and Dijonay for being more than willing to dump their boyfriends for Noah. Maybe have Kareem confront Penny about it and make her come to the realization that she and her friends really aren’t being any better than Zoey is in this situation. And to top it all off, have Noah admit straight out that he was only interested in Zoey because of her skin color, and don’t leave it as an off screen thing. Wrap everything up with the friend group all apologizing for acting like ignorant bitches towards one another, and end on a high note. There, problem solved. Hire me, Disney.
True but I'm pretty sure only being into white girls is racism not colorism, and also idt that's very in-character for Zoey to do, and if she did I don't think she could be redeemed for it, I would have her leave the group, honestly she'd be even worse than Lacienega and Dijonay in my eyes.
@@imthebossmermaid3648 Depend on the reason, you would have to have the guy clearly state it was only because she was white, as I too have no interest in black guys and that's due to spending a lot of time as a kid in a place where I was related to all the black people in the area and when I was outside that area because people move and the black side of my family was just that big I would still run into people I was related too. So not wanting to play 50 questions and get a DNA sample to date a guy, it affect it me by not wanting to date black guys (also doesn't help when my father who is not one for making joke makes a joke on the matter meaning that he is not really joking).
@@imthebossmermaid3648 don't you sit here and roll your eyes at him he's right and you're wrong having preferences is not racist you're just being a Prejudice buffoon making assumptions on people for the things that they find attractive I bet you probably hate biracial children too
Zoey hasn’t always been perfect but compared to Lacianica(who bullied all of them at first) and especially Dijonay who was supposedly supposed to be Penny’s best friend but backstabbed her almost every episode. Zoey was the most loyal friend out of all of them and look how they treated her. She deserved better:
I like how they talked about racism so much in that episode, but they also showed Michael dressing up as a native american woman who has been marginlized for centuries.
"Black supremacy is as dangerous as white supremacy, and God is not interested merely in the freedom of black men and brown men and yellow men...God is interested in the freedom of the whole human race and the creation of a society where all men will live together as brothers, and all men will respect the dignity and the worth of all human personality." -Martin Luther King Jr.
One reason I love the PF growing up is my friends had "a Zoey" who even resembled her. Seeing the colorism episode dress scene actually made my jaw drop at how they treated her bc I could never imagine that towards my friend. I was even more sad knowing they'd write the end to have them be justified. I felt so icky seeing this as an actual produced story no one saw an issue with.
I was a 'Zoey' growing up, and I would've felt so confused and betrayed by this sorta thing, since I would've defended them with all my heart if the dude said a single shitty thing about them - esp. over skin tone. I loved Proud Family growing up because I had a 'Penny' watching my back, my friend group was so similar to theirs! I wish they'd come back to this and at least have them talk it out more! 🥲
In the episode, it seemed that the guy genuinely liked Zoey because she wasn’t fawning over him. It feels like the colorism thing was added last minute because how poorly it was written and handled. They made Zoey apologize first. Wtf? She did nothing but defend herself. Her “friends” should have apologized to her first.
I don’t like the reboot and it’s weird representation of race, passive white people are vilified and Mia who is monstrously aggressive is treated as good and everyone wants to be her friend because she’s black. Racial profiling, stereotyping and favoritism regardless of who it’s coming from is never right or acceptable.
Great video! I grew up kind of in Zoey's shoes. I was raised in Hawaii around a bunch of mixed dark people, and Im mixed but I look completely white and germanic. I was excluded for being white and I didnt understand why; it made me an angry kid. After taking hawaiian history in high school and leaving the state for college, I understand their side more though and Ive let go of that pain. I see their side and I want to give back to my community in a oositive way but Ive also taught myself that I dont need to apologize for my whitness either. I hope Zoey can accept herself no matter how she looks and have friends that do the same ♡
This happened to me in real life. Started dating my now husband and had women telling me I was in the wrong for him dating me. That plot is a real life thing
I really loved your video man! Also I really hope that young girls and tweens who watch that episode don’t get influenced into feeling like they can’t be friends with a diverse group or should feel ashamed of themselves because of this episode.
Zoey is literally the character that many people can relate with, on multiple attributes or just one, being awkward and tall and freckled and lanky is most teens….l
As a former teenage girl, I’m an adult now, I can tell you that teenage girls can have friendships dissolve over anything from boys to petty arguments; regardless of their color. I think the show wanted to be extra real when portraying friendships between teenage girls.Personally I would have liked to see the characters be better than reality to send a more positive message to young girls who may be watching the show.
That I agree with. Having a show that's too real doesn't help teach lessons or show a better way to deal with a problem. Watching TV that's like real life isn't particularly fun or educational.
I also took a minor point away from this as well. All of the girls know better then anyone Zoey's issue with low self confidence, low self worth and she has a long history of being bullied. You'd expect this behaviour from the others based off what we know of them but Penny? Penny could be misguided, do wrong occasionally or be selfish but ultimately she was shown to have a good heart and more often then not was the voice of reason in her group. In other circumstances if you would ask her is she'd bully someone she'd be appalled by the idea of it but this episode proves that under the right circumstances nobody is above bullying. Even the people who would be least likely too are fully capable of it if push comes to shove.
The crazy thing was there was a yt girl in front of him, and he walked past her to get to Zoey. The blonde one. So I'm thinking maybe he just liked tall red headed girls (who can be poc but it's rare)
I mean I think he does end up getting with the white girl he blew a kiss to in the end, or at least she showed up somewhere in the episode before then- but the gang decides not to take her aside and warn her -also doesnt help shes also an 'attractive' girl to further drive in 'zoeys ugly and she doesnt deserve a handsome guy-
She might of been the shows "white girl" but plenty of girl's i knew related more to her than the others because being awkard and nerdy is universal. So is being thin as a rail lol.
Let’s not forget they didn’t even have the boy be rude to at least have the girls behavior be valid I have given the episode benefit of doubt if they showed him telling Zoe she couldn’t hang out with her friends anymore because a pretty girl shouldn’t be around unattractive people but nothing all it does is leave me mad at penny and the other girls and I don’t want to be mad at penny she’s my favorite character
Throwing it in there too that at the end of the episode when a NERDY "ugly" black boy asked Zoey out, none of her friends had shit to say about whether or not THIS guy just likes white girls.
Just wanna say I appreciate this analysis, it was really interesting and I agree with what you're saying, it's frustrating to see characters used in this way. I was thinking while you were describing how Zoe was treated, especially in the episode where the attractive guy asked her out, and this might be super unknowledgeable, so correct me if I'm wrong, but is Zoe being like the "token black character" but in reverse here? Like everything that's happening to her feels like the BS people of color go through? The whole having her friend group completely turn on Zoe, forget all the good stuff/relationships they have and their relationship with her, and get angry at her simply for finally being seen by someone as more than just a goofy, nerdy, awkward person on the sidelines that they help or like tolerate, feels very much like stories I've heard and things I've seen in media. Especially the whole thing where once Zoe gets something her friends think they deserve they stop being friendly with her and lash out and blame her. I don't know if this is totally wrong/my misunderstanding of things, but that's what I was thinking about when you was describing the situation, like maybe the writers were trying to get people to understand that scenario more and think about it. Anyways, great video, very thought provoking.
I know this was six months ago but I was really sad in the colorism episode. Like they really made Zoey seem like she was at fault when really it’s not her fault. You can’t change people’s attraction to someone. It kinda relates to me because I’m in an interracial relationship and a lot of my “ex friends” used to say I’m too black, or you guys shouldn’t be together because you guys are different races ( I’m mixed ). It just sucks that people will still judge you. I felt that pain from Zoey.
I never understood why Penny’s friends were mad at Zoey because Noah asked her out and not them. Not to mention Penny and Dijonay both have boyfriends, so why do they care if a guy asked Zoey out? They just were jealous and treated Zoey like a villain. I honestly feel bad for Zoey in “End of Innocence”. She deserved better.
That’s how it is now a days. I’m mixed. So when a black person wants me as an ally they nice. But when they don’t like what I have to say I’m some white girl when everyone can see I’m mixed. My skin is light but I have black features. If my skin was brown I would look just like my dad. And the worst part about it all is black people (the ones that do it) don’t see any issue. They are bold about it.
I just love with all of the self-image positivity shows, books and social media posts, that Proud Family basically said "Everyone is beautiful and don’t hate yourself, unless you’re a white, tall, nerdy, have braces, and/or glasses girl. Then there’s no way that anyone would ever be attracted to you" in the Zoey colourism episode.
![แข่งเพิ่มน้ำหนักใน 24 ชั่วโมง!! [Ver 2025]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/20xn0g6k-ec/mqdefault.jpg)
If Noah openly disrespected black girls in the episode then everthing would've made sense. But attacking Zoey based off his dating preference when BOTH Dijonay & Penny had boyfriends made absolutely NO SENSE
No sense at all ‼
That shit really pissed me off!!! I hate girls like that, simping over other niggas when you already have a man!!!
@@tasmeenbaker9912 Men who do that are just as bad.
@@imthebossmermaid3648 don't worry, we know.
@Blueness1230 calm down
Zoey shouldn't have been called out for that boy liking white girls. It wasn't her fault to begin with
Right‼
tony can you make a video about penny proud now please
Agreed 💯
Yes! I hate this trend in media of women taking their anger at not getting the guy out on "the other woman" why is the man in the scenario never called out for his bullshit? Yeah, he's a celebrity, and?
Not to mention the boy walks straight past several pretty white girls on his way to Zoey. It's bizarre.
The worst part of the colorism episode? ZOEY was the one who apologized first, not the others! They so fumbled the bag. I feel like they made Penny’s friends SO much more toxic in the reboot. It’s just so frustrating
It was almost exhausting to watch
It made no complete sense for her to apologize. They should have apologized to her.
Zoey apologizing first really pissed me off🤦🏾♀️
penny was the only one supportive i think?🤷♂, damn i don;t even like this show and it alread a fucked show if is was penny i would exspose lacienga and leave my fake friends who always diches me. oh yeah she left kareen so shes a bitch now forget what i said ok!!
Shiiid, Even Penny started being more toxic. Also can we talk about how Penny and Dijonay basically almost CHEATED on their boyfriends for that lightskin dude?
Zoey was representation of the white kids who lived in mostly black neighborhoods and went to mostly black schools. She was awkward, but she was trying. She new she didnt fit in but she loved her friends.
Not me. I had a horrible time.
@@cherryblossom7120 I didn't mean she represented their experiences, just that there were white kids who grew up in those environments. Like Tony said, she was the "diversity" character in the situation. And I think it was nice for some of the white kids who grew up in black neighborhoods to see themselves in a cartoon. That's all
@@cherryblossom7120I'm sorry for that I understand to a point at a time I was the only black girl in my class and everyone spoke Spanish it was definitely hard...
@@nenep1872 Diversity is good but we cannot go through something that there are difficulties with that, such as the language barrier
@@SamRabbitxsadly this one is allowing the idea it's ok to subject children to such toxic treatment as if validating to act racist towards people who didn't do anything wrong for just existing
Isn’t it kinda funny how they simp over the light skin guy over their own boyfriends, then get mad when he has a preference for white skin?
Kinda hypocritical.
EXACTLY ‼
"Rules for thee but not for me"
Exactly! They had that colorism plot written out for them and they still went after Zoey!!
This is an unpopular opinion but I feel like the reboot is worse. The original was written better and diversity and heavy subjects were handled better. It wasn’t perfect ofc, it was the 2000’s but somehow, it was taken more seriously.Like the racism episode when they swap households, it was innovative. The characters in the reboot feel like 1dimensional, caricatures of themselves.
@@kakeemakeup5845 thats definitely not an unpopular opinion. everyone knows the reboot is just inaccurate and hypocritical.
@kakeemakeup5845 Problem with the new one is there's not enough diversity in the writing team.
It is a show about a black family, but that doesn't mean the writing team shouldn't include diverse races. One white writer could have been able to fix this Zoey problem.
It's like people say when an all white team tries to write a black character.
They really blamed a girl for a boy's decisions and actions under the guise of being woke, and they failed that lesson as well.
They went so woke it went full circle to "blame the girl for a guy's decision to date a said girl because her skin tone didn't match his" like full "date your own race only" "this is all the woman's fault somehow" and not even touching the fact they villainize someone purely because of her skin tone
Lots of people died to give him the right to not date Black girls.
@@sleepy_koko Add in that the show is implicitly saying that if you have a sexual preference in what you find attractive then that is wrong. Can't wait for the lesbian episode where they shame the girl for not going out with a guy because she only dates girls.
@@StevenTLawson Knowing the show I think it would rather attack bisexual girl dating one of the genders, most likely a boy. It's the old-new woke trend to harass bisexuals who date the opposite gender.
What's worse is that Penny and Dijonay already have boyfriends. Kareem and Darius, I feel bad for both of them because both of their girlfriends were thirsting over another dude, lol.
What if he just liked tall girls? Zoey's a future model with that figure.
Especially if you saw her college look back in season 1 of the reboot
At least Zoey gets her dues in college.
I'm glad! As a white girl who felt closer to Penny, I felt so bad for Zoey and just super disappointed in Penny. @@JT5555
@j-boz5271 I was not a fan of her glow up. It doesn't even look like her. Like she could never be pretty as her. That they had to change her ehole face to be attractive.They could have kept her wide smile atleast
Dude liked white girls and trashed black girls. So, Zoeh broke up with him.
But after what her friends did to her, uninviting her to a yearly social gathering, that really hurts deep.
What made me furious about the way they treated Zoey in that episode was the fact that in the original series the episode, Forbidden Date, when the girls paired off with those football players, Zoey got with the Black guy and Dijonay got with the White guy amd nobody said jack about it.
Honestly, the whole plot point with Noah was just three girls being petty cause a celebrity didn't desire them.
To make it even worse, Penny and Dijonay already got whole ass boyfriends yet they're so thirsty over some celebrity boy. That episode made me dislike Penny, plus Kareem is so sweet and loyal to her yet she was about to risk it all for Noah.
@@tasmeenbaker9912exactly. I haven’t seen a show focused on black teens that didn’t have stereotypes and is actually enjoyable. Well there’s one show abt a guy who plays basketball I forgot the name
It’s a very good show and it’s amazing.
Penny and Dijonay and big foot def need get some karma returned in a future episode even the guys thought they were crazy for taking there anger out on Zoey and the dudes preference.....
@@Oceanworker Not Bigfoot 💀😂
They also threw her dance talent out🤷♀️🤷♀️sis was killing it in the movie. So much for going against stereotypes.
Right‼
@@williampearson6299if she has to be a punching bad they could atleast do it in a way that makes sense
@williampearson6299 wtf is wrong with you
@@williampearson6299 god, what a pathetic way of thinking.
@williampearson6299 There is a saying that an eye for an eye males the whole world blind. I get what you're saying, BUT someone else here was right. If you're gonna make someone the punching bag, do it in a way that makes sense. Make the jokes land, and don't shame them for just existing on the show when you can do the same jokes with 20 other characters.
The girls blaming Zoey for Noah gives the same energy as getting mad at the girl your boyfriend is cheating with instead of the boyfriend who is cheating behind everyone's backs
Edit: The keywords here are "behind everyone's backs." Of course I mean both girls don't know about each other in this example
I hate bitches like that or when you tell them "Hey, I think your man is cheating" they get mad at you for "Ruining their relationship" instead of the nigga
Yep
They should blame Noah instead of Zoey. I mean we know Zoey is not the blame.
So true. I really hate that.
@@johnsantos507 Should they have "blamed" Noah, though? Like what are we "blaming" him for? Do we have to "blame" him for liking Zoe over her friends, because no one should ever prefer her? Do we have to "blame" him for liking white girls? They SHOULD have not even cared, because they SHOULD have been happy with their own boyfriends, but instead they were trying to "upgrade". They were only mad that he rejected them. They should have only been EMBARRASSED by their own willingness to dismiss their boyfriends over the first light-skinned boy they came across.
Having Noah only like white girls was a copout choice that distracted from how nasty the girls were and even gave them gross validation that no quality guy would like Zoe more than them in a genuine way.
Penny and Dijonay were expecting Noah to ask one of them out, completely ignoring their boyfriends. And yet, when he didn't ask them out, their boyfriends still took them to the dance...
Yeah, if I were one of their boyfriends, I wouldn't take them to the dance after that.
dijonay didnt have a boyfriend... previous episode dude was only using her....penny wasnt that mad...and kareem wasnt boyfriend status just a crush...he also hung around lacianniga way to much knowing shes sneaky tbh
Dijonay has a boyfriend. It’s Darrius.
It feels like they had this script lying around but didn't change it to fit the current continuity of the sequel show
Thot Family
@drewhaynes1874 This episode takes place after Darius was introduced and they started dating. It's even said in the episode
I feel like the episode also has a weird undertone of white people and black people shouldn’t date under the guise of colourism. They really dropped the ball on this episode.
Yeah, there's an odd amount of celebs now who seem to feel that way, the whole "Bl@ck should only date Bl@ck". Idk why, it seems counterproductive to solving race issues.
BTW I only censored that bc youtube's bots can be a little funky and unable to read between the lines.
Honestly though its literally insane. What happened to people are people?
@@Cardinal_claw They're people. And people are terrible.
It's honestly sad how the whole "black should only date black" mentality is becoming popular but in the black community. I've been shamed for being with my white partner and people insinuating we're white supremacists or he's somehow keeping me down. We just love each other. I've seen way too many tiktoks with black creators just showing a happy couple and putting them down because one of them is white. It's the exact racism we we're fighting against for so long, why are people in our community doing this?? I've been baffled how a surprising amount of our community just wants to basically bring segregation back cause they feel the mere presence of white people is bad.
@@slimebunny5700 that's really disgusting that you and your partner have to go through that. I hope the two of you the best.
Penny and Deejonay's boyfriends should've called them out. Penny and Deejonay are unfaithful attention seekers.
The writers made them look so dumb this episode
@@TonyTurnerEspecially since they went on nothing more than Maya's word alone, even Penny called her out on the rumour possibly being nothing but BS. But Maya just kept stoking the flames.
it pissed me off that penny was being all sad later on in the episode when she was talking to her mom when she has a whole boyfriend
The show, and that episode in particular, have a ton of hypocrisy and double standards for the guys. If Kareem and Darius had showed up to that dance with other girls then Penny and Dijonay would have tried to pitch a fit despite the fact that both girls practically dumped them trying to chase someone famous.
It could've worked if they were concerned for Zoey, since feeling an 'ick' from someone's partner at that age can be almost impossible to articulate. An arc about Zoey's actor bf turning out to be toxic could've been something great for a show to explore, and a good message to show kids how to handle that sort of situation.
But no. They ice their friend out then insult her because Maya's unnamed cousin said a rumor. Then they are awarded for isolating their friend who's possibly dating a creep.
Fighting racism in the 90's: "We should not judge each other by the colour of our skin"
Fighting racism in 2023: "We need to judge everyone exclusively by the colour of their skin!"
also fighting racism in 2023: "especially if they're white, because everybody knows white people are automatically evil! but yeah favor everyone else."
So damn true
We can't be racists if there's only one race vibes there!
Yeah I'm on the "oppressed" side and I've seen alarming videos of white people getting attacked mind you, they weren't being racist or anything, and people in the comments cheering.
We were taught in school that NOT paying attention to race is being racist because we ignore racial disparities 😂 make it make sense
@@boodledemic6430 in the 90s we were taught the exact opposite.. at least where I'm from.
If the show truly wants to tackle colorism, they could write an episode that addresses how Lacieniga, Penny, Trudy and Sunset benefit from it. Present real colorist ideals and show how it harms the darker skinned characters in the show.
I agree ‼ That would be one of their best episodes ever
In the original run, the show was itself accused of favoring lighter black characters. I think your suggestion would help a lot.
That does sound like it would make a terrific story, but unfortunately the people behind the series seem to be as self-reflective as a brick wall.
@@MattEldritchHorror It definitely feels that way, especially with the spiteful creation of Maya.
@@nueshb4797 Maya is just a radical BLM activista whose personality is based on feeling opresed by everything 😂😂😂
This show is literal stereotypes tryna talk bad about other stereotypes
💯💯💯
“Why would he go with you?”
That line made me so insecure. No one ever asked me out to prom, homecoming, or any sort of event. It makes you feel ugly. And the fact that like never got resolved makes me very upset. Thanks Proud Family
Hey. I’m so sorry you had to experience that from the show. I hope you’re doing ok out there.
@@CloudyWolf713 Omg dude that made my heart swell in happiness thank you!! And yeah I’m doing okay! I was in a different mindset when I wrote that comment and honestly forgot about it.
I think dating is gonna be easier when I get older since I’ll be away from high school and all the kids I grew up with, so I’ll have the change to meet new people.
To be honest, when I watched that episode, I was already having a shitty day so it just added to that. It’s hard watching the show without feeling insecure, but I still appreciate what the team managed to do. It was super ahead of its time, even if they got a lot of things wrong about friendship
@@pajamaramayt Alright.
Still, if you ever need to hear it, you’re worth it, and you’re certainly not ugly.
And you and your well-being do matter. ^_^
Same, that happened to me too.
I was the nerdy girl nobody wanted to date- so seeing the lanky, “unattractive” girl- by their standards, being attractive to a popular and attractive guy for once and being punished for it!
It was just “stay in your lane, date your own kind, and level” the episode.
It disgusted me and left me feeling all depressed that it was framed like THAT was the correct way of thinking. Zoey got to see the “true nature” of her friends.
And when someone shows you who they really are, believe them.
So long as Zoey “stays with her kind and in her lane” her friends won’t be mad at her, and that’s disgusting.
Too bad the series won’t be showing her getting better friends.
same if i wanted a date i had to do the asking! i only got asked twice by someone in high school and rembering it hurts a lot
"Zoey, you just don't GET IT!"
You're right Dijonay because I DON'T GET IT EITHER. Like what are you talking about?? It's not like Noah was making derogatory comments against darker-skinned girls or black girls period!
Hell if Noah acted like a douchebag I’d understand. But Noah literally didn’t do anything other then pick zoey and another girl who caught his attention. He wasn’t mean or a jerk.
@@Yoshixandir plus, they kept mentioning he only dates white girls, which sounds more like a preference than prejudice. Had they said "he doesn't date black girls" it would've hit different imo.
He walked past other white girls before choosing Zoey, so it makes "he only dates white girls" sound more like a rumor than facts. Not to mention Maya is the one who brought it up in the first place.
And she said that in response to Zoey accusing them of jealousy, which neatly sidestepped the fact that Zoey was right. They were all flinging themselves at the boy before he apporached Zoey, and they WERE jealous of her.
I will explain it. It's saying he doesn't like her for her if he chasing her skin in other words he would go for any white girl or woman not because Zoey stand out. Do you understand? It's a personhood thing. If he date all girls then him chasing after Zoey means it's for her because she is great for her. Thus if another white girl or black girl or Asian girl come along it won't matter because he loved her Zoey not her skin but her as a person. Get it? Same with dudes who don't date Hispanics girls or black girls or white girls but they are white or Hispanics or black. It's a red flag. It means that giving under any circumstances she would not be it. In other words It's a love thing. It's like men who girls or women that can cook. So if they can't anymore or someone better at cook comes along that's it? That's the problem.
Now that I look at Zoey as an adult I feel like I should have resonated more with her when I watched the OG show as a kid. I’m not white but growing up in school I was always the awkward, unattractive, follower girl who clung onto her nasty and more popular friend. At times they included me in activities but other times abused me and treated me poorly. It was even to the point where others who had bullied and picked on me told me to leave that toxic group. That’s how you knew my situation was bad. I never had a guy like Noah show interest in me like how he did with Zoey but I remember if I ever shared a win my friend would shout “LIAR” to my face and I felt bad about myself. I look back and I realized that she screeched that out of jealousy.
Wow. Thanks for sharing this ‼
@@TonyTurner Thanks for making these videos💖
I wish Penny and Zoey could just leave their band of assholes who pretend to be her friends.
@@samflood5631 Zoe isn't the target demographic. Black girls are. And if Zoe has to take some licks then so be it. Have you watched content geared for white girls written by white girls? Yes, they have contempt for black women too, so I am fine with Zoe getting trashed. White people are NOT victims. This isn't the Zoe show
@@suezcontours6653 I know, but seeing how Penny's friends, except for Zoey, are real asshole, I wonder why Penny is still friends with them after all of the bull crap they've put her through.
The way the girls were written in that episode was also embarrassingly sexist. There are so many relevant ways the writers could’ve tackled colorism, and the girl group fighting over boys was the best they could do? Also, I think a colorism episode should’ve focused on Dijonay and empowering her identity as a dark skinned black girl, maybe address how the series itself has played into some colorist stereotypes in the past? But no, we gotta dump on poor Zoey.
I agree. But the show hates dark-skinned Black girls and writes Dijonay terribly so of course they wouldn’t do that. They probably thought that shitting on white people would make up for their unbridled racism and colorism.
I mean, i think even in this series they still have the colorist stereotypes- Penny is mixed (as in Trudy is lighter skinned while Oscar is darker) / lighter skinned and she's polite, well-mannered, and comes from a well off family, Dijonay is darker skinned and comes from a poor family while she is more 'ghetto' and throws herself to every man she meets. Heck, even Oscar and Sugar Mama are streotyped (Oscar is 'dumb' and Sugar Mama is abusive, while Trudy has a good paying job, is the 'reasonable' parent (at least in the OG series, etc) The colorism episode could still be have Noah, but maybe make it clear he treats them all differently (like barely pays attention to Maya and Dijonay or makes awful comments about them, is a lot nicer to Penny and Lacienega, maybe has an interest in Zoey) and just have him flat out have him say something about their skin tones
@@shipper-of-heart8898 All of this but Penny is not mixed, Trudy is simply a lightskin Black woman. They exist.
@@imthebossmermaid3648 thank you for the correction
@@shipper-of-heart8898 no worries!
I know this has been beaten to death but to sum up Zoey apologizing first is like saying "I'm sorry that guy I liked had a prefrence for white girls and believing he was genuinely insterested in me and gave him the benefit of the doubt. You guys were right even though you didn't acknowledge how he was the one who decided to date me and he is the one who likes white girls. I hope we can still be friends after you shunned me and blamed me for someone else's actions :)"
I think this also has an interracial angle. By discrediting this guy for liking white girls, it kind of implies he SHOULDN'T be dating white girls. For something intended to support modern ideas, it sure has the values of the 70s.
think about it this show is made by a bunch of Boomers that probably got even worse as people over the years due to the current political climate
I dated a very nice Black girl once. Tanisha was her name. We broke up because I literally didn't feel comfortable around her family. They were racist af. They didn't even get to know me. They would literally talk shit about me one room over like I couldn't hear them. Her grandmother was very nice. She was the only one who had my back. "He holds the door for her, buys her nice dinners, holds her hand in public, and stands up for her when needed. He's a hell of a lot nicer than the White folks were to me in my day!" I miss her. She passed away a few years back from old age. She was 91. Greta was her name, but I always called her Grandma.
@@joebaumgart1146 dude, that's some wholesome sh*t, also, that family is crap, i wish Tanisha is able of keeping herself out of those horrible parts of her family.
Honestly the 70s seemed to be more aware and conscious about race than this- this isn't 70s racism, this is like 50s racism, segregated relationships.
@@jackpijjin4088 Mostly said 70s because my grandparents split up then, partially due to the backlash they got for being interracial.
I feel like the main thing that nobody talks about is that MAYA is the one to start all this shxt based on secondhand information, not even damning facts. And then she just jumps down Penny and Dijonay’s BFs’ throats when they try to defend Noah by saying he’s allowed to have preferences. And at the end of the episode when Zoey (unjustifiably) apologizes, Maya says stuff like this is why “us sistas” have to stick together, as if she wasn’t the one that divided them in the first place.
All this to say, congratulations, Disney. You’ve given us a second dark-skinned black girl in the main cast, and you’ve somehow made her more insufferable and stereotypical than the first one.
Also they make her say “I don’t need all this negativity in my life” as if she wasn’t the one who started the rumor in the first place.
@EeveelutionStorm yeah but keep her brother he’s cool
They could have had maya like pull out photos of him and all his EXs singed sense he’s a famous person better way to done that a rumor from the cousin of your uncle’s dogs next door neighbor
Right, just kick her out of the friendzone and never see her again in the show.
Congratulations, Disney. You made Dijonay again, but with a more annoying twist.
As a really nerdy black girl (glasses, braces, not lanky but not a “desirable”body shape.) I felt so bad for Zoey this episode. Like how do you fumble so hard as to make a “guy preferring white girls over black girls” episode (something I’ve experienced all my life with everyone I’ve wanted to date.) Then make me feel bad and relate to the white girl 😭😭
I feel like having a bunch of old boomers write on how modern teenage girl should act doesn't seem like a good idea
@@A-TALKING-TOASTERThat's what's worse about it. They aren't old people. They're fucking mid 20's and early 30's. It's awful!
@@A-TALKING-TOASTER same goes for politically extreme people writing anyone they make everyone annoying
Hey. You doing ok?
I feel bad for her character because she can have an interesting storylines but doesn’t
I feel like fans of the show have much better plot ideas with her than the actual hired writers. They stunt her character's development
@@TonyTurneryeah man. Sometimes the fans knows what to do, sometimes the directors knows
@@TonyTurner Totally agree with this. The End of Innocence could have been a great chance for us to see Zoey's main character flaw of cowardice be addressed head-on, but unfortunately I don't think the show really wants its characters to grow in any meaningful sense at all. The most development she gets is in Home School, which retreads the same development she already got in the movie about breaking out of her shell, and that's about it. Even Us Again, a crazy non-canon dream sequence episode, has better instances of character growth for her compared to The End of Innocence, with her busting in to the house to rescue Penny from the clones, as well as us getting to see both her parents for the first time.
@@naturalplayboy94 Zoe isn't the target demographic. Black girls are. And if Zoe has to take some licks then so be it. Have you watched content geared for white girls written by white girls? Yes, they have contempt for black women too, so I am fine with Zoe getting trashed.
The show isn’t about her, she’s a token white like how Black characters are tokens in white shows and given no development or storyline.
Let’s be honest: Disney knew EXACTLY what they were doing when they rebooted this show in this current time. They just thought they could get away with it
I was a tall, redheaded, nerdy white girl who always felt like the odd one out (even though I think that was mostly in my head looking back on it as an adult) and Zoey in the original show resonated with me so much. I wanted to BE Penny, but Zoey WAS me. Except for the dancing thing. I can follow choreography but you won't ever catch me freestyling. 😅
😅😅😅
I hope you’re doing ok out there.
Get this girl away from that cesspit of a 'friend squad' and get her around some friends who will actually appreciate her.
Get Zoey away from these shitheads and on a plane in the same way they chucked Sticky.
penny use to be a good main char, its just she is poorly written in this new series.
Maybe he liked Zoey because she wasn’t throwing herself on him did they even think about that? Maybe he likes nerdy girls and her skin color had nothing to do with it. I am not excusing what Noah did but pointing out it may have not been about race.
That’s a very good point he might not like people trying to get clout by meeting him
This is why Maya is the worst character in the series: ALL of this starts because of some rumor that she herd and then carelessly blurted out. Even if it turned out to be 100% true,it was still just a rumor as far as she knew and she was basically just stating shit for the sake of stating shit.
@@JT5555 rumor was true tho.... writers couldve handled it better but we know there are way too many dudes celebrities/rappers black atheletes that exclusively date for color.... thats who they chose to poke at in the show
You’re right but at the end of the episode Zoey literally said “he admitted that he’s only into white girls”.
@drewhaynes1874 but SHE didn't know that. Miya was just talking then refused to take responsibility for what she indirectly did.
I am a white girl and have a coworker who I talked to everyday and we became friends, but she uninvited me to her bday because her and her friends were poc and she didn't think I could hang or keep up. I just told her if that's how she feels thats OK, I'm not mad. But it always made me sad since we havent really talked since. I try my best coming from a primarily white town. The reboot brought those feelings back. I always wonder did I say something? Was it my actions? She never told me
If anything she did you a favor proving she wasn't worth your time and energy. Don't blame yourself for other people's bias.
Girl. I had a friend in the 6th grade we were friends for YEARS. Me: mixed white black and Mexican. Her: black. We were so close I would spend SUMMERS over her house. We were together all the time. Then when BLM got hyped up and she was on her page talking about looting for hair and TVs I told her that that was bs and she and someone I went to high school with started hanging up on me. And my so called best friend for years called me half breed. (they didn’t even know each other. Both of them were black and wanted to loot) I stopped fuckign with her. And one day she was on my page trying to say something (trying to disagree with something I had to say) I said whatever you have to say to me has no value ever since you called me half breed. And she was like “you still mad about that?” Like I should just get over it. I still don’t talk to her and I’m 30.
@@simhedanot only was that so-called former friend colorist, when you called her out for her crazy social media posts, did you notice she started referring to you in a manner that sounded suspiciously like a white supremacist? I’ve often noticed that in shows like Louder and Prouder, the writing suggests the writers are quick to complain about something happening and will fight for “justice” but then act just like the people they say they hate.
Zoey's treated as a punching bag even moreso because they're framing it as "punching up." Which is just sad. It's trying to address modern societal issues but they're injecting a lot of "us vs them" mentality when the girls are supposed to be friends. Instead of writing the girls more mature and unpacking the real issues of colorism you could get with Dijonay and Penny, they load it all on Zoey. They're supposed to be older but they're still immature and cruel to each other. Everyone has been BEGGING the writers to go through some growth and become better but they're worse than before.
👏👏👏👏👏
This.
thats crazy, people are begging the writers to grow tf up already 💀
I think what's also gross is that they have LaCienega flat out say 'youre ugly! Why would a hot guy like Noah wanna date YOU other than the fact youre white?!" and then when Myron asks Zoey to dance at the end, nobody says a thing about him being black because 'oh its okay, the creepy unattractive guy can ask out our unattractive white friend because none of us like him : ) and he likes you for your brain' (even though that was never stated before). Like I know he and Zoey have some kind of friendship in the OG series (the party episode where she was handing him an invite before Dijonay took it away and chewed her out for inviting the 'weird' kid). And the fact in the colorism episode we're supposed to side with the group who is 60-80% toxic people (Dijonay for outing Maya and her bro for having gay dads and pretty much every single time she gossips and ruins somebody's life, Lacienega for trying to be a homewrecker when Penny and Kareem started hanging out, Penny for when she went on the social media tirade cancelling people left and right, Maya was pretty much hating Penny from the start for one reason or another and clearly doesnt like her, Michael- I have no idea, he seems pretty innocent in this) rather than Zoey. Also as people pointed out, Penny and Dijonay both have boyfriends and they just talked about dating Noah right in front of them. I dont think they even apologize to them for pretty much admitting theyd dump them when a better man came along
Other than being a walking stereotype, Michael is the only decent person in that friend group.
I think they didn't put Penny at the center of the "colorism" issue because then the writers (or rather, Bruce Smith) would have to confront their own issues with colorism within the show.
Word.
Fuckin truuu
They introduce a random new who we're not supposed to like but then don't even give him that much screentime or a clear motive??? Its almost like this episode is actually from the POV of everyone in the friend group rather than Zoey
Never expected someone to speak for the "white nerdy girl". I lived a similar experience and felt like this show was just another bully.
I'll be honest, the moment I heard what this episode was about I dropped the show. The proud family I grew up with wasn't so callously cruel and tone deaf.
Yeah in the original show at least Penny herself would admit she’s wrong.
Right!?? Idk why they thought making penny a brat would be comedic or relatable it’s just dumb.
Yeah, like, from the few episodes I watched out of it as a kid, the friendship was more "teenage girl toxic, amiright?" than *"PLEASE CUT THESE TONE-DEAF SHITSTAINS OUT OF YOUR LIFE."*
I’m glad I never watched it. Shows today (Disney channel today) are horrible becaus they have no story. Just you’re white and straight! And we can treat you however we want. Most shows today are like that. I’m hoping this drives people to stop watching tv and we see the downfall of streaming services or tv in general and people start getting healthy and outside 😂
I was the Zoey in my highschool friend group. I was accused of being a snowbunny and a fetishizer when I was asked out by the popular drama student. When we all went to prom as a group, the girls all got ready together at a salon and got dressed together at one of their houses and I got dressed and did my own makeup in the bathroom of the youth shelter I lived in at the time. They showed up late to get me and took photos all together with my date as well, but I was only included in one photo. I really thought I deserved to be treated as an other and an outsider, so I let it happen until they started excluding me completely from events because I’m white. It hurt seeing this episode because it was like watching myself on screen getting bullied again. I even had to apologize for being asked out by the man
Must be an honor to get ignored but a bunch of jealous insecure girls. The power you have. Hoping you get scouted for modeling or something better because I feel like you deserve something nice. Weird and terrible things happen, gotta find a way to flip it and make it to your advantage
Also the girls had no evidence that Noah only dates white girls beyond what Maya’s cousin said. Which isn’t really reliable since Noah was stated to be new in town, so how could the cousin already know him well enough to say that with any certainty?
The girls never made any real effort to find out if the rumors were even true before shutting Zoey out of the group. How do you think it would’ve looked if at the end they reveal that he actually was interested in Zoey as a person, and the girls were just looking for a reason to hate on Zoey for going out with a popular kid?
If they wanted this episode to work, maybe have the girls make an effort to see if the rumors are true. Maybe look at his social media for pictures of him with previous dates or have Penny’s boyfriend try to talk to Noah or his friends. Then have them confront Zoey about this, and if she tries to make an excuse for his behavior, then the others would feel more justified in their anger.
Yup there were too many assumptions
And even then, so what he only dates white girls? Unless he was racist about it, it's just a racial preference and clearly he doesn't go after every single white girl he goes by cause there was other white girls around Zoey and instead asked HER out.
@@chichichichichichiOwOright it’s not like he was being a jerk about it. He just had a preference.
As a white female who loved watching The Proud Family growing up and found it relatable because I lived in a diverse area, thank you!! After that reboot episode, I stopped watching. It made me, as a white viewer, feel like crap, and it turned into something I could no longer enjoy. Zoey is a sweet-natured character and didn't deserve that. She never should have had to apologize for being in the right place at the right time. That's literally what it came down to. And yes, I know it's only a cartoon, but this kind of thing happens in real life, too. These current writers are trash. The original series was so much better in pretty much every way.
They just get racially territorial and thats why they hate zoey. They dont like that she attracted what they deem to be a handsome black dude and so instead of her having confidence and character growth they stick her with Myron which they deem as an undesirable, he didn't like zoey for the way she was he was out here hitting on every single girl in the group and he decided to shoot his shot when Zoey was at her lowest and most vulnerable.
Everyone in that show is shitty whether its in your face or subtle.
I haven't even seen the series but I'm aware of and floored by the fact that when it all happened, they jumped to colorism after one off-hand mention from another person and glommed on that Zoey wasn't pretty or good enough on her own to warrant the attention. Like, they were SO FAST to assume "it's because she's white" because they didn't have any reason aside from that. Maybe the guy likes nerdy girls, or braces, red heads or girls who eat? Maybe Zoey is nice or quirky, who knows (maybe he loves himself a tall queen)! But no, they list her faults that's she's too "Zoey" (ugly, bland, weird, etc) that it HAS to be she's white
Like, wow, great friends/s
my fiance is my tall red haired king who eats like a champ, reads with me, and has had braces before..... i fell for male zoey and im so happy i have him
Or tall girls, or red haired girls, or he likes more petite body types! So many things he could be attracted to???
In the "colorism" episode, it was very fake of them to stop talking to Zoey just because Noah chose to date her. The fact she apologized for that was crazy.
Facts Tony! Why did they ruin their friendship over dude? I will never understand...
Then again, Zoey was just as fake as Penny's other friends.
True‼
How was Zoey fake if I could ask. She seemed to be the realest friend Penny had (Lacienega clearly hates Penny and is more on the 'we only hang out because our parents are friends' vibe. Dijonay constantly backstabs Penny and will betray her just to make herself better) I dont remember when Zoey did something bad unless she was roped into it by one of the other two
@shipper-of-heart8898 she would follow Dijonay and LaCienaga whenever Penny had a disagreement with one of them.
@@shipper-of-heart8898 She made some decisions and ditched Penny. I remember in one episode Dijonay and LaCienaga had ditched Penny for wanting to do what she felt was right and Penny was like "Well at least I have Zoey here" or something like that and Zoey was no where to be seen. She's made some bad decisions. In fact, it mind boggles me as an adult how Penny can stand her friends. They're all jerks and she deserved way better!
@@sapphirewriter8349 Zoe isn't the target demographic. Black girls are. And if Zoe has to take some licks then so be it. Have you watched content geared for white girls written by white girls? Yes, they have contempt for black women too, so I am fine with Zoe getting trashed.
Worst part of that whole princess episode was that the boyfriends just went back to them like nothing happened. Was real sad and not realistic at all.
Would've been really interesting if halfway through the episode it had been about the boyfriends being upset that their GIRLFRIENDS are more interested in a lighter-skinned dude than in them.
I really hoped that there would be the twist in the Noah episode that he just asked Zoe because she was the only one who didn't get IN HIS FACE, kinda like Victor Krum to Hermione - the one he felt genuine about not just because of his looks... but nah, that would be to deep and a "wrong lesson" in today's standard. Plus they were SO MEAN like they were like "no way he wants to date our friend, she's ugly af, it must be racism, no other reason" AND WERE PROVEN RIGHT?! LIKE WTF?!
Yeah, Dijonay basically tried to assault him, but then she's surprised he didn't want her??
Her fantasy glow-up kinda made me mad.
I wanted her to keep the glasses.
They honestly made her look crazy
I agree. Why does glasses=ugly for girls? And no glasses=pretty?
@@imthebossmermaid3648
I used to think glasses made me ugly until I found a pair that suited my face shape.
Now I feel deformed without them.
She can't even see if she is looking better😂😂😂
They should have done that thing in joke "makeover" montages where they cycle through a bunch of ridiculous accessories and end up right back on the original one.
Zoe with her glasses comes out
Girls shake their head
No glasses
Head shake
Big rimmed glasses
Head shake
Sun glasses
Head shake
Those fake moustache glasses
Head shake
Zoe's original glasses
Enthusiastic nodding
I do want them to have an episode where a side character like Myron goes off and tells them that they are all awful people similar to what Sinjin did in victorious
Yes, we need a reason you suck speech for that friend group.
They went from "Racism is bad" to "Racism is not that bad if.."
The hardest thing to learn in life:
When you're in a situation where everyone around you is so far removed from who you are and what you know, don't change. True friends will love and celebrate who you are. Your friendship won't come at the condition of you changing to conform to other people's standards, and they won't bully you for your differences.
Never watched The Proud Family, but I WAS Zoey growing up. Tall, awkward, nerdy, red hair and freckles. All my friends had boyfriends and no boys ever looked at me (I turned out to be gay but that's besides the point). You talked about how Zoey was treated as the punching bag, how her friends found her unattractive and therefore couldn't believe a popular boy would be interested in her. That really hit close to home honestly.
i hated the colorism episode it felt so hypcocritical of pennys friends to be going after zoey for dating th dude when THEY HAVE BOYFRIENDS,like who tf cares if the guy has preferences plus outting zoey because her skin felt so racist and discriminatory
Plus it was really weird that this famous guy is almost the exact opposite of the guys they’re dating. Maybe have some self reflection instead of making Zoey out to be evil when girl was just existing????
It technically wasn't colorism. What they do to zoey is full blown racist and to not only have them never get confronted with their sins but to have zoey apologize to THEM because she was white is insanely racist.
agreed it sucks they didnt have any karma for how they treated zoey worse is maya adding more to the fire and pinning zoeys friends gainst her the only one who even stood up for zoey was penny but she still tried to go after the guy even tho she has a very sweet loyal boyfriend who cares about her@@oblitusunum6979
I feel like Zoey has always been the show's punchingbag (besides Oscar) and the fact that she was a 2nd tier character despite being in the main character's friend group kind of proves that.
At least Oscar is an adult, so it's easier to laugh at him. That, and he has more of a safety net
@@johnsonartchive8826 it's not easier to laugh at oscar because he's an adult: it's because he's an idiot.XD
I was legit bothered by how much of a punching bag Oscar was in the OG show lol.
I was legit bothered by how much of a punching bag Oscar was in the OG show lol.
Immediately when I watched that colorism episode, I cringed and felt bad for Zoey. I literally want that episode wiped away from the series like it's so unbelievably bad. There were so many ways to could have approached it and the way it fell flat is so bizarre. Honestly, they should have did an episode where Zoey cuts them for good since they wanna be so damn fake.
What hurts most about some of these episodes is that you can so clearly see how little aspects of the story could be changed to make the plot and message work. There are just so many ways they could have tackled this issue.
That's what gets me too. They had the perfect formula but terrible execution
What really annoyed me was the ''white people can't dance joke''. Besides that it's not true, there are many dances but because they don't involve shaking your ass they don't count. I'm exaggerating of course. But there was a moment in the Proud Family movie when Zoey dances ''like the Black people'' as in ''cool'' but suddenly now she can't just for that one joke. Even if the makers forgot they still showed her capable of dancing in a different episode.
Technically the whole movie never happened as it was revealed to have been a dream in one episode.
White people have plenty of ass-shaking dances and Black people have plenty of dances that aren't about shaking your ass.
In response to that episode
I'm an African-American, and I'm attracted to Asians. (Vietnamese,Japanese,Chinese,Singaporean, etc) It's my preference/attraction, and I'm not ashamed for it
In my High School Senior Year, there was an Asian (believe she was a Chinese or Japanese) student in my first two classes that I was attracted to.
On Valentine's Day, I sent a note asking to be my valentine, but unfortunately, she responded, saying she was already taken.
Day after Valentine's Day, most likely because I actually took the rejection well,didn't take the rejection as an act of malice and respected her choice
(Learned from Hal Stewart/Tighten from Megamind)
she gave me a pack of Trident gum and was the first person to come to me to sign my white shirt near the end of the school year, meaning I did something right.
Told my whole family, and they were all surprised, BUT open when I told them I was attracted to someone outside my race and for what I did to that girl in my senior year even proud of me for what I've done
So yeah, I wasn't mad
I was done with this reboot when I saw this episode
Wait. You really have attracted to asians?
@@johnsantos507 yes
@@moussacamara0614 Sweet Christmas. You lucky devil.
@johnsantos507 Thank you
Told my whole family that asians are my dating preference, and they said that they don't care
@@moussacamara0614 Best way is to be careful. Asians care about is perfected just like Turning Red movie. We both know that being "perfect doesn't exist.
The problem with The Proud Family is that it's a bunch of middle aged men writing teenage girls. That's why Penny's friend group is toxic and catty and horrible. These writers don't know how young girls actually behave
And it was straight up misogynistic for Zoey to be blamed for the behavior of a boy she barely knew. Especially since Noah's preference for White girls was a rumor that Maya pulled out of her butt to start drama (seriously, why is anyone friends with Maya? She sucks)
Definitely. The writers definitely think that all teenage girls are catty and jealous and boy-crazy, they’re written by men with hateful and backwards views of women and that’s why they act like bitter mean-spirited stereotypes. That’s why the show is so hard to watch.
hard nope! I haven't seen this reboot except parts of it here and there but having watched few of the og ,this show does put into view how young girls, especially back then, acted in not only school but just how they were in young development. it's always been like that cause it's abt survival amongst all the prejudices and perceptions you face and deal with amongst your peers ( and adults too). even if in some schools it wasn't prominent with such brutal attitudes , the ideals existed , just manifested themselves differently depending on environment and how the adults and people handle these ideals to the youth. all these shows, since the og was in 2000s, and even before then, may seem like an exaggeration or a mockery to us, especially girls if we believe that these issues are rooted in misogyny and women hating, but the truth is it is and society has proven its been like that; what people haven't understood is how that affected women. women internally as they develop, varying depending on factors but still done in some way, have been misogynistic to each other in order to survive and be accepted; in which ever ways. the thing is, because people don't look and deal with it, it manifests time and time again as petty, catty, conniving behavior.
they're young and have no emotional maturity and the glimpses of self awareness they get are only triggered when it's spoon fed, but none are internally done by self autonomy. add that with no proper guidance?
that's where we are.
@@chang3025 Not all teenage girls act like this. And you can't deny that there are teenage boys who act like this too and yet the boys in this show are never presented this way. It's obviously just a stereotype created by misogynistic men to claim that women are always in competition with each other. Girls can have good relationships with each other too. Watch Equestria Girls for instance, you'll see a realistic representation of teenage girls that doesn't portray them all as catty, bitchy, cliched stereotypes.
And even if a lot of teenage girls do act like that, it's not at all good behavior to present as normal to a younger audience. Like, we should be encouraging young people to be respectful to each other.
It's sad that these friends can exist though. I've been through a toxic friend group like this before
Yeah i feel like the colorism episode was less about colorism and more an example of it. Disappointing considering there's so much that could've been discussed instead
Great video!
I always loved Zoey. She's the punching bag since day one. She has a beautiful, unique, quirky, and free spirited personality. She never liked drama and just wanted to be cool with everybody. I clearly feel her character is the reality of white chicks in general. She has a solid character in terms of quality. Her skin color of whiteness shouldn't be an issue. If she had a stank racist attitude that would've been a different story. I see how the episodes contradict her overall character in DIFFERENT ways. Her damn storyline DESERVES better. I hate how she gets the short end of the stick. The reboot just did her worse. Overall, Zoey has always been the main character just like her peers. She brings the bubbly and free spirited aura into fruition. I enjoyed your video. Keep up the amazing work!!!
Agreed ‼ Thank You🔥👌🏾
@@TonyTurner 💯
@@TonyTurner Zoe can die for all I care. This show is for black girls. If whites can't handle it they have many shows for themselves
I hate that these are saying that White people are bad, it’s FULL ON DISCRIMINATION!! I hate it! This needs to be called! It’s ok to be black or white!
Zoe isn't the target demographic. Black girls are. And if Zoe has to take some licks then so be it. Have you watched content geared for white girls written by white girls? Yes, they have contempt for black women too, so I am fine with Zoe getting trashed.
@@suezcontours6653 but at least make her deserving of getting trashed? I dunno, make her being an smartass, or a mean girl as much as the other characters, hell, they could separate her from the friend group and made her an antagonist alongside other characters, trashing on a well meaning inoffensive person that is literally the sweetest in the friendgroup just because doesn't send much of a good message, is way too meanspirited. All the other media that shows disdain at black girls as you say generally shows them as the popular rich mean girls and antagonists and try to justify it that way but in here, the only basis to trash Zoe is because she's nerdy, conventionally not very attractive and white
@@Homodemon Nope. She wouldn't exist if a black woman created this show. So stop defending her.
@@suezcontours6653 Doesn't excuse this and anyway both are bad
@@suezcontours6653 can you give me an exemple of a fiction where the mean girl has a black skin ? Because almost all exemple of that kind of character that I know are either asian or white (often with blond hair)
I hate how they painted her in the wrong and made her apologize in the reboot, but at the same time I also hate how fake and deceitful Zoe can be in the group in both the og and reboot. So it's a bit of a tough call on me for this one.
Honestly, Zoey is probably a nice girl but is susceptible to being a sheep to not feel excluded from her "friends".
While it is perfectly fine to call Zoey out when she is being a bad friend it is also good to call her friends out when they do the same towards her.
I dont think her being easily malleable to be a people pleaser and ride the waves is on par or evens out her friend's being nasty to her because a guy they found attractive liked her
You smoking crack
You mention Zoey wasn’t always a good friend, and I agree… but in the same breath the others were SO much worse that Zoey seems better by comparison. XD
I think it’s so messed up that zoey is the one who is getting ragged on when it is directly Noah who is being colorist. It comes of as discriminatory against white girls and sexism from the writers to shift all the blame to the girl. Like Idc not only were the other girls just straight up hypocritical and wrong for getting pissy at zoey but like they also are holding her accountable for what this boy thinks. Zoey having to apologize when they were being the assholes and Noah was the one with preferences is actually the worst part of this episode. She did nothing wrong. If anything the girls just broke this more girl down by calling her ugly as hell and telling her that this guy would never actually like her. Then proceeding to straight up dogpile her and force her out of the friend group. The worst part is most of these character didn’t even have a reason to be against zoey they just did it to side with their darker friend. I’m pretty someone in the episode literally said it and it’s gross. Side with what is right not based off of who is the most similar to you. That’s just bandwagon if and it’s a horrible message to send to children.
They legit called her ugly and said until she apologizes for even thinking this guy would like her for who she is they wouldn’t talk to her. If zoey was a black girl and the other girls were white this episode would have been banned.
Zoey's story is just so sad now. I feel like now the group just treats her so bad. I mean in the original series there was jokes towards Zoey, but now it seems like whenever she is one screen the jokes are all about her. The group now acts like Zoey is only allowed to hang out with them when she submits to them. Whenever she even shows being slightly upset they all turn on her and quickly toss her to the side not explaining anything to her just "Well, I should not have to explain myself you should read my mind and see you are wrong. I shouldn't have to listen to what you say" (like an abusive relationship). She is only allowed to be with the guy no one wants and the group damaged this girl's mind so much she got scared the nerd (too heavy with the flirting) guy asked her to dance. She was so worried she asked him if he only liked her because she was white. They told this girl no guy would ever like her because she is ugly. That is really bad her 'friends' gave her that complex then the friends are happy she ends up with the guy no one wanted and who was creepy. Those are not friends, those are bullies who found a way to keep their target close. The only time they are okay with her was when she talked down about white people. She brought up the term for a white person trying to forget that their ancestors were racists. The group is slowly teaching her that being white is the worst thing ever, she is too ugly to be with anyone, but the guy who creepy flirts with every girl.
If I were to just spitball a rewrite, I think the friends initially being ecstatic for Zoey's success but unfortunately finding out behind Zoey's back that colorism was afoot would have made for a better plot. Telling Zoey this could understandably cause conflict and so the hurt between her and her friends wouldn't be what we got, but Zoey being in denial initially before finding out the truth.
It’s so obvious that the Creators/Writers’ perspective on turning Zoey into a cheap laugh is just “Am I right, Black people?!?”, which has nothing to do with caring about their characters or wanting to give their audience a compelling story.
The boyfriends where actually really chill about there girlfriends losing there minds that a celebrity passed them over for there single friend.
As a socially anxious nerdy person who wears glasses and doesn’t really like showing skin too much, I get so annoyed when people treat these sorts of things as “unattractive” and “something that needs to be fixed.” I’m not tall like Zoe is, but I can relate to having small eyes like her… in fact, mine are even worse in terms of beauty standards. I am East Asian and therefore don’t have the same kind of eyelids as most other people! It’s something I see being considered “undesirable” often and I hate it… the same way I don’t get why tall girls are considered unattractive.
I love being me, and I want other nerdy, anxious kids who don’t conform to popular beauty standards to love being themselves too. The way Zoe is treated in that episode is… very, very frustrating to me, to put it mildly.
Oh, also, my take on having a white character in a show meant for POC: I think Zoe’s white privilege should be relevant to the show, but not in a way that blames her just for HAVING it. If her friends are gonna beat her down for it, she’s probably gonna have a much harder time accepting the reality of our oppressive society because she feels like the villain.
I’ll try to explain: in a way, being unprivileged is kind of a privilege itself. It opens your eyes to things in the world that aren’t as easy to accept if you’re not thrown into them headfirst. It’s hard to try and swallow pills that 1. you doubt exist because you didn’t see them often growing up and 2. are really gross and bitter to swallow, so having to swallow them everyday already does make it a bit easier. So I try to be patient with people who don’t understand our struggles, and I don’t blame them because they’re not at fault for being born privileged. I understand it can take a lot, and I think that’s what makes the turnaround feel so worth it. Redemption is the best character arc.
Say it loud, say it proud! I was and still am a total nerd, now I have some muscle tone but I still prefer a night of videogames with my pals over one of clubbing, we're having a huge regression on the perception of nerds and geeks lately.
I feel so bad for Zoey, she's one of the only nice people of the group and yet they treat her like garbage. That colorism episode made me hate that toxic group more, I hope she and Penny will find new friends one day
And yeah, even though she betrayed Penny a few times, I feel like she does it because she can be a follower or out of peer pressure since she's pushed around by them too.
People like Penny along with her friends are one of the main reasons why I prefer to be a loner until the day I die😕
Same girl
At my high school everyone so mature it was a great experience i had tons of fun until i started collage thjs year it like im back at middle school everyone got sooo toxic suddenly hek no im not hanging out with these people!
Sameo
It really felt like honestly they tried to de-ick Myron just so it'd be more palatable for the Nerd to stick with the Nerd, "learn your PLACE carrot top!" 🙄
That's exactly how it felt ‼
Yeess!!! I love every point made in this video, and also what you said. I was so happy my girl Zoey for once got the attention of the a guy "out of her league" who thought she was beautiful. This episode was such a step backwards, and made the girls out to be so shallow and hypocritical, with no one to at least call everyone's behavior out in the end as a lesson, this whole season has been littered with bad takes and IMO very off moral compasses 🙁
I find it funny how this all started over some hearsay. Instead of the girls confronting the dude, they’d rather turn on and ostracize their “home girl” and basically call her ugly. Zoey had a point when she brought out how Byron was always hitting on her so if that meant he liked white girls. But see, Mustard and them didn’t care because Byron was ugly. They only had a probably with it when it was an ATTRACTIVE black guy. The hypocrisy…
I’d understand their anger a lot more if Zoey knew the other dude liked white girls but didn’t care; the show could have spun it as Zoey finally being happy that a dude is throwing her some vibe. Then that would warrant everyone’s negative reaction.
The episode where the hot actor asks out Zoey is one of the most manipulative, hypocritical and double standard mess I have ever seen in a kid’s show. The amount of gall from the girl’s group to treat Zoey the way they do, make assumptions about the guy by taking Maya (the worst character in the entire show) stating that he prefers white girls, and then just automatically assume she agrees with this is ABSURD. Not to mention how they just use the very real issue of colorism as a selfish and misguided reason to just assume that no one would ask Zoey out for any other reason other than the fact she’s white just to cloud the real issue they have which is they’re jealous he didn’t want them. Which is is again MASSIVELY hypocritical on Penny and Dijonay’s parts because they have BOYFRIENDS who ironically are darker skinned than the actor in question.
How are we supposed to realistically believe that Zoey should be in the wrong here when she hasn’t done anything wrong other than accept the guy’s invitation? It’s ridiculous. Again if you want to talk about colorism fine. But this is not the way to do it.
There’s a huge internalized misogyny aspect to this as well. They’re all blaming Zoey, their best friend for the shortcomings of a boy they don’t really know. Instead of calling out the guy for being a shallow jerk, they’re blaming her for getting caught in the crossfire.
There’s a million different ways the colorism episode could have been handled so much better. But here’s how I would have handled the story;
Have Noah make it *incredibly* clear that he only likes white girls. Don’t be so subtle with it. We as the audience should know from the start that he’s colorist without having Maya spoon feed it to us, but Zoey doesn’t have to know that. Have her actively behave like a bitch and make excuses for him whenever he disrespects her friends. Or better yet, play into her own personal insecurities about being a tall, nerdy chick who managed to attract a hot celebrity, and have that be the basis for why she looks past or straight up ignores his colorist attitude. Because she thinks she can’t do any better and is willing to continue dating a jerk if only to make herself feel desirable. It probably wouldn’t excuse the rest of Penny’s friends being bitches to her, but it would at least level the playing field to have each party acting hostile toward one another for equally petty reasons regardless of the truth.
Also, maybe have someone actually call out Penny and Dijonay for being more than willing to dump their boyfriends for Noah. Maybe have Kareem confront Penny about it and make her come to the realization that she and her friends really aren’t being any better than Zoey is in this situation. And to top it all off, have Noah admit straight out that he was only interested in Zoey because of her skin color, and don’t leave it as an off screen thing. Wrap everything up with the friend group all apologizing for acting like ignorant bitches towards one another, and end on a high note.
There, problem solved. Hire me, Disney.
True but I'm pretty sure only being into white girls is racism not colorism, and also idt that's very in-character for Zoey to do, and if she did I don't think she could be redeemed for it, I would have her leave the group, honestly she'd be even worse than Lacienega and Dijonay in my eyes.
@@imthebossmermaid3648 Depend on the reason, you would have to have the guy clearly state it was only because she was white, as I too have no interest in black guys and that's due to spending a lot of time as a kid in a place where I was related to all the black people in the area and when I was outside that area because people move and the black side of my family was just that big I would still run into people I was related too. So not wanting to play 50 questions and get a DNA sample to date a guy, it affect it me by not wanting to date black guys (also doesn't help when my father who is not one for making joke makes a joke on the matter meaning that he is not really joking).
@@marikroyals7111 🙄
Instead it's just a bunch of out-of-touch old boomers spouting some bull crap that only made sense of them in their heads
@@imthebossmermaid3648 don't you sit here and roll your eyes at him he's right and you're wrong having preferences is not racist you're just being a Prejudice buffoon making assumptions on people for the things that they find attractive I bet you probably hate biracial children too
Zoey hasn’t always been perfect but compared to Lacianica(who bullied all of them at first) and especially Dijonay who was supposedly supposed to be Penny’s best friend but backstabbed her almost every episode. Zoey was the most loyal friend out of all of them and look how they treated her. She deserved better:
I like how they talked about racism so much in that episode, but they also showed Michael dressing up as a native american woman who has been marginlized for centuries.
THIS!!!! For that matter, not even calling her by her true name, Matoaka!
"Black supremacy is as dangerous as white supremacy, and God is not interested merely in the freedom of black men and brown men and yellow men...God is interested in the freedom of the whole human race and the creation of a society where all men will live together as brothers, and all men will respect the dignity and the worth of all human personality."
-Martin Luther King Jr.
One reason I love the PF growing up is my friends had "a Zoey" who even resembled her. Seeing the colorism episode dress scene actually made my jaw drop at how they treated her bc I could never imagine that towards my friend. I was even more sad knowing they'd write the end to have them be justified. I felt so icky seeing this as an actual produced story no one saw an issue with.
I was a 'Zoey' growing up, and I would've felt so confused and betrayed by this sorta thing, since I would've defended them with all my heart if the dude said a single shitty thing about them - esp. over skin tone. I loved Proud Family growing up because I had a 'Penny' watching my back, my friend group was so similar to theirs! I wish they'd come back to this and at least have them talk it out more! 🥲
In the episode, it seemed that the guy genuinely liked Zoey because she wasn’t fawning over him. It feels like the colorism thing was added last minute because how poorly it was written and handled. They made Zoey apologize first. Wtf? She did nothing but defend herself. Her “friends” should have apologized to her first.
I don’t like the reboot and it’s weird representation of race, passive white people are vilified and Mia who is monstrously aggressive is treated as good and everyone wants to be her friend because she’s black. Racial profiling, stereotyping and favoritism regardless of who it’s coming from is never right or acceptable.
Season 2 isn't so passive on their anti white racism. It only get worse
Great video!
I grew up kind of in Zoey's shoes. I was raised in Hawaii around a bunch of mixed dark people, and Im mixed but I look completely white and germanic. I was excluded for being white and I didnt understand why; it made me an angry kid.
After taking hawaiian history in high school and leaving the state for college, I understand their side more though and Ive let go of that pain. I see their side and I want to give back to my community in a oositive way but Ive also taught myself that I dont need to apologize for my whitness either.
I hope Zoey can accept herself no matter how she looks and have friends that do the same ♡
This happened to me in real life. Started dating my now husband and had women telling me I was in the wrong for him dating me. That plot is a real life thing
Disney just hates red heads lmao
I really loved your video man! Also I really hope that young girls and tweens who watch that episode don’t get influenced into feeling like they can’t be friends with a diverse group or should feel ashamed of themselves because of this episode.
I could see exactly what you are saying. Another good one man! Keep up the good work 😊
Thank You ‼
Zoey is literally the character that many people can relate with, on multiple attributes or just one, being awkward and tall and freckled and lanky is most teens….l
Not to say that there arent different types of teenage girls, its just zoey is most like your average middle school to highschooler
@@vdoria09 Yup, I agree.
As a former teenage girl, I’m an adult now, I can tell you that teenage girls can have friendships dissolve over anything from boys to petty arguments; regardless of their color. I think the show wanted to be extra real when portraying friendships between teenage girls.Personally I would have liked to see the characters be better than reality to send a more positive message to young girls who may be watching the show.
That I agree with. Having a show that's too real doesn't help teach lessons or show a better way to deal with a problem. Watching TV that's like real life isn't particularly fun or educational.
I also took a minor point away from this as well. All of the girls know better then anyone Zoey's issue with low self confidence, low self worth and she has a long history of being bullied. You'd expect this behaviour from the others based off what we know of them but Penny?
Penny could be misguided, do wrong occasionally or be selfish but ultimately she was shown to have a good heart and more often then not was the voice of reason in her group. In other circumstances if you would ask her is she'd bully someone she'd be appalled by the idea of it but this episode proves that under the right circumstances nobody is above bullying. Even the people who would be least likely too are fully capable of it if push comes to shove.
The crazy thing was there was a yt girl in front of him, and he walked past her to get to Zoey.
The blonde one.
So I'm thinking maybe he just liked tall red headed girls (who can be poc but it's rare)
I mean I think he does end up getting with the white girl he blew a kiss to in the end, or at least she showed up somewhere in the episode before then- but the gang decides not to take her aside and warn her -also doesnt help shes also an 'attractive' girl to further drive in 'zoeys ugly and she doesnt deserve a handsome guy-
They're treating Zoey the same way family guy treats meg
Then the episode ended with caption: Zoey died returning to her home planet, and Dijonay, Penny, and Maya all cheered.
And Michael and Lacienega.
She might of been the shows "white girl" but plenty of girl's i knew related more to her than the others because being awkard and nerdy is universal. So is being thin as a rail lol.
Let’s not forget they didn’t even have the boy be rude to at least have the girls behavior be valid I have given the episode benefit of doubt if they showed him telling Zoe she couldn’t hang out with her friends anymore because a pretty girl shouldn’t be around unattractive people but nothing all it does is leave me mad at penny and the other girls and I don’t want to be mad at penny she’s my favorite character
Throwing it in there too that at the end of the episode when a NERDY "ugly" black boy asked Zoey out, none of her friends had shit to say about whether or not THIS guy just likes white girls.
They gave Zoey a romantic interest finally and then they just shat all over it.
Just wanna say I appreciate this analysis, it was really interesting and I agree with what you're saying, it's frustrating to see characters used in this way. I was thinking while you were describing how Zoe was treated, especially in the episode where the attractive guy asked her out, and this might be super unknowledgeable, so correct me if I'm wrong, but is Zoe being like the "token black character" but in reverse here? Like everything that's happening to her feels like the BS people of color go through? The whole having her friend group completely turn on Zoe, forget all the good stuff/relationships they have and their relationship with her, and get angry at her simply for finally being seen by someone as more than just a goofy, nerdy, awkward person on the sidelines that they help or like tolerate, feels very much like stories I've heard and things I've seen in media. Especially the whole thing where once Zoe gets something her friends think they deserve they stop being friendly with her and lash out and blame her. I don't know if this is totally wrong/my misunderstanding of things, but that's what I was thinking about when you was describing the situation, like maybe the writers were trying to get people to understand that scenario more and think about it. Anyways, great video, very thought provoking.
I know this was six months ago but I was really sad in the colorism episode. Like they really made Zoey seem like she was at fault when really it’s not her fault. You can’t change people’s attraction to someone. It kinda relates to me because I’m in an interracial relationship and a lot of my “ex friends” used to say I’m too black, or you guys shouldn’t be together because you guys are different races ( I’m mixed ). It just sucks that people will still judge you. I felt that pain from Zoey.
I never understood why Penny’s friends were mad at Zoey because Noah asked her out and not them. Not to mention Penny and Dijonay both have boyfriends, so why do they care if a guy asked Zoey out? They just were jealous and treated Zoey like a villain. I honestly feel bad for Zoey in “End of Innocence”. She deserved better.
That’s how it is now a days. I’m mixed. So when a black person wants me as an ally they nice. But when they don’t like what I have to say I’m some white girl when everyone can see I’m mixed. My skin is light but I have black features. If my skin was brown I would look just like my dad. And the worst part about it all is black people (the ones that do it) don’t see any issue. They are bold about it.
Disney treating a red-haired woman like trash? What a surprise!!!! 🙄
I just love with all of the self-image positivity shows, books and social media posts, that Proud Family basically said "Everyone is beautiful and don’t hate yourself, unless you’re a white, tall, nerdy, have braces, and/or glasses girl. Then there’s no way that anyone would ever be attracted to you" in the Zoey colourism episode.