Rubble & Crew, a spin-off of Nickelodeon’s smash-hit kids’ show Paw Patrol, has dropped an episode with the franchise’s first nonbinary character (and first confirmed LGBTQ character overall), written by Lindz Amer of Queer Kid Stuff.
In the episode “The Crew Builds an Observatory,” bulldog Rubble and his construction crew of builder pups meet human skateboarder River (voiced by nonbinary actor Cihang Ma), who’s new in town. River (who reads as Asian) loves taking photos and wants to photograph a shooting star that’s whizzing by that night. River asks for Rubble’s help in building an observatory. The crew encounters obstacles along the way, but (spoiler!) perseveres and completes the job just in time for River to grab the shot.
The episode’s writer, Lindz Amer, is the creator of Queer Kid Stuff, which launched in 2016 as an LGBTQ+ and social justice webseries, and now offers a variety of LGBTQ-inclusive resources, storytimes, and more for kids and their adults. They’re also the author of the terrific Rainbow Parenting: Your Guide to Raising Queer Kids and Their Allies,
Amer explained on Instagram, “I wanted to write a nonbinary character that was aspirational and incredibly cool, someone for the pups (and kids at home) to look up to. They found an awesome non-binary actor to voice River and I’m so so happy about how it turned out.”
The motivation for creating the character came from the show’s permanent team, who then asked Amer to help. Amer told me in a direct message that they said I could share:
I was brought on as a consultant initially because they wanted to develop a nonbinary character and I let them know I’m a writer as well so I could script the character. So I did a little bit more than a typical freelance writer. Talking about what the character will be like, naming the character, looking at character design, all of that in addition to outlining, scripting, and going through notes and revisions.
River is delightful, full of zest for skateboarding and always eager to “Get that pic!” We don’t specifically learn River’s pronouns or that they are nonbinary, but River’s shirt, pants, and skateboard evoke the yellow, white, purple, and black of the nonbinary flag, and they are wearing pink, white, and light blue socks—the colors of the trans flag. Subtle, yes—but I’m guessing nonbinary and trans kids will pick up on it immediately, and that’s important. Even if they don’t know the flags per se, the presence of both pink and blue is a message in itself about blurring the gender binary.
In a way, I’m glad the introduction of the character downplayed their nonbinary identity. I tend to prefer this approach to ones that focus on an LGBTQ character’s LGBTQ identity as if it’s the only or most important aspect of their life, or only show us in Pride episodes (though I love a good Pride theme if it’s part of a range of episodes). While River doesn’t appear in any other episodes in this first season, I hope we see them again in a future one, and maybe then learn their pronouns.
I’ll also note that truck driver and pilot Camila, a regular character and not Amer’s creation, wears a plaid shirt and gives me strong lesbian vibes. (I know, it’s a stereotype, but as a flannel-loving lesbian myself, I feel a resonance.) That might just be my wishful thinking. Still, is it too much to dream that a future episode will be titled “The Crew Builds a Pride Float,” and show us Camila and River atop the float as the allied builder pups trot alongside?
Representation matters. I’m thrilled to see a mainstream outlet tapping into the knowledge of someone who is not only LGBTQ themself, but has been explaining and affirming LGBTQ identities with kids and their adults for years.
Watch Rubble & Crew anywhere you get Nick Jr., including Prime Video.
I also encourage you to contact Nickelodeon and its parent company, Paramount, to tell them how much the episode means to you and why you want to see more nonbinary and other LGBTQ representation in kids’ media. (I’m guessing that anti-LGBTQ folks will be writing in to complain; let’s not let them be the only voices heard.) Here are a few contacts:
Investor Relations
1-212-846-0787
1-877-227-0787
investorrelations@viacbs.com
David Bittler
Executive Vice President, Corporate
David.Bittler@nick.com
Katelyn Balach
Senior Director, Animation
Katelyn.Balach@nick.com
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