Is the CW Bigoted?

As I've explained before, when someone ships two people together, it means they support the idea of a romantic relationship between them. As I also explained in the same post, I am an avid shipper of Dean Winchester and Castiel on Supernatural- they are my OTP. (For reference, this ship is called Destiel by the fans of the show.)  

On Supernatural, this ship is not yet canon, which means that a romantic relationship between the two hasn't been acknowledged or discussed. Dean and Castiel are not yet in a relationship together. However, for most of the fans, including myself, this ship is as real as Monica and Chandler, as Derek and Meredith, as Buffy and Angel. Please see this study for reference. We know that, if they choose to, the writers of the show could make this ship happen. 

But they haven't yet. And it seems, from the season 9 spoilers we've received so far, that they aren't planning to. I've wondered for a long time now why they haven't gone in this direction yet. Why haven't they made this relationship actual fact? Regardless of romance, Dean loves Castiel, and Castiel loves Dean. They've sacrificed for each other countless times. They've saved each other, emotionally and actually. Dean prays, and Castiel listens. So why? Why haven't the writers taken the plunge?

It only just occurred to me over the weekend that this may have nothing to do with the writers. I searched google for a list of LGBTQ characters on the CW, and here's what I found- Wikipedia. If you go through the list, you'll find that in the past five years, the CW has had maybe three main characters who are LGBTQ on their shows. 

Three in five years. 

I won't start in on the implications of what that means, but I will say that maybe, just maybe, it's not the Supernatural writers who are at fault here. It's just possible that their hands are tied by a network who cares nothing for representation. 
  

Another Post About Whedon, This is Such a Shock

Here's what it comes down to: I'm nervous for Joss Whedon. Sounds ridiculous, right? The man's got it made. Even if you ignore every single one of his achievements other than The Avengers (which is something many ignorant latecomers to the Joss Whedon party do), the success of his Marvel enterprise is unrivaled.

But.

There comes a time in every famous man's life when the media gets overbearing. I get tweet after tweet about how many days are left until Agents of SHIELD airs, all the exclusive scenes that have been released, all the interviews with every major actor in the show, etc., etc. 

None of this hullabaloo existed when Buffy the Vampire Slayer started airing, or Angel: the Series, or Firefly. Maybe a bit more when Dollhouse first aired, and more when The Avengers was released, but even then, it was only a fraction of the media exposure now. Media exposure, that could, with a quick snap of a thumb, go from positive to negative overnight.

I'm incredibly happy that Joss Whedon is getting all the attention he deserves. Who knows? Maybe I'm just a Whedonite who doesn't like bandwagon-jumpers. But I miss the days when the world wasn't already given what seems to be half the footage of the pilot episode before it even airs. 

Agents of SHIELD premieres on Tuesday, September 24th, at 8PM on ABC. (Here's to hoping the suits at ABC are smarter than the suits at FOX!)