Gen V, just like its predecessor, The Boys, isn’t afraid to make viewers uncomfortable. The show is filled with dark humor, gore, and gritty violence and has gotten very real about topics like self-harm and eating disorders. While many viewers will appreciate how it delves deep into what a world with supes would look like, it’s understandable that some of the gore and vulgarity might take some viewers aback. What’s much less understandable is how someone could watch the show and come away being most concerned about a girl’s period, of all things.
Unfortunately, the stigma around periods is nothing new. While Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret was a great step in celebrating menstruation and womanhood, even this innocent movie was rated PG-13 because of its discussion around periods. It’s not uncommon for social media posts trying to normalize menstruating to be censored or spark threats, and in Florida, Governor Ron DeSantis is trying to prohibit any mention of menstruation in schools, even though they’re filled with young students who menstruate and have a right to learn or speak about what’s happening to their bodies.
While it’s sadly pretty common for periods in schools and children’s books or movies to make people uncomfortable, it’s very strange to hear that a period in a TV-MA show is causing discomfort. Yet, this is what happened with Gen V.
Gen V‘s period scene caused discomfort among executives
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, co-showrunners Michele Fazekas and Tara Butters pinpointed the one scene that caused discomfort from executives. One might have guessed it was the “cocksplosion” scene or the scene that required the crew to build a five-foot penis, but it wasn’t. It was the scene in the pilot episode where Marie Moreau (Jaz Sinclair) discovers her powers. The flashback scene reveals that Marie’s blood-bending powers manifested when she got her first period. She was horrified to see that she could control her period blood, resulting in her accidentally causing her parents’ deaths.
It would be understandable if executives were hesitant to have this tragic storyline pinned on Marie, but Fazekas suggested that it was Marie’s period that caused the discomfort. He stated, “That was in the pilot script when I came aboard, and I think that there may have been some discomfort early on from maybe the executive side because it’s girls’ periods.” Gen V creator Eric Kripke also acknowledged that there were questions from higher-ups about whether they were sure about the pilot scene. However, Fazekas and Butters knew from the onset that they wanted this scene to be included.
A girl getting her period and entering puberty is a huge milestone in a girl’s life, so it makes sense that her powers kicked in at this exact moment. Opening the series in such a way reiterates that Gen V is a distinctly, unapologetically female-led series. It’s different from The Boys in that the women finally take center stage and the show examines everything that perspective, from periods to body image struggles to predatory college men.
If we’re being generous, there’s a chance that what executives were concerned about was seeing a girl’s period manifesting in such a traumatic way rather than just that a girl had her period on screen. After all, menstruation is a milestone that should be celebrated and shouldn’t be traumatic. Still, the scene could be interpreted in many different ways. Marie’s parents didn’t adequately prepare her for her powers, and it’s clear that she is scared of something she doesn’t understand and doesn’t know how others will react to. In a way, this can parallel what girls might feel when they’re prohibited from learning about periods or when they’re fearful their period will result in them being seen differently. In these circumstances, it’s easy for what should be a huge celebratory milestone to turn into something entirely different.
Still, the fact that a girl’s period caused a stir from higher-ups at all shows that more needs to be done to continue de-stigmatizing periods. Menstruation playing a role in one scene should be the last thing executives were concerned about in a TV-MA show that gets as wild as Gen V. Fortunately, Fazekas and Butters responded to the discomfort by diving “right in the center of it.” It’s really quite a brilliant way to tackle periods. People are uncomfortable about the mere idea of menstruation? Well, let them see a girl whipping her period blood around like a ninja star to help them get over their silly discomfort.
(featured image: Amazon Prime)
