Fionna and Cake is getting the queer representation Adventure Time deserved
21.09.2023 - 16:03
/ polygon.com
It took 10 seasons and 283 episodes for Princess Bubblegum and Marceline the Vampire Queen to kiss on Adventure Time. Of course, it was obvious they were together — or at least had feelings for each other — long before that, evidenced by their sharing clothes and general moon eyes in each other’s presence. Since the series ended in 2018, we’ve seen the pair simply exist as queer people in the 2020 Adventure Time: Distant Lands “Obsidian” special, both as individuals and as a couple, and they’re still a couple in the new Fionna and Cake spinoff series on Max. They are always written as each other’s romantic destinies.
In fact, some version of them is in love across multiple parallel universes in Fionna and Cake, which is particularly evident in episode 7, “The Star.” The episode takes place in two worlds: Fionna and Cake’s magic-less universe, created by a fan and realized by Prismo just for himself, and a vampire-ridden Land of Ooo in which Marceline’s father is the vampire king and Bonnie is an eyepatch-wearing combatant with a militarized tank. The episode title refers to Marcy; Bonnie calls her the Star throughout the episode, up until they get into an actual battle that launches them over a cliff and seemingly to their double demise.
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In this world, Bubblegum and Marceline are incredibly flirtatious enemies, harkening back to their initial relationship on Adventure Time. Meanwhile, in Fionna and Cake’s world, Gary (the magic-less, male Prince Bubblegum) wants nothing more than to open a storified bakery where his pastries fill the roles of beloved Candy Kingdom residents. He and Marshall Lee just met and are already obviously crushing on each other — so much so that Marshall Lee reenters the wealthy den of investment vipers run by his mom to get Gary the money he needs for his business idea. When Gary realizes what Marshall’s done on his behalf, Gary grabs him by the hand and they run.
These stories show Bubblegum and Marceline’s relationship and its enemies-to-lovers trajectory in hyperspeed. Scenes of Bonnie and Marcy fighting are intercut with Gary and Marshall kissing in the elevator, in front of Marshall’s mom and the wealthiest people in town. It’s the first kiss we see between major characters in Fionna and Cake, but not the first example of queerness. In episode 2, we see Bubblegum and Marceline attempt to get matching tattoos. Later, we encounter a new, star-crossed young couple in a dystopian Ooo, and one of them appears to be wearing a binder. Queerness is present from the jump in this series, which builds upon Adventure Time in a big way.
Fionna and Cake presents queerness as a given in its parallel universes, but Adventure Time didn’t have the same attitude — at least, not at