You know, I can’t say I expected a manga written in 1975 not to be transphobic, but for a brief, shining moment it gave me hope that it would at least be interesting, batshit, and fun. Instead what I get is Maggie - abusive, bigoted, selfish, controlling Maggie who has never once had Glenn’s best interests in mind and only cares about herself - doing everything in her power to force Glenn to give up the genuine happiness he’s found and come back to her, and succeeding. Why does Glenn suddenly become transphobic and disgusted by Apple Honey the second Maggie cuts his hair?? Glenn was happy being surrounded by so many women who treated him well, and when he was turned into a woman with the estrogen apples, she was just as happy if not even happier as Glenda. The girls weren’t going to hurt Glenn/Glenda, and had Maggie left her as she was she would have lead a happy life. But no, she thinks queer people are so disgusting that she would force Glenda back to the reality she demands they both live in - the one where she can hit, insult, pressure, and make him as miserable as she wants. Is that supposed to be a happy ending??
Like, I still would have not loved the estrogen apple consent issues (though compared to the completely nonexistent consent in the first volume of Eroica, this is downright tame), but I really appreciated that the old lady said that Apple Honey had the “true soul of a woman”. Just wish it hadn’t ruined the whole thing in the end.
