Asexual Sighting: Voodoo Dunacci (Sirens)

As promised, here’s my latest Asexual Sighting, Voodoo from the short-lived paramedic-themed sitcom Sirens.  Her storyline is largely viewed through the eyes of another character, but overall, given how bro-y the show is in general, I’m pretty impressed with how they handle her sexuality (some Voodoo-related spoilers.)

Voodoo doesn’t ride in the “main” ambulance on the show, but she’s still a friend and coworker of the main characters, and during the first season, new recruit Brian develops a crush on her.  Now, the initial reveal of her orientation leaves a lot to be desired.  Brian’s buddies do their best to impress upon him that Voodoo will never sleep with him, so that’s good – they’re not dismissive of her lack of attraction – but they also do their darnedest to other her at the same time.  Hank (who’s gay, by the way) casually refers to her aceness as a “sexual pathology,” and both he and Johnny seem to tie Voodoo’s orientation to her love of the macabre.  At this point in the show, it’s already been established that Voodoo is fascinated by dark or gruesome things (Brian later wins her friendship by giving her a patient’s severed finger, which the hospital had been unable to reattach.)

Now, I actually like Voodoo’s penchant for the grotesque.  It’s an amusing quirk, and the fact that it isn’t played up as a “Goth girl” thing is fun.  But she’s morbid and she’s asexual.  She’s not morbid because she’s asexual, or vice versa.  However, that’s kind of how Johnny and Hank characterize her, calling her Darth Vader in the same breath that they talk about her not having sex.

People putting things on Voodoo’s sexuality that aren’t there is a running problem on the show, although other than that first scene, it’s acknowledged as such.  As she strikes up a friendship and a kind-of romance with Brian – the show makes no bones about the fact that she’s a romantic asexual, but her relationship with Brian specifically is left a little undefined – he’s forever fixating on her aceness and trying to contextualize it.  He muses over the time that could be saved by never having sex, researches asexuality online, tries the whole “maybe you just haven’t found the right guy yet” line, and, while with her, briefly decides he’s “transcended” his own heterosexuality as a result of their relationship (he hasn’t.)  But Voodoo, although patient with his ignorance, always makes it clear to him that it’s just that:  ignorance.  Aceness isn’t a “higher” form of existence, someone doesn’t acquire it through osmosis, and while she, like him, sometime masturbates, she’s not in need of any “help” in doing so.

So much of this part of the show is filtered through Brian’s perspective, but Voodoo herself is actually a very chill, no-muss-no-fuss bit of asexual representation.  As I said, she’s established as romantic early on with no sense of “but if you don’t like sex, how can you like romance?!” confusion, and if she’s hesitant about getting together with Brian, it’s only because she’s wary about dating a sexual who wants more from her than she’s prepared to give.  Her reveal that she masturbates for physical stimulation is also given with very little fanfare.  These two aspects are delivered very matter-of-factly, especially considering how most fictional aces are at the very least heavily implied to be aromantic and generally shown to have no interest whatsoever in physical gratification.  Also, I get a kick out of this line, after Brian has shown off his newly-gleaned ace knowledge for her:  “I’m just asexual, Brian.  I don’t march in parades or anything.”