(OPINION) Baymax, a new series based on the beloved puffy robot from Big Hero 6 on Disney+ has included a couple of LGBTQ+ characters, a rare and refreshing effort to promote inclusivity in children’s television. In one scene, for example, a person who appears to be a transmasculine character is seen shopping in a tampon aisle.

Naturally, bad-faith trolls are raging in response on social media. But a majority of viewers are thrilled to see some much-needed representation from the company, going so far as to dunk on the critics’ predictable—and, wouldn’t you know it, entirely misinformed—complaints.


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In the third episode of the series, titled “Sofia,” an pre-teens character heads to the all-genders restroom at her middle school. She gets her first period before the talent show, but Baymax, the kind robot who specializes in healthcare, is ready to help. He heads to the supermarket to grab some pads, tampons, etc. for the youngster. Problem solved.

While at the store, Baymax encounters a transmasculine character wearing a transgender flag shirt, who, along with several other helpful customers, suggests some pads with wings for Sofia. This is a big moment for a youth-targeted series: It’s already rare for Disney (and other broadcasters) to explain normal sexual health like puberty and periods to kids, and this show is finally casting a wider net when it comes to those who menstruate. It’s not just cisgender women!

The robot grabs items without bleach, some tampons specialized for the first period, and more products suggested by a gentleman buying for his daughter. It takes a village! Waltzing back to the school, Baymax lugs seven overflowing satchels of feminine hygiene products to his pal Sofia.

Although Sofia is reluctant to apply a pad or a tampon (and is moritfied by the idea of watching Baymax’s tutorial video), she eventually figures everything out and competes in the talent show.

If this wasn’t enough to make you fall in love with the pillowish robot, in another episode, Baymax convinces two young gentlemen to go on a date with one another by analyzing their attraction towards each other. “Your pulse and heartbeat have quickened,” Baymax says, after one asks the other out to dinner. “Your pituitary gland is secreting hormones,” he continues, before he’s cut off by a thoroughly embarrassed man.