Is Autism Really That Atypical?
Netflix’ newest controversial show, Atypical, follows Sam Gardner, an autistic teenager, as he attempts to navigate the confusing world of dating. The show gave autistic people hope for a new perspective on what it means to be autistic, but instead, it was stereotypical, unrealistic, and neglected to feature any genuine autistic representation.
The representation of autistic characters in the media is already scarce, and whilst Dan Harmon’s Community and Adam Reed’s Archer portray Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) as complex and varying in each individual, when people think of autism they’re not likely to think of these representations. Instead, people are often affected by a phenomenon I call the ‘Sheldon Cooper Effect’: they only think of autism as it’s most harmful portrayal, Sheldon Co...