The Bechdel, Russo, and Race Test: Lucky Romance – Season 1, Episode 13

Soo-Ho launched IF on Lucky Romance, episode 13, and it was a complete disaster. Someone had snuck in to the office and attached a virus to the game, and as a result of all of the damage it caused, Soo-Ho stepped down from his job and forfeited all of his assets.

The Bechdel, Russo, and Race Test

Episode 13 passed the race test but the episode did not pass the Bechdel or Russo test.

lucky-romance-ep-13
Some guy posing as an electrical employee sneaks into Zeze.

Episode 13 passed the race test, and the episode passed this test because there were many instances where non-White individuals talked to each other without mentioning White people as the entire cast was Asian and none of the characters ever mentioned White  people. As to the other diversity tests, episode 13 failed to pass both the Bechdel and Russo test.

Episode 13 did not pass the Bechdel test because while there were named women in the episode and there were even instances where some of these women talked to each other, men were always mentioned in their conversations. The episode did not pass the Russo test because there were no LGBTI characters in episode 13.

*The Bechdel test entails three requirements:
1. It has to have at least two (named) women in it
2. Who talk to each other
3. About something besides a man

**The Vito Russo test entails three requirements:
1. The show contains a character that is identifiably lesbian, gay, bisexual, intersex and/or transgender
2. The character must not be solely or predominately defined by her sexual orientation, gender identity and/or as being intersex
3.The character must be tied into the plot in such a way that her removal would have a significant effect

***The race or people of color (POC) test has three requirements:
1. It has two people of color in it
2. Who talk to each other
3. About something other than a White person

****Just because a show passes the Bechdel, Russo and race test does not mean that it is not sexist, heterosexist, racist and/or cissexist, etc. The Bechdel, Russo and race test is only a bare minimum qualifier for the representation of LGBTI individuals, women and people of color in television. The failure to pass these tests also does not identify whether the central character was a woman, a person of color or a LGBTQI individual and it does not dictate the quality of the show.