I Call Upon the Power of The Internets!

[alianora]

Hi, my favorite people! I need some help, please.

As a special ed teacher, I get rather..irrationally excited when I come across a story, book, tv show, or movie where there is a major character with a disability. I would really love to find more, but to do so, I need your help.

If you happen to know of a book - kid's book, picture book, novel, whatever - a tv show, asian drama, movie, pamphlet, song, WHATEVER - that has a person with a disability as a MAJOR CHARACTER (not main, necessarily, just major), would you please tell me about it?

Now, to clarify: I'm not looking for things like "Radio," or "Riding the Bus with My Sister," so much as I'm looking for things like "Sue Thomas, F.B.EYE," or "What's Eating Gilbert Grape." But whatever you can think of, please share.



Here's my very partial list, which I hope you will help me add to:

Deaf:
Sue Thomas, F.B.EYE - tv - main character
Summer Snow - jdrama - brother
She's All That - tv - brother
Hear No Evil, See No Evil - movie - main
Orange Days - jdrama - main


Blindness:
Hear No Evil, See No Evil - movie - main
Wild Hearts Can't Be Broken - movie - main
Blade Trinity - movie - major character


Emotional/Behavioral:
Torey L Hayden books


Autism:
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time - book - main
Kristy and the Secret of Susan - book - main
Marathon - jmovie - main


Developmental:
What's Eating Gilbert Grape - movie - brother
The Other Sister - movie - main
South Park - tv - Timmy
I Am Sam - movie - main


Downs Syndrome:
Life Goes On - tv - main

Physical:
Vorkosigan novels - Bujold - main - dwarfism, brittle bones, possible bipolar
South Park - tv - Jimmy
Summer Snow - jdrama - main - medical heart condition
The Station Agent - movie - main - dwarfism
Joan of Arcadia - tv - brother - paraplegic



Drama people, I would LOVE to know of more dramas with people with disabilities.

Comments

[princess-dexter.livejournal.com]

I don't know how suitable these will be, but here's some:

- There's a guy in the jdrama version of Cat Street who has a stutter and I think a kind of nervous thing, so he communicates through dance or something (I can't remember, the jdrama kind of bored me) so you could check it out.

- Would you consider Rui from the various Hana Yori Dango incarnations as having autism? It's probably more pronounced in Meteor Garden but I can't remember if you've seen that or not.

- I haven't seen it yet but I've been reading summaries for the jdrama Innocent Love and I hear that one of the characters is mentally impaired after a coma or something? I'm not sure if that fits the disability thing since it didn't occur at birth, but it might help. Plus you'd get to see IL for the lulz! I'm totally downloading it later, it seems hilarious FOR ALL THE WRONG REASONS.

- I haven't seen it yet but the main guy in Tree of Heaven is mute, although I think he regains his speech after falling into a taboo-filled love affair with his step-sister.

I feel like there should be about 203492834 kdramas with this issue, but apparently not.

- There's a movie called Pumpkin where the main guy has both physical and developmental disabilities, but it's okay because Christina Ricci gets a crush on him regardless.

- The sister in Code Geass (anime) is blind and in a wheelchair, but I never finished the series so I can't remember exactly why.

- I don't know if you've read Isobelle Carmody's excellent YA fantasy series, The Obernewtyn Chronicles, but one of the major characters is blind. You should definitely check them out, they're a great story.

- I feel a bit dirty reccing this, but one of the VC Andrews series has a deaf cousin in it. The first book is Melody and it's actually my favourite VC Andrews series. Shhh!

I feel there should be more but that's all I can remember at the moment, if any of these help then I'm glad to be of service! I'm off to watch a few eps of WWL now so I can catch up to you - I got your emails but haven't replied yet because I didn't want to read spoilers for ep 4. Have you gone past that yet? YAY MULLET TIME!

[aliaspiral.livejournal.com]

I wouldnt consider Rui to be on the spectrum, but I havent seen Meteor Garden, either. I should probably do that, one of these days.

I havent seen Cat Street, but it sounds..interesting?

oh, yes, Innocent Love! coma, then TBI. ive been reading wolfie's write ups and LAUGHING HYSTERICALLY. she proposed by THROWING HER PANTIES ACROSS THE POOL. that will never stop being awesome.

there SHOULD be tons of kdramas..where are they all? oh, and the little girl in Sam Soon is an elective mute, too.

Pumpkin scares me a little. i want to see it..but i really really dont...

oooh, i havent read that series. MUST OBTAIN.

AAAAH, VC ANDREWS. ISNT KOREA ENOUGH TRAUMA FOR YOU? :)

WWL: heee! the mullet compels you! ep 4 is REALLY cute in many ways. i havent watched ep 5, because 4 made me happy, and i dont want to angst to return just yet. so, im still watching Invincible Shan Bao Mei and marveling at how i still find Nicholas Teo attractive when he's being such an asshole. and a fruity dancer! will watch ep 5 tomorrow, though, really.