Kim Possible and Sexist Bad Guys

This is Shego. She is Dr. Dakken's sidekick in the show Kim Possible. Dr Drakken is the main, but not only, villain in the show.

My daughter wanted to see Kim Possible, so we loaded some episodes onto our Roku. As we watched the first episode together, I began to wish I had vetted the show. It is a complete waste of time, and possibly worse, since it upholds many gender stereotypes I'd rather she not learn from within the confines of my home. That's its worse crime; there are others. However, you can't really escape such problems. Get a show that is good with gender, and it's bad with race, etc. But I like for the stuff she watches to at least have a good underlying message.

I am getting drawn into the show despite myself, however. Particularly, the Shego character intrigues me. She is clearly the most intelligent of the bunch - probably of the good guys and the bad guys. And yet she is the sidekick. And the sexism she has to deal with - why bother? Why be sidekick to megalomaniac, narcissistic, idiots who treat her poorly? There's no explanation that I can find. According to Wikipedia, she is unmotivated, lazy, and quick-tempered. She lounges about the lair reading magazines and filing her nails. Girly on the surface, BUT they're villain magazines, and the nails are actually metal claws on her gloves. That makes it a bit cooler.

Dr. Drakken has an evil cousin, Motor Ed. He is always hitting on Shego. This particular exchange caught my attention. It went something like this:

Shego and Motor Ed are driving down the highway, with the goal of enacting Motor Ed's "plan," which Shego is in the dark about. Shego is in disguise, wearing loud colorful clothing and big gaudy jewelry:

Motor Ed: “You need to be chewing gum. You'll need that to help pull off your role in The Plan.”

Shego: “So what's the plan?”

Motor Ed: “Cruising at supersonic speed across country with a hot babe at my side!”

Shego: “SO I'M HERE AS AN ORNAMENT?!?”

Motor Ed: “No. The fuzzy dice are an ornament. You, babe, are an ACCESSORY.”

Shego, in a fit of rage, attacks Motor Ed.

What I wonder is, what message do kids take from exchanges like this? And the show in general? Shego is described as quick-tempered, but damn - look at what she's faced with. Most of the time, her anger seems quite warranted. But do kids see that? Or do they see Motor Ed saying something funny, and Shego getting mad as usual. Do they see the sexism in Motor Ed and Dr. Drakken? And do they associate that with the idiot evil guys, and therefore maybe a character flaw? Or is it just funny and something they might be inclined to mimic? Because it was funny on the show?

In the end, the villain relationships here remind me of those sitcoms with the lout of a husband and the beautiful smart wife and what the fuck is she doing with that guy? And don't forget the commercials.