Dark Angel's Original Cindy Lives Up to Her Name

On the other hand, Original Cindy's sarcasm and occasional anti-male comments are offset somewhat by her appearance, which is very much of the "lipstick lesbian" variety. Besides playing pool, giving herself manicures seems to be Original Cindy's main hobby outside of work.

Original Cindy consistently proves herself to be a good friend to others, staging an intervention when she mistakenly thinks Max has a drug problem, helping to raise money for their friend Sketchy when he gets into trouble, and risking her own life several times to help Max and Logan fight the evil forces within the city.

When Max finally discloses her secret identity to Original Cindy in a coming-out speech of sorts halfway through the first season (Episode 1.11), Original Cindy is stunned and hurt that Max has been lying to her, but quickly moves past it:

Max: When you and me hooked up... It was like, all of a sudden, there was this part of my life where I didn't have to be hiding or fighting or anything else except... Trying to make a living and kicking it with my homegirl. I never had that before — a friend. I was scared that if I told you what was up it would all change. And that you would look at me like you are right now — like I was some kind of freak you didn't even recognize.
Original Cindy: Dayum. All this time, I never knew.
Max: Is this going to change things?
Original Cindy: No doubt. No doubt. There's some issues here Original Cindy's got to think on. [Tears fill Max's eyes. Original Cindy gives Max a hug, and starts to cry too. They pull apart.] You could have died putting that bitch in your head, but you did it anyway to get my back. You my boo... For life. No matter what.

Original Cindy does, however, employ an over-abundance of street slang, often to the point of distraction. It's as if Cameron and the writing crew were trying too hard to prove these kids are down with the hip lingo, with the end result that Original Cindy occasionally comes off as more of a caricature than a three-dimensional person.

This criticism isn't just aimed at her: the show tended to fall into this trap with all of its characters. Authenticity is good, but not to the point of incomprehension for the majority of viewers.

Unfortunately, since Dark Angel is centered around Max and her relationship with Logan, Original Cindy is usually relegated to only a few minutes on screen per episode.

Although the Max-Logan storyline is interesting, it is disappointing that Original Cindy gets so little screen time, particularly in the second season. She doesn't get less time than the other supporting characters, however, and if anything, she is the most prominent among them.

There is one episode (called "Shorties in Love") in Season 1 which actually revolves around Original Cindy. The storyline involves the return of Original Cindy's ex-girlfriend, Diamond, who breaks out of jail and returns to find Original Cindy and try and start things up again.

She almost has Original Cindy convinced when Max discovers Diamond had been injected with a terminal and highly contagious illness as part of an experiment in prison, and she dies before Original Cindy and Max can save her.

This episode features the first (and only) lesbian kiss on the series, and is one of the last times Original Cindy's sexuality is explicitly referenced in the series, as Season 2 focuses less on Max's home life and more on Max and Logan's fight against Manticore.

Like all good characters, Original Cindy is a mass of contradictions — both edgy and soft, sarcastic and kind, flawed and heroic — and as a supporting character, she enriches the texture of Dark Angel immeasurably.

By featuring such a complicated and sympathetic black lesbian character during its two-season run, Dark Angel offered one of the most identifiable and entertaining lesbian characters on network television before or since — if only for a minute or two each week.

Unfortunately, the show had medium-to-low ratings over the course of the first and second year, and was not brought back for a third season because Fox thought they could do better with a new slate of shows (including Fastlane, Girls Club, and John Doe — each of which, ironically, generated far worse ratings than Dark Angel ever did, and none of which were renewed for a second season).

There is a rumor on the internet that Fox might be considering bringing back the show next season in light of these recent failures, but it is probably just that — a rumor.

For now, we'll have to content ourselves with the recently-released DVD box set of the series, and the hope that there will be characters like Original Cindy on television again someday, only with a few improvements next time — like a girlfriend who doesn't die, or a little more screen time. It's not world peace, but it's a start.