Stick

Zero’s gender identity shapes the middle of the season. The character asks others to use she/they pronouns, becomes Santi’s romantic partner, and challenges the older men in the group. Zero’s need for safety and trust links the identity story to the team’s problems. The season still gives most of its time to Pryce’s grief and Santi’s golf and family conflict.

Zero calls golf bad for the environment and a sport for rich white men. Zero criticizes industrial agriculture and says its emissions harm the future. Zero also talks about the patriarchy, work, corporate greed, and harmful control by older coaches. Elena says she has spent her life listening to men, but the season does not turn these ideas into a broad attack on Western institutions.

Viewers on X repeatedly called the show woke after Zero’s episode and objected to she/they pronouns. Other posts said the climate and anti-capitalist lines turned a golf comedy into activism, and some viewers said they quit watching. Some viewers defended the show and said Zero becomes more human after the introduction. The supplied X pass found no organized boycott, review-bomb drive, or large right-wing media pile-on, so the backlash was visible but scattered.

Stored profiles give most of the writers, directors, producers, and casting staff low or mild scores. Esti Giordani has the clearest identity-focused background through Vida, while Ben Silverman has socially liberal views and general charity work. Jason Keller’s Stick interviews focus on failure, found family, and understanding Gen Z, with Zero described as a gender-fluid challenge for him. The overall team context supports a mild score rather than a dominant one.