I redrafted this list five times before ultimately deciding that it wasn’t a truly amazing feminist show unless it spotlighted diversity, and had a cast to back that up. I may not be caught up on every show on this list, but I can guarantee that each has a diverse cast, a feminist backbone, and is vastly underrated. Next time you’re browsing Hulu or Netflix for the newest show you’d like to binge, give one of the following a chance. You won’t regret it and I’ve tried to keep this as spoiler-free as possible. So here’s a list of diverse, feminist shows with casts of different sizes, races, and sexualities that you should absolutely check out.
1. The 100 One of the most underrated shows on TV today, The 100 is about a group of 100 teenagers who are sent to Earth to test whether the climate is survivable. In this world, a nuclear war ended by contaminating the Earth until the remaining survivors had to flee to space to live out the remainder of their lives. The protagonist is a young girl named Clarke, who must learn to become a leader to help the rest of the kids survive. If you like sci-fi and diverse stories, BINGE THIS ON NETFLIX. It’s in its fourth season now and it’s more diverse than ever. There’s LGBT+ characters, despite their age, the young female characters have more depth than many grown female characters. Basically, this show is amazing and I spend a lot of time questioning how it ended up on the CW.
MVP Moment: In season 2, Clarke Griffin’s mother is trying to hold her back from a decision she sees as integral. Clarke goes over her head and when her mother confronts her about it, Clarke says, “You may be the chancellor, but I’m in charge.”
Photo courtesy of IGN.com.
2. Crazy Ex-Girlfriend Rebecca Bunch was unsatisfied with her life, so when she happened into her childhood crush and he mentioned he was moving back to West Covina, California, Rebecca impulsively followed him. She quits her job, packs up her things, and moves across the country to follow this boy she may just be in love with. All that, and it’s a musical television show. I’ve written an entire article about how rad and feminist this show is so I don’t think I need to go into further detail. To sum, this show is vastly underrated, and if you enjoy smart comedy, music, and diverse, strong women, you’ll love this Emmy-winning CW show.
MVP Moment: In the second season, Josh’s girlfriend, Valencia, and Rebecca, the girl trying date Josh, become close friends. The relationship is much more complicated than that, but I don’t want to spoil anything. The two go on a rant both complementing each other (that contains spoilers) and Valencia says of Rebecca, “You know, I never realized the strength that you have, because you’re small but fierce…The thing is, that I’ve always been afraid to be fierce like that.” Rebecca then goes on to explain the pay gap. It’s A1.
3. Westworld Disclaimer: this show is gaining popularity, but I still rarely hear about it. When you ask your friends what Westworld is about, they probably don’t know how to explain it without giving away too much of the plot. The point is, this is a diverse sci-fi HBO show about a robotic theme park that allows participants to fully immerse themselves in the experience of the wild west. Everything changes when the most recent robotic update causes some hosts, as the lifelike robots are called, to lose control and gain consciousness. This show will cause you to question everything around you by the time you’re finished. It’s like the sci-fi, better version of Game of Thrones that actually has decent diversity and doesn’t murder and maim all its female characters. Basically, if you’re not watching this show, you’re doing something wrong with your life.
MVP Moment: Mid-season when Maeve starts questioning her role in the world, she wakes up in the lab and says to the men trying to reprogram her, “At first, I thought you and the others were gods. Then I realized you’re just men. And I know men. You think I’m scared of death? I’ve done it a million times. I’m f***ing great at it. How many times have you died? Because if you don’t help me… I’ll kill you.”
4. One Day At A Time This show is still pretty unknown, but this rebooted Netflix sitcom is so cute and refreshing to watch. It’s about a young mother and her Cuban family, along with their bumbling landlord. Her daughter is a raging feminist, her son is obsessed with being cool and fashionable, and her mother is abrasive and too hands-on for her liking. The Cuban twist on the original sitcom allows this family to touch on diverse and interesting subjects like immigration, Quinceañeras, and poverty. It also never fails to bring up feminist subjects like the pay gap, internalized misogyny, and even ‘mansplaining.’ It only has one season so far, but it’s so fresh and heartwarming. I wish everyone was watching this show.
MVP Moment: When the mother, Penelope decides to stop taking crap from her boss and co-worker and quits because of the wage gap. She makes a big deal about it, and when her sexist co-worker tries to interrupt her, she yells, “Stop saying what I’m trying to say, you mansplaining, microaggressive, bobo cabrón! You’re sexist, and I’m tired of letting it go! Does that make sense?” Honorary mention: every single time the daughter, Elena, opens her mouth.
Photo courtesy of the www.nytimes.com.
5. Jessica Jones You’ve probably all heard about the forthcoming Marvel Netflix movement by now. Jessica Jones was the second show to hit the scene, and it features an amazing cast of female characters dealing with a villain whose entire concept is rape culture. Jessica, and co., must defeat the villain and win back their strength and autonomy. Along the way, the apathetic female lead learns about herself, her friends, and how to be a superhero when nothing seems to matter anymore. This show is a definite must see. In the current climate, featuring a president who implied that he can just grab women by their p****’s because he’s famous, it’s important to remember that we belong only by ourselves. Consent is important too, guys.
MVP Moment: Mid-season, Jessica confronts the bad guy, Kilgrave, about the way he tortured her in the past. He tries to make excuses for himself and the gray-area consent she’d provided. He asks what part of what he’d done for her had been rape. She says, “The part where I didn’t want to do any of it! Not only did you physically rape me, you violated every cell in my body and every thought in my goddamn head….It doesn’t matter what you were trying to do. You raped me again and again and again.”
6. Sense 8 Somehow this show seemed to skip mainstream popularity completely. Believe you me, I have tried to appeal to the general public about how rad this show is. But no one can get past the premise. Yes, it’s a little weird, but the characters are all so well-rounded, lovable, and it’s so easy to get attached. Sense 8 is about a group of eight individuals, sensates, across the world of different origins, sexualities, and cultures that are mentally connected and able to use one another’s skillsets. For instance, when Lito needs to fight, he can channel Sun’s abilities. But just as they’re discovering themselves and their abilities, they are also hunted by a mysterious organization that will stop at nothing to find and destroy them. Season 2 finally premieres this Friday, May 5th! Be sure to catch up now so you’re ready.
MVP Moment: One of the sensates, Kila, finds out that her partner and mother had been discussing her virginity behind her back. She grows angry and yells, “My body is mine. It is not a field of land to be purchased and plowed. It is not for you or my mother to gossip about.”
Photo courtesy of Tumblr.
7. Brooklyn Nine-Nine This is basically the new Parks and Recreation and it’s more diverse than ever. If you didn’t know already, Brooklyn Nine-Nine is a sitcom based in a police precinct in New York City. The cast is lead by Andy Samberg, but the main cast features two Latina women, two black men, one who’s gay and one who’s a feminist softie despite his size and disposition, and a stereotypical “nice guy” who actually backs down when the girl he likes tells him to. The show calls out racism, sexism, and homophobia constantly all combined with general hijinks and hilarity. It’s the pure, diverse, good-hearted sitcom you’ve always wanted, but due to the general whitewashing and heteronormativity of modern television, you never thought you’d receive.
MVP Moment: Towards the end of season two, the protagonist, Jake (who’s obviously meant to be with Amy so this isn’t really a spoiler) is venting to Rosa about how Amy might be going on a date with another man. Rosa says that Jake should’ve told the other guy to back off. Jake responds, “I can’t go around telling guys not to ask Amy out because I like her and I’m too dumb to do anything about it. I can’t make a woman’s choice for her.”
8. Orphan Black Are you watching this yet? NO? It’s about to enter its final season, what the heck have you been doing for the past four years?! To be honest, Tatiana Maslany blinking is reason enough to watch this television series. ANYWAYS, IMDB’s simple logline is: “A streetwise hustler is pulled into a compelling conspiracy after witnessing the suicide of a girl who looks just like her.” But to go into a little more depth, the protagonist, Sarah Manning, sees a girl commit suicide who could easily be her twin, and she accidentally entangles herself in the dead girl’s life to unravel the mystery of why they look identical. This show is all about the importance of female agency in a world where women can be scientifically manufactured. There’s obviously more to it than that and it gets more complicated as it goes along, but the point is: Tatiana Maslany is such an amazing actress you’ll constantly forget that there aren’t multiple versions of her running around the set of this show. I could not stress enough how pivotal it is that you watch this phenomenally underrated BBC show.
MVP Moment: When characters speak about the characters like they’re abstract, Sarah corrects him and says, “You know we’re not just a concept, right? That we’re your consequences?…We’re real, Ethan.”
Photo courtesy of www.denofgeek.com.
9. Grace and Frankie How often do you hear about well-written comedies based around women older than… what? Forty? The number’s pretty low because of how much Hollywood execs seem to hate older women. After you hit 50, you’re rarely cast as a character beyond a mother, grandma, etc. But here we have a Netflix sitcom about two women well into their 70’s that are beyond just surviving, they’re thriving! The show opens on both Grace, and Frankie being left by their husbands who are gay and in love. The two women move into their shared beach home together and eventually grow close. It follows the journey of their friendship, as well as the lives of their mismatched families. The show grows on you, and by the end of season 1, you’ll be just as obsessed with these two hilarious women as I am.
MVP Moment: Mid-season one, Grace and Frankie are discussing moving on from their exes, and Frankie says, “Where were you, in a bunker in the sixties? That’s where the rest of us discovered you don’t need a man to define yourself.”
10. Wynonna Earp Netflix just added the first season of this surprisingly good Syfy TV show last month. So, you don’t have any more excuses for why you’re not watching it. Whatever you wanted out of Supernatural but never quite got, this show has it. A lead protagonist who’s a female? Who doesn’t die? Check. Gay romance? Check. Diversity that also doesn’t die? Check. Basically, this show is the better written, more feminist version of Supernatural that you should all be watching. Come for the badass female lead, stay for her badass sister, their grumpy co-worker, and the demonic villains who are literally dragged into hell every episode.
MVP Moment: Just as she’s about to send another demon to hell, he calls her a guilty sinner. She responds, “Just another dude telling me what I’ve done wrong. But now… I’m about to do some right,” then she shoots him between the eyes.
11. Fear the Walking Dead Everyone has probably at least given The Walking Dead a try by now, but have you given the spin-off a watch yet? You should. If you like TWD, you’ll get an often more interesting interpretation of the world from this spin-off (with a horrible title, I honestly want to fight whoever named this show). This show picks up immediately as the apocalypse begins, but without the time skip wherein Rick is comatose for like a week. The protagonists must live through the rumors and violence that follow the rise of the walkers. Plus, the family is so much more diverse than the Grimes’ in TWD. Not to say that TWD isn’t diverse, but Fear still multiplies that diversity as only three of the main group are white. This show takes place in coastal California too, so it has a much different feel compared to TWD.
MVP Moment: Two of the female characters are at odds for much of the show, but I won’t say names to avoid too much of a spoiler. Finally, one of them is bit by a walker, and she takes the other woman aside and tells her. She asks the other woman to put her down. “I don’t think I can do it. I have to but I don’t think I can.” It’s not much, but the act of one strong woman reaching out to another instead of a man, despite their differences is an amazing moment in the first season of this show.
Photo courtesy of www.bleedingcool.com.
12. No Tomorrow I am begging you to watch this underrated might-be-cancelled CW show. It’s so quiet and diverse. The premise is that the female lead, Evie, is a bit up-tight, a bit of a workaholic, and a bit closed off to the world. Enter: Xavier. He’s fun, he’s hot, and he takes her out of her comfort zone….until he tells her the world is about to end. She dumps him, and runs back to the safety of her life. But something about him and his Bucket List draws her back so she instead decides to live like him, like the world is ending, except without the whole actually believing any of that. The characters and the world around her are so diverse and fully-fleshed out. For example, her co-worker, Kareema, is a pansexual Indian woman who’s in love with her brother’s green-card fiancé. And she’s never sidelined for the white female lead. They’re both allowed to grow together and separately, with their own individual plot lines.
MVP Moment: In the pilot episode, Xavier makes a bold mistake and “nudges” Evie by quitting her job for her. She gets her job back then gives him a piece of her mind, “Shut up, listen. I don’t if an asteroid’s gonna kill us all. No, I mean, no, of course I would care, if it’s true, but my point is, I’m the one who decides how I live my life, not you….And maybe you helped me learn to seize the day, but I will be seizing it at my own pace, thank you very much.”
13. iZombie I know, I know, I was thinking it too when I first heard about this show. Why should I watch a dorky comic book TV show about a zombie who eats brains in order to play detective and save the world? Well, because it’s really cute, fun, and actually decently written for the horrible concept it started off with. Liv, the protagonist, is incredibly likeable, and she draws you in extraordinarily quick. She doesn’t want to be a zombie any more than we want her to be one, but she’s making due by working as a morgue assistant. She’s like the fun alternative to vegan vampires. Plus, she comes with a more gang of friends than that Twilight hoopla. Honestly, has Stephanie Meyer ever heard of characters that aren’t white? Anyway, take a moment and divorce yourself from your resignations and give this show a try! It’s got all the makings of an amazing guilty pleasure show, but with a decent script.
MVP Moment: Liv eats some romance-addict brains and tries to give her best female friend a lap dance. She’s weirded out and Liv gets all emotional about it, “So, with some other girl it would be fine? Wait. Do you not find me attractive?…I want you to appreciate how freakin’ hot I am. Why do you have to make it all emotional? I have a body, alright? Can’t you just think of me as a sexual object?” It’s seemingly anti-feminist, but I guess you just have to watch the rest of the show to get it.
14. Girlboss This show just premiered on Netflix like a week ago, so you have an excuse for not watching it yet. But just one. It follows the half-true story of Nasty Girl founder, Sophia Amoruso, as she makes it big. But in this show, the protagonist is fictionalized Sophia Marlowe, a 20-something who hates working and is on the verge of eviction and poverty. Cut to: her selling vintage clothing on eBay and making money. A LOT of money. Sophia is an unapologetic b-word. She calls herself it multiple times. She doesn’t hold back from getting what she wants and that makes her a refreshing and phenomenal female character. Plus, the side characters are all so fun and fleshed out too. Like her best friend, Annie, and her almost-boyfriend, Shane. If you’re not curious about this show yet, GET curious, then get BUSY bingeing all 13 episodes.
MVP Moment: In the pilot, Sophia’s father asks her to come home and questions what she wants in life. She ends up saying, “I don’t know anything. And I know that I’m supposed to, so, I’m gonna figure it out, Dad. I will. And I know that you don’t believe me. But it’d be so great if you did.”
Honorary mention: I know this show is popular but not for the right reasons. Please appreciate my favorite show, please and thank you:
1. The Walking Dead It’s 2017, I think we all know that this show is about Rick Grimes, his mismatched family, and their fight against the zombie apocalypse and all kinds of other villains. What you might not know, however, is that this show features such a diverse cast of characters, it’s hard to rival. Almost every lasting relationship on the show is interracial, and there are currently more canonically gay characters in the cast than almost any other show. The female characters are given interesting and diverse stories that are often better than their male counterparts. Basically, it’s my favorite show and I’m biased, but it’s diverse and feminist and you should be watching it.
MVP Moment: In the newest season, Maggie is confronting the leader of another group, Gregory. He’s a spineless coward who only serves himself. He makes a lot of empty threats and looks down upon Maggie and Sasha for staying in his community. He calls Maggie by a pet name and she punches him in the mouth, then takes back a watch he stole from her. She says, “This is our home now. So, you’ll start to call me by my name. Not Marsha, not ‘dear,’ not ‘honey.’ Maggie. Maggie Rhee.”