As we come up on our much needed and much deserved week away from school and extracurriculars (before we go into maximum overdrive for the last three weeks of the semester), I thought it was about time I condense my countless hours of TV time into a top five list for anyone in need of a new show to binge over the break.
And, in celebration of the historic midterm election results for women last week with a total of 101 women newly and re-elected to the House of Representatives, I thought I’d make the list exclusive to shows with badass female leads.
1. Station 19, created by Stacy McKee:
This is a brand new show on ABC about a crew of firefighters in Seattle, which includes an incredible leading female cast of actresses Jaina Lee Ortiz, Barrett Doss, and Danielle Savre. Together, they represent both women of color and queer women in the profession with their respective characters Andy (representing latina women), Victoria (representing black women) and Maya (representing bisexual women). This level of representation with all three primary female characters representing minority groups is impressive because it exists within the network television airwaves, which have been decidedly slow to come around to the diversification of streaming service originals. The show is currently in the middle of airing it’s second season, and as of now I think both seasons are only available on Hulu if you can’t catch it when it airs on Thursday nights.
Also, because this show is a part of the Grey’s Anatomy universe and falls under the “Shondaland” umbrella originally created by the queen Shonda Rhimes herself, I do have a slight ulterior motive for putting it on this list. Basically what I’m saying is that this show is on the list because it’s shorter and more suitable for a week of break, but Grey’s Anatomy, Private Practice, Scandal, and How to Get Away With Murder are all must-sees with amazing female leads as well.
Feminist badassery rating: 5/5
2. The Handmaid’s Tale, created by Bruce Miller
This one shouldn’t require too much explanation after all of its critical acclaim over the last year and a half, but this Hulu Original Series is arguably the most important show on television for women today. If you’re anything like me, you might shy away from shows that get so hyped up on social media after their debut, but this show exceeds the hype; it’s that good. Headed by leading actress Elisabeth Moss and supported by other outstanding actresses including Alexis Bledel, Samira Wiley, Madeline Brewer, and Yvonne Strahovski, the show creates the most timely and impactful commentary on issues plaguing women of all identities in the current political climate.
Feminist badassery rating: 5/5
3. The Crown, created by Peter Morgan
This Netflix Original is probably the oldest show on the list with its first season dropping in the fall of 2016, and hopefully some of you have seen it already especially considering its Emmy and Golden Globe wins, but I’ve re-watched the first two seasons so many times at this point there was no way I could leave it off the list. There are undoubtedly a number of amazing actresses that make up the ensemble cast of this show, but Claire Foy’s portrayal of Princess Elizabeth’s transition into power as Queen Elizabeth II and the first decade plus of her reign is what really carries the feminist badassery of the show to its full potential. Albeit there are a lot of annoying moments where the men around her boss her around and condescend to her like she isn’t literally the Queen of England, but those are more intended to be a commentary on what she went through in her first years as queen, and there are a lot of other amazing moments where she puts them in their place too. Heading into the anticipated release of season three in 2019, Foy is passing the throne to Olivia Colman who will undoubtedly portray the Queen’s middle aged years with just as much or more feminist badassery.
Feminist badassery rating: 4/5
4. Maniac, created by Cary Joji Fukunaga
This one is a Netflix Original miniseries starring Emma Stone and Jonah Hill–not an acting combination I ever thought I’d see and certainly not on the television spectrum, but according to all the reviews it works. This is actually a show I haven’t gotten around to seeing yet so I can’t recommend it from experience, but it’s on my own personal ‘new shows to binge’ list for the break so I figured I would put it on here regardless. According to what I’ve heard about the show, Emma Stone’s performance as co-lead to Jonah Hill in her portrayal of Annie Landsberg is nothing short of her usual brilliance and general feminist badassery, and the fact that the script got her interested enough to stray from film says a lot about it too.
Feminist badassery rating projection: 5/5
5. The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, created by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa
This is another one I actually haven’t had the time to see myself yet, but I definitely recommend this one for anyone who grew up like I did watching the original Sabrina the Teenage Witch series, headed by lead actress Melissa Joan Hart and supported by actresses Beth Broderick and Caroline Rhea, who wants to see what they do with the character in this Netflix Original. The spinoff is supposed to be a more direct adaptation of the “Archie Comics” of the same name and take place in Greendale, so I’m expecting some interesting Riverdale vibes in this show. This is leading actress Kiernan Shipka’s first big acting move since the end of Mad Men (you guessed it, another sneaky recommendation and a show everyone should watch to see Elisabeth Moss in one of her big career highlights), and her first time as a leading actress in anything, so I’m excited to see how she develops from the world of child acting into that of young adult acting.
Feminist badassery rating projection: 3/5
Feel free to visit these two links for the full list of firsts and achievements for women in the midterms: https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2018/11/07/historic-firsts-midterms/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.f526fefc1d52 ; https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2018/11/09/us/women-elected-midterm-elections.html