HBO’s Girls, written by Lena Dunham, tells the story of four damaged, imperfect, brutally honest twenty-something women living in New York after graduating college. Through my first semester at college, I’ve made it through the first four seasons, but I still can’t decide why it is I keep watching Girls. Maybe because the series covers romance, friendship, heartbreak, confusion, and humor all in one episode. But, it also portrays a less influential, more pathetic version of women that at times is cringe worthy. With the excitement over the release of season 6 in February, I wanted to debrief over some characteristics that make Girls the amazing show it is.
1. Female Friendship
Part of the point of Girls is that the sex, and the guys with whom the sex happens, are not the sole focus of the show. The intimacy between these four women is the best and arguably most true-to-life aspect of the show. Yay for promoting strong female bonds!
2. Humor
Of course Lena Dunham’s wit never shies away from telling it how it is. As her character claims, “I have work, and then I have a dinner thing. And then I am busy, trying to become who I am.”
3. The Flawed Characters
Hannah outwardly flaunts her successes and can never stick with a job. Marnie keeps to herself and judges others. Shoshanna’s naivety gets in the way of her maturity. Jessa’s free spirit and lack of responsibilities keep her from pursuing a meaningful, challenging career. These characters with their exaggerated flaws are not entirely likable. But maybe their imperfections and struggles are what makes the show unique.
4. The Role of Privilege
When it comes to exposing truths about privileged white people, no show does it better than Girls. When Dunham was rightfully condemned for the lack of diversity on her show, she responded, “you don’t erase racial divisions by graduating from liberal arts college.” Girls unfortunately cannot represent a majority of people, which Dunham admits.
5. Screw Ups
STIs, losing jobs, awkward sex scenes, walking in on friends’ awkward scenes, running into ex-boyfriends, giving up dreams for a boy who’s met someone else, Girls honestly reveals certain life experiences, regardless of shame. At its worst, the show is uncomfortable and frustrating and at best, relatable in its very human moments.
6. Adam Driver
Although his character comes on a bit strong at first, his charisma, humor, and drive adds a unique, real kind of charm to the series. Discussing his life path, Adam tells Hannah, “And then I was like boom. I know who I am. I wanted to switch majors, and buy a circular saw, and I promised myself that I’d follow my gut, no matter what. And I do what makes me feel good.”
7. Satire
The show’s strong sense of satire and pathos sells the series. It rejects female stereotypes by embodying them so fully and ridiculously. “He hasn’t returned my text in two weeks and I was just coming to terms with the fact that he was dead” – Hannah
8. Female Voice
The show might be just another sex comedy or coming-of-age story meant to make us feel better when we, too, struggle. But, the show does differ in that it’s told through a female perspective – which is rare. Because they are too few shows starring complicated, authentic young female characters, Girls must bear the burden of representing all of us, which is when the show becomes problematic.
Are there a number of issues with the representations in Girls? Yes. Does the show feature a far too narrow group of homogenous women who lack racial, class, and sexual diversity? Yes. There’s no way that one show can fulfill all of women’s desires for self-representation, and Girls certainly doesn’t. But, at the very least, Girls can be appreciated for its shameless showcase of young women who are awkward, confused, honest, love food, and have no idea where they are headed in life. It’s similar to many other shows in a number of ways, except this series is about women. And the way Girls popularizes female voices might be why I love it.
Image credits: Giphy.com