Lifetime Television
I am in Brussels!
Let’s talk about television. I tried to watch “Ally McBeal” a couple weeks ago. The first two episodes had me hooked: good writing, feminism, and an appealing supporting cast. But by the third episode things started to go awry. It began to fall prey to the same trap as “Sex in the City.” I will henceforth to refer to this trap as “The Mr. Big.” That is, all of the female characters’ plans and interests and hopes and dreams slowly whittled themselves down to one thing: getting the guy. This happened in “Grey’s Anatomy” too—and it happened to Elliot in “Scrubs.” The women become more and more ditzy and ludicrous (in “McBeal,” they even get skinnier), until they are caricatures of their former selves. Caricatures of “female.”
Thank god for “30 Rock” and Tina Fey. Am I right? I’m right.
But also it’s clearly time for me to start watching “Designing Women,” “Golden Girls,” and “Murphy Brown.”
May 23rd, 2009 at 3:16 am
This Mr. Big phenomenon not to be confused with Mr. Big the musical group: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q6E4Cs2H-xE .
May 24th, 2009 at 10:45 am
The tendency of Ayn Rand’s seemingly powerful female leads to melt into near helplessness when confronted by the sizzling intensity of her male leads strikes me as similar.
May 24th, 2009 at 10:53 am
Barbie remains true to herself. While she likes Ken, she hardly builds her life around him.
May 24th, 2009 at 12:37 pm
Mr. Big = 90′s metal band??? Tabitha, you always know how to blow my mind.
Mom & Dad: Dead on about Ayn Rand. And Barbie.
May 25th, 2009 at 11:23 am
I have a huge crush on Tina Fey.
May 25th, 2009 at 9:43 pm
Yeah, Portia DiRossi expressed her disappointment that she had signed on for a smart script and a couple episodes later she was seducing her boss in her underwear…
May 26th, 2009 at 12:50 pm
Mrs. Currier – You just blew my mind.
May 29th, 2009 at 2:46 am
Chris, you have no idea (NO IDEA) how much my mom loves Barbie. Martha Stewart, too. Prepare yourself for August.