Women in television is a topic I feel like isn’t talked about enough. I mean, we’ve gone from being wives with either too tight dresses or nightgowns, to the ability to be a badass neurosurgeon, firefighter, or detective.

Take Amelia Shepard from Greys Anatomy for example. She’s a world class neurosurgeon, a mother, and has great relationships with other women that aren’t destroyed by a man. She is also a queer character. In the 90’s or even the 10’s this was basically unheard of, a women on an award winning television show having all these traits. 

Meanwhile, June Cleaver from Leave It To Beaver was your stereotypical housewife. She was always seen doing some sort of household chore, or trailing after the men in the household. This is the perfect example of how women were portrayed in media for what was basically the whole 20th century.

Most women in the past 10 years of media are always one thing. They’re either mothers, cold-hearted mothers, or just exist for their sex appeal. It’s very rare to find a character who can be an excellent mother, be amazing at her job, and wear a nice dress while doing it. 

I’m not saying every single female character needs to have eight sides to them because they are a woman. Sometimes a character just needs to exist. But when they only have one side to them because they are a woman, that’s when it becomes an issue. 

Nowadays, little girls have amazing princesses they can look up to that don’t need to rely on a man. Moana, Mirabel, Merida. But when I was little, I had Cinderella, Aurora, and Snow White. All three of their storylines were because of a man, all of which, by the way, were not very good role models. 

My thoughts are kind of all over the place. But, in conclusion, this is a topic that needs to be discussed more. If we don’t talk about the need for powerful, well rounded women in film, little girls are going to grow up like I did while little to no good role models on the big screen. 

Every year, shows are released that become a staple of the year. Some because of how good the show is, others because it was just that bad. Here are some of the extremes of 2022.

BEST:

HEARTSTOPPER

Heartstopper is your classic teen show. It’s about Charlie Spring, who is an openly gay kid in a British all boys school, and Nick Nelson, who is a rugby star and starting to realize he might have a crush on Charlie. Heartstopper is the kind of show you go to when you need to smile. The only way you can describe it is cute and cozy.

THE SUMMER I TURNED PRETTY

Another teen show, but I couldn’t not mention this one. The title basically says it all. Belly spends her summer with twins Jeremiah and Conrad, and has to choose between the two of them. It’s a nice show to watch with your friends.

MS MARVEL

I’ve raved about Ms. Marvel here before. It has, and probably always will be, my favorite Marvel Disney+ show. It’s partly because it’s targeted towards my demographic, teenage girls who love superheroes, but also because it’s just that good. The storyline, the character development, everything about it makes it a great show and makes it rewatchable.

STRANGER THINGS S4:

I couldn’t make a best of 2022 list without featuring Stranger Things. Season 4, while it has it’s flaws, it’s objectively the best season of the show. They manage to balance the four storylines in completely different places, and keep everyone true to their character. Dear Billy is one of my favorite episodes of all time. All of the actors amazed me with their skills once more.

9-1-1 LONE STAR S3:

You guys know I wouldn’t be able to make a list without one procedural show featured. Lone Star s3 has almost everything you can ask for in a season for this type of show. Personal conflicts/emergencies, comedic episodes, all of it.

WORST:

BLOCKBUSTER:

Now, I loved the idea of Blockbuster. I loved the cast and was so excited to watch it. I was drawn in by the characters, but the writing fell flat. I barely laughed at most of the comedy, and it was very obviously used to make fun of the new generation. It was one of the shows that tried being ‘hip’, but failed miserably. Most sitcoms have that one season by the time 2020 hits that they try way to hard to appeal to younger audiences but don’t hit the mark. Unfortunately, Blockbuster did that with their first season.

DAHMER:

This is going to be very controversial. But, I’ve never watched Dahmer and never plan too. Ryan Murphy created this show despite being asked not to by Dahmer’s real life victims families. For that reason, it’s in the worst category. Why more publicity needs to be shown on the serial killer instead of the victims will always be a mystery to me.

Recently, Netflix has released a sequel to their hit movie, Enola Holmes. Enola is the sister to the famous detective, Sherlock Holmes, and is striving to be like him.

In the first movie we see Enola help solve a murder plot, find her missing mother, and overcome the sexism of her time. While she manages to accomplish them all, it’s obvious that you can’t solve a world wide issue in one day. So, in the second movie she still struggles with being a woman detective.

The movie has been out for a while now, so I will have spoilers in my review.

In short, I loved it. I thought it was the perfect sequel. I loved the plot of the missing factory workers, as it shows real struggles women went through in history. It’s obvious they took some inspiration from real cases. I love Enola’s care for the case and the young girl who brought it to her attention. She was willing to do what her brother wasn’t, look for someone who the world didn’t consider ‘missing’.

Sherlock was a little iffy of a character at times, but I warmed up to him. I thought connecting his missing money case to Enola’s was genius, although I’m not smart enough to understand what was actually going on. I think I’m due for a rewatch.

My third favorite part of the movie was the villain reveal. Having it be a woman instead of the obvious man being the blackmailer I thought was genius. I also loved how they didn’t brush past the actual villans in my opinion, Lord McIntyre and all of the men who run the factory. The most satisfying part of the film was definitely him getting arrested.

Speaking of satisfying scenes, the workers sticking up for themselves nearly brought me to tears. Seeing them fight against the capitalists and take charge of their own future was so powerful. Hannah Dodd, Millie Bobby Brown, and Serrana Su-Ling Bliss delivered amazing performances, as well as all the other powerful woman in the movie. The film is basically a feminist’s dream, and I love that.

My favorite aspect of the film in all had to be the relationship between Enola and Tewkesbury. I know it’s very controversial to want them together, because it supposedly shows that a woman can’t be successful or independent while dating a man. Honestly, I think portrays the exact opposite. Enola is still the strong, independent woman we watched grow in the first movie. I think it shows that a girl can be in a steady relationship, but still be powerful and I think that’s an important lesson to teach young girls.

In conclusion, I rate the movie a 9/10. I loved every single aspect of it, and it stays as one of my favorite movies.

The Rookie has had a recurring storyline of one of the only female serial killers, Rosalind Dyer. The original plot was Dyer promising the location of the rest of her kills, which was later revealed she only did this to A) distract from Caleb, her protege, and B) be the center of attention again. This whole situation leads to the plot of Lucy Chen, one of the Rookie cops, being Caleb’s last victim.

They find Lucy in the end, saving her. Caleb is killed by the police in the process. But Lucy has to work through the trauma in the aftermath, and is finally healing when Rosalind shows up again. She was on an undercover mission during her trial, so she figured there would be no reason for her to get involved. Instead, the killer escapes custody and targets her current boyfriend, nearly killing him.

After a stressful 4 episodes, it comes to an end when Rosalind kidnaps firefighter Bailey Nune, almost letting her die when John Nolan refuses to kill her. Confusing, I know. The writers really captured a psychopathic mind by making her make no sense.

Anyway, Rosalind is killed by an unknown sniper. I’m not going to lie, I’m still not entirely sure who killed her, even though I watched the crossover episode of the spin off, The Rookie Feds. But, nevertheless, Rosalind Dyer is dead, and I’m mad.

Rosalind has been an on and off storyline since season 2, and most of it revolves around Lucy, minus the Nolan storyline they have to throw in here and there. Lucy suffered the most trauma out of everyone relating to her, and I find it maddening that she wasn’t the one who handcuffed her after she escaped.

Nearly killing her boyfriend, conspiring with the man who kidnapped her and attempted to bury her alive (and partly succeeded), Lucy deserved to be the one to take her back into custody. Instead, The Rookie writers expanded on Rosalind’s obsession with John Nolan and make him the center of attention.

Now this is nothing new. The show is considered an ensemble cast, but Nathan Fillion (who plays Nolan) is considered the main actor/character. It is very common for shows to do this, say they are an ensemble show and still focus majority of storylines on the quote-on-quote stunt actor, who was well known before the show. They are usually white and male as well.

While they did manage to make the storyline make sense, it would’ve been so much more satisfying if Lucy was the one who ended the story. Lucy could’ve gotten a call from Rosalind, and someone she cared about such as her best friend Tamara, or her training officer/crush Tim. In my mind, it would’ve made a lot more sense than the whole storyline coming to a close with a single gunshot.

The episode also showed Nolan’s ‘bad’ personality. Rosalind wanted to go out on her own terms, so she asked Nolan to shoot him, and her accomplice watching would release his girlfriend, the trapped firefighter Bailey. He refused to compromise his morals, and was willing to let his girlfriend die so he didn’t kill a known convicted serial killer.

I understand that there are moral and legal complications here, but in all honesty if the other cops didn’t get Bailey out in time, Nolan would’ve been responsible for her death. Would you rather have a serial killer or the love of your life on your conscience?

I would call myself an avid TV watcher since the 6th grade. I’ve finished 15 season shows in 2 months, while others I’ve dropped after an episode or two. Everyone has their favorites, and here’s mine.

10: 9-1-1

I’ve always had a love for procedural shows. The first show I ever watched thoroughly was Greys Anatomy. 9-1-1 is a show based around first responders in LA. It’s been airing on FOX for 5 seasons, the 6th one currently in air. My favorite characters have to be May, Maddie, and Hen, with Buck right behind them. My favorite arc is probably the bombings and the firetruck falling, but I’m pretty sure the current storyline with Athena and the missing girl from her childhood is going to take first place.

9: Criminal Minds

Almost everyone I know has heard about Criminal Minds at some point. I first learned of the show when my friend, a lover of horror, recommended it to me, and ever since then it has become my go to show. As someone who doesn’t like horror, Criminal Minds is somehow still in my top 10 solely on how good the character dynamics and (mostly) amazing writing. While it definitely has its flaws, which is why it’s not higher on this list, my favorite characters who I see myself becoming more like everyday will always bring me back. Unfortunately, seasons 1-12 are no longer on Netflix so I can’t watch any of those episodes anymore unless they are on cable.

8: Hawkeye

Hawkeye was a pretty controversial show before it aired, just like all the MCU Disney+ shows. Personally, it’s my second favorite show out of them all. Kate Bishop became one of my favorite MCU characters, and I loved the dynamic Clint Barton had with his kids. It gives light to how everyone grieves differently, and it brought Yelena Bolova back as one of the most hilarious characters in the MCU in my opinion. I think the show’s best aspect is the fact that it doesn’t take itself too seriously.

7: Ms. Marvel

I think this is my favorite MCU show of them all because it’s targeted towards me in a way. Of course, I have superheroes in the MCU that look like me, while Pakistani girls haven’t before Kamala. But I see myself in the teenage girl kinda way. Kamala was a huge fangirl, going to cons and having posters of her favorite superheroes on her wall before becoming one of them. I feel like Marvel acknowledging the fact that teen girls can like superheroes as well was really really great, because before Ms. Marvel all of the young fans were six year old boys.

6: Anne With An E

I very recently finished Anne With An E on Netflix. The coming of age aspect is what drew me in after the first episode was kinda boring in my opinion. But the entirety of season 3 made up for it. The feminist and Native-American storylines were so compelling, even though we never got closure for the second one cause of the cancellation. But Gilbert and Anne, the whole group of girls, the feminist storyline, and Cole were my favorite part of the show. I’m still kind of upset that we never got closure for Kakwet, but it wasn’t the writers fault the show got canceled.

5: The Rookie

Once again, a procedural show. I’m shocked there’s not more on here. The Rookie follows a 40 year old Rookie, John Nolan, joining the LAPD, which is where the title comes from. It’s surprising that the show revolves around Nolan when he is definitely my least favorite ‘good’ character. I’ve always been favorable towards Lucy, Tamara, and Jackson, with Nyla high on the list. My favorite storyline is Lucy and Tamara’s, plus Lucy’s kidnapping storyline.

4: Abbott Elementary

I feel like if it had more seasons under its belt, Abbott would be top 3 on this list. It’s a cute and lighthearted sitcom, with great characters and storylines. With only one 13 episode season they managed to get 5 Emmy nominations and renewed for a 23 episode season. My favorite characters are Janine and Melissa, and I don’t think there are enough solo storylines for me to choose one.

3: Stranger Things

Everyone knows Stranger Things. It’s a global hit. While most people will find it overrated because of the insane amount of traction it’s received over the past few years. But honestly I feel like it deserves all the praise it gets. The cinematography and writing is amazing throughout all the seasons. The actors put in their all for every season, and it’s obvious they all like each other.

2: Nancy Drew

I’ve written about Nancy Drew before, but it’s honestly such a good show. I hate to praise the writing about every show, but I’ve loved every single moment. The found family trope is evident throughout all three seasons, which has got to be my favorite. As someone who’s turned away by jumpscares and overall scariness, all the other aspects of the show kept me watching.

1: Modern Family

Modern Family is just one of those shows that you’ve had to watch an episode or two if you watch any TV. I don’t even know where to start with when praising individual aspects, but honestly I don’t think it has one. I think all the amazing parts of a show come together to make it such a good sitcom.

Recently, Blake Lively has announced that she is pregnant with her 4th child with Ryan Reynolds. She made a post on instagram with photos of her pregnant to ‘stop’ the 11 male paparazzi from stalking her and her family outside their home. She also made a point about kids on social media, and how she appreciates publications who have a ‘No Kids Policy’. Her posts have sparked up the conversation again: Should people post pictures of their kids on social media?

Let me start this off by saying: You can do whatever you want. They’re your kids, it’s your decision until they are old enough to decide for themselves. 

Here’s the other thing: Paparazzi taking pictures of kids all together is just creepy. Imagine walking down the street with your friends and having to avoid 18 camera men because your what the world calls famous. It’s dehumanizing. The job of a paparazzi itself is problematic and controversial, the right of privacy being taken from you. 

There are four different types of parents who post their kids on social media. The first one is the parents who want to share milestones with family. They create a private Instagram or Facebook account for sharing memories, where they allow family members and friends follow that they probably wouldn’t see on a consistent basis. As long as the page is private, and you only accept follow requests from people you know, this is probably the safest way to post your kid on social media. 

The second is the parents who just post their kids. They have a public account where they post events in their day to day lives, which sometimes includes their kids. Personally, as long as nothing embarrassing or something that could come back and hurt or get the child bullied for later in life, I find nothing wrong with posting you and your kids at the pumpkin patch after you get home. 

The third type of parent is the one who exploits their children. They usually manifest in family Youtubers, such as the Labrant Family, who have already been accused of this on multiple occasions. The parents usually only hang out with their kids to make content for the channel, or force the kid to be on or act differently on camera. They show the kids’ embarrassing moments, such as getting in trouble at school, with no thought about how the kid feels about it. Sometimes, like in case of the Labrant Family, they have more kids to be able to make content about the pregnancy and birth. In response, the older kids end up being neglected, as obvious with the oldest of that family, Everleigh. 

The fourth parent is the one who doesn’t post their child on social media at all. If they have a picture with their child in it they want to post, they’ll most likely put an emoji or blur their faces out, such as Blake Lively and Ryan Reynolds. This is to keep their children safe, and protect them from creepy people on the internet. Or, they do this just to give the child a choice when their older, if they want to have a presence on social media or not. The majority of people who do this are celebrities, who bring their children to events. Other’s are aunts or uncles posting about their niece or nephew, and their mother doesn’t like the children on social media. 

In conclusion, it’s all up to the parents. How often you want to show your children on media is your decision. But, just like they tell middle schoolers when they first allowed Instagram and Tiktok, everything stays on the internet forever. Future employers, future friends, and future dates will all be able to find the embarrassing things that were posted about your child when they were five years old. Kids who grew up in a ‘youtuber’ family won’t ever be able to have a normal online presence. The bottom line is, think before you post.

HULU

9-1-1 SEASON 6: Originally premiering on Fox the night before, the first episode of the new season is available on September 20th. This show follows a group of LA first responders, mainly firefighters, as they navigate the complexity of their jobs and personal lives. This show stars Angela Bassett, Peter Krause, Jennifer Love-Hewitt, and more.

ABBOTT ELEMENTARY SEASON 2: Like 9-1-1, Abbott originally premieres September 20th at 8pm on ABC, and is available on Hulu the following day. This new sitcom takes place in an underfunded Philadelphia elementary school, and the teachers who work there. The Emmy winning show stars Quinta Brunson, Tyler James Williams, Lisa Ann Walter, and more.

NETFLIX

HEARTBREAK HIGH: This new Netflix drama is premiering September 14th. New friends Amelie, Quinni, and Darren must navigate high school after a mural revealed all the secret relationships throughout Hartley High.

FROM SCRATCH: An artist is looking for love in Italy and finds it in a chef in this up-and-coming Netflix show. It premieres on October 21st and stars Eugenio Mastrandrea and Roberta Rigano.

MANIFEST SEASON 4: After being presumed dead for 5 and a half years, the flight 828 and all it’s passengers arrive home and have to deal with the fallout of the supernatural. The final season premieres on November 4th, starring Melissa Roxburgh, Josh Dallas, J.R Ramirez, and more.

DO REVENGE: After her boyfriend leaked a tape of her, Drea Torres teams up with exchange student Eleanor, who has rumors circling the school, to get revenge on the people that have wronged them both. The movie starring Maya Hawke, Camila Mendes, Paris Berelc, and others releases on Netflix on September 16th.

BLONDE: The Marilyn Monroe biopic is releasing on September 28th. It stars Ana de Armas as Marilyn.

DISNEY+

WILLOW: On November 30th, you can watch Warwick Davis, Erin Kellyman, and Joanne Walley star in this new Fantasy Drama. Taking place 20-30 years after the movie, the unlikely group of heroes takes a quest far away from home, where they face their demons and save the world.

DISENCHANTED: The sequel to the beloved movie Enchanted, Giselle questions the fact that her happily ever after is taking too long to arrive. In a way to fix it, she accidentally turns the lives of everyone in her new town upside down. Now she must fix it before it’s too late. Coming out on November 24th, the movie stars Amy Adams, Patrick Dempsey, James Marsden, and others.HOCUS POCUS 2: Another sequel based off a beloved Disney film, Hocus Pocus 2 releases on September 30th. When three women accidentally summon the Sanderson sisters to the town of Salem once more, they have to figure out how to stop the witches from destroying the town. The film stars Bette Milderm, Sarah Jessica Parker, Kathy Najimy, and more.

The CW’s Nancy Drew has always been one of my favorite shows for the past couple of months. I stumbled across it when I was scrolling through HBO Max looking for a show to watch with my Dad. Unfortunately for him, I loved it so much I finished the current three seasons without him in a week!

The mixture of supernatural and mystery seems to drag a lot of people to watch it. TV Fanatic Girl, another blog, has written a couple articles about the thriller show. One of them is her reviewing the first half of the second season. It was very interesting to see someone else’s point of view and how they thought about the storylines.

She talked about Nancy’s community service plot at the morgue, and we both agreed that her working somewhere other than The Claw was a good change in pace. I personally think that the Coroner’s son being possessed was one of my favorite episodes of that season, not including The Spell of The Burning Bride.

It also offered a change of pace, taking the focus away from the main mystery of season two, George and Odette. The spirit aspect of the show isn’t my favorite thing about it, considering I don’t like jump scares, but I can appreciate when they tie into a good storyline, like Nancy and Lucy is in season 1.

While I disagree with some of their opinions, I did enjoy reading about what The TV Fanatic Girl had to say about season 2 of Nancy Drew! Unfortunately, she has not reviewed season 3, nor the theories about the upcoming season 4. I’m super excited to see the upcoming season, given it’s the first season on the show I’ll watch live. I hope you’re as excited as I am, and maybe this inspired you to watch Nancy Drew, now streaming on HBO Max. 

Have you ever heard of 1989? How about Fearless? Maybe even Evermore? All of these are names of Taylor Swift’s hit albums, all three having won multiple awards to their name. Grammy Award for Album the Year, Best Country Song, and Best Pop Vocal Album to name a few. Ms. Swift has released 9 studio albums, not including the re-recordings of RED and Fearless, and has just announced her 10th, Midnights.

Swift announced the album after winning the VMA’s Video of The Year for All Too Well, featuring Sadie Sink and Dylan O’Brian. She officially announced the name and the meaning behind the album later at midnight, with the release date; October 21st.

Many fans have theories about the new mysterious album. Like many artists, Swift’s original plans for her career hit a halt in March 2020 when Covid stopped the world. During that year, she released her two ‘sister’ albums, Folklore and Evermore. Fans think that these two fan-favorites were never a part of the original plan, and that Lover and Midnights were the original sisters. Lover‘s original name was Daylight, the album’s 18th track, before she decided otherwise. The two corresponding names would make them the original sister albums, had the pandemic never came.

Others are speculating what kind of album Midnights is. There was a ‘leaked’ setlist and what type of music the album would contain, but both were proven false almost immediately. Will the new album be more like its supposed sister, Lover? Or will songs fall under the indie category like Swift’s 2020 albums?

In the Instagram and Twitter announcement for the album, Swift wrote a little analog about it, much like her past albums. In the paragraphs, she stated how the 13 songs represent 13 sleepless nights for her, and how she wrote them through nightmares and sweet dreams, showing the album’s complexity. The first paragraph seems to appeal to her anxiety, hoping she wasn’t making life altering mistakes and lying awake in fear, which is something a lot of people could relate too. She also talks about how this album is for the people who stay awake at night, wondering about things they can’t control and those who explore when ‘the clock strikes midnight.’

The internet was going crazy at the time of the release. Fans were analyzing her posts, wondering how they could’ve missed it. Others were zooming in on the announcement, trying to see if song titles were hidden in the background, given that Swift has always been known for hiding Easter eggs everywhere. Collaborations with other artists, such as Gracie Abrams or BLACKPINK have been speculated as well. Celebrities such as Jesse Tyler Ferguson have even commented on it. Midnights is shaping up to be Taylor Swift’s most relatable album yet. The world will finally be given an insight on how she handled being a ‘public enemy’ for an entire decade. While some people still choose to hate her for the drama, she does have millions of fans waiting for the clock to strike midnight.