This is a reader submission for our Big Girl Badge week. Tell us how you evolved from woman-child to woman, and you could win hundreds of dollars of prizes! (Send your 800 word submissions to Jennifer [at] thegloss.com or Ashley [at] thegloss.com)
A lot has been said recently about the “progressive” approach of HBO’s Girls. In every episode we witness Hannah (Lena Dunham) expose, in excruciating detail, the trappings of her narcissistic, yet rather ordinary life using every awkward sexual position, job failure and fleshy dimple, that she can muster. Dunham also created, directs and writes the show, with a gut-wrenching realism that’s incredibly admirable – but it’s hardly ground-breaking.
Being English, I was raised on gritty kitchen sink drama, so seeing Dunham’s naked body doesn’t automatically qualify her for instant credibility. She could easily play the town sexpot or saucy barkeep, back in the UK.
The only issue that the show has really been criticized for is it’s whitewashing of Williamsburg. Although I’m personally not a fan of tokenism, there isn’t even a mixed-race individual amidst Dunham’s comedy crowd. I mean every self respecting caucasian-hipster-gang on TV always has at least one. They are the Prada of the ethnically ambiguous! Yet, so far, American audiences, can’t seem to get enough. At least not for now.
Which got me wondering – once the shock of botched bondage and no photoshop wears off, will America continue to care? Or how well this show will fare, after it’s launch on Sky Atlantic this month in Britain. Where women already comfortably enjoy “female characters who can be truly dislikeable” as long as they are hilarious. Eddy and Patsy anyone? Or going head to head with “comedies such as Peep Show that have long celebrated the self-absorbed and unaware, Girls will be less likely to stand out.”
Also as I myself am one of those people of color mentioned, I would like to have the opportunity to explain exactly what leaves me cold about these particular gal pals. Which quite frankly has little if nothing, to do with the color of mine or their skin.
And IF I WIN… I’ll share the rest with you.
(Ed Note: There was a huge miscommunication/editing fail on my part with this. Falene intended this merely as a pitch letter. I am a fool.)
