Fic and other items of note.

[annakovsky]

Junior Year, Winter, part two (8,337 words) and Junior Year, Winter, part three (15,687 words)
easy_academy, Winters POV, NC-17 (underage, teacher/student, Nick Jonas/Dick Winters)

Here are two songs I have been obsessing over lately, because when it's been raining for weeks and you're writing depressing fic, things happen.

Rescued by Jack's Mannequin (because you might be too old for pop-punk piano ballads, but they're not too old for you)
My Backwards Walk, by Frightened Rabbit

Man, so on Friday night moireach and I had this incredibly bourgetarded evening, wherein we went and saw Brian Dennehy and Dame Eileen Atkins read a bunch of T.S. Eliot poems. And I thought, hey, this'll be pretty cool, I guess, and beforehand, M, as a T.S. Eliot EXPERT, was like, "They better not read it too fast. I have had to delete recordings where they read them too fast." So our expectations weren't too super high but oh my God, you guys, it was like, the best thing I have ever experienced. Like, I can't even describe how good they were, reading everything completely, mind-bogglingly perfectly, so that even though I've read The Wasteland a thousand times, they totally brought out new layers of meaning. They did the VOICES. AUGH I WANT TO GO SEE IT AGAIN. WHY CAN I NOT GO SEE IT AGAIN?

Haha, it was funny, though, because in the program it had a list of past actors who had done poetry readings put on by the same woman doing this one, and Damian Lewis and Helen McCrory were on the list, and I was like, "ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME IF THEY WERE HERE READING ELIOT WHILE I HAVE LIVED IN TOWN I WILL KILL SOMEONE." Haha, which is exactly how I feel about Stephen Colbert, Amy Sedaris and Paul Dinello doing a Wigfield performance in the Somerville Theatre while I totally lived two seconds away here. (God, I still get so mad at my past self when I think about that. WHY DIDN'T YOU CARE SOONER?) Um, but anyway, luckily it turned out DLew's reading was at the British Library, so I can rest easy.

Then we ran straight from that poetry reading to see Germaine Greer, who totally hilariously bitched out the Harvard professor we had just seen introducing the Eliot thing, so that was super weird and kind of awesome. Also she was v. funny and interesting and she called M "that stripey person in the back" during the Q&A which kind of made my life.

And finally, speaking of feminism, the weekend before that, me and M went and saw Sarah Haskins of "Target: Women" at MIT (AWESOME), and so that day we were talking about what shows currently airing on TV consistently pass the Bechdel test (which is, if you are unfamiliar, that there are two female characters who talk to each other about something other than a man). And we honestly came up with almost none.

The Office, while at least very sexism aware, almost never does, especially these days. 30 Rock doesn't very much either, because Liz Lemon's only female friend is Jenna, who is ridiculous. Big Bang Theory -- hahaha, oh God, no. (Penny doesn't even have a LAST NAME, you guys. They literally had a GIRL FIGHT last week when she was threatened by another woman moving into the building. Oh my GOD, I mean, I do enjoy that show, but COME ON, it's 2009.) How I Met Your Mother claims that Robin and Lily are best friends, but they actually interact the two of them, like, maybe twice a season. (I feel like claiming Lily and Robin are best friends is like claiming Robin and Marshall are. I mean, sure, you can say that, but if I don't see it, it doesn't really count, guys.) But HIMYM, while masquerading as a Friends-esque ensemble show, is actually a show about Ted, so. It's right there in the title.

Anyway, we actually got out a list of all the shows currently airing, but I really could not find very many that have actual female relationships consistently portrayed. But I don't watch that much TV these days, so does anyone know of any? Because it was SUPER DEPRESSING to actually tally it up, guys.

Comments

[sophia-helix.livejournal.com]

I feel like Robin and Lily are best friends in the same manner as Buffy and Willow, i.e. the two females in the group. Maybe it's the curse of Alyson Hannigan?

I was just thinking about the Bechdel test the other night while watching Lost, because I was excited to see Juliet and Kate interacting and maybe getting over the thing about the guys between them, but noooo, the whole conversation was about Jack all over again. Man, I hate that guy.

Sometimes Bones is OK, because the main character basically has Asperger's and so she frequently has conversations with her BFF Angela (who is more like a guidance counselor, frankly) in which Angela has to help her understand other humans and how to act like one herself, but most their conversations do revolve around Booth (David Boreanaz). That's the only show I watch that I can think of which has female friends, and I'm actually way behind on it. Maybe you could count Ugly Betty, since she interacts a lot with Amanda (co-worker/evil roommate) and her sister, but that's been piling up in my Tivo for the past few months too.

Pam needs a friend. Guess who I'm thinking of.

[annakovsky.livejournal.com]

Haha, ugh, the 2 females in the group syndrome. Well, we date guys who are best friends, so I guess that makes us best friends! Because we don't actually have independent lives!

That's good that Bones is! I was thinking that procedurals do tend to be a little better, in that at least the women there talk mostly about their jobs and talk to each other, though at the same time that means that female FRIENDSHIPS are still super underrepresented on television.

RASHIDA COME BACK.

[kismeteve.livejournal.com]

The only one I can easily think of is ER, which is not only over now, but it's Bechdel friendliness kind of decreased when Maura Tierney left the show. Maybe Damages and The United States of Tara?

[annakovsky.livejournal.com]

Oooh, yeah, we thought of Damages! And I don't know anything about The United States of Tara, but that's good it's out there!

(Man, ER. I can't believe it's really over. I also can't believe it was still on the air for this long, hee.)

[peopleareshapes.livejournal.com]

That is an insanely epic weekend!

And we honestly came up with almost none.

I can't come up with any shows and I'd snort television if it could be mashed into a powder. :/ This bugs me constantly because most everything I watch has at least one amazing guy friendship where the boys would pass a male version of the Bechdel test with FLYING COLORS and there is never a girl equivalent. :( RE BBT - Haha, oh man, that show. I try not to think about certain things while watching it or it might make my brain explodey.

Oh wait, oh god, PLEASE DON'T LAUGH ME OFF THE PLANET, but I just thought of a show that would pass the test - One Tree Hill. Brooke and Haley are close and talk about a wealth of things, which does include their significant others, but also includes being there for each other in all matters of duress and generally pushing each other toward the greatest successes in life. It's one of the few things that crackfest does right. Dear all other writers on television, you just got schooled in the girl friendship department by a show that has Chad Michael Murray on it, TIME TO STEP IT UP.

[annakovsky.livejournal.com]

Ugh, I know, right? There's male friendship up the WAZOO (and we saw I Love You, Man the same weekend, totally enjoyed it, and also got super depressed about how there is NEVER A FEMALE BROMANCE EVER, NOT ONE TIME). It just really, really, really gets old to never ever see my female friendships represented in any kind of media.

RE BBT - Haha, oh man, that show. I try not to think about certain things while watching it or it might make my brain explodey.

Haha, God, me too. Like, I really thoroughly enjoy it, but in terms of feminism it is SO APPALLING.

Hee, I was actually thinking that teen shows like OTH and Gossip Girl would probably pass better than a lot of things!

Dear all other writers on television, you just got schooled in the girl friendship department by a show that has Chad Michael Murray on it, TIME TO STEP IT UP.

lololol, ilu.

Yes, I am fully admitting to watching Gossip Girl.

[leahthegreat.livejournal.com]

There was some stuff in Gossip Girl in the first season when Blair had an eating disorder and Serena helped her through it. It was kind of heartwarming? And I can't believe I just referenced Gossip Girl, because for every storyline like that, you have everyone constantly sleeping with each others' exes so it kind of cancels out that.

I was also going to mention Big Love, as the three main female characters do help each other through various life problems like jobs and family and whatever, but they're ALL married to Bill Paxton so that uh definitely does not work out.

Man, TV, you really suck sometimes. Way to NOT promote healthy female relationships.

Re: Yes, I am fully admitting to watching Gossip Girl.

[annakovsky.livejournal.com]

I was wondering if Gossip Girl did! That's good to hear, even if it's super shallow on other levels, hahaha. I mean, one thing for teen shows/nighttime soaps, they at least tend to have more female characters than, say, your typical sitcom with their one-lady-per-three-dudes ratio. Ugh.

BIG LOVE. Seriously, that is the only show I watch that passes, and it is a show about OPPRESSIVELY SEXIST POLYGAMISTS. Television, get it together.

[mozarts-friend.livejournal.com]

1. You and M are THE CUTEST EVER, I just wanted you to know that, once. And that poetry reading sounds awesome. I have REALLY been enjoying poetry month thus far thanks to M, heee.

2. NOW I'M THINKING ABOUT THIS BECHDEL TEST AND AM SUPER BUMMED. AUGH. It's kind of sad that the only show that I watch that could even MAYBE count is Gossip Girl. GOSSIP GIRL. REALLY, TELEVISION? No, scratch that, I'm counting my Disney shows because of Miley & Lily and Alex & Parker. THEY ARE FRIENDS AND DON'T ALWAYS TALK ABOUT BOYS AT LEAST.

[annakovsky.livejournal.com]

Heeeeeee, we also went to a poetry reading on Saturday, because when you live with M, you REALLY celebrate NaPoMo. (And sure, maybe the reading involved some bear rape, but, um, apparently that's a hazard. D:)

ISN'T IT SUPER DEPRESSING? Like, of all the television shows out there right now, maybe three pass? And most of the ones that pass have people talking to female relatives, not just friends.

DISNEY SHOWS. V. true. It's actually hilarious -- I noticed very severely when I visited my friend who has a toddler that kids' shows are like 10000000 zillion times better about diversity than grown-up shows. Like, in three days I saw more racial minorities, more of the handicapped, and more girls talking to each other than I had in like three years of watching adult shows. Wtf, television.

[lowriseflare.livejournal.com]

I think Brothers and Sisters passes pretty regularly. But I'm having a really hard time thinking of any others. SVU, I guess? I don't know. I haven't watched it in so long it might actually be an ensemble comedy by now.

[annakovsky.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I was thinking Brothers and Sisters, though it kind of kills me that only female relatives talk to each other on TV, it seems like. Haha, SVU totally did, but I'm right there with you in terms of watching it now.

(P.S. Ugh, I totally meant to email you back and got buried in work and when I had clawed my way out again it had been, like, MONTHS? Wtf, self. ANYWAY. I will email you one of these days, haha.)

[cadette.livejournal.com]

Friday Night Lights? There's a lot of great mother/daughter stuff between Tami and Julie, and a lot of mentor/mentee (mentee is a funny looking word) stuff between Tami and Tyra.

[annakovsky.livejournal.com]

Oooh, I am behind on FNL, but that's totally true. (God, I love the Tami and Tyra relationship -- I actually have a mentor from high school, and that is a relationship I have never seen in any kind of media except on FNL, and it's SO AWESOME.)

[kelbelle.livejournal.com]

As much as I'm loathe to give Shonda Rimes anything, Addison and Naomi on Private Practice have been friends since college and I find it believable. They certainly argue like someone you've known your whole life who does STUPID THINGS.

Do Disney shows count? Lilly and Miley/Hannah. Just sayin'.
Julie and Tyra on FNL are pretty decent friends.

I am so asking Chuck Lorre what Penny's last name is at the Paley.

[annakovsky.livejournal.com]

I actually was going to say that Grey's Anatomy was actually pretty good about this back when I watched it before it went off the rails (like... is Izzy seriously dating a ghost right now? SERIOUSLY?). It's too bad about how that show has tons of great female characters and great characters of color but is CRAZY. But Meredith and Cristina were pretty great about that, actually, at least back in the day. And I'm glad there's a good one on Private Practice!

I am so asking Chuck Lorre what Penny's last name is at the Paley.

PLEASE DO, it effing drives me crazy.

[myr-soleil.livejournal.com]

Well, I am not sure if this counts, but Dollhouse? Echo and Sierra talk to each other in their "tabula rasa" state about deep stuff like liking orange juice and going swimming. There's also a lot of stuff in the varied missions Echo goes to - I mostly remember a conversation with Echo and the pop star about death (though now that I think about it, it probably segued into talking about the crazy fan, who is a man). In the last episode we also had some pretty solid discussion between Adelle DeWitt and Dr Saunders.

[annakovsky.livejournal.com]

Huh, that's interesting Dollhouse does! (I... only watched the pilot and was both bored and kind of skeezed out, haha, so I dropped it.)

[mangojellytoast.livejournal.com]

I spend so much time thinking about the Bechdel test it's not even funny. I HATE when they play the Lily/Robin best friends card on HIMYM because there's absolutely nothing other than those random scenes to indicate that they're friends. It's so obnoxious.

The Middleman apparently passed the Bechdel test with flying colors, but it's cancelled and I never actually watched anything past the pilot. So, there goes that.

Actually, apart from the fact that the girls are all extremely shallow and bitchy, Gossip Girl DOES do a good job of female/female interaction that's not male-centered. It's at least better than Sex and the City which is the most disappointing show in the world Bechdel-wise.

There are some good West Wing episodes where CJ has to deal with the First Lady. When women do interact with women on that show it's very rarely about relationships with men. But then, women usually just interact with men. Donna only interacts with Josh. CJ only interacts with other senior staffers, and the First Lady only interacts with the President.

Battlestar Galactica kiiind of passes the test, but for some reason the human women don't interact with each other very much, only the Cylon women do.

Gilmore Girls passes the test. They talk about boys a lot, but they talk about a lot of other stuff too.

[annakovsky.livejournal.com]

I HATE when they play the Lily/Robin best friends card on HIMYM because there's absolutely nothing other than those random scenes to indicate that they're friends. It's so obnoxious.

Ugh, I know, right? YOU ARE TELLING AND NOT SHOWING, GUYS. ALL YOU DO IS MAKE ME THINK THAT YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW WOMEN ACT WITH EACH OTHER. (Haha, like every time Scully talked to a woman on XF, and how it made me terrified of what Chris Carter imagined women to be like behind his back. YIKES.)

God, the Middleman was super good and it SUPER passed the Bechdel test, probably representing my actual friendships better than almost anything else on TV. But ugh, of course it got canceled.

Also, UGH, SatC is so appalling. Haha, not to say that I totally didn't accidentally watch like 2 whole seasons of it this past summer, though -- I don't know how that show can make you totally hate it and yet unable to stop watching it, haha.

Gilmore Girls was super great for it -- and some other canceled shows. But with those gone it is kind of a wasteland out there right now.

[ahestele.livejournal.com]

The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency on HBO shows a wonderfully funny and touching relationshiop between the protagonist and her secretery.

[annakovsky.livejournal.com]

Oooh, that is good to hear! I might have to check that show out over the summer.

[pearl-o.livejournal.com]

The Middleman is fucking awesome at it, seriously. Lacey and Wendy's friendship is portrayed super well.


Uhhhhh it's pathetic the only thing I am coming up with Hannah Montana.

[annakovsky.livejournal.com]

Ugh, God, seriously, Lacey & Wendy were my favorite things on the Middleman. Too bad about that. :(

WHAT IS WRONG WITH CURRENT TV?

[sainfoin-fields.livejournal.com]

Big Love definitely passes - Nicki and [spoiler character from s3 finale], most conversations between Sarah and Heather, and plenty of conversations between various sisterwives, e.g. concerning hair and mothers and work and the church and Documents.

The Sarah Connor Chronicles frequently passes the test on a week by week basis because there are a lot of female characters-of-the-week, and there is a mother-daughter pair who have their own concerns, but since the entire Terminator franchise revolves around protecting a boy, he does tend to come up in a lot of conversations.

Dexter passes when LaGuerta interacts with Deb or Ellen Wolf, but the two main female characters hardly ever see each other.

Mad Men passes with Peggy and her mom and sister, Betty and Francine, and even sometimes Peggy and Joan, even though Joan tends to talk about men a lot.

Merlin, which is ridiculously misogynistic and horrible, probably passes with the Gwen/Morgana relationship a lot of the time.

Man, this is depressing. You know what passes like six times over? Wonderfalls. I love that show. I've also been rewatching the first season of New Who, and Rose has that kind of interaction with basically every other woman who shows up.

[annakovsky.livejournal.com]

Yeah, Big Love was by far the best of what I was coming up with, which is super depressing when you think about how it's about super awful polygamists, haha. But God, the female characters are so great.

Ugh, isn't it super depressing? It seems like most of the shows that pass pass on a sort of, barely, sometimes, occasional basis. It makes me want to hit somebody. :( :( :(

[anoel.livejournal.com]

I was just thinking of that yesterday when I saw how Damages is pretty damn amazing at it.

Let's see, I'd say Ugly Betty with Betty and her sister/Amanda, usually Scrubs with Elliot and Carla, Brothers and Sisters (Nora and her daughters, Sarah and Kitty, Holly and her daughter), Grey's Anatomy (Meredith-Cristina-Izzie, there's guy talk but also medical/friend related stuff), T:TSCC if you count Sarah and Cameron, Skins has a bunch of female relationships and United States of Tara with mother-daughter and two sisters.

[merriehaskell.livejournal.com]

Darn tootin', Scrubs with Carla and Elliott.

[mardia.livejournal.com]

How I Met Your Mother is pretty interesting in that you're right, Lily and Robin don't interact that much, but when they do, they do tend to pass the Bechdel test. I'm thinking of Robin helping Lily fit into her wedding dress, and the Woo Girl episode in particular. It's not great, but it's honestly a LOT better than 99% of the shows that I watch.

Ugh, it IS depressing when you think about it.

[annakovsky.livejournal.com]

Yeah, at least when Robin and Lily do talk, it isn't so much about dudes. It just blows that it's so rare that they do. Seriously, that show's lack of female pov sometimes really bums me out.

[http://users.livejournal.com/_kirsty/]

A T.S. Eliot-Germain Greer double bill? CRIKEY. (Says the uncultured moron. :))

The L Word? I think it ended its run recently though.

[annakovsky.livejournal.com]

Heeee, the double-bill was PRET-TY WRETCHED. And kind of awesome.

I would hope the L-Word would! Though yeah, it did just go off the air, didn't it? Sigh.

[irishmizzy.livejournal.com]

Ack, BBT drives me crazy for that exact reason. Last week I kept laughing at the jokes and then saying to the empty room BUT I AM ALSO ANNOYED.

I am holding out hope that Parks & Rec will be girl friendship-y. In EW Rashida said there was a female buddy-comedy-ness to it, so I'm clinging to that. Because otherwise my go-to answer is Gossip Girl, and it's great that teens are getting that message, but when the message is inconsistent and wrapped inside a sex&drugs&boys gift bag it's a little harder to appreciate.

[annakovsky.livejournal.com]

Last week I kept laughing at the jokes and then saying to the empty room BUT I AM ALSO ANNOYED.

Heee, you too? Seriously, last week was really intense, it made me pretty mad. Why can't there be nerd girls? Maybe Leslie Winkle and Penny ApparentlyNotImportantEnoughForALastName should go spin off into their own show.

OOH, good point on the Parks & Rec thing! I WILL KEEP MY FINGERS CROSSED.

(Ahaha, a sex&drugs&boys gift bag. Sigh.)

[smilesawakeyou.livejournal.com]

Man, I am now wracking my brains like nobody's business to come up with shows. Friends is an obvious example... there's also Daria and Sex and the City. There are some British TV shows that work (such as As Time Goes By and Coupling).

But, even with those examples, I'm having a really hard time coming up with anything current. Man, I've never even THOUGHT about this before. Huh. *runs off to research such things* I really need to take a feminism class or something.

Heeeeeeeee, I love your icon so much.

[annakovsky.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I can definitely think of a lot of shows that are now off the air, but current TV is apparently a BAD SCENE. D: D: D:

[furies.livejournal.com]

man, i wish i was at that reading with you two! i should have planned to spend NaPoMo in boston - it figures that M is all over it!!

as for shows, i have to think about what i sometimes watch . . .

the tudors totally doesn't pass. in treatment doesn't, because the therapist is a man - though that's interesting, in itself. it did at some points, like when kate helped with sophie, and when kate and paul went to therapy together w/gina, but i don't think the second season has much promise, since paul moved to brooklyn.

hmm . . . gossip girl does - blair and serena have a surprisingly real friendship for such a shallow show, not to mention jenny and vanessa, who really are friends and not frenemies. the mothers are friends as well - lily and eleanor. hmmm.

someone already mentioned OTH, but it's worth mentioning again - brooke and haley talk as friends, haley and peyton are great friends, brooke is being a mom and friend to sam, and brooke and peyton have been best friends since forever. oh! and milly is brooke's friend.

CSI:NY has a good relationship between lindsey and stella (i LOVE THEM). can't speak for the other CSIs . . . on private practice, addison and violet are friends, but charlotte and violet have totally become friends and they like never talk about guys - except cooper, who doesn't really count. on criminal minds, JJ and emily talk probably at least ONCE an episode, and for a while, JJ and garcia were together a lot. and the three of them have been seen more than once out having fun together at a bar (and then getting called away for work).

house fails, which is sad, the office has been failing, which is sad, oh! true blood has a friendship between sookie and . . . i don't know her name, but i don't watch the show, so i don't know if that would actually pass.

weeds would count - in that nancy talks to other women not about men, but i don't know if you can say that nancy really has any friends. and i haven't really been watching.

and since reality tv doesn't count - that's basically it. huh. that's pretty sad. man. who thought teen shows and procedurals would be where it's at?

(also, i have to agree with the stuff for kids - "little einsteins" for example has leo and annie (brother and sister), being friends with june (asian) and quincy (dark-skinned boy). and hannah montana, icarly, and the wizards of waverly place - disney is strangely popping up all over. huh.)

[kismeteve.livejournal.com]

Re: True Blood. Sookie's friend's name is Tara, but the two of them didn't really connect in the second half of the season. If they follow the books, there will be a few more female friendships popping up later.

[rm-renfield.livejournal.com]

Absolutely Fabulous OWNZ the Bechdel test. But I don't actually watch any current TV, and I can't deny that that's part of the reason. Also because I don't have cable.

But looking at my DVDs, which skew heavily towards police procedurals, I see Profiler jumping up and waving its arms around. (Awesome show, awesome and powerful lead female character not always or even often in a tizzy over a boy (except for the serial killers, obvs), awesome and believable show-don't-tell-y best-friendship between women. Those were the days.)

[annakovsky.livejournal.com]

Yeah, it's so sad how I can mostly only think of canceled shows that pass!

[strina]

True Blood has Tara and Sookie, Leverage has Parker and Sophie, Criminal Minds, Grey's Anatomy, Dollhouse, Ghost Whisperer, NUMB3RS passes sometimes...The Mentalist has Lisbon and Van Pelt but they don't interact on more than a business level (but almost no one does on that show).

[annakovsky.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the list! That's good to hear.

[grenadine.livejournal.com]

I've been racking my brain and all I can come up that really pass are The Middleman and Ashes to Ashes, which in the first season has Alex and her mom and Alex being kind of a mentor to Shaz, but that's it, seriously. And, like someone upthread mentioned, the New Who ladies usually have good interactions with the one-off female characters, but when they run into each other, do they talk about anything but dudes? OF COURSE NOT. *sigh*

[annakovsky.livejournal.com]

Ugh, isn't it super depressing?? WHATEVS, TELEVISION.

[shamoogity.livejournal.com]

That list is really, really depressing. I was sure you were wrong about HIMYM, but when I really think about it, not really. As for non-sitcoms, I know it just ended, but Battlestar Galactica had females talking about whether or not to kill cylons and whatnot, so that's something.

The new music wasn't depressing though, so thanks!

[shamoogity.livejournal.com]

My boyfriend has told me Scrubs passes the test as well, but I don't watch it, so I can't verify.

[cashewdani.livejournal.com]

Can I just keep up the delusion that Lily and Robin do a lot more together and Ted's just not talking about it because he has no idea what they're doing most of the time, and even when he does, he doesn't understand the point of it? Please?

[bear.livejournal.com]

OMG YES. This.

[bear.livejournal.com]

NCIS passes, mostly. In fact, with the exception of the one annoying Former Frat Boy "Charming" Womanizer character, it's actually a really great teamwork-y show where the characters are all respectful of and professional toward each other. (Shocking, I know.)

Which is not to say that the show has a perfect record with women -- things were problematic when they had a female boss (who of course had an ambiguous past romantic relationship with Gibbs), and both main cast members they've killed off have been women -- but considering that it's a procedural about military cops, it's surprisingly balanced.

[annakovsky.livejournal.com]

Heyyyyy, that's super good! It's really weird how, like, teen shows and procedurals are the only ones who do this. (Hey, remember when Olivia and Alex used to talk? Remember how I can't watch that show anymore though? Haha.)