The movies and shows we are exposed to in our lives set patterns and standards that we inevitably follow, whether we are aware of it or not. This is why filmmakers have a huge responsibility when it comes to deciding what is shown and how to do it. In a sense, the entertainment industry is heavily in debt to women, as they have been consistently overlooked in productions, stories, and even in award ceremonies, which often ignore women directors. Historically, women characters in movies and series have been reduced to minor or clichéd roles, so much so that, many times, the characters are unnamed, let alone interact with each other, failing to meet the minimal requirements of the Bechdel test. In other cases, these characters are stereotyped, or specifically designed as conflicting elements in the story, as is the case of Regina George in Mean Girls, among many, many others.
The industry's other major debt to women is the portrayal of their friendship in movies and TV series. Until a while ago, when a production featured friendship between women, it was either not fully explored on screen or portrayed as a toxic and/or stereotypical relationship. Luckily, thanks to the activism of women around the world, the situation is being rectified, with an increasing number of series and movies that highlight the essential role that girlfriends play in every stage of a woman's life. This article will take a look at some of the best TV shows about women friendship.
10 Dollface
Kat Dennings, Brenda Song, Shay Mitchell and Esther Povitsky star in Dollface, the Jordan Weiss-directed TV show on Hulu. It focuses on Jules (Dennings), a young woman who breaks up with her boyfriend after many years of dating only to discover that, as time went by, she lost her individuality and friendships by prioritizing her partner. Thankfully, Jules' friends are willing to welcome her back and teach her what friendship is all about, something that helps this young woman to reconnect with herself.
9 Workin' Moms
In order to get through something as tough as returning to work after having a baby, nothing works better than having a good support system. Workin' Moms revolves around a group of women who must face the difficult challenge of getting back to work after their lives have been turned upside down. Luckily, they have each other to lean on when things don't go so smoothly. This series was created by and stars Catherine Reitman, along with Jessalyn Wanlim, Dani Kind, and Juno Rinaldi.
8 Girlfriends
Girlfriends is a sitcom released in September 2000 on UPN, which later became The CW, and ran until its cancellation in 2008. Starring Tracee Ellis Ross, Golden Brooks, Persia White, and Jill Marie Jones, the TV show features the lives of Joan, Maya, Toni, and Lynn, four Black women from Los Angeles who navigate their late-20s and early-30s together, experiencing the ups and downs of life and relationships. This sitcom was extremely successful and led to the creation of the spin-off The Game.
7 Grace and Frankie
Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin star in Grace and Frankie, the series created by Marta Kauffman and Howard J. Morris for Netflix. In this TV show, Fonda and Tomlin are Grace and Frankie, two women whose lives are turned upside down after their respective husbands, Robert and Sol, reveal that they have been dating for 20 years. To cope with this sudden reality where they must divorce their husbands and move in together, Grace and Frankie rely on each other and discover, within this new dynamic, a new kind of family.
6 Pretty Little Liars
Pretty Little Liars is a teen drama created by I. Marlene King and inspired by the series of novels by Sara Shepard. Starring Troian Bellisario, Ashley Benson, Lucy Hale, Shay Mitchell, and Sasha Pieterse, this 2010 series was on air for seven seasons, focusing on the lives of Aria, Emily, Spencer, and Hannah, four friends whose lives crumble to pieces when the fifth member of the group, Alison, vanishes without a trace. One year after the tragedy, all four must team up once again to deal with "A", a stranger who haunts them and menaces to spill all their secrets. HBO Max has recently premiered a reboot of this series called Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin.
5 Insecure
Insecure features Issa Rae and Yvonne Orji in a series inspired by The Misadventures Of Awkward Black Girl, Rae's hit web series. This show, which premiered on HBO in 2016, revolves around life experiences from Issa and Molly's perspective, both young Black women who have been friends since they first met in college. Throughout the episodes, the audience follows the main characters as they navigate their late 20s, learning about their careers and relationships, and witnessing many uncomfortable experiences they must undergo.
4 Dead to Me
Dead to Me is focused on the bond of friendship that develops between Jen (Christina Applegate), a recently widowed mother, and Judy (Linda Cardellini), a free-spirited woman with a secret, who is dealing with her own personal tragedy. They both meet in the midst of Jen's grief, soon realizing that, while they are very different, there is a lot more in common between them than they thought. This TV show was created and executive produced by Liz Feldman, and joining Applegate and Cardellini on the cast were James Marsden, Max Jenkins, Sam McCarthy, and Luke Roessler.
3 The Bold Type
The Bold Type is a 2017 series created by Sarah Watson and inspired by the life of Joanna Coles, former editor of Cosmopolitan magazine. The show focuses on the lives of Jane (Katie Stevens), Kat (Aisha Dee), and Sutton (Meghann Fahy), three friends who work at Scarlet magazine in New York City. As the episodes unfold, the audience is treated to the group's fun and exciting adventures, through which they also explore themselves, as well as various aspects of life and relationships.
2 The Golden Girls
The Golden Girls captures the dream reality of every group of girlfriends, as it is the story of four ladies who share a home in Miami, Florida. The show focuses on the day-to-day life of Dorothy (Beatrice Arthur), Rose (Betty White), Blanche (Rue McClanahan), and Sophia (Estelle Getty), which tends to be quite hilarious as each of them has a unique personality. This series, created by Susan Harris for NBC and premiering in 1985, was a groundbreaking production that conquered audiences and critics alike during all its seasons, making itself the most watched show in its time slot.
1 Sex and the City
The first spot in this ranking goes to a TV show featuring the best-known group of girlfriends in the industry: Sex and the City. This series, created by Darren Star, premiered in 1998 and ran for six seasons, ending in February 2004. Its popularity spawned two movies, a prequel series called The Carrie Diaries, and the 2021 sequel series And Just Like That (streaming on HBO Max). Sex and the City follows four inseparable yet wildly different friends from New York City: Carrie Bradshaw (Sarah Jessica Parker), Miranda Hobbes (Cynthia Nixon), Charlotte York (Kristin Davis), and Samantha Jones (Kim Cattrall).