It’s not easy being a girl. Or that’s what television executives have decided at least. No matter what channel you turn on lately, there’s a new show dedicated to the plight of the 20-something, city-dwelling girl.

You can’t throw a rock without hitting a billboard for a show featuring a quirky, funny female lead or two with shows like ‘Whitney,’ ‘2 Broke Girls’ and ‘New Girl.’ Zooey Deschanel’s doll-like eyes are everywhere.

Just this Sunday, the newest addition to the girl power era of entertainment debuted on HBO. Simply titled ‘Girls,’ we’re introduced to – you guessed it – a different set of girls. They’re different because they’re not like women of ‘Gossip Girl’ or ‘Sex and the City.’ They’re unique; they scoff at the cosmopolitan downing ladies of ‘Sex and the City.’

Females have saturated culture at breakneck speeds, pushing themselves forward. The eccentrically adorable friend was almost always just a supporting character. She has been the funny best friend to the hot female lead, always available for advice and comic relief. Her voice has just been a small part of a bigger story. Characters like Hannah in ‘Girls’ or Jess from ‘New Girl’ have never had the stage all to themselves.

If ‘Friends’ had been made 20 years later, it may have just been called ‘Phoebe.’ Instead of an ensemble cast, the series would’ve followed Lisa Kudrow’s famously unusual character. Maybe Phoebe’s jingle ‘Smelly Cat’ could’ve become the theme song. TV executives are so desperate to keep churning out more female-friendly content that you can probably expect to see the pilot in NBC’s fall 2013 schedule.

Although the quick surge of girls on film is getting new stories out there, they’re done with varying degrees of quality. Unfortunately, not everything can be a sparkling examination of girls’ so-called lives.

Pseudo forward thinking ‘Whitney’ tanked with critics and people alike. It never clicked with audiences. Instead of realistically showing relationships modern women experience, we’re offered lady parts jokes from creator and star Whitney Cummings.

‘Girls’ on the other hand is showing an almost uncomfortably realistic portrait of women growing up. The girls of ‘Girls’ need to end failing relationships, actually find paying jobs and deal with pregnancy scares. And none of the issues come with the easy answers pop culture has spoon-fed us into believing exist.

The main character, Hannah, only gets back into her parents good graces – and wallet – after passing out in front of them after a mug of opium tea. These are not the choices we’re used to seeing on television. Everything should be fixed with a heartfelt phone call and a lip-glossed smile.

Although some may complain these stories only give a very small slice of America pie, they’re an important stepping stone. You have to start somewhere, and smart and entertaining shows like ‘New Girl’ or ‘Girls’ are the perfect place to begin. Networks usually focus on the male demographic between 18 and 34. Deschanel is doing great on Fox, and ‘Girls’ opened to good ratings. This only means we can expect to see more and better coverage.

There may even be some more racial diversity in casts. No matter how much I love CeCe on ‘New Girl,’ the gorgeous Indian model can’t be the only woman to not check Caucasian on shows that are selling themselves as progressive and female-friendly.

Ariana Romero is a sophomore magazine journalism and political science major. Her column appears every Thursday. She can be reached at akromero@syr.edu or followed on Twitter at @ArianaRomero17.   

Published on April 18, 2012 at 12:00 pm