The New Feminism: "Broad City"

Broad City brings a new sense of equality to comedy television — it’s as if Seth Rogen and James Franco wrote HBO’s “Girls,” but better and with an interest in three-dimensional female characters. The show, which premiered on Comedy Central last year, follows two 20-somethings as they navigate post-graduate life in the Lower East Side without stable employment.

Unlike the manic pixie dream girl or sophisticated rom-com sweetheart characters, Ilana Glazer and Abbi Jacobson’s protagonists, who share their actors’ first names, singlehandedly break expectations of what is considered ladylike. They are not polite, nor do they have their lives in order, but there is something empowering about the way they behave. Every episode, they are faced with a new quasi-adventure, during which they use their comedic charm to showcase the fact that women can be just as juvenile as men. In one episode, they clean a man’s apartment in their underwear for money.

Every episode of “Broad City” takes down gender stereotypes. As writers and stars of the show, Glazer and Jacobson portray themselves as unsophisticated, goofy and earnestly comedic. They are not trying to fool the world into thinking that they are mature adults — they are just being themselves.

These women are more honest, gross and content with themselves than any other female comedians on television — even “30 Rock’s” Liz Lemon could not have competed with these two. Abbi and Ilana are oblivious to the situations around them, but it is refreshing to see two women trying to navigate young adulthood in the most honest and improper way possible.

Courtesy of Washington Square News: Read it here.

"Obvious Child" or The Unlikely Hero We Find in Pregnant Women

Obvious Child managed to fly under the radar of most moviegoers but resonates deeply with a particular type of twenty-somethings. Writer and director Gillian Robespierre tells the unique story of Donna Stern (Jenny Slate), a comedian who finds herself pregnant after a drunken one night stand.

The film is not sad or judgmental nor is it preachy and overly inappropriate, however in its own heartfelt and raunchy way Robespierre makes a controversial topic relatable to the modern woman. Jenny Slate gives one of her best performances as ballsy and adorable comedienne Donna Stern who becomes one of the most unlikely heroes for this generation of millennial women. 

Unlike Katherine Heigel’s character in Knocked Up or Ellen Paige’s juvenile persona in Juno, Slate’s character decides not go through with her pregnancy and gets an abortion. However, Slate is able to portray a character caught between an intense controversial dilemma with charisma and charm. In the film Stern tells her comedy club audience that she is pregnant by saying, “I remember seeing a condom, I just don’t know exactly what it did.”

There’s an assertive quality about pregnant women in today’s comedies. They tend to be in complete control of their lives and the path they take, and are never apologetic about their decisions. Isn’t that why Juno MacGuff waddles around the cult classic Juno, delivering witty zingers at anyone who tries to undermine her choices?  Or why Amy Poehler in Baby Mama sits around all day carefree while her counterpart Tina Fey runs around stressed? These women hold a confidence that is empowering and comedic, daring and endearing.

In Obvious Child, Donna Stern is independent, unapologetic and determined to live the life she wants. Call it selfish? Call it earnest and strong. 

Courtesy of Washington Square News: Read it here