The Rise of the Female Anti-Hero

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With Walter White and Dexter Morgan retiring this year, there seems to be void in the Anti-hero T.V. shows available. Granted Nurse Jackie and Nancy Botwin (Weeds) gave Carmellla Soprano a run for her money, they still did not rule the world with an iron fist like Walter and to some degree Dexter.

Until recently Patty Hewes (Damages) is about the only true villain on T.V. But I have just watched two shows that are going to give a post Walter White/Patty Hewes world a real boost.

Let’s talk about Scandal. A show that I chose not to bring into the store until just recently. I owe you all an apology. It is a fast talking cousin once removed from West Wing. It is about a political fixer who happens to tell it like it is and pretty much solve every mess her clients make. She is not a CSI-er, she doesn’t take on cases to solve the murder/mystery/mess. She takes on clients based on her gut feeling, and then she gets them off/away/fixed. Her clients and the Capitol Hill movers and shakers she is involved with are a cornucopia of bad decisions made by smart powerful people. And when I say bad decisions I mean bad decisions. The women in her circle are powerful, the men are led mostly by their anatomy, and the stories are not always what I expected. I was so addicted that I watched all 7 episodes this weekend. (which those of you who know me know that is not a big thing, but it was sunny and beautiful and I try to go out more on days like that.) I am Jones-ing for the second season, which comes out soon (September 3rd). I really recommend you jump in the pool on this one. It lives up to its name.

The other show, which has been out for a few weeks, is Hit & Miss. Another show I was apparently too snooty to bring in. Here is the premise: a pre-operative transgender woman finds out that she has fathered a boy who is now eleven. She goes to meet her son and discovers three other children and that the mother has recently died. She reluctantly takes over as head of the house. Oh, and she makes her money as a hit man. Too much? Possibly. I was reluctant to watch it. But I got hooked on this one too. A very morally ambiguous woman who has life and death in her hands. She is played with humor and heart, and is tough as nails. Again, I apologize for not bringing it in sooner.

I hope that as Breaking Bad and Dexter tie things up, that more and more “morally ambiguous” (also read: “human”) characters keep cropping up.

If you need other suggestions for T.V. with spectacular women, don’t forget Luther’s Alice Morgan, Game of Thrones’ Cersei Lannaster, Justified’s Mags Bennet, Enlightened’s Amy Jellico. A lively crop of deeply flawed women. The kind that you love to watch.

--Zoe

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