television

Somehow I feel like Fox's new sitcom Traffic Light pulled one over on me. This is likely my own fault, because the warning signs were there. Three dude main characters in various stages of romantic entanglements? Check. Jokes made at the expense of the women in their lives? Check. Cohabitation without any mention of domestic responsibilities whatsoever? Check. Yet I still had high hopes that this show was going to be (at least kind of) funny and refreshing and (maybe?) offer a more nuanced portrayal of masculinity and relationships than your typical run-of-the-mill network comedy. Maybe because I recognized some of the actors from The Office? I don't know. Well the joke's on me, because two episodes in I'm not finding much to love about this sexist snoozefest.

Gabrielle Union. Wanda Sykes. Stacey Dash.

What do these three actresses have in common? They’ve all played roles that fit into the black best friend archetype, otherwise known as BBFs. These characters exist to comfort the white heroine when she’s down, to egg her on when she needs motivating or to tell her off when she loses integrity. Sometimes, though, these characters aren’t black, but other women of color. Think Keiko Agena’s character Lane Kim on Gilmore Girls or Mindy Kaling’s character Shira in the new film No Strings Attached.

Baby drama, first year medical students, marriage equality, and tough medical decisions on this week's Grey's Anatomy! After a winter hiatus, the show is trying to reconnect us with the characters and their storylines. Is it working? All this and more, after the jump!

Owning a network doesn't mean you offer up fresh programming. Even if you're Oprah. Also, Dr. Phil can go away now please.

You know how we've all been wondering how MTV could continue to air Teen Mom and 16 & Pregnant while avoiding the topic of abortion? Nearly one-third of teen pregnancies end in abortion, yet the popular MTV shows have skirted the issue for a few seasons—until now.

As always, it's been a pleasure blogging here at Bitch, but my time entertaining you with excessively wordy opinions on feminism and television has come to an end. There are some ways in which the end of this gig will mean an increase in my quality of life. Being a TV nerd, even being paid to be a TV nerd, has its personal costs: the cable bill, abnormally high wear-and-tear on the couch and one's sweatpants, the wiggling out of social encounters because you "really have to keep up with" Teen Mom. The endless watching of all the crappy new shows in hopes one of them will provide fodder for a blog post.

(For example: I'm never getting back the time I spent on Running Wilde or Outlaw, or pondering how to spin the Demi Lovato rehab story into a commentary on television. Those posts will just have to remain unwritten.)

Two fat people sharing a moment together. How DARE they! And right in front of us, too!

Holy fatphobia, Bitch readers! Marie Claire blogger Maura Kelly had some very uncool and uninformed things to say about fat folks yesterday, starting with her belief that they should not be shown kissing on television. (Y'know, because eeewww!) Since we try to combat this type of size-based vitriol around here, I thought we might as well take a look at her "arguments" against ever seeing fat people do anything ever.

We've got five new shows coming up with women on the creative team and I thought, as I wind up my time here, that I'd delve into them to see what we have to look forward to this fall/spring, and to see what kinds of women-led television make the brutal cuts of pilot season.

Two of them are romantic comedies. Two of them are cop dramas. One of them is a medical drama.

It's notable that these shows, for the most part, aren't being created by women writing about women's experiences. Evidently the networks feel that such a thing wouldn't be very interesting to members of the general public.