Awesome women on TV; thanks, NYTimes
The Times published an article a couple of weeks ago on women action heroes currently on TV: "Women Bring the Beatings to NCIS and Elsewhere." It's definitely worth a read if you haven't seen it. It mentions pretty much all of our faves as predecessors to the current trend -- Buffy, Sydney Bristow, Sarah Connor, etc. No Kara Thrace mention, sadly, but for current examples it goes into Nikita, Covert Affairs, The Vampire Diaries (for Caroline Forbes), and more. Yay, ass-kicking ladies!!
I'm not sure the article says anything all that revolutionary about them, but it's nice to see my fave archetype getting some press. That said, there were some real laughs in the article, i.e. "many of the new action women, even in shows that could not by any stretch be called realistic, dress as if they were going for a run on a cold day." As in, they dress frumpy. Lol. Sure, that's why they're getting into fistfights in 4-inch "kitten heels," right? They also interviewed a Nikita producer who loltastically said “I think one of the reasons that it’s popular and it works in general is that for a woman warrior there’s a juxtaposition of nurturer and destroyer that creates a natural added tension.”
Which is nonsense, of course. The main reason it works is because it's a fetish. But hey, whatever the reasoning, it's led to some awesome characters, so I'm happy. :-D
I'm less happy that the NYTimes has started a subscription plan. Or, at least, I'm unhappy that I'll have to pay for it -- I think it's a great idea for them to charge, because newspapers are suffering and they need more support. I really wish they would get rid of ads for subscribers, though.