OT great TV created by women...

[tboyer]

The best TV I've seen in the last year is three series created by women mostly about female characters.

-- "Better Things" -- FX/Hulu -- episodes are 20 minutes long and beautifully written and put together. Side-splittingly funny and poignant. Probably the most honest thing I've ever seen on the screen about parenthood. Written, directed and acted by Pamela Adlon, who, like her character, is a journeyman actor and single mom in LA. Sometimes I watch 20 minutes and think about it all week -- that is powerful.

-- "Fleabag" -- Written by and starring the phenomenal Phoebe Waller-Bridge. Darkly funny -- sometimes very darkly. Horrific and tragic too, but mostly funny.

-- "Killing Eve" -- also written by Waller-Bridge, smartest spy-assassin comedy out there. But what makes it work is Jodie Comer. Remember the name Jodie Comer.

 

[artsandletters]

The best TV I've seen in the last year is three series created by women mostly about female characters.

-- "Better Things" -- FX/Hulu -- episodes are 20 minutes long and beautifully written and put together. Side-splittingly funny and poignant. Probably the most honest thing I've ever seen on the screen about parenthood. Written, directed and acted by Pamela Adlon, who, like her character, is a journeyman actor and single mom in LA. Sometimes I watch 20 minutes and think about it all week -- that is powerful.

-- "Fleabag" -- Written by and starring the phenomenal Phoebe Waller-Bridge. Darkly funny -- sometimes very darkly. Horrific and tragic too, but mostly funny.

-- "Killing Eve" -- also written by Waller-Bridge, smartest spy-assassin comedy out there. But what makes it work is Jodie Comer. Remember the name Jodie Comer.

Killing Eve is very good. Villanelle is a great character. Better Things is so-so. Affluence is no panacea for family challenges but it sure makes things easier. I think this show would be unrelatable for middle and lower class families. I did like some of the shows and I like Adlon.

 

[tboyer]

good points. it's not a family that worries about where the next mortgage payment is coming from. If Sam Fox were really struggling financially on top of everything else, it might be too bleak to be funny. At least it's a much less glamorous view of Hollywood actor life than we're used to seeing -- cellulite, no makeup and a toilet that's always getting clogged.

Killing Eve is very good. Villanelle is a great character. Better Things is so-so. Affluence is no panacea for family challenges but it sure makes things easier. I think this show would be unrelatable for middle and lower class families. I did like some of the shows and I like Adlon.

 

[interrobang]

I lost interest in Killing Eve a few episodes into season 2. Episodes started to get redundant

 

[Pardlion]

The best TV I've seen in the last year is three series created by women mostly about female characters.

-- "Better Things" -- FX/Hulu -- episodes are 20 minutes long and beautifully written and put together. Side-splittingly funny and poignant. Probably the most honest thing I've ever seen on the screen about parenthood. Written, directed and acted by Pamela Adlon, who, like her character, is a journeyman actor and single mom in LA. Sometimes I watch 20 minutes and think about it all week -- that is powerful.

-- "Fleabag" -- Written by and starring the phenomenal Phoebe Waller-Bridge. Darkly funny -- sometimes very darkly. Horrific and tragic too, but mostly funny.

-- "Killing Eve" -- also written by Waller-Bridge, smartest spy-assassin comedy out there. But what makes it work is Jodie Comer. Remember the name Jodie Comer.

Have a cookie.

 

[loosey goosey]

Do yourself a favor and watch Big Little Lies.The second series is even better than the first,if that's possible.

 

[nittany119]

Veep

 

[Op2]

Susan Harris created a lot of good TV shows in her day, including SOAP in the 70s and an all-time classic Golden Girls in the 80s and 90s.

 

[Lane]

Jodie Comer is absolutely crazy good. She's like Heath Ledger as the Joker. The writing can be a little scattershot, but she dominates here screen time like Ian McShane did in Deadwood.

 

[uhlerlion]

I would have to go with Mary Tyler Moore and Penny Marshall (more movies than TV though)

 

[ivan brunetti]

The best TV I've seen in the last year is three series created by women mostly about female characters.

-- "Better Things" -- FX/Hulu -- episodes are 20 minutes long and beautifully written and put together. Side-splittingly funny and poignant. Probably the most honest thing I've ever seen on the screen about parenthood. Written, directed and acted by Pamela Adlon, who, like her character, is a journeyman actor and single mom in LA. Sometimes I watch 20 minutes and think about it all week -- that is powerful.

-- "Fleabag" -- Written by and starring the phenomenal Phoebe Waller-Bridge. Darkly funny -- sometimes very darkly. Horrific and tragic too, but mostly funny.

-- "Killing Eve" -- also written by Waller-Bridge, smartest spy-assassin comedy out there. But what makes it work is Jodie Comer. Remember the name Jodie Comer.

Better Things and Fleabag are both fantastic. Killing Eve only good. Waller-Bridge is not involved in writing the second season of KE.

 

[RGWhirly]

I hate Samantha Bee, however she is one of the creators of The Detour and it is a pretty funny, and just wrong, tv show.

 

[anon_xdc8rmuek44eq]

Tina Fey created 30 Rock and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt (and was head writer at SNL for a number of season), and Amy Sherman-Palladino is the head writer/showrunner for 'Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.'

I'd add that 'Mad Men' had dozens of memorable episodes written and/or directed by women.

 

[anon_xdc8rmuek44eq]

Jodie Comer is absolutely crazy good. She's like Heath Ledger as the Joker. The writing can be a little scattershot, but she dominates here screen time like Ian McShane did in Deadwood.

She does everything - accents, physicality, and her facial expressions are the best....

One of my favorite sequences:

 

[Lane]

She does everything - accents, physicality, and her facial expressions are the best....

I totally agree. She flips her accents at the drop of a hat (depending on which nationality she's using as a disguise). Her psychotic calm demeanor is chilling. I'm curious how much direction she gets or whether they just let her run with the scenes.

 

[tboyer]

I totally agree. She flips her accents at the drop of a hat (depending on which nationality she's using as a disguise). Her psychotic calm demeanor is chilling. I'm curious how much direction she gets or whether they just let her run with the scenes.

The coolest person too. Has never had formal acting training. She could get rich doing all the dopey Hollywood superhero movies she wants but still chooses to live with her parents in Liverpool. Interviews with her are so funny because, she speaks Scouse and is totally the opposite of Villanelle. She doesn't even speak languages other than English but she can mimic accents and do impressions. Just a naturally brilliant person.

 

[olelion]

Wow. I thought it was one of those shortest book threads

 

[Chickenman Testa]

Wow. I thought it was one of those shortest book threads

I’ll take the Wire, Breaking Bad, Deadwood and the Sopranos. Mt Rushmore

 

[fastlax16]

Really can’t stand Killing Eve, found it very frustrating to watch. It’s basically just Sandra Oh making some sort of emotionally charged decision which is clearly a mistake which then results in tragedy/death/misfortune for someone else but no real consequence for her. Rinse, wash, repeat. Whenever something goes correctly for her it’s more of a “blind squirrel finds a nut” moment.

 

[olelion]

I’ll take the Wire, Breaking Bad, Deadwood and the Sopranos. Mt Rushmore

It's still The Wire for me, all others well behind. Personal choice and I'm ok with others choosing Breaking Bad and Sopranos. Chernobyl is now way up there as well

 

[LionJim]

It's still The Wire for me, all others well behind. Personal choice and I'm ok with others choosing Breaking Bad and Sopranos. Chernobyl is now way up there as well

I am binging The Sopranos this summer; am now in Season 6. Imo, it is a level below The Wire, Breaking Bad, and Deadwood.

 

[AWS1022]

I am binging The Sopranos this summer; am now in Season 6. Imo, it is a level below The Wire, Breaking Bad, and Deadwood.

It’s all a matter of opinion. I think Sopranos is the best of that group and I wouldn’t even have Breaking Bad ranked anywhere in my top shows.