The TV Series for Ladies who need some entertainment

Some stylish female empowerment or just witty characters? Yes, please!

Girls, for all of you juggling with everyday life and trying to find that balance between career and the JOMO, there are series to watch for you too.

Can we exclude violence, SF, bro jokes but without having to watch something tacky?

I’m not a feminist — but I do like strong female characters, not too girly and naive to be into romantical bulls* and not trying to please any boyfriend around here and watch Game of Thrones…

I’m exactly like you, a career woman or at least loving the work that I do, flirting a lot with remote work, travelling & nomading when the winter hits and hating to eat alone. I also don’t go out when I’m not in the mood and can’t read on all those afternoons that I don’t fill up with plans. So, there’s some time there that can be filled with some Netflix, right? My mind is usually tired enough from searching for creative ideas or getting sometimes too involved in organisational stuff, so all I need is something easy too chew, that can make me laugh a bit or inject some suspense. I like keeping some parallel realities on the screen and get inspired to rethink maybe some of my actions — work-wise or in my love life. Sex and the city, Gilmore Girls, Desperate Housewives or Gossip Girl aren’t the only things made for us, nor the best ones, we kinda grew out of them already and after watching them, can we put the cliche label on it?

YOUNGER In the New York publishing world which already hosts a huge battle between old and new, print vs digital, a 40-year-old woman enters as a 26 years old intern. A super hot and young tattoo artist falls for her, she also falls for her more age-appropriate boss and there are 6 seasons of DRAMA between more characters that are involved. I’ve been watching it since it started, and waited for each episode and new season, but you can binge-watch it easily! 20–25 min per episode.

I am a sucker for younger guys and I can only hope to have Lisa’s luck in finding such a mature but hot Josh out there (not necessarily in my 40s, he’s welcome any time! :))

Why watch it:

Gender ageism and how does this affect women’s careers Too young for executive roles? Stuck between the love that makes you feel young or the one that is right for you? #teamCharles or #teamJosh? Plus other love and social status involving subjects, not leaving out lesbians or modern subjects turned into book ideas.

Characters to fall for: All the female characters are such darlings and you can learn from them, and understand better why some act their age, or not. But, the cherry on top are all 3 male characters that can easily fight for mister “McDreamy — can I please have one of you in my life”? A friendship to die for — The Bold Type

Another series played in “could I really live there?” New York City. 3 girlfriends brought together by dream jobs at a Cosmo-like magazine called Scarlet. Can easily be compared with Sex and the city, but it’s a lot less superficial and the characters grow with every episode, professionally and personally. There’s a millennial Carrie, petite but brunette, who tackles serious journalism subjects and goes the extra mile for an objective perspective. And a social media manager who is not only black but also discovers and explores her lesbian side very openly. Why watch it: You might think that it’s more for the young, starting their career girls, but, even if you’ve juggled some positions before, there still are things to learn from them and from the pace that comes with the city where dreams are made. There’s a lot to learn in the colleague’s & friendship department and the leadership one.

There’s ageism involved, the struggles of female bosses at different stages, influence and persuasive tactics to observe and a bit of older love life inside a company, and outside of it but with a similar job but different gender.

STYLE is the other thing you should get as a bonus for watching, it’s a lifestyle magazine after all and one of the girls works for the fashion department, plus most of their conversations are in the fashion closet. #friendshipgoals

Characters to fall for:

If there’s a dream boss, wanted as a mentor (I’m sometimes second-guessing they exist in the real world) who you’d want to work for, it’s Jaqueline, for sure. She’s always at the right spot, at the right time and has the best advice in her oh so stylish sleeves.Back in time and style

I’m a big fan of the future and I enjoy the perks of the present realities in the skyscraper cities, but sometimes I ask myself what brought us here, and how would have been our lives as girls/women back in the days. There were always exceptions to the “men ruled world” and some women were exceptionally powerful back then. Small things were considered big and it’s interesting to explore how they made a difference. Maybe we do take for granted a lot of things nowadays.

And if you’re a fan of the real style and wish to look more put together than casual, these series are for you. The 50s and the 60s were the glorious days in fashion and interior design. The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel has the best outfits, expressions and lines!

Marvelous Mrs Maisel

Late 50s — stand up comedian woman, ex-wife with a kid. It doesn’t sound like something extraordinary, no? But, back then, the comedian world was ruled by men ONLY. And you might forget that the working world was also ruled by men only. Women were the housewives who had time to cook, look pretty and raise children, not go out in the bars and stay late. You know that swearing wasn’t a part in the language of a lady, right? Why watch it: Well, this delicate lady has some brain, not just beauty and after her perfect life falls apart, she gets drunk, realizes she can be funnier than her wanna-be-aspiring-comedian husband and changes her entire life and an industry. I will let you fall under her spell alone, I guess from episode 1 you will be charmed. There might be moments of annoyment and awe because of the big differences that were normal only 65 years ago. It’s nice to see how the work and friendship relationship between her and her very a-typical agent woman is built in time.

Characters to fall for:

Both very different women, Midge and her agent.

Velvet Another late 50’s series, but a Spanish one, played in Madrid that is ideal to watch together with your mum. My mum loved it and I enjoyed spending time with her and deciding to watch 2 episodes or more in weekends :)

This one is for all of you romantic ones that still believe in Mr Right. But, it’s well balanced with a “no matter if I have the guy, I’m making a career”. The girl evolving from sewing to designer and owner of the biggest department store. Drama involving family business and losing money, lot’s of secrets, tons of good fashion and some history involving the types of dresses and trends created back then and how department stores evolved. It’s on Netflix and there’s a sequel called Velvet Collection, but without the main characters, and I decided not to watch it after a few episodes.

Miss Fisher’s MODERN Murder Mysteries Australian sitcom played in the 60s and in the 20s. There are two series with the same name! I loved the Modern one, that was released this year, 2019, with only 4 episodes (1h long ones though). It’s a spinoff of the one played in the 20s, and the main character is Peregrine Fisher living in the 60s— Phryne’s niece from the 20s. The series from 2012 has 3 seasons, but I haven’t checked them out yet. Main character to fall for because of her witty mind, it is a detective’s story after all so brain is a must, but the way she uses the fact that she is a woman is charming. Her house and her aunt’s wardrobe is to die for! Vanity Fair Here, we’re going a lot back in time and it might be too heavy on the history and war part (not really a fan) but the subject is more current than you’d think. Poverty-stricken Becky Sharp as she attempts to claw her way out of the dregs of society and to scale the heights of English society in the years following the defeat of Napoleon. Wikipedia “Vanity Fair is a very vain, wicked, foolish place, full of all sorts of humbugs and falsenesses and pretensions”The anti-heroine can be almost anyone that we judge a lot in our days easily on any online platform the way they used to gossip at high society balls. No matter the times, female charm can be used to win a bit more if used correctly.

Another kind of old but gold!

Is there any other Nanny fan left? Fran Dreschers voice might be annoying for some of you, my mother included, but man she’s that street smart I used to watch her on RTL auf Deutsch and wasn’t exposed to her real voice, but sometime in college when I was really bored I found it online and watched it all over again. That didn’t stop me from enjoying it every morning before I left work — they were playing it on Comedy Central at 8AM, so she was in the background while I was getting dressed, made me it something and put some simles on. Netflix is reviving it in 2020!! This means there are some fans out there. If you have no idea what I’m talking about, until it’s out you’ve got time to binge on all 6 seasons, 20 something episodes around 25 min https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0106080/episodes

Ugly Betty It was a telenovela at the beginning, very tacky and had none of the real-life essences in it until they redid the English version and put it, you guessed, in New York City, in a big publishing house owning Vogue, pardon… Mode magazine. Betty Suarez is a smart ass nerdy, ugly duckling that has a heart of gold. It is a very inspiring character that probably aimed to empower girls who don’t feel pretty and who can’t find themselves in the pages of their favourite magazines. Ok. I have a type, it’s the third publishing/print related series I’m recommending. (I did accomplish my dream of creating a whole number of a print magazine for women, but I still need to be in a kick-ass department…sigh) But it is entertaining and funny and stupid enough to make you feel better.

Character to fall for: flamboyant Mode gossip Marc St. James who, btw, is also starring in Younger series playing a very similar gay editor, sarcastic as we know him, but only appears a few times. More drama, more action? Involve a lot of money that makes a person or a whole family more powerful and you have the perfect recipe for a cliche. But there are some spicy cliches, that can surprise you

sometimes with the changes in their script.

Dynasty — for all the #bossgirls out there, there’s a very well dressed queen, a redhead that’s mean and psycho, but only because she was raised by some very twisted people. What’s your excuse?

What IF — 10 episodes that you can easily binge-watch if your heart is strong enough. Would you give your man for an investment? Would you trust your company with a devious angel investor that whipped her past away? Can you believe how some troubled childhoods or past events destroy some people forever?

Grand Hotel — secrets and more secrets in Miami in mixed families, all for the fortune and something else, which is ready to be uncovered. Now that I think about the subject and googled a bit, it seems I could add some other titles that helped me with my cooking and ironing spare times :))

Girlboss — of course you’ve seen it, if not, there’s fashion involved again and making a business out of it, The Mindy Project — being in between family, tradition and modern life as an Indian, Drop Dead Diva (I think I never finished it but it’s a lot about embracing flaws and the life of a non-skinny smart woman, who used to be skinny, superficial and not so smart).

Suits can be on many other different lists, but if you are searching for some strong female characters in a man ruled world, MS Pearson, Donna and Rachel are worth a while.Of course, you might say you don’t have time to watch series! We all love to have that excuse, but for all those dead moments when you just wanna stay in bed and watch something fun, this will spare your precious time. Don’t waste it with searching and starting things that won’t stick. I know, I’ve been there done that and I wish someone would have served me a list to choose from. I have some very happy girlfriends who love my recommendations. Let me know if I saved some of your time with these titles :) And tell me what I missed, cause I’m running out of background noise!

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