Television is a vast wasteland of nothingness

Blog note: This is my first post! But I'm too lazy to write a real intro-type first post, so we'll just jump right into snark.

It's every tv junkie's favorite time of year, pilot season! (*Not actually my favorite time of year.) Networks are currently deciding which NEW and EXCITING scripts should make it to the pilot stage. Needless to say, many of these are your requisite crime/medical procedurals, but there are also some potential gems. And by gems I mean, shows that re-imagine hackneyed stereotypes in totally offensive ways! Let's look at a few, shall we? All information comes from EW

The biggest trend is shows built around a backlash to women's rights. These include (and I shit you not, these are the ACTUAL SHOW TITLES & press-release descriptions):

• The Last Days of Man. Even though the world around him has declared the traditional male an ‘endangered species,’ Tim Fitzgerald is fighting for his manhood in a world that is being increasingly dominated by women
• Work it. Two out-of-work salesmen realize that it is now a woman’s world and decide that in order to find work and succeed, they are going to have to dress as women to get jobs as pharmaceutical reps
• Man Up. A look at what it takes to survive as a modern man, as told through the eyes of three best friends and the women in their lives

So, women have OVERTURNED the natural male order and now men must work really fucking hard to reassert their natural dominance. In real person-land, women are still making less money than men. Our reproductive rights are being chipped away, and we're still being told that if you dress a certain way or invite a man back to your apartment you're asking to be raped. This U.S. Congressional session has the least number of female members since the early 90s. Not a single woman was nominated for directing or screenwriting awards in this year's Oscars. But somehow this means that women have taken over. Ooh-kay.

It'd be great if a tv show ACTUALLY looked at what it meant to navigate gender and relationships in the 21st century, as men realize that women are people and it's unnecessary to vehemently assert one's masculinity through beer consumption and aggression. Many men even share their feelings! And spend time with female friends! And competently take care of their children & don't feel threatened if their female partner makes more money than they do! Of course, it would also be pretty sweet if a tv show looked at non-heterosexual, non-cisgender relationships as well, but let's not get carried away.

Oh and all those shows are from Disney-owned ABC, btw. The same people who bring you The Bachelor and endless princess movies. Yeah, they have an interest in maintaining regressive gender norms.

A few other shows of note:

• The Council of Dads. Based on the memoir about a man with cancer who lures a group of friends to supervise his daughters if he dies
  Because women NEED men looking after them, amirite? Or else they'll turn into slutty bitches. Hopefully one of them has a shotgun/baseball bat with which to chase off evil male suitors
  
• I Hate that I Love You. Focuses on a straight couple that introduces two of its lesbian friends to one another – which results in instant attraction and a pregnancy
  The only GLBT-themed pilot I saw, which of course revolves around a straight couple - oh and their lesbo friends. Who get pregnant, since if you're a lesbian and don't want to sleep with men, at least you still must want a baby like a normal woman. Lesbians are only interesting if they're mommies
  
• Touch. A man discovers his mute, autistic son can predict the future
  The only disability-themed pilot I saw. Please note, the show is about the (presumably neurotypical) father, with his autistic son as a quirky side character. Who has SPECIAL POWERS. Apparently the only reason to be interested in a character with autism is because they have something special and magical to offer the rest of us able-bodied individuals. Not because they are valued as people or anything like that
  
• Don’t Trust the Bitch in Apartment 23 The story is about a naive young woman who comes to New York City and ends up with a trouble-making party-girl roommate
  *sigh* Do I even need to explain what's wrong with this? If the misogynistic title wasn't enough, I can also predict slut-shaming. Ooh and maybe (let's hope) catfights between the nice girl and the bitch.

I love television. I love getting caught up in characters and watching their stories play out over the course of several episodes. Or even having a reliable place to go for entertainment every week. Shows like the ones listed above are everything I hate about tv. They're lazy, relying on stereotypes to get laughs or "drama". They reinforce traditional gender hierarchies and posit any gains made by women as a loss felt by men. They erase the stories of those who don't conform, and embrace a world where straight men are still, really, in charge. I know these shows are easy, and make money, and are beloved by advertisers. The only way to improve the quality of television programming is for members of marginalized communities - women, people of color, queer individuals - to write and produce more shows, and get hired by networks for positions where they can make decisions about what shows to develop. And you and I, as the audience, can choose NOT to watch the dreck.