One Crappy New Comedy Have The Most Realistic Depictions Of Working Women
Taken from here.
I’m going to go out on a limb and guess that you haven’t seen the new comedy Free Agents. It’s the one that comes on right after Up All Night that you’re all missing when you switch to the DVR to catch up on Grey’s. What no one would guess is that this random sitcom has two characters that working women know all too well. In fact, these ladies might hit a little close to home, at least on a professional level.
Kathryn Hahn’s character Helen is a successful professional who doesn’t mind being the only woman in the room and often seems to use it to her advantage. She’s a perfectionist whose dedicated to her job and who expects to do well. Even when her personal life is spiraling, this woman has high goals at work. After her boss tells her “Good Job,” she freaks out that this just isn’t good enough. To Helen, “Good job is like the fern filler in a flower arrangement.” When her co-worker, the voice of reason played by Hank Azaria, reminds her that she just lost her fiance and might need some time to bounce back, she snaps, “I threw myself into my work, which is all the more reason that I should be awesome at it.”
I know this woman! I have worked with this woman. At times, I have been this woman. Females in the business world are so used to hearing about all the obstacles and unfairness, we work our asses off so that no one sees a single flaw that might bring us down. No matter what’s going on outside of the office, women everywhere have learned to put it aside and get their job done. Helen is definitely neurotic, but she’s also a bosses favorite and she works hard.
The second strong female lead in Free Agents is Natasha Leggero’s character, Emma. This character is obviously part of the comedic relief, but I’ve still seen plenty of her in the real world. This administrative assistant has some seriously high ambitions and she’s not afraid to play dirty. She undermines her bosses, strategizes for team dominance and gets a little diva-ish when she’s stressed. When she’s confronted by her boss for her bull-dozing tendencies, he tries to explain, “There’s a process here that I’m trying to teach you.” Emma’s response, “It’s called Darwinism. Survival of the etc. You’re old, stressed and preoccupied with kids and ex-wives and I’m a laser beam of focus and ambition.”
Emma might be ruthless and cut-throat, but plenty of young professional women have been taught that it’s the way to get ahead. Recently we asked if women had to have a screw lose to succeed? Whether or not it’s true, there’s definitely a lot of women who buy into this school of thought. And Emma would’ve been their most devoted pupil.
These women exist on a cheesy sitcom, but they represent characters that many of us work with everyday. At one point in time, Alex tells Helen, “Maybe you’re a bit too focused on work.” She looks puzzled for a minute before she says, “That’s not even a thing.” And ya know what I say? Amen to that.
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Post from: TheGrindstone
I’m going to go out on a limb and guess that you haven’t seen the new comedy Free Agents. It’s the one that comes on right after Up All Night that you’re all missing when you switch to the DVR to catch up on Grey’s. What no one would guess is that this random sitcom has two characters that working women know all too well. In fact, these ladies might hit a little close to home, at least on a professional level.
Kathryn Hahn’s character Helen is a successful professional who doesn’t mind being the only woman in the room and often seems to use it to her advantage. She’s a perfectionist whose dedicated to her job and who expects to do well. Even when her personal life is spiraling, this woman has high goals at work. After her boss tells her “Good Job,” she freaks out that this just isn’t good enough. To Helen, “Good job is like the fern filler in a flower arrangement.” When her co-worker, the voice of reason played by Hank Azaria, reminds her that she just lost her fiance and might need some time to bounce back, she snaps, “I threw myself into my work, which is all the more reason that I should be awesome at it.”
I know this woman! I have worked with this woman. At times, I have been this woman. Females in the business world are so used to hearing about all the obstacles and unfairness, we work our asses off so that no one sees a single flaw that might bring us down. No matter what’s going on outside of the office, women everywhere have learned to put it aside and get their job done. Helen is definitely neurotic, but she’s also a bosses favorite and she works hard.
The second strong female lead in Free Agents is Natasha Leggero’s character, Emma. This character is obviously part of the comedic relief, but I’ve still seen plenty of her in the real world. This administrative assistant has some seriously high ambitions and she’s not afraid to play dirty. She undermines her bosses, strategizes for team dominance and gets a little diva-ish when she’s stressed. When she’s confronted by her boss for her bull-dozing tendencies, he tries to explain, “There’s a process here that I’m trying to teach you.” Emma’s response, “It’s called Darwinism. Survival of the etc. You’re old, stressed and preoccupied with kids and ex-wives and I’m a laser beam of focus and ambition.”
Emma might be ruthless and cut-throat, but plenty of young professional women have been taught that it’s the way to get ahead. Recently we asked if women had to have a screw lose to succeed? Whether or not it’s true, there’s definitely a lot of women who buy into this school of thought. And Emma would’ve been their most devoted pupil.
These women exist on a cheesy sitcom, but they represent characters that many of us work with everyday. At one point in time, Alex tells Helen, “Maybe you’re a bit too focused on work.” She looks puzzled for a minute before she says, “That’s not even a thing.” And ya know what I say? Amen to that.
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Post from: TheGrindstone
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