2/9/2017 0 Comments BOSS LADIES: SHONDA RHIMESWHO: Shonda Rhimes WHERE: all over your TV WHEN: Thursday nights WORDS OF WISDOM: “There's nothing wrong with being driven. And there's nothing wrong with putting yourself first to reach your goals. The other stuff still happens.” Shonda Rhimes is pretty much the queen of television. Ever since Grey’s Anatomy’s first episode, when Meredith Grey woke up naked, next to an equally naked Derek Shepherd, Shonda has been slaying the television game. Her empire continues to boom, and in my opinion (I hope everyone else’s too), she has become the most powerful and most brilliant showrunner working today. Her shows are known for smart dialogue, commanding characters, compelling stories, and embracing humanity in all its diversity. Not only does Shonda make truly amazing, edge-of-your-seat television shows, but she blesses us week-after-week with fully fleshed out characters, not confined to boxes or singular traits. She has redefined over and over again, what it means for humans to be the sum of all our parts, instead of the tired, stereotypical portrayals we are so used to seeing in television and movies. Shonda Rhimes began her television reign with the courageous decision (for 2005, at least) to start the show with Meredith Grey waking up after a one-night stand, kicking the guy out, and continuing on with her day as a bad-ass doctor. Shonda was told by a room full of old men that a woman who has sex with a guy before work is only trashy, and nothing else. She was instructed to rewrite the pilot to make her female characters more palatable and classier. And she responded by ignoring their advice, and giving us the real and the very relatable Dr. Meredith Grey. This paved the way for so many more characters who refused to adhere to typical representations; she created black, female, gay, Asian, and differently abled characters, unconstrained by their expected definitions. While a show about sexy doctors may not have begun with the goal of tackling hot-topic current issues, Shonda and her Shondaland team can be counted on to deliver much need doses of truth, to a weekly audience of more than 20 million viewers. Especially unafraid of making big, bold and relevant statements is Thursday night’s middle slot: Scandal. In paralleling the 2016 Presidential election, the show included powerful commentary on sexism in politics, Black Lives Matter, and the alarming rise of xenophobic, fear-mongering political figures. In an increasingly transcendent and overlapping time, where fraudulent businessmen can pretend to be qualified politicians (I’m looking at you, DJT) and Hillary Clinton can try her hand at acting (Broad City!!!), Shonda skilfully uses her area of expertise to speak out, and take a stand. Each week she does it so eloquently and effortlessly; I am constantly in awe of her talent, her compassion for differences, and her bravery to engage with so many controversial issues, in an industry that is not always so allowing or forgiving. Her 2015 debut book, "Year of Yes: How to Dance It Out, Stand In the Sun and Be Your Own Person" is a testament to how driven and passionately Shonda lives her life. She is a stunning example of having everything she needs to fulfill her, and being genuine and honest about what that entails. In a world where women are sometimes pressured to "have it all": the marriage, the kids, the career, the perfect body (whatever that is...), and the social life, Shonda Rhimes does it her own way, and inspires other women to do it their way too. In case you hadn’t guessed it already, I might just be a Shonda super-fan; to me, she can do no wrong. Although there have been some particularly devastating deaths of beloved characters, I trust Shonda Rhimes to be the wonderfully intelligent and determined leader that she has proven herself to be, season after season. 12 years later, she continues to bring the heat, bring the drama, and blaze the trail for anyone who dares to do things differently, and be a boss. - Amy
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