This article contains spoilers for season one of Good Girls Revolt.
With Netflix rolling out all the juggernauts (Narcos and Black Mirror, I’m looking at you), the first season of Good Girls Revolt (streaming now on Amazon) has gone a little bit under the radar. On the surface, the show seems to be repeating a somewhat tried-and-trusted formula. The swinging 60s and 70s? Check. Hair spray? Check. But when you actually delve into the show, it delivers so much more than you would expect.
Based on a true story about a group of female researchers who sued their magazine for lack of opportunity and equality in the work place, Good Girls Revolt is proving very relevant in the current political climate. The show is surprisingly addictive. It is fun, swanky, inspiring and brilliantly acted. There are so many stories left to tell, and here are some reasons why we need the show back on our screens for season two:
Where does Cindy go next?
Oh, Cindy. Lovely, “mousy” little Cindy. Your heart just melts and breaks in equal measures when it comes to her. In season one, Cindy starts out as shy and frightened, stuck in a loveless and oppressed marriage. But as the show progresses, we begin to see the grit underneath. Cindy is reserved, yet brave. Sweet, yet complicated. She embarks on an affair with her colleague, finally leaves her husband, and gets on an airplane for the first time, and she does all of this while looking cute and stylish in a pair of retro glasses. Things are looking up for Cindy at the end of the first season; she is now single and free, with the possibility of advancing in her career. But what about her drinking problem? And her drama with Ned? Will we learn more about her past?
Erin Darke is a revelation in this role and I can’t wait to see what other shades she can give Cindy.
Doug in Vietnam?
Oh, poor Doug. He really is trying. Too bad he has the misfortune of being stuck in the body and mind of a white male in the 1970s. The show does a very good job of portraying its male characters as neither heroes nor villains. They are allowed to be good guys, but they are also called out for their misogynistic behaviour. With Doug, you can’t help but root for him. I became invested in his push-and-pull romance with Patti. It is a relationship which raises interesting social questions, but it is also a very real, very tragic relationship, the kind you engage in when you’re in your swirling 20s. And it also helps that Doug is played by Hunter Parrish.
So is heartbroken Doug now going to Vietnam? Will we have Doug interacting with the locals? Doug in a military helicopter? Doug dodging bullets while clutching his notepad? And what will happen once he finds out that his boss has been sleeping with the girl he loves? #TeamDoug
The Gang
The show is blessed with a litany of cool supporting characters who are in need of more screen time. What happens next with Fran now that her long career is rocked by the complaint? Will we see the goddess Talia decimate Finn? Will we learn more about Naomi and her husband in Vietnam? Can we have Jane’s hot neighbour back? And what about Denise? We need more Denise. Her take down of Patti and her conversation with Eleanor were dynamite. And speaking of Eleanor, that woman deserves her own show.
Jane and Patti’s friendship
What makes the last few episodes of the show so good is the emerging friendship between Jane (Anna Camp at her brilliant best) and Patti (bow down to Genevieve Angelson). They are very different women, which makes their dynamic incredibly riveting. It is Jane who recruits the girls back and speaks in the press conference, while Patti is the flame which sparks the lawsuit in the first place. They make a formidable partnership, and the guys better be scared now that Team Jane and Patti (Team Pane? Team Jatti?) are a real thing. Can you just imagine the awesomeness of a sleep over where they share stories about Patti working in Cairo and Jane conquering the US Supreme Court? Make this happen, people!
What happens next at News of the Week?
The show ends on a cliffhanger; the bombshell has been dropped, but we have no idea of the consequences. How will the rest of the guys at News of the Week react to the girls’ official complaint? Will Finn team up with Gregory to combat what comes next, or is Gregory still toast? And more importantly, will the magazine cave to the girls’ demands? And if they do, how will Patti and Co. embark on their journey towards becoming bonafide, badass reporters? We need to know! Don’t you dare leave us hanging, Amazon!
Pim Wangtechawat 