The time period “Dad TV” has been round for years. Usually it refers to a sequence with a male lead that’s relatable and an knowledgeable in a selected discipline who overcomes some type of problem or surprising hardship. Throw in a contact of humor, a way of nostalgia, and a canine or baby to guard, and you’ve got a TV sequence any dad can be blissful to observe.
Whereas some might argue that tv has all the time been Dad TV (when you’re over 40, chances are high your dad all the time managed the distant once you have been a child), the style has lately advanced. Due to sturdy feminine leads in what was once seen as prototypically male roles, the style has fully advanced from Dad TV into Grown-Up TV.
Eric Deggans, a TV Critic and media analyst for NPR has additionally seen this evolution. Citing two specific causes for the shift: “Girls watch TV extra than males do, so it’s by no means made sense to make TV reveals that focus solely on guys as a result of it downplays your greatest potential audiences,” Deggans wrote, referring to procedurals centered on legislation and crime. “As a substitute of going for the viewers that’s exhausting to get and charging advertisers extra, which is what networks used to aim to do with younger viewers, they realize it’s a greater enterprise determination to supply content material for the viewers that’s already there… Placing a girl in a historically male-centered atmosphere, like in Particular Ops: Lioness, for instance, performs with relationship dynamics, provides storytellers extra instruments to work with, and may create stress. Characters that follow conventional gender roles can result in predictable storytelling.”
Over the previous few years, there have been a number of examples of feminine protagonists with extensive attraction that illustrate the evolution of Dad TV into Grown-Up TV. Most impressively, they now cowl a myriad of genres. Right here’s a glance.
Michael Greenberg / CBS
Procedural dramas
Maybe the realm the place feminine leads have helped evolve Dad TV probably the most is in authorized, police, and medical procedurals. Mariska Hargitay (Legislation & Order: SVU), Ellen Pompeo (Gray’s Anatomy), Angela Bassett (9-1-1), and Queen Latifah (The Equalizer) have performed sturdy, beloved characters for years. In 2024, there’s been an inflow of much more feminine crime fighters and prime docs.
Oscar winner Jodie Foster reinvigorated the True Detective franchise earlier this yr and gained an Emmy for her function as Detective Liz Danvers within the Alaskan-set Night time Nation. Excessive Potential, which debuted this fall and stars Kaitlin Olson as a single mother with a excessive IQ and a knack for fixing crimes, is ABC’s most-watched sequence in six years. Matlock, a reboot that’s not a reboot starring one other Academy Award winner, Kathy Bates, has been an enormous hit for CBS and has a 100% assessment rating on Rotten Tomatoes. The sequence was renewed for a second season after simply two episodes. And Pulse, Netflix’s upcoming foray into hospital dramas, shall be led by Willa Fitzgerald.
Apple TV+
Sci-Fi
The sci-fi TV style has lengthy been a house for layered feminine characters equivalent to Dana Scully (The X-Recordsdata), Kara Thrace (Battlestar Galactica), and Olivia Dunham (Fringe). The previous couple of years have seen a resurgence of those sorts of roles.
Silo, which premiered with its second season on November 15, facilities its post-apocalyptic story round probably the most quintessential of Dad TV characters: the neatest particular person within the room (Rebecca Ferguson) attempting to get to a fact suppressed by a authorities company. Three of this 2024’s most talked about sequence – The Acolyte, Agatha All Alongside, and Fallout – are all largely female-led reveals and took difficult TV subgenres (Star Wars, Marvel, and online game diversifications) into daring instructions. Heck, with Fallout, Yellowjackets, Sweetpea, and Arcane, Ella Purnell is single-handedly redefining the Dad TV style.
Paramount+ / Courtesy Everett Assortment
Household dramas
Academy Award winner Alfonso Cuaron’s sequence Disclaimer, primarily based on the 2015 novel of the identical identify by Renee Knight, is yet one more instance of a job shift that works. We’ve all seen the implications of males having an affair on tv, however on this sequence, viewers are hypnotized when witnessing how a long-buried secret of journalist/documentarian Catherine Ravenscroft (Cate Blanchett) unravels her life.
Yellowstone, which has slowly turned Beth Dutton (Kelly Reilly) into the sequence lead instead of Kevin Costner, and The Good Couple (Nicole Kidman) are two different common reveals which might be constructed round sturdy, sophisticated feminine characters in household dramas.
Amazon Prime Video
Army/Spy
Not surprisingly, the army/spy TV style has been dominated by male leads for many years however that started to alter within the 2000s. Exhibits like Alias (Jennifer Garner), led to Homeland (Claire Danes), Covert Affairs (Piper Perabo), and Hanna (Esme Creed-Miles).
As we speak the army/spy style is pushed by the female-led Citadel (Priyanka Chopra Jonas), its two spin-offs Citadel: Diana (Matilda De Angelis) and Citadel: Honey Bunny (Samantha Ruth Prabhu), and Lioness (Zoe Saldana) which was created by the king of Dad TV, Taylor Sheridan.
What does the evolution of Dad TV into Grown-Up TV really imply?
The most important takeaway from female-led reveals gaining widespread recognition in what was once male-dominated subgenres is that at the moment’s TV viewers have demonstrated that they largely need the identical factor. No matter gender, audiences get pleasure from rooting for relatable, expert protagonists coping with an easy dilemma.
To make sure, there’s loads of nuance. Characters in Grown-Up TV reveals have their complexities however when it comes proper right down to it, TV sequence with clear good guys and unhealthy guys makes for a satisfying expertise. However whether or not that good man is a person or a girl not issues. Throw in a contact of humor, some nostalgia, and a canine or baby to guard, and you’ve got a TV sequence anyone can be blissful to observe.