The Age of the Dominate Woman in Television

"I won't be ignored," Glenn Close's infamous character uttered repeatedly in 1987's Fatal Attraction. That quote can be used to describe Close's latest project FX's Damages which also follows another strong-willed character who does not take things lying down. Her Patty Hewes is among the recent onslaught of cable television shows depicting women taking control of situations and even making a regular run-of-the-mill procedural show interesting.

On most dramatic shows, the women are usually background fodder with the sole purpose of being window dressing and the occasional laugh. Thankfully, shows like The Closer, Saving Grace, and Damages allow women to take center stage and show the boys they can do everything they can. Possibly even better than them in the process. Take that Treat Williams. His character, Dr. Andrew Grant on Heartland, attempts to capitalize on his rebel with a medical degree persona that originated on the now-defunct Everwood. His latest foray back to television makes audiences only miss the former show more and longing for reruns.

Here are three shows, two new and one seasoned vet, leading the way in depicting multi-faceted female characters going beyond Law & Order's barrage of pretty female prosecutors that get prettier and more vacant looking each season. Kyra Sedgwick's Brenda on The Closer deals with the issues of pleasing her boss, relationship troubles, solving murder cases, and trying not to give her into her addiction for junk food. Holly Hunter's Grace on Saving Grace is a detective teetering on the edge of sanity and gets a big jolt from her alcoholic flings in the form of an angel named Earl. Lastly, Close's character is the epitome of a legal prize fighter. She goes in for the kill by any means necessary, even if it means breaking the law and twisting some arms.

Without these three characters, the shows would be considered ordinary cops and lawyers television. Nothing exciting.

Close's female associate Rose Byrne gives a pretty clichéd portrayal of a ingénue making her way through the murky legal world and carefully learning that trust is relative in a courtroom. It's too early to tell what to make of Close and Byrne's characters, but one thing is for certain: the battle has just begun. In a move that would be reminiscent of Fatal Attraction, Close has something done to an animal that would make anyone squirm. She uses the deviously psychotic charm in that movie by dialing it down to a relative boil to play a woman aware of her failings as a mother and intolerant to those of others.

Hunter's portrayal of Grace is a cross between a rebel with a cause and someone afraid to sit still long enough to realize what she has been doing with her life. Her character's cynicism rings through with every action, eye roll, and swear word she utters. The supporting characters, including Earl the angel, are mostly background fixtures at the moment. So far, it is totally Hunter's show. Her struggle to believe that God actually cares about what happens to her is believable in her hands alone.

Sedgwick's continued toughness, vulnerability, and comedic timing make The Closer recommended viewing as a cure for the Monday blues. In the current third season, the supporting players are becoming a little more than sidekicks, but Sedgwick is still the primary draw. Her sense of humor at making a bad situation funny to the audience is priceless, which can turn to razor sharp anger when a suspect crosses her with another lie.

The current prognosis for television nowadays is promising, but there are still numerous shows, especially sitcoms and male-centric dramas, that make women that pretty little sex objects most would rather avoid becoming. Shows like Desperate Housewives and most daytime soap operas depict women as sex-starved creatures willing to kill off their competition for a little afternoon delight. In the real world, women are much more levelheaded than most men deem them capable of being. They can be flawed, vulnerable, and capable of a sense of humor. Thanks to the writers who tailor those three shows worth watching, at least past the premiere episode. After that, it's the viewer on whether or not to ignore them, but that would not be recommended.