November 18, 2008
Guys who Watch 'girly' TV shows
By: Rebecca Chao
Web News Editor
Television networks frequently market their shows for primarily female audiences. This can cause boys to cast off popular shows for being too “girly.” However, some boys question the labeling of TV shows and the validity of the “girly” stereotype.
“A usual characteristic of ‘girly’ shows is that they are typically set in real life and deal with real-life situations [with] little or no exaggerations,” senior Steven Chang said.
Yet Chang believes that both girls and boys can enjoy watching “girly” shows despite their label. “Gilmore Girls was primarily aimed at females, but the dialogue was sharp and witty and full of pop culture references that both boys and girls could understand and enjoy, so it wouldn't be appropriate to label that show as ‘girly,’” he said.
He said that the centering on female characters would allow female viewers to be able to relate themselves with the lead characters better than male viewers are able to.
“These ‘girly’ shows are more down-to-earth than ‘manly’ shows,” he said.
A “girly” show fan himself, Chang said his all-time favorite show is “Dawson’s Creek.”
“I really like the ‘coming-of-age’ feel it had,” he said.
His current favorite is the “addicting One Tree Hill, […] because of the show’s plotline change, which got rid of a lot of typical teenage angst and drama,” he said.
Another show he enjoys watching is “Veronica Mars.” He said he shares almost the same acidic and pessimistic personality of the title character, Veronica, and thus he can relate to the show.
Senior Kenny DeSantis believes these shows are “full of superficial drama, good humor and ridiculously good-looking people,” which sets the shows apart from others.
“I don’t see any reason why labeling a show as girly is a problem. Different shows appeal to different types of people and it just happens that these ‘girly’ shows tend to be viewed more often by girls than by guys,” DeSantis said.
However, he is also a male fan of these “girly-labeled” shows. Among the many shows, the two DeSantis watches are “One Tree Hill” and “Grey’s Anatomy.” He said his sister got him into these shows and that the two can bond by watching these shows together.
“’One Tree Hill’ is more tuned to the interests of people my age,” he said.
Junior Hans Faye, another “girly” TV show fan, said that he has watched “Project Runway,” “America’s Next Top Model” and “Grey’s Anatomy.” Like DeSantis, Faye’s interest in these shows was influenced by his sister and mom.
“‘Grey’s Anatomy’ is actually pretty good. The actors are believable and funny, and the soundtrack [is] chill,” Faye said.
He also said that these shows are labeled “girly” because he, as a boy, wouldn’t watch them on his own. “There’s too much drama. Guys like comedy, action and adventure.”
Faye said, “The shows revolve around feminine characters, both guys and girls, in the cases of ‘Project Runway’ and ‘America’s Next Top Model;’ guys aren’t so into that.”
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