The Bold Type airs Tuesday nights on Freeform.
By Jaya Daniel
We are in the midst of Peak TV with a number of the new shows highlighting female empowerment and women who strive to have it all. Freeform’s The Bold Type follows the trend, bringing us three young women in the beginning of their careers at fictional magazine, Scarlet. Jane (Katie Stevens), Kat (Aisha Dee) and Sutton (Meghann Fahy), who all started off as assistants, are beginning the next chapter of their careers as writer, social media director, and fashion assistant respectively, but quickly realizing getting what you want isn’t so easy.
Jane is sweet and innocent, wanting to write think pieces about politics, but instead finds herself having to divulge details about her sex life. Kat brings a modern touch to the publishing environment, emphasizing the importance of social media and it’s reach to readers, while Sutton is struggling with taking an ad sales job, which would offer her more money and a sturdier career path, or going after what she really wants – a career in fashion. These young women work hard and convey a confidence that is inspiring. But, they stumble like the rest of us, which is just as inspiring. Stevens, Dee and Fahy have great chemistry, not only making their friendship believable, but also making their characters relatable.
The Bold Type does a really good job of creating strong characters that still have a sense of vulnerability to them. The women don’t tear each other down, and even if they are ‘bitchy’ they still empower each other to be better. The writing is sharp and the characters, although at times a bit embellished, are grounded in their behavior.
Jacqueline (Melora Hardin) is Scarlet Magazine’s Editor-in-Chief and a mentor of sorts to Jane. Her demeanor indicates that she could easily be construed as another Miranda Priestly from The Devil Wears Prada. But, instead she’s a strong willed boss that lifts her staff up by engaging them without coddling them. I’m not sure what kind of Editor-in-Chief has the bandwidth to groom so many of her young staffers and still have time to do her job as well as she does, but it’s nice to think that there are bosses out there like this.
I’m not quite sure how realistic the show is in its depiction of the life of young twenty-somethings at a magazine. But, when it comes down to it, who really cares? You don’t gravitate to Freeform, home to shows like Young and Hungry, Pretty Little Liars and Siren,for a hard dose of reality. You go there for a sense of escapism and to be able to turn your mind off for a half hour or an hour at a time. And that’s what The Bold Type offers. Three young, beautiful women, with an impeccable sense of fashion, who strive to have it all.
TV and City 