I binged this show in one sitting. I’m not kidding, literally one day, and a whole season of 10 episodes. Honestly, it doesn’t necessary mean that it’s a good show, it just goes to show how unhinged I am. But I also happen to think it’s a pretty good show.
So, The Sex Lives of College Girls was created by Mindy Kaling (MVP) and Justin Noble. It follows 4 freshman girls who room together in a private college in New England. * WARNING! SPOILERS AHEAD! * The show tackles many important issues — gender inequality, coming out, sexual assault and more, while remaining a fun and light watch. The cast is great, it’s nice to see average sized girls depicted as “hot”, and as expected from Mindy Kaling, it’s also a diverse cast, including different ethnicities and people with disabilities.
As a queer person, I would like to give special attention to the plot line of Leighton, and her journey with her sexuality. It’s easy to look at mainstream media from western countries and think that coming out is easy, that being gay is cool. While we love to see happy queer people on tv, and not only sob stories, it doesn’t mean that everywhere in America, nevertheless the world, being gay is accepted and embraced. Like I wrote in my review for And Then We Danced, most of the world is still an unkind place for queer people, and we mustn’t forget it. So yeah, even though we see the girls in a progressive environment, it doesn’t mean that Leighton struggling with her sexuality is off base. In fact, the duality of the situation in which Leighton sees other gay students living their best lives, but still not being ready to come out herself, is also important. Coming out is incredibly personal, and one should do it in their own time. I believe many people can find Leighton’s story relatable, considering we see a lot of happy queer people in the media, but it certainly doesn’t mean anything about our own safety and our situations. I liked the pace of Leighton’s plot, it made sense to her character and progress, and I like that when she and Alicia broke up, she didn’t immediately come out.
When it comes to the other characters, some plot lines worked for me and some less. Beta’s story was fresh and funny, and really seems to be a topic close to Kaling’s heart, Indian girl in comedy? Sounds about right. I also loved the way she dealt with her sexual assault experience, it felt authentic, and the conversations she had about it would be familiar to any woman. On the other hand, Kimberly’s story seemed a bit discombobulated at times, with her making decisions that don’t seem to align with her personality and values. Sometimes, to a point that it was unrealistic even for a college student going through changes. Last but not least, Whitney’s story was pretty meh. I didn’t really vibe with the whole senator mom thing, and her affair with the coach is strange because she’s a freshman? When did she have time to start it, if we see that it’s already ongoing in the beginning of the school year? So I guess that while Whitney is great, usually the voice of reason for the group, I don’t think she got a good enough plot.
All in all, it’s a sweet and light show, relatable experiences and nice dialogue. I recommend it for anyone looking for a casual watch. 4/5
