After the commencement ceremonies have died down and the last celebratory parties are finished, reality of being a 20-something college graduate will set in. This is where the new HBO show “Girls” comes in: right after the first thousand anxiety attacks caused by being financially independent from parents and no longer being defined by a class schedule. The show, which premiered April 15, is a refreshingly frank account of being a girl in her 20s living in New York City, though the subject matter transcends the subway lines.
The show was created by, and also stars, independent filmmaker Lena Dunham, and totes Judd Apatow (“Superbad,” “Forgetting Sarah Marshall”) as its executive producer. The cast of the show is centered around four main female leads sharing two apartments in New York. Dunham plays the protagonist Hannah Horvath, who is trying to cope and overcome the loss of her parents’ financial good graces with no current job prospects and an on-and-off, kinky male suitor. Allison Williams — NBC News anchor Brian Williams’ daughter — plays Marnie Michaels, Hannah’s sweet roommate / best friend and is a professional art gallery assistant. Marnie is in a rut with her long-term boyfriend and questions the longevity of the relationship. Jemima Kirke and Zosia Mamet also star as the other main leads.
The first three episodes aired have yielded a steady audience of just below an average of one million viewers. The subject matter of the show is what separates it from other shows targeting the 18 to 49-year-old viewing range, both in a positive and negative way. It is certainly not for conservatives; the series has covered the topics of opium tea, abortion, STDs and sexual orientation in an honest and scathingly realistic fashion. Even those who consider themselves open-minded might find their cheeks a little blushed from embarrassment when the topic of Hannah’s sex life with her male friend is up for discussion.
“Girls” is a comforting look into the beginnings of adulthood in a nouveau-American way full of comedic quips and sarcasm and realistic interjections. This makes the viewer feel as if the show was written about his or her life in some slight way — if not from emotional rage tweets on Twitter then because of the numerous failed job interviews to get a step in the door of a salaried career. It’s a chronicle of the wonderful ups and despairingly hopeless downs of growing up.
The show airs Sunday nights on HBO and has already been renewed for second season.
