Stan and stream shonda rhimes
Written by Jacob Swenson
“There’s no other way to describe Shonda besides a trailblazer.”
It has been over a year since my life improved thanks to the first season of Bridgerton, and I am embarrassed to admit that I was late to the Lady Whistledown hype train. The show premiered on Christmas day in 2020, but because of my reluctance towards period dramas, I did not watch until February of 2021. Two months may not seem like I was “too late” to the soirée, but for such an addictive, viral show… two whole months is a LONG time. During this dark period of time pre-Bridgerton, I had seen the TikToks of “Bridgerton the Musical” and while I did not necessarily understand them, I thought the music absolutely slapped. But still, I was hesitant to start another show when I had an entire backlog of shows I planned on watching that was about as long as the checkout line at the Foggy Bottom Whole Foods before dinner time. After being told by a friend that “this is a type of show you would enjoy” (whatever that means…), I did some more research on the series and discovered one key piece of information that made me immediately drop everything I was doing and open the Netflix app: Bridgerton is a Shondaland production.
Shondaland has a special place in my heart. It is the production company founded by the one and only Shonda Rhimes. Shonda and co have brought us hit shows including Grey’s Anatomy, Private Practice, Scandal, How to Get Away with Murder, and Station 19. (One of the reasons I went those two months without watching Bridgerton is because I had just started Grey’s and had about 300 more episodes to watch. I may have also just binge-watched Scandal for like the third time.) There’s no other way to describe Shonda besides a trailblazer. She is the first woman and first black American to have three different shows reach 100 episodes. At one point in time, she was creating around seventy episodes of TV a year for ABC across four series. In 2017, Rhimes made headlines for signing a historic deal with Netflix valued between $300 to $400 million.
Needless to say, Shonda has revolutionized television and should be known by every American who has ever turned on a TV at 8PM. Prior to her productions becoming pop-culture successes, she graduated from Dartmouth College and earned an M.F.A. from USC’s film school. After several years working in film, the 9/11 attacks made her realize “if the world is gonna end tomorrow, there are things that I need to do.” In 2002, she adopted her oldest daughter and raised her as a single parent. She subsequently turned to TV and created what would become the longest-running scripted primetime show, Grey’s Anatomy.
Grey’s Anatomy is almost as divisive as whether that dress from 2015 is actually blue and black or white and gold. On one hand, there is an extremely loyal fanbase who cries at the mention of the plane crash. On the other hand, there is a camp of people who mock it on the regular. I used to be in the latter group because I associated the show with the “basic white girls” I went to high school with, girls who were also obsessed with shows like Riverdale. Come the pon de replay, I started watching out of curiosity and was immediately hooked. Regardless of whether you are a fan of the show or not, you have to admit that Grey’s has been one of the most influential shows to ever be on American television. It propelled the careers of Ellen Pompeo, Patrick Dempsey, Sandra Oh, Sara Ramirez, Eric Dane, Kate Walsh, Chandra Wilson, and so many other incredible actors. Shonda also did something quite uncommon for the time, centering her story around strong women and deciding on color-blind casting. There are countless stories from the early 2000s that Shonda shares about executives telling her “no one will watch” a show about a woman who had a one-night stand before her first day of work and that her female leads were simply “unlikeable” (Cue Ellen Pompeo being one of the highest paid actresses in the country). You can joke all you want about Grey’s (and you probably should, because the past few seasons have been objectively bad), but I and millions of other people will still watch it regardless. Grey’s should be acknowledged for having a groundbreaking cast that really looks like America and feauturing realistic queer relationships. As an Asian-American, I will forever be indebted to Shonda for introducing me to the absolute legend that is Sandra Oh.
We can also thank Shonda for popularizing THE Kerry Washington, AKA the best GW alum. In 2012, Kerry Washington became the first Black woman to play the lead in a network TV drama in almost forty years. Shonda was also a producer on How to Get Away with Murder which premiered in 2014 and allowed Viola Davis to become the first black woman to win a Primetime Emmy for Lead Actress in a drama series. These stories Rhimes has been behind are remarkable for the sheer amount of tears and gasps they have elicited, as well as how they portray strong, powerful, and unapologetic black women. For far too long, black women have been limited in the roles or stories they can play, but Shonda has led the charge to change this, has shown black women with their natural hair (please watch this scene of Viola Davis), normalized biracial couples, and much more.
Furthermore, Shonda’s shows have provided some of my favorite lines out of any primetime drama series. Here are some of them:
“My white hat is bigger than your white hat.” (Scandal)
“I am many things, stupid is not one of them.” (Scandal)
“If you want me, earn me!” (Scandal)
“It’s handled.” (Scandal)
“Why is your penis on a dead girl’s phone?” (How to Get Away with Murder)
“Think carefully, everything after this moment will not only determine your career but life.” (How to Get Away with Murder)
“I’m abitious, black, bisexual, angry, black, sad, strong, sensitive, scared, fierce, talented, exhausted–and I am at your mercy.” (How to Get Away with Murder)
“Pick me, choose me, love me.” (Grey’s Anatomy)
“It’s a beautiful day to save lives.” (Grey’s Anatomy)
“Don’t let what he wants eclipse what you need. He’s very dreamy, but he is not the sun. You are.” (Grey’s Anatomy)
Shonda’s ability to create buzzworthy shows is unmatched. I have no doubt that 2022 will be another incredible year for Shondaland. Not only are we getting Bridgerton season 2, but Netflix just dropped a new series called Inventing Anna about a journalist investigating Anna Delvey, a real-life scammer in New York’s high-society. (It is currently the number one most popular show on Netflix as of mid-February.) As for whatever else Shonda has in store for us this coming year, I am sure it will be equally as groundbreaking. So yes, stan Shonda–not just during Black History Month, but all year round. If you have not yet, go stream Greys, Scandal, HTGAWM, and Bridgerton on Netflix. Even if hospitals, politics, courtrooms, or royal parties are not your things, just watch for the iconic monologues, gagworthy twists, and history-making on-screen performance.
