Quoted

"Maybe because the show is a comedy, some viewers can’t help believing the show “wants” us to sympathize with Hannah in stealing the money, but I think that couldn’t be less true. The interest of the show is in showing her as an intelligent, unformed, selfish, self-pitying young screw-up. She’s funny, and she’s irritating. She’s sometimes perceptive, and yet stunningly un-self-aware. She cares deeply for her friends, and sees her parents as ATMs. The show is not about seeing her as a good person, it’s about wanting to see her—hopefully, by taking on some responsibility, growing up and seeing beyond herself—become one."

- James Poniewozik
from "From Tony Soprano to Hannah Horvath: What Does a TV Show 'Want' You to Think of Its Characters?" at Tuned In


I've been working a lot recently trying to articulate what exactly it is I want to focus on in my studies going forward, and I think part of what I want to achieve is the kind of breadth of knowledge Poniewozik draws upon here to make his point. I particularly love the comparison of the character moments in the respective pilots of Girls and The Shield. (I'm currently in the middle of the sixth season of The Shield - knocking shows off of this list like a champion, if I may say so, and on the verge of tackling Nos. 1 and 2 in the aforementioned process of deepening my body of knowledge.) So much has been said about the pilot all over the Internet that I think I'll save judgement on Girls for a few weeks, but based on Sunday's episode I agree with this assessment of the level of self-awareness involved in presenting the show's characters.