Women of the Week: Year in Review

This has been a really good year for women in television. There has been something for everyone from the baddest chicks to the most romantic. The NiceGirls got together and picked our favorite Women of the Year. See our picks below and let us know who you enjoyed watching.

Melissa’s Picks:
Viola Davis as Annelise Keating, How to Get Away with Murder
Viola Davis won an Emmy for her role after the show’s first season, a tour de force of acting prowess. Then she followed that with what so far has been an even more impressive second season. Annelise is smart, sexy, vulnerable, and tough, all because of Viola Davis.

Priyanka Chopra as Alex Parrish, Quantico
Quantico is one of those shows with a intricate, multi-layered storyline that is in danger of collapsing under its own weight. Fortunately we have Priyanka to hold it together. She somehow manages to both melt into the ensemble during the pre-bombing storyline at Quantico and rise to the top as the lead in the post-bombing storyline in New York. Before we knew she was the target of a setup, we cared about her character, and now we’re rooting for her to clear her name. Interestingly, her romance with Ryan is the weakest part of Alex’s storyline, which I see as a testament to Priyanka’s ability to make us care about every part of Alex’s life.
(And I’m just going to second whatever Ange says about Mindy Kaling. 🙂 )

Karen’s Picks:
Krysten Ritter as Jessica Jones, Jessica Jones
She took on the role of an underused Daredevil character and made it her own. Darkly funny while also portraying a new kind of PTSD, Ritter has impressed me with her versatility and strength on the screen.

Melissa Benoist as Kara Danvers/Supergirl, Supergirl
Brave enough to accept the role of an iconic female LEAD Superhero on Network TV for the first time in 40 years, she’s shown maturity and poise and has only just started to grow into the role. Even if she never crosses into the other Berlanti DC Universe shows, she fits in like a glove.

Constance Zimmer as Rosalind Price, Agents of SHIELD
Not knowing what to make of her until near the end of her run (is dead really dead on this show??), I loved her even when I didn’t trust her. Sandpapery banter between her and Coulson became one of my favorite parts of her screentime, and when they consummated their relationship – I can only imagine how amazing it was behind the curtain. She never ceases to amaze me, and her run on SHIELD was no exception. I’ll even add in a nod for her work on UnREAL, a HIGHLY underrated show in which she shined as well.

Liz’s Picks:
Ming-Na as Agent May, Agents of SHIELD
I think, since we’re doing a year in review, I have to go back to Ming-Na Wen and her character development as Agent May on SHIELD. Her back story was rich and interesting, and moving forward looks to get even more interesting as the story unfolds further.

Chloe Bennett as Quake, Agents of SHIELD
I also think that Chloe Bennett needs a shout out for her growth from a computer hacker, Skye, to the Inhuman Quake, Daisy. She had some tough emotional transitions to go through, plus having to deal with less than normal parents and the betrayal of one of her new “family” members.

I’m also going to second what Karen said about Constance Zimmer. Another SHIELD offering.

Ange’s Picks:
Mindy Kaling as Mindy Lahiri, The Mindy Project
We all know that Mindy Kaling and her alter ego Mindy Lahiri, is hilarious and sassy, and we’ve seen snippets of vulnerability over the years, but it wasn’t until this year when the show made the switch from Fox to Hulu that we got to witness a more in depth development of Doctor Lahiri. Not only did she shine during the comedic moments, but we felt for her as we watched her struggle with her fiancé over her focusing on motherhood or having a successful career. As much as these scenes gave me a massive case of the feels and broke my shipper heart, Mindy nailed it! Not just as an actress but also as a creator, writer and executive producer on the show.

Viola Davis as Annalise Keating, How to Get Away With Murder
I second Mel’s nomination! Not only has Viola’s portrayal of the smart, tough and manipulative Professor Keating earned her a well-deserved Emmy, but the fact that the character is so fascinating because she is so strong yet flawed should also be recognised.

Italia Ricci as April Carver, Chasing Life
Chasing Life was a show taken away from us way too soon. Week after week, Italia brought her A game as April Carver, a woman in her 20s who discovers that she has cancer. Yes the show is about cancer, but it was also about family, life, love and strong women. As a woman in her mid 20s like April, although I have never had such serious health issues to deal with, I felt like I could really relate to April and connect with her and I attribute that to Italia’s understated performance. I really hope we get to see Italia back on our screens regularly again soon!

Rueben’s Picks:
Emily Rose as Audrey Parker, Haven
There were a lot of ups and downs throughout the entiren of this show, but I have to give credit to Audrey for giving up everything to save the town. Emily did a great job in all of her roles on the show, and they were numerous not to mention very different personalities.

Emily Bett Rickards as Felicity Smoak, Arrow
She is the glue that holds the whole team together on the show, and she won the heart of Oliver Queen too. In my opinion, she can do no wrong. The hardest part was watching Felicity and Oliver get shot at the way they did in the winter finale; and if she ends up being the person in the grave who Oliver was grieving over in the season premiere, I’m going to be extremely devastated.

Caitriona Balfe as Claire, Outlander
What an amazing woman Claire is, dealing with the whole time travel aspect of her life but also life in 1743. She has endured being confined in Castle Leoch, being beaten for witchcraft and fighting to rescue the man she came to love more than anything. She is incredible.

Lisa’s Picks:
I second Mel’s pick Viola Davis. She knocks it out of the park each week on How to get away with murder. She’s had an amazing year, and becoming the first African American woman to win an Emmy in the lead actress drama category was icing on the cake.

Taraji P Henson as Cookie, Empire
Cookie is a strong but feminine and sassy character and Taraji was made to play that role. Cookie is loyal and the love she has for her children is amazing. She is stylish, funny and has some of the best lines written on television. This list would not be complete without Cookie being on it.

Tatiana Maslany as every single character, Orphan Black
Bbecause she is amazing and really does not need an introduction. Her work on Orphan Black portraying seven different characters is unparalleled. Each character she portrays is a rich standalone character. She is so good you forget that you’re watching the same actor. She is such a talent!

Jaimie Alexander as Jane, Blindspot
The breakout female star of the year for me is Jaimie Alexander for her portrayal of Jane on blind spot. It is so awesome to turn on the TV each week and see an intelligent female lead kicking major ass! It’s incredible! Jane has so many layers and Jaimie Alexander does a great job portraying that role. She is the breakout star of 2015 and blind spot is the break out show of 2015 in my opinion.

Leah’s Pick’s:
Lennon Parham & Jessica St. Clair as Maggie & Emma, Playing House
These two are best friends in real life and it comes through on screen. They are very good at being hilarious while still dealing with things like single parenthood, working and dating. I laugh myself to tears watching their show.

Sophia Bush as Erin Lindsey, Chicago PD
It would be easy to get distracted by all of the handsome men on Chicago PD but you just can’t get too sidetracked with Sophia always pulling your attention. Her character had a hard year and watching Sophia deal with an addiction story line that involved family as well was touching and perfect.

Shiri Appleby as Rachel, UnReal
What a crazy, messed up, human character – and Shiri played is spectacularly. I equal parts cringed, applauded and wanted to look away but I couldn’t because Shiri was fabulous. Shiri was an unexpected bright spot in a show about the worst of what reality tv has become.