Women of the Week

We’re one month into the new year and the stakes have never been higher. Who are our latest picks for Women of the Week? Read on and find out!

Nominated by Ange: Marina Squerciati as Kim Burgess on Chicago P.D. (NBC)

My pick this week is Marina Squerciati, who plays Kim Burgess on Chicago P.D. Despite me yelling, “No, don’t go in there without backup” just minutes before, watching a pregnant Burgess fight and get beaten as she tried to save an underage girl involved in a sex trafficking ring, was brutal. I cannot stress how hard this was to watch and then see Burgess get carried out by baby daddy Ruzek. Gah! (It should also be noted that Squerciati performed the majority of the stuntwork in that fight scene.) Then the following scene where Burgess is in the hospital and pretty much shuts down as she’s told the baby didn’t survive, was heartbreaking to watch. Knowing that Squerciati is a mother to a toddler in real life, I can only imagine how hard both emotionally and physically it would have been to film these scenes. Squerciati slayed it this week!

Nominated by Melissa: The Women of The Good Place (NBC) – Maya Rudolph as The Judge, Jameela Jamil as Tahani Al-Jamil, Kristen Bell as Eleanor Shellstrop and D’Arcy Carden as Janet.

I choose the women of The Good Place, including Maya Rudolph. Yes, I’m a week late. I had to wait until I had a block of time when I could watch the series finale and the aftershow all at once. What a beautiful send off to these characters we’ve seen grow over the years.

Maya Rudolph was a late addition to the team, but what a wonderful addition she was. The Judge’s enthusiasm for Timothy Olyphant, Friday Night Lights, and pop culture were as delightful as her willingness to listen to radical ideas and consider paradigm shifts that effect all humanity, past and present.

Jameela Jamil imbued Tahani Al-Jamil with so much pathos underneath her bravado and boastfulness that I never stopped rooting for her. When she attained peace with her family, I was happy but even happier when she decided that no, actually, she wasn’t done experiencing things and asked to become an Architect. That moment was such a profound one for her character and Jameela played it beautifully.

Kristen Bell ably led the cast (and the audience) through four seasons of chaos and enlightenment with such grace and capability. I admire her portrayal of Eleanor Shellstrop as irreverent, cynical, and ultimately so in need of being loved and loving others.

But on a show full of revelatory performances, it’s D’Arcy Carden who stands out as Janet. As all the Janets. As the Janet who started as a factotum and ended as a friend, not-a-girl-friend, and spiritual guide. What a showcase of her talent over the past four seasons. I cannot wait to see what she does next.

Nominated by Roz: D’Arcy Carden in Cut and Run

We always talk about how amazing D’arcy is as any variation of Janet, but this week I had the pleasure of watching her do some improv work in support of her new Audible series, Cut and Run. She is amazing at working with other actors to take personal stories (from other Nice Girl fave Busy Phillips) and making them into something funnier than the original. I took a few minutes after the show to talk about how much I loved The Good Place and well, I won’t forget a photo anytime soon.

RELATED ITEMS:

Woman of the Week (January 19-25)
Women of the Week (January 12-18)
Women of the Week (January 4-11)
Women of the Week feat. Marina Squerciati, D’Arcy Carden and Maya Rudolph – November 2019
Woman of the Week feat. Kristen Bell – October 2019
Women of the Week feat. Kristen Bell and Jameela Jamil – January 2019
Woman of the Week feat. D’Arcy Carden – December 2018
Women of the Week feat. D’Arcy Carden – November 2018
Women of the Week feat. Kirby Howell-Baptiste and D’Arcy Carden – October 2018
Women of the Week feat. Kristen Bell – February 2018
Women of the Week feat. Marina Squerciati – December 2017
Women of the Week feat. Marina Squerciati – October 2017
Women of the Week feat. Kristen Bell – September 2016