An Ode to the TV Shows That Showed Just How Powerful Women Can Be

A slew of TV shows featuring inspiring AF women? Consider them handled, thanks to none other than Shonda Rhimes.

Whether you aspired to be part of a crisis management team after watching Kerry Washington steal the show in Scandal or you were more than ready to get your law degree after seeing Viola Davis star in How to Get Away with Murder, either way, the prolific television creator knew how to write characters that inspired viewers by displaying just how powerful women could really be.

And even before Rhimes stole our hearts (and our attention) every Thursday with her star-studded ABC lineup, women were kicking both literal and figurative butt in spy-centric shows like Veronica Mars (which had Kristen Bell, her trusty camera and sardonic wit as its lead) and Alias (which saw Jennifer Garner carry out countless missions as a double agent in the early aughts).

And there's more action where that came from.

In honor of International Women's Day March 8, read on to see all the women who took center stage and changed the game on TV:

Shortly after Annalise Keating (none other than Viola Davis) first stepped into her classroom at Middleton University in 2014, she also stepped into fans' hearts and minds as well.

 
Not only did the show grip audiences for six seasons on ABC, but Viola's role earned her countless awards, including the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series in 2015—making her the first black woman to win the trophy.

Kerry Washington's Olivia Pope was so convincing when she and her crisis management team stormed onto TV screens with Scandal in 2012, that many fans considered their fix for political drama handled. And even four years after the show ended it's six-season run, we still find ourselves wanting to curl up with our biggest glass of wine.

After the debut of Being Mary Jane in 2014, it's safe to say fans were obsessed with being on the journey with Gabrielle Union's character Mary Jane Paul. Through the show's five seasons, Mary Jane shared insight on what life was like as a successful news anchor trying to find the balance between her career and her personal life.

Without a doubt, when it came to kicking off the espionage era of TV thrillers in the early aughts, Alias simply dominated. Jennifer Garner—alongside an ensemble cast including Michael Vartan, Bradley Cooper and Victor Garber, to name a few—kicked ass, took names and wore all the wigs as double agent Sydney Bristow.

A long time ago, we used to settle in every week to watch as Kristen Bell—the series' eponymous high schooler-slash-private eye—untangled mysteries and delivered the sharpest of one-liners. Though the series initially ended in 2007, the petite investigator lives on in our hearts and on screen thanks to various reboots.

Another espionage series that had viewers hooked and on the edge of their seats? None other than Showtime's Homeland. The TV thriller—which centered on CIA officer Carrie Mathison (Claire Danes)—had enough twists and turns to last a lifetime. And not only did the show receive critical acclaim during its nine-year run, but it earned Claire a pair of Primetime Emmys.

No other show captured mutual obsession quite like the BBC series, Killing Eve, which followed Sandra Oh's Eve Polastri as the intelligence investigator in charge of capturing her archenemy Villanelle (played by Jodie Comer). There's just something about watching someone join an undercover division of the Secret Intelligence Service that gave fans a thrill like no other.

The Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling were the ones to beat when Netflix's Glow debuted in 2017. For three seasons, viewers watched Allison Brie, Betty Gilpin, Sydelle Noel and other women wrestle their way to the top of the sport in the 1980s, claiming their titles as queens of the ring.

Who wouldn't want to work for the one of the world's biggest magazines with their best friends? For five seasons on Freeform, the magical trio of Jane (Katie Stevens), Sutton (Meghann Fahy) and Kat (Aisha Dee) made living in the Big Apple as they each thrived in their media careers look like heaven on Earth.

Melissa Benoist saved the day time and time again as the titular character in the CBS (and later the CW) series, Supergirl. For six seasons, viewers on our very real Earth watched as she embraced her superhuman powers to protect her planet at large.

Queen Latifah's Robyn McCall continues to give a whole new meaning to definition of what it means to be a street vigilante. One of the smash hits of 2021 when it debuted, The Equalizer was recently renewed for a third and upcoming fourth season.

This Angela Lansbury-led classic will forever remain a staple in our hearts—and for good reason. Debuting in 1984, it earned an impressive 12 Emmy nods during its 12-year run. And, tbh, we're still on the hunt for something that hits us quite in the feels the same way.