Surely you all know who Shonda Rhimes is, right? If not she is the mastermind behind such hit shows as Grey's Anatomy and Scandal. She is also producing a hotly anticipated little ditty this fall called How To Get Away With Murder that stars Viola Davis. In other words, in an incredibly difficult industry, Rhimes has managed to claw her way to the top of the story telling pile. Not only is she talented and respected, but those working with her have no problem singing her praises as a beloved friend as well. Apparently someone at The New York Times doesn't get the appeal and dared to call her "an angry black woman" this week.
Ironically enough, while the entire piece kept flashing back to that unsavory description, they officially identified the show runner quite differently saying,
"Ms. Rhimes is a romance writer who understands the need for more spice than sugar; her heroines are mysterious, complicated and extravagantly flawed, often deeply and interestingly. They struggle with everything except their own identities, so unconcerned about race that it is barely ever mentioned."
Even Rhimes herself tweeted about the audacity of being called 'angry' and then reduced to a 'romance writer' all within the same piece. Supposedly her personal imprint is all over characters that she has created such as Olivia Pope played by Kerry Washington and if that's true then perhaps fans would really like Rhimes if they came face to face with her. The key to the success of shows like Scandal has been that the characters are so complicated. As fans we pull for the under dog or the person that would be considered morally bankrupt in real life. Shonda has a way of layering her characters in varying emotions and doesn't shy away from anything.
Does that make Rhimes an "angry black woman" or does it simply mean that she's not afraid to breathe life into human characters that are filled with flaws? Isn't that what makes Grey's Anatomy so watchable and aren't fans anticipating the debut of How To Get Away with Murder because they are expecting complicated characters?
