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TV characters are tricky to write. Especially female sitcom characters. You have to make them somewhat appealing to the audience, but not too likable. You need to make them realistic, but not boring or super exaggerated. This is why so many sitcoms are male-dominated and have supporting female characters instead of leads.
Luckily, several sitcoms have amazingly written female lead characters. These characters have the perfect balance of all of the above qualities, are funny, and make the shows what they are.
Here are some of the best female lead sitcom characters.
Liz Lemon – 30 Rock
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Liz Lemon is an icon period, but she’s also an icon for feminism on TV. The character is based off of actor, show creator, and all around funny lady, Tina Fey. Specifically, Fey’s tenure as the first female head writer at ‘Saturday Night Live.’ Liz is relatable in the sense that she wants to “have-it-all” like most women, however, there are so many things preventing her from doing so. Liz is also funny, self-deprecating, smart, hardworking, and is still loyal to people even though they drive her crazy.
Leslie Knope – Parks & Recreation
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Leslie Knope is a great example of a woman in politics. She is hardworking, caring, organized, and will go out of her way to get things done. However, she has to put up with crazy coworkers and locals, roadblocks, and the casual sexism female politicians face. Despite this, she remains committed to her job and the citizens of Pawnee, Indiana.
Grace Adler – Will & Grace
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Grace Adler is an enigma. She contradicts herself at several different points of the series. Her personality is either one extreme. But, that’s what makes her great. We all can be hypocritical at times. We all contradict ourselves.
Jess Day – New Girl
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If sitcom leads are supposed to be unrealistically perfect, the creators of “New Girl” decided to ignore that. Because Jess Day is anything but perfect. She’s almost unrealistically quirky. However, she is still relatable, in that we all might have some aspects to her personality in us. Jess is unapologetically herself, and refuses to change for others. She’s a bit awkward in public and embarrasses herself on occasion, but haven’t we all been there?
Rachel Green – Friends
When ‘Friends’ first began, Rachel Green was a spoiled, self-centered rich girl, with no idea how to fend for herself after leaving her fiancé at the alter. By the end of the series, she was an independent and strong woman, a loyal and caring friend, had a family, and had a lot of work experience. Her evolution makes her an amazing character. Rachel might not always be the most “likable” of the ‘Friends’ characters, but she’s realistic and relatable. We all start our lives not knowing what to do, and being a little selfish. But once we get out there, go through a few jobs, have some romantic relationships, both serious and short, and make friends, we know who we are, what we want, and how to achieve our goals.
