TV Review: How To Get Away With Murder

No one can stop talking about Shonda Rhimes and Thursday nights on ABC. The creator/writer/executive producer owns three entire hours of primetime television. Grey’s Anatomy premiered the first episode of its 11^th season at 8pm with tumult between Meredith and her new sister. Scandal opened its 4^th season with retired white hat, Olivia Pope sipping red wine….on a deserted beach. And ABC’s Thursday night 3^rd hour is reserved for twisted law school lessons to elite first year law students in How To Get Away With Murder, lead by the Oscar-nominated film actress turned TV vixen, Viola Davis as double threat lawyer/professor,  Annalise Keating.

Aside from being brilliant and ruthless in her work, Davis’ Keating is personally complicated. Between an extra-marital affair, blurred lines of appropriateness between her and her students and a convoluted since of ethics, Rhimes has done it again. She has created a fully formed, captivatingly complex heroine. She did it with Meredith Grey in Grey’s Anatomy, Addison Shephard in Private Practice, Olivia Pope in Scandal and now with Annalise Keating in Murder.

A New York Times critic reviewed Rhimes’ latest hit to less than stellar reviews, writing a critique (if you can call it that) almost entirely centered around a claim that  Rhimes is an “angry black woman” creating only “angry black woman” characters. Rhimes herself fired back at the critic on Twitter citing how completely ridiculous the comments were, referencing all of the white female characters that she has also created. Rhimes has done nothing but create characters that people want to watch. The women that she creates for the small screen are not docile, mild-mannered, June Cleavers. White, black, Asian – whatever their races may be, they’re women! She has built a name for herself for creating mosaic female characters that women want to play. Actress Portia de Rossi recently spoke about her new character on this season of Scandal and how she had begged Rhimes for quite some time to write her into the show somehow. Finally Rhimes obliged. Last time Portia looked in the mirror, I do not think she saw angry and I do not think she saw black looking back at her. But I think she saw strong. I think she saw a woman and I think she saw someone looking to be challenged in her work and she went to Rhimes for that.

How To Get Away with Murder is a sure thing. It’s an awe-inducing hit.   If you’re looking to catch up On Demand on the week’s shows, press play for Murder.