Honestly, I have always considered Jane the Virgin to be a feminist show, thanks in large part to its strong and fiercely independent female characters. However, Monday night's episode took the concept to a whole new level of amazingness when Jane the Virgin made reference to the Bechdel Test during Jane's very first meeting with her new advisor. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the Bechdel Test, here's the gist of it. Basically, this test is a way to help measure whether or not something is fairly balanced in the gender department and holds up against a specific criteria in order to pass: 1.) There has to be at least two woman in the story; 2.) These women must talk to each other; and most importantly; 3.) They need to discuss something other than men.
As for how this fit into the episode, Jane's new advisor wanted to make sure before reading Jane's story that it passed the Bechdel Test with flying colors. And since Jane had never even heard of such a test up until this point, she made quick work of making sure her creation properly fit the required specifications. Granted, the advisor didn't really take too well to the story regardless, but I have a feeling that her "to-the-point" demeanor is only going to make Jane a stronger writer in the end. Sometimes tough love is the best love, after all.
But the show didn't stop there. At one point, when two or three of the lead characters — like Jane, Alba, and Xo — were in the same scene together, the narrator attempted to see how well the series itself could hold up against the test as well. Sometimes it didn't do as well, given that a majority of the storyline focused on Pablo and Michael's parents, but the series' ability to use itself to showcase such an important issue proves just how awesomely feminist Jane the Virgin really is. Gender bias is still a very real problem both in Hollywood and in real life, so I'm glad this CW hit had the guts to address the topic head-on.
Image: Scott Everett White/The CW
