If you watch “Elementary,” the CBS show that stars Jonny Lee Miller as sherlock holmes, you will know that Watson is a woman played by Lucy Liu and that the infamous Moriarty is also a woman in this modern retelling.

Now this isn’t an entry about feminism, per se, but I want to say that I am quite pleased that Female roles are getting better, more powerful and even more flattering. The evolution of the female role, in film and media, is making movies and shows more relatable to female viewers and better for children who are now so easily exposed to media through modern technology.

Past TV shows

I remember when "Xena: Warrior Princess" was as popular of a show if not more popular than "Hercules." I was a little kid who watched both and liked to roleplay with my cousins. My boy cousin even preferred being Xena because he also thought she was cooler! As a teenager, I watched "Alias," a female spy who was both strong and sensitive which is rare to find. The character, Sydney Bristow, played by Jennifer Gardner, portrays a great balance that many shows fail at. Among these leads were their sidekicks. The other female Characters had just as many challenging and influential plot lines as the men did. It showed that a woman can not only be the main character but there can be more than one powerful female character in the same story.

Current TV shows

In many of her shows, Shonda Rimes’ characters are often female leads that are strong but flawed. This past week was the series finale of "Scandal." Its lead was Olivia Pope, the fixer for pretty much everyone in this political drama and she is not the only female with the brains. The President was a man with huge decisions to make.

He would turn to either Olivia or his First Lady. They would give their opinions which, more times than not, were the correct ones. Among these female roles, a female Vice President and Supreme Court Judge were pretty active in several storylines. These characters are far from perfect but that only makes them that more interesting and different.

With "Elementary," they are turning famous male roles into female roles which could have been a big problem but proved not to be. This show is still on the air and it works. It doesn't hurt the legacy of the Sherlock Holmes. We have seen these shows and others steadily growing an audience. Their female characters are multilayered and have so much to do. This has brought some interesting entertainment for audiences, one that sees no ending in sight and that is a great thing!
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