The Girls Backlash: 5 Things We Got Wrong

Two days ago, I read an article titled "Why Girls Is Bad for Women." Writer Emma Woolf is hardly the first to find fault with Lena Dunham's HBO series but, having watched the show for the first time only recently, her reaction perfectly encapsulates two years of criticism into one post. The series has polarized critics since day one, and after three seasons we're well settled into the backlash. Wherever there is hype, there will be hatred; that truth is universally acknowledged.

But, for all the spot-on aspersions cast at Girls, there are some that are simply unjustified. Both viewers and professionals, while clambering to critique, have jumped on a few very problematic bandwagons. Discussions around sex, nudity, feminism, and race are never simple, and if you choose a side, it's important to take a step back and see just what you're attacking and why. Neither Girls nor Lena Dunham is perfect, but here are five criticisms of the show that we may have gotten wrong.