Suits is sexist
I’m currently in Season 4 of Suits, and I think I’m done.
When I started watching, something felt consistently off, and it took me a while to name it: the show doesn’t know what to do with its women. It treats them like props. Elegant, sharp-tongued props, but props nonetheless.
Yes, I understand the show is built around Harvey and Mike. That’s fair. But centering two men doesn’t have to mean stripping dignity from everyone around them. Yet here we are.
Jessica Pearson is a *name partner*. She built that firm. And somehow, her role has narrowed down to two modes: nodding along while the men present their brilliant plans and say “I am listening” and barking “You better win this goddamn case” when things fall apart. She exists to validate or to pressure, rarely to lead in her own right.
And then there’s the emotional support function. The women in this show are reliably on standby to help emotionally unavailable men pick out the right gift or patch up their relationships. Like a very glamorous personal concierge service.
I held on until Season 4 hoping it would evolve. Then Mike’s secretary from his investment banking stint showed up, same template, different woman. That was the moment I lost hope.
Women are so much more than this. And a show this sharp about legal maneuvering really has no excuse for being this lazy about half its cast.
*Has anyone felt the same? Does it get better — or does the show double down?*