I Love Me Some Crazy Women!

If you haven’t come to love the plethora of groundbreaking, funny women who have conquered the last few seasons of network television, then you simply hate America!  Just kidding.  But there’s certainly something wrong with you.

I love humor. I love people.  Therefore, I love funny people.  They make me laugh.  They make me think.  They make me pay attention to the nuances of dialogue.  They inspire me to write scripts that will ultimately get rejected by said ladies.  Nonetheless, here’s my current Top 10 list of crazy-butt women whom I find absolutely hilarious, yet intelligent and powerful in their own ways.*

TINA FEY

Tina Fey (30 Rock, now defunct): La Reina.  Writer.  Producer. Actor.  Author of Bossypants.  Too bad I caught on to her show late in its run, but I found it clever and one of the best-written shows ever.  Period.  Definitely top 20.  As the beloved/behated protagonist, Liz Lemon, Fey is quirky, smart, and adeptly rolls through her comedy interwoven with touchy scenarios of race, politics, sexism, and everyone’s favorite – relationships – without the characters losing focus on what’s most important – themselves.

Mindy Kaling (The Mindy Project): witty, loveable, brilliant,

Mindy Kaling

love-obsessed ob/gyn who can’t open her mouth without making me laugh (as long as I can keep up with her frantic pace of speech).  A total screw up.  Love her.

Zoey Deschanel (New Girl): her quirkiness – you either love it or

Zoey Deschanel

hate it.  No in-between.  The look in her eyes tells you she means well whenever she ruins whatever she ruins.

Sherri Shepherd

Sherri Shepherd (no current sitcom, Newlywed Game): this one’s a dark horse (no, not because of her color) because she is really a laid back, genuine, pleasant person with a permanent smile of devilish ooze.  I’d like to see her flee from daytime talk back to the sitcoms!

Kat Dennings (2 Broke Girls): such vulnerable irreverence.  With

Kat Dennings

her, you know what’s coming, but you never know what you’re gonna get.

Melissa McCarthy (Mike & Molly): Once her show got past the obligatory fat jokes, it got wicked funny.  McCarthy possesses a soft

Melissa McCarthy

poise that quickly erupts into wild antics and clever quips that play off quite well against her co-stars.  I think she shows a certain depth, a range not present in many half-hour shows today.

Aisha Tyler

Aisha Tyler (comedienne): first discovered her hosting Talk Soup back when my hair was naturally one color.  Speaking of color, she was the first African-American and female to host Talk Soup as well as appear in a recurring role on Friends.  Nice.  She’s one of those people that I just plain like, but can’t explain why.  Haven’t kept up with her as of late.  I’m sure she’s busy breaking new ground somewhere nearby.

Kristin Chenoweth (GCB, now defunct): a firecracker with a mountain

Kristin Chenoweth

peak soprano voice.  Born for comedy.  She does it all – act, sing, dance.  And I like that she’s a Believer too.

Rebel Wilson (Super Fun Night): Hee-layer-rhee-us!  Wilson came out of nowhere and pulled no punches to hit me in the gut.  Another hopeless romantic,

Rebel Wilson

Wilson pokes hecka fun at herself and her loser gal pals and is probably the bravest person on this list for bucking convention.  She’s not afraid to show off her curves in skirt-ripping “wardrobe malfunctions” without being a size -1.

Wanda Sykes (comedienne): her tone, pace, and delivery suggest a discombobulated know-nothing with a gift for satire. You can’t help but laugh with her… and at her.

Wanda Sykes

Honorable Mention: Xosha Roquemore (The Mindy Project).  The sassy, self-assured nurse comes packed with a knack for entering the room, blowing it up, then slipping outta there.  Stitches for us all.  I would love to see her get more air time.  She’ll be comin’ around the mountain when she comes.

Xosha Roquemore

And as an added bonus…

Best Ensemble Cast: Parks & Recreation  

This is chemistry at its best.  They are like a big dysFUNctional family, but they somehow deliver the goods on what at first seems like a dull premise.

Parks & Rec, led by Amy Poehler (center)

Coming Soon: Funny Dudes!

*This writing recognizes their talent and is not an endorsement of the totality of their shows’ content.  That should go without saying, but I’m just saying.