
TV Show review
Review basis: 3 seasons, 30 episodes · through August 9, 2019
June 23, 2017 · TV-MA · Canceled
Woke Score
Lower is better
Review
GLOW follows a group of women in 1980s Los Angeles who join a new professional wrestling league called the Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling. They train together, create cartoonish characters, and deal with friendships, rivalries, and personal troubles while putting on shows. The series shows women finding power through performance, with some queer storylines becoming noticeable in season 3.
Breakdown
These are the editorial factors and ratings behind our score for GLOW.
Woke representation / casting
The ensemble includes several prominent non-white actresses in named roles. Wrestling characters often use ethnic stereotypes such as Welfare Queen and Fortune Cookie for the 1980s setting. Coverage at the time noted the variety of women in shapes, sizes, and backgrounds.
Woke political dialogue
Dialogue touches on sexism and women's place in a male-run industry at times. These moments stay mostly personal and comedic in an 80s period setting rather than activist-style lectures.
Identity-driven story themes
The core follows women's friendships, rivalries, and growth through wrestling performance. Season 3 adds clearer queer storylines for multiple characters.
Western institutional / cultural critique
The show shows early tension with a male director and the wrestling business, but it frames the story around personal stories and empowerment more than modern critiques of institutions or norms.
Woke character or canon changes
Not relevant.
Anti-woke backlash and complaints
A few scattered viewer comments called season 3 feminist propaganda or boring with woke content. No widespread or prominent anti-woke backlash occurred during the run.
Creator track record context
Liz Flahive and Carly Mensch have focused on female-centered stories with later feminist-leaning projects. Jenji Kohan and Tara Herrmann come from Orange Is the New Black. Director John Cameron Mitchell has a strong queer-themed body of work.
Production