I always wondered what would possess a right minded woman to become a cop. You are signing up to deal with angry, aggressive people all day long. In what way does that seem like a good idea? But this show offers some insight. Most of the women seem to be in the career to "give back" to society or, to be very stereotypical, to help.
One of them works in a rape unit and seems very dedicated to her job. It's amazing to watch her first console the victim with such complete sympathy and then turn around and make the accused assailant feel like she's on their side too- and the amount of confessions she wrangles from these guys is amazing. Another woman spends most of her time answering domestic disputes and acting as a family counselor. A third has to come search women for drugs or weapons whenever her fellow male cops find someone suspicious.
As with any pop culture phenomenon, the show has messy politics. It certainly has a claimable feminist aspect as we watch these women enter a decidedly masculine career and do well for themselves. They try to balance home and work, feeling the conflict keenly between mother and cop. There's a lot going on with gender based crimes, like rape or prostitution. It's also reality tv that draws its roots from Cops, which was all about macho spectacle. So...tune in sometime and see what you think.
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