What’s your favorite show with good Jewish representation?
Hey there! Thank you for the question!
I can think of only one show (followed by a handful of qualified honourable mentions) that I have enjoyed that has good Jewish representation: Covert Affairs.
Without giving too many spoilers, Covert Affairs is a spy show about a CIA agent that has a recurring character who is an Israeli Mossad agent. He has an obviously-but-not-too-stereotypically Israeli/Jewish name, and over the course of his appearances in the show is an unquestionably heroic character, who is loyal to both his country and his friends, even when that means navigating the conflicts between those two loyalties. He and the main character of the show save each other’s lives numerous times. Importantly, the show doesn’t shy away from his Israeli-ness or his Jewish-ness, even though those are far from his only or dominant character traits. He talks up how amazing his country is to the protagonist from his first appearance, and the show acknowledges how certain countries / situations are more dangerous for him than for our heroine because he is Israeli, and he casually quotes the Talmud to her. The show never specifies how observant he is; we don’t know if he’s Orthodox, Reform, secular, religious - because his personal observances don’t matter so much as the fact that his Judaism is an important part of his life that informs his conversation and his outlook.
I will share my 5 honourable mentions under the cut.
Honourable mention 1: Babylon Five
I can’t call Babylon Five a favourite show of mine with good Jewish rep, because I’ve never seen it (other than five minutes my dad showed me when I was little of a Jewish character lighting a chanukiyah in space). But what I know of it makes me want to see it because of its good Jewish representation - I don’t know if this is spoilers, since I’ve never watched the show, but I understand that at one point, a Jewish community leader approaches a Jewish major character to discuss why she has not yet sat shiva / said Kaddish for her deceased father.
Honourable mention 2: The Nanny
Strictly speaking, I can’t say The Nanny is good Jewish representation. It doesn’t show a diversity of Jewish characters (and certainly none who relate to their Judaism the way I do), and instead reinforces many Jewish stereotypes. It gives a (spoilers, but the show aired about 30 years ago) happy ending in which the Jewish woman marries her non-Jewish romantic lead and joins his non-Jewish family, which is... disappointing and unsurprising in television. Nevertheless, a few points in its favour: it may not represent my view of Judaism, but it was pitched and produced by Fran Drescher to represent an accurate(-ish) portrait of her experience of Judaism; despite the annoying stereotypes being reinforced, the character of Fran is, throughout, vocal, proud, and unapologetic about her own Judaism, which we don’t seem often enough; and Fran unabashedly loves Israel and even (spoilers?) brings the whole family on a trip to a kibbutz in a late-season episode.
Honourable mention 3: Srugim
I don’t think Srugim should count for this question, because it’s an Israeli show made for a Jewish/Israeli audience. I also don’t think the portrayals in Srugim are unproblematic; it is, however, the only show I can think of that I’ve seen which includes some/any (not universally offensive) portrayals of Modern Orthodox Jews, and that is something I want to see more of, and which I appreciated seeing in Srugim (okay, the real reason I liked Srugim was for the cameo appearance of Avshalom Kur, that’s real representation for Tanach/language nerds).
Honourable mention 4: The Rugrats
I’m certain this question was not aiming for answers from kids’ shows, and I honestly can’t remember liking Rugrats all that much. But I do remember that it was a rare show with meaningful Jewish content. As I recall, all the babies (with the exception of Angelica?) are explicitly or strongly implied to be Jewish. I have vague memory of an episode in which Tommy’s grandfather speaks to the babies (in an age-appropriate way) about the Shoah, and another in which they act out the story of Pesach in a way that was clearly informed by actual Jewish knowledge. So it gets those sweet, sweet representation points!
Honourable mention 5: Sesame Street / Rechov Sumsum
Okay, now I feel like I’m really reaching. I know Sesame Street made cultural-equivalent shows in many countries, so Rechov Sumsum, as a show made for Jewish-Israeli children audiences, strictly speaking Does Not Count, except I do remember being shown a couple of crossover episodes between Sesame Street and Rechov Sumsum, in which classic Sesame Street characters got invited to a Muppet relative’s Seder, and learned authentic Jewish traditions. I didn’t grow up on a strict diet of Sesame Street like some people did, but this meant a lot to me as a kid!
This post is long enough and I’m trying really hard to not go on Yet Another Representation rant, but I’ve seen a lot of television shows (though obviously there are many more I haven’t seen), and I think it’s sad that I can only think of six shows - one of which I haven’t seen, one of which is Israeli-made, and two of which are children’s shows - that have any degree of good Jewish representation. I can think of plenty of shows - shows I loved, even - that had offensive Jewish representation (and can put together that list, explaining what was offensive / problematic, upon request); I can think of plenty of shows written/produced by Jews that were informed by Jewish ideas but never made anyone or anything explicitly Jewish, and plenty of shows with characters of ambiguous or ambiguously Jewish backgrounds played by Jews, who were never made into actual Jewish representation. But these six are the only ones I can think of that actually provided any real, not-directly-offensive, representation of Jewish people.
If anyone knows of any other shows that meet this bar or did better, I would love to know!
I know that people say that a lot about under-watched shows, but this is TRULY a show no one has seen. It’s called Srugim, and it’s an Israeli show about 5 orthodox jewish friends living in Jerusalem trying to find love in the big city (lol.)
It’s in Hebrew with subtitles and it’s so lovely and sweet and it streams on Amazon prime and I can’t recommend it highly enough if you are looking for a show that’s like Friends if no one on Friends had sex except to procreate and then only 7 days after your last period.
I am on the last season now and I love Yifat and Hodaya so much, and feel a lot about Nati like I do about Ross on Friends.
I am being totally serious, this little Israeli show about religious Jews is one of my favorite shows and I want you to watch it.
Two weeks ago, I moved to Jerusalem as part of a student exchange program to Bezalel Academy. And one of my proud discoveries here is a netflix Israel TV show, set in this very city.
Srugim (Devout Love) is an Israeli TV series (3 seasons), comparable to Friends, but much more charming and culturally rich. It is set in 21st century Jerusalem, trailing the lives of five religious individuals. Apart from entertaining my friends and me on chilly nights and giving me a glimpse of the daily life of a certain class of Israeli citizens, it made me ponder about my relationship with my religion, tradition, human rights and modernisation. This isn’t an out-of-this-world, one-of-a-kind show, but I like it for many reasons.
1. First of all, the characters are diverse.
The female leads include, a graphic designer who is a mother of sorts to the group, a Bible studies major who has a tough time being a Rabbi’s daughter and brings trouble to the love lives of the other girls, and an accountant who has a very strong and independent personality but shows glimpses of being a child.
There are two male leads, one being an intern doctor who behaves like an ignorant jerk but has fantastic EQ with his patients, and a recently divorced girl’s high school Hebrew grammar teacher.
Even the supporting characters are multi-faceted. And they are certainly not perfect, to the point of me being fed up of a character at certain points of the show.
2. It does not reek of/wallow in emotional drama. Rather, it is a fast-paced slice of life series. The show also ends every episode on a rather unusual note, neither fuzzy ending nor cliffhanger.
3. The tension between Jewish traditions and rules and modernism creates very interesting plot points. (and a very nice theme song, Ana Efne) It let’s you relate to the themes and ponder on them without being preachy (pun intended?!)
4. The dialogues are witty, at least as far as the English subtitles are concerned. (And it’s a fun way to pick usable Hebrew vocabulary.)
Fair warning: Relationships and love are a big part of the show.
Personally, it’s a thrill to suddenly see a place I know or have been to, on the show; a thrill especially because I’m new to the country. But even to those who are not in Israel, this is a fun show to follow. Season one is good, and you can watch the other two, even skipping a few episodes if you want. But be prepared for a lot of No. 3, because it’s the main theme of the show. (this includes a lot of besur/abaswaram religious chanting.)
Michael Aloni fan club! He’s gonna be big stateside too. #michaelaloni #israeli #shtisel #srugim #whenheroesfly #brilliant (at Israel) https://www.instagram.com/p/CNw9Qe2jIK6BHB-kgiKpcTmDlGxxD33aMKVtq80/?igshid=1gs61yih8qlr1
