The Magic of Brooklyn Nine-Nine

Brooklyn Nine-Nine is a comedy on Fox, surrounding a group of detectives in a Brooklyn precinct. While on the surface B99 can seem like any other cop show or sitcom, the truth is that it's so much more. With distinct characters who experience character development throughout the series, excellent writing, and a diverse cast, B99 truly makes magic and has had me personally captivated since 2014.

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Here's a trailer of the first season, for anyone who hasn't seen the show before:

Now, let's get into some of the characters:

(Warning, though, as there might be some spoilers. I will try to keep it minimal.)

Jake Peralta:

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Jake is the main character, portrayed by Andy Samberg, who is at first this cocky, (failed) "ladies man" sort of stereotype who experiences major positive character development. Something that never changes, though, is his respect for women. His childhood best friend is Gina, and he is close to Rosa since they had gone through the Academy together. Even Amy, who he was rivals with in the precinct, has Jake's respect. He doesn't view them as female detectives that are somehow inferior; he just views them as fellow detectives— equals. Throughout the show, he also regularly criticizes how women are treated and models rather feminist beliefs himself. Perhaps I am just biased because of how much I am a fan of Andy Samberg, but I wholeheartedly believe Jake shines as someone who can be both silly and serious without having to resort to derogatory or problematic behaviour. This rejection of reducing gender to a punchline that only further divides the dichotomy follows every main character throughout the show, which I think it still pretty rare in sitcoms.

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Captain Holt:

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Captain Holt, played by Andre Braugher, is one of the best characters of B99. First off, his character is an openly gay police officer who started his career in the 80's. When the series began, Holt had just become the captain of his very own precinct. Amazingly, his storyline doesn't constantly revolve around his sexuality, nor is he portrayed as a stereotypical gay man. He is actually quite serious and stiff, which makes his comedic delivery all the more hilarious. There are some episodes that bring up his sexuality, but it is neither overly sexualized nor treated overly modest. 

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Rosa Diaz:

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Rosa— played by the badass, bisexual Stephanie Beatriz— is arguably the toughest detective of the 99. She is unemotional, calculated, and honestly terrifying at times. She prides herself in her secrecy and privacy, most of her friends not even knowing where she lives. While she rides a motorcycle and has a vast collection of weapons to threaten people with, she also took ballet as a child and went to an all-girls Catholic School (until she got kicked out, she says). She also genuinely, deeply cares for all of her team, even though she is terrible at showing it. 

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While there are many others in the show that are entertaining, well-written characters, these three are my favourite for what they bring to B99. Like I said earlier, gender and sexuality aren't used as a punchline or as anything derogatory in this show. The women in the show are never sexualized by their coworkers, and in their personal lives they tend to show quite strong sexual autonomy. In fact, there are even instances of role reversal, where characters like Sergeant Jeffords (Terry Crews) is sexualized by Gina's character (Chelsea Peretti) because of his muscles. A lot of the writing in the show proves to be very aware of cultural gender norms and also being actively critical of them, which is part of what makes it so refreshing and enjoyable to watch. I don't have to worry about possibly getting offended at plots or jokes in B99, which is so different than most sitcoms. B99 proves you can create an enjoyable, hilarious show without alienating anyone. I highly, highly recommend watching.