As we are all aware, Girlfriends has hit Netflix, and some of us have been binge watching ever since. Girlfriends originally aired on UPN from 2000-2006 and then the CW from 2006-2008, where it was abruptly ended due to network politics (my opinion but so true). Girlfriends follow the lives of four friends (hence the name), each character unique unto herself, and we get to see how they interact with each other and the ensuing storylines.

I did not watch Girlfriends when it originally aired on TV, so I was excited to see the series come to Netflix. I absolutely love Tracee Ellis Ross, so this was a no brainer for me. However, as I watched, I noticed that this series had not aged well, but I also noticed how much of a juxtaposition Ross is to Joan, her Girlfriend’s character, and deeper still to Dr. Rainbow Johnson, her character on her current show Blackish.

Don’t get me wrong, Joan and Bow have quite a few things in common, but the differences are so stark. One of the most significant differences being Joan’s desperation for a relationship. It was very shocking and at times painful to watch episode after episode of Joan pining and whining about/over a man. In contrast, Bow, as we know her, has been married to her husband, Dre, for quite some time and has 5 kids. Bow has never struck me as a woman driven by the need for a relationship, and that need oozes off of Joan. Both characters have impressive jobs Bow, an anesthesiologist, and Joan, a lawyer. So both of them devoted a significant chunk of their younger years to education which may or may not have played a role in delayed relationship progress for Joan. And in all fairness, we are just getting into Bow’s back story through the Blackish spin off Mixed-ish. Maybe we will uncover something in Bow’s past that puts her on more of an even playing field with Joan (I doubt it).

As I touched on earlier, Joan began the series as a lawyer but later gave it up to pursue her passion of owning a restaurant/tapas bar. This move is definitely one I believe Bow would not have approved of. Rainbow Johnson will tell anyone who will listen that she is a doctor and she attended Brown University. She has shown us that education matters to her and also what you do with it. This can be seen very well in an episode of Blackish where her son Junior decided to take a gap year from college and ultimately decided not to return to college. Joan gave up a corporate lawyer position where she was on track to make partner to start a restaurant. She had become disillusioned with the law, and the restaurant was her true passion. I think Bow would have seen this as the cry for help that it was. I’m not sure if there was a writer change when they made this decision for Joan, but it didn’t seem like a very Joan thing to do. I think Bow would have insisted Joan stay at the law firm and take up a hobby to fulfill her passion.

Bow is characterized as selfless and kind. She is often the problem solver–some of these qualities she shares with Joan. However, Joan did have moments where she was very self involved, oftentimes at the expense of her girlfriends. Joan got caught up in living the “A-lister” life. She went to fancy parties, hanging out with the in crowd, and even bought a Porsche. Some of Joan’s bad decision making and bad behavior during this period even caused her to lose one of her girlfriends.

Joan Carol Clayton most definitely had her ups and downs. Overall was she a bad person? No. Would Bow approve of all her behavior? No. But I think because Bow is who she is, she would take Joan into a big bear hug and tell her everything is going to be alright.