Cristina Yang from Grey’s Anatomy
You pretty much don’t get any more of a female-driven show than Grey’s Anatomy. Not only is the audience primarily women, but most of the huge cast is and so is the show runner, Shonda Rhimes. Grey’s Anatomy also sets itself apart that, last time I checked, it was the only TV show that had over 50% women in the writing room.
The brilliant, driven, and sometimes cold Doctor Cristina Yang is my favorite character. I absolutely adore that she is, by far, the smartest person in the room. I love watching her run circles around the other characters. And I like that she has flaws too. I like that Cristina’s not the best doctor in the room because she does not have a bedside manner and lacks some of the subtly the other doctors have.
Her friendship and ‘soul mate’ relationship with Meredith Grey is one of my all-time favorite female friendship on a TV show. I love how they love each other. Yes, I may want them to dump their respective husbands and get together. However, I can respect the platonic, deep friendship. So many times female friendships are ruined when they get boyfriends/lovers/husbands, but not these two. I laugh every time McDreamy wakes up to find Cristina asleep in his bed on the other side of Meredith.
Of course, many kudos for Cristina’s character belong with actor Sandra Oh, who knocks it out of the park. The times I feel like I need to give up on Grey’s Anatomy, it’s generally Oh’s performance that pulls me back in. I am notoriously not a sap (unless animals are involved), but if Cristina is crying on the show, I will be in tears too. She’s definitely not the cold fish everyone thinks she is.
Start your own Cristina love off right with Grey’s Anatomy – The Complete First Season