GLOW's third season is coming to Netflix on August 9th, 2019, and we're more than ready to see the beautiful, hilarious, and strong-as-hell women return. This drama comedy centers around Ruth Wilder as she joins a wrestling television show with her ex-best friend, Debbie Eagan.
The show follows the personal (and professional) lives of these powerful women as they struggle through their friendship, their careers, and their lives. Let's not forget the hilarity and dynamics of all of the other women involved. As season 3 closes in on us, this list shares the 10 best quotes from the currently available two seasons and shows just why this show is a perfect demonstration of women power, personal struggle, and the media industry.
Real Parts
Ruth Wilder (Season 1, Episode 1):
What I’m interested in are real parts, not secretaries telling powerful men their wives are on line two.
Ruth Wilder is the epitome of a strong, good-hearted actress trying to make it on the big screen without giving up every last shred of her feminism and dignity. Although she takes on the role of Zoya in the GLOW production, she still firmly believes that she is destined to help make the show more than just women wrestling each other.
Ruth blurts this masterful line after an audition for a part where she accidentally reads the man's (powerful) part, only to be told by the casting director that she is supposed to read the woman's line, which is that of a secretary. This line confronts the nature of the industry, and Ruth's determination to not accept it.
Choices
Debbie Eagan (Season 1, Episode 1):
Things don't just happen. People make choices. They want things, and then they go for them.
Debbie Eagan is another strong force in this series, and that's probably why she and Ruth can't just seem to get along. Debbie is full of one-liners, but some of them are much more powerful than others.
Throughout the show, Debbie's character goes back and forth between hopelessness and acceptance, strength and determination. This quote definitely represents the latter, proving once again that Debbie has ambitions, and you don't get anywhere unless you work for them.
Sleeping Beauty
Sam Sylvia (Season 1, Episode 2):
You're pretty. You got big boobs, and those soap writers didn't count on you having brains. Am I right? You asked too many questions, you maybe improvised a few too many lines and then, boom, Sleeping Beauty.
Debbie Eagan (Season 1, Episode 2):
Yeah, if you wanna do something more than nod and eat a salad and make a pretty cry-face, you're punished.
Although Sam is literally the full embodiment of a creepy, sexist, and selfish television producer, he is also the King of slipping in completely honest and bitter truths. Somehow, this line encompasses sexism, feminism, and a huge push at character development all in one.
Through this conversation, we see Sam's awareness of the nature of the industry, and we also learn why exactly Debbie got fired from her soap opera. While delivered in a blunt and comical nature, this quote confronts Hollywood in a succinct and powerful way.
Here You Are
Sam Sylvia (Season 1, Episode 2):
Now, here you are. You're ripe. Fecund. A custodian of new life. You're a... you're a fertile harvest goddess. Now... pull your shoulders back, and, and strut like you own the ring.
Again, Sam isn't exactly known for his feminist ideologies, but he sure knows how to get the ladies to perform to their best abilities, even if it means appealing to their biological beauty.
While this line literally cannot help but make you laugh as Marc Maron delivers it with a dry and humorous twist, we still appreciate the notion, and we're applauding his attempt at appreciating the beauty of a woman's fertility. These women are all goddesses.
It Is For Me
Sheila the She-Wolf (Season 1, Episode 4):
I've worn this, or some version of this, every day for the past five years. It's not a costume. Just me. And what I do in the morning... what I put on, what I wear, it's not for you. It's... it is for me.
Sheila spends pretty much all of her screen time keeping to herself, battling ignorance, and struggling to fit in. Finally, Ruth manages to break down some of her walls, and Sheila shares this beautiful truth that all women and men can relate to.
While maybe none of us can directly relate to Sheila, we all know how it feels to struggle with finding yourself, and we can all benefit from thinking like Sheila. You do you boo, and do you well.
Push The Envelope
Sam Sylvia (Season 1, Episode 4):
Well, that's the problem. That's middle-of-the-road shit. It's safe. You see, me? I like to push the envelope. I like to jolt people into consciousness.
For such a controversial character, Sam makes this list an impressive number of times. This quote in itself makes for a pretty good life motto.
We all could use a bit of ingenuity and spontaneity, and maybe that's something we could actually take away from Sam (minus the serial sex, cocaine, and bitter loneliness).
The Alma Behind The Hitchcock
Ruth Wilder (Season 2, Episode 1):
Alfred Hitchcock and his wife? Alma, you know, the woman behind the man who is as important as the man and really helps the man be great while also getting the job done.
Ruth strikes again with her women-deserve-more-credit ideology; honestly, we can't get enough of it. When Ruth suggests that she can be the Alma to Sam's Alfred, he's pretty confused, but Ruth quickly clears things up.
She doesn't need to say anything more to show that all women have a role. Even if it's behind the scenes, they are contributing to greatness. However, we'd also like a little more women up front, but Ruth has that covered, too.
People
Rhonda Richardson (Season 2, Episode 5):
Perverts are people, too.
This simple (and admittedly cheeky) quote had to find a slot on this list. Rhonda isn't exactly the brightest crayon in the box (ironically, of course, contrasting her wrestling character), but this purely innocent line actually carries a lot of weight.
Regardless of someone's reputation, everyone deserves and needs a little kindness in their lives.
A Difference
Ruth Wilder (Season 2, Episode 5):
I've been acting pretty much my whole life, and it's always just another audition, another meeting, another year of waiting for someone to give you permission to do the thing you wanna do. But finally I'm getting to do something, and it feels different, you know? I feel different. Strong. In control.
This is probably Ruth's best quote in the entire series thus far. It encompasses everything about her character and what it is like to follow your dreams and have ambitions. While she's specifically talking about acting, this quote can translate to everyone everywhere, regardless of what they're trying to achieve.
We all deserve a chance at our goals, and sometimes it takes a little longer than anticipated. Like Ruth, you should never give up.
"It Shouldn't Be That Way..."
Debbie Eagan (Season 2, Episode 5):
Men try shit, you have to pretend to like it until you don't have to anymore.
Ruth Wilder (Season 2, Episode 5):
It shouldn't be that way.
Debbie Eagan (Season 2, Episode 5):
No, it shouldn't, and women should get to direct and not be washed up by the time they're 30, and I should have got to eat a piece of my own wedding cake without worrying about how many minutes of Jane f**king Fonda it was gonna take to work it off, but that is the way it is.
This quote is honestly pretty depressing, but it's also one of the most powerful ones that GLOW has presented in its first two seasons. There isn't really a silver lining or a shining hope in this conversation, but it provides an honest, succinct confrontation of the media industry and systemic sexism.
Ruth and Debbie have both been pushed to use their sexuality to move forward due to not being taken seriously because of their gender. These two ladies still give us hope that doesn't always have to be the case. "It shouldn't be that way," and we're going to work like hell until it isn't.