Influenced by classic episodic sitcoms but blazing its own trail with a (generally) more progressive outlook, Broad City stands as a particularly noteworthy example of a show that fully allows its female protagonists to be as messy and gross and fully in charge of their own failures as they should like to be. Though its default setting is to be silly and deeply unserious, the show still works as a more honest portrayal of life as a twentysomething New Yorker. Both Abbi and Ilana love their city and their community, but even they know that "growing up" and trying to earn a living is made up of an increasingly absurd series of endless tasks. Which is what makes their unbreakable friendship through it all so comforting to watch.

Broad City single-handedly put Abbi Jacobson and Ilana Glazer on the map for their comedic chops and their willingness to make fun of themselves. Glazer understandably became the face of the show during its run; her fictionalized self in the series is the loose cannon of the duo, running around loud and proud and completely chaotic, and creating some of the show's funniest moments. But Jacobson arguably had the more difficult role, having to be the more strait-laced and responsible character, while still convincingly selling her own ridiculous moments and gradually developing her Abbi as the dramatic center throughout the show's five seasons.