ALRAWABI SCHOOL FOR GIRLS
I don’t know how I missed this show when it first came out last year, but I’m definitely glad I’ve since rectified the situation. ALRAWABI SCHOOL FOR GIRLS (trailer here) has been called the Arab MEAN GIRLS, but the Jordanian limited series teen drama certainly has a darker tone and deals with some heavier themes. Created by Tima Shomali, the show centers on an all-girls school in Jordan, but don’t let the pale pink uniforms and tiled bathrooms fool you into thinking this is a cute private-school drama. Within the first episode, we see Mariam, a quiet tomboy, become the victim of the popular mean girls, Layan, Rania, and Ruqayya, when they brutally beat her behind the school. Mariam deals with severe bullying at the hands of these girls, so she enlists the help of her friends, Dina and Noaf, to get her revenge. Despite this being a revenge story, you do get some heartwarming moments of camaraderie from the women-led cast, however the lengths that these girls go to seek their own form of justice will have you questioning their methods. Shomali created the show to highlight the young Arab woman’s experience, making sure that from the writing down to the production crew, women were the central voices in crafting the story.
—Ellen Amare, Development Intern
