LOVER Tipt #8 2025
LOVER Tips english
Are you looking for your next great read, a captivating movie, or a must-see documentary? How about a podcast that will keep you hooked? Or perhaps a stunning theatre performance or an inspiring museum visit?
You’re in luck! LOVER Tipt has your back with the coolest suggestions for this month, all in English. This month's focus is on portraying female friendship and activism, against the familiar trope of competition. Check out our picks!
Podcast:
Feminist Survival Project
Hosted by Emily and Amelia Nagoski, Feminist Survival Project speaks directly to that exhaustion so many of us carry, such as the burnout from feminist activism and from being constantly exposed to gender discrimination. This podcast aims to remind us of the feminist motto that the personal is political. Their mix of storytelling and humour makes “utopic” ideas feel approachable, and makes feminists feel less lonely in their constant confrontation against microaggressions, systematic injustices and misogyny. The podcast is available on any podcast streaming platform, and it is definitely recommended to share some of the weight that, as activists, we have to carry on our own shoulders.
Books:
Girl on Girl: How Pop Culture Turned a Generation of Women Against Themselves - Sophie Gilbert (2025)
Gilbert’s Girl on Girl is a critique of the over sexualisation of popstars, making us reflect on how toxic the pop culture landscape has been. She traces how decades of media (especially starting from the 1990s), from Madonna to the Riot Grrrls, to the Spice Girls, “mean girl” tropes, and neoliberal #GirlBoss feminism, have taught women to build their value positioning themselves against each other instead of standing together, and how the pornification of female bodies since a worryingly young age contributes to that. Gilbert's main critique is that female empowerment has been commodified into girlboss merch marketing. Pop culture has “quietly” promoted competition among women for years, while artists who challenged these dynamics (often coming from queer, BIPOC environments) struggle to find any spotlight.
Raging Clouds - Yudori (2025)
Raging Clouds is a feminist graphic novel by the South Korean comic book author Yudori. Set in mid-16th-century Dutch society, the protagonist is Amélie, a woman stuck in a dreadful marriage, whose life takes a dramatic turn when her husband brings home Sahara, an enslaved woman from an unspecified faraway. Instead of fighting over their marriage, the two women form a powerful bond and decide to start their journey toward liberation together. What truly is amazing is how this story challenges patriarchal competition tropes among women over men. Yudori combines an ancient storytelling style with anime-like illustrations to add layers of eroticism and emotion to the story.
Raging Clouds celebrates the radical power of rebellion and reminds us how unbreakable sisterhood is patriarchy's worst nightmare. It is a captivating tale that keeps readers on the edge of their seats, inviting them to join Amélie and Sahara’s wild ride. A graphic novel that truly keeps you on the edge of your seat.
TV Series: Broad City (2014-2019)
Broad City is such a popular and mainstream series that would not need an introduction; but is also such a blast from the past that cannot be missed. This series does a fantastic job in portraying the true chaos of life in New York City, and the importance of female friendship in a raw and honest way. Created by and starring Ilana Glazer and Abbi Jacobson, the show follows the messiness of these unconventional characters, who break free from the mainstream representation of hyperfeminine, successful women on the big screen. The comedy shines through the bond between Abbi and Ilana, which becomes a powerful focal point. In this show, women are not portrayed as competing against each other or as men-chasing characters, but as complex, sometimes struggling, and hilarious personalities. One of the most refreshing aspects of Broad City is how it champions bodily autonomy. The show doesn’t shy away from jokes about periods, sexuality, and, overall, bodily self-esteem. it treats these topics as just a part of everyday life. Broad City is a chaotic, surreal mixture of capitalism, friendship, dating, and the absurdity of New York. For once, women's messiness is not just acceptable but funny, which is quite revolutionary in a pop culture landscape that often tries to fit women into neat little boxes.
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