Rooster

The story begins as a father-daughter comedy but pivots to a feminist framing in the finale. Both Katie and Sunny dump their "toxic" male partner to find personal autonomy. It also features a confirmed LGBTQ+ character (Mo, played by Robby Hoffman).

The series critiques traditional gender roles and "toxic masculinity" through Archie, a cheating, narcissistic professor, and Dean Riggs, an inept leader. While it also gently satirizes the hypersensitive safety-culture of college students, the overall critique favors modern progressive norms over traditional ones.

Conservative outlets like the Washington Examiner and Hollywood in Toto criticized the show for being too soft on campus cancel culture. They argued that it sanitizes extreme student behavior as a harmless eccentricity. Some viewers on social media also complained that the show humiliated Steve Carell's character by forcing him to constantly apologize to hypersensitive undergraduates.

Key creators Bill Lawrence and Matt Tarses have low woke scores (17 and 0), reflecting a focus on light, traditional comedies. Steve Carell also has a low score (18). However, some progressive input is present, such as writer Genevieve Aniello, who has a history of queer-centric and feminist projects (65).