America's Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders

It seems like a lot of viewers missed the point of this. It's as if some of you thought you were rating DCC directly. If you found the music tense instead of bright, it's because it's supposed to be. If you found the way the cheerleaders are spoken to in a toxic manner, you were supposed to. If you were disappointed this wasn't about hard working dancers loving their low pay part time job because it's "tradition" and was instead about toxic workplaces, impossible beauty standards, and the exploitation of women's bodies, you're a part of the problem. The DC as an organization has the money to pay these women a reasonable salary a hundred times over. At the VERY least bodyguards. Lastly the constant Jesus talk was meant to highlight how and why it's so easy to take advantage of a group of young women.

I thought this documentary drama series was interesting to see the inside of this iconic organization. A lot of people are going to scream sexism blah blah blah but there is certainly a tradition here that is highly respected. The ladies work so hard to make the team. My biggest appalling moment was finding out this is more of a hobby instead of a full time paying job. Also the physical toll that cheerleading is on the body. There's definitely a "type" to this space, and I'm definitely not one of them, but I gained so much respect for these ladies after seeing their dedication and commitment and heart into becoming a Dallas Cowboy Cheerleader.

Meant by those involved to paint the organization in a positive light, I felt this series highlighted the misogyny, the exploitation, and the objectification of these women. Paid a repugnantly small salary, these women devote their time and destroy their bodies to be part of something that is frankly beneath them. Many of them are highly educated, most of them have had years and years of formal dance training. Surely they can do better than this. But as one of the veterans said, they had "drank the Gatorade". Eye-opening for those of us unfamiliar with the franchise and worth watching as it exemplifies one of the ways in which the patriarchy is still alive and well, and how some women are perpetuating it.

I really liked it, I love dance. It was an interesting insight into their universe. I understand that Texas is a conservative state but for me there was way too much God talk. It was not something I expected to come up so much. Didn't need to see them going to a super church. I watched the first show on Country Music TV and thought that was better.

I felt so sorry for Victora, I wanted to give her a big hug. I really liked that they put focus on mental health and showed that even girls who look perfect can have issues and be insecure.

The focus though on religion would put me off watching next season, I fast forwarded past the church scenes. Its too much.

I think the show did a really good job at capturing the process and the experience of the girls and the management. Personally, I found it fascinating. I'd be happy to watch them make the 2024 season all over again.

I felt sad and moved, even stressed!, for the majority of it - but ultimately it was a fair display of the business and industry. Show biz isn't a pretty biz. Sports is a money making machine and ultimately that's the goal.

Only a few girls are really picked to be the focus - which makes sense in terms of time and storytelling but I feel like we only got glimpses of the personalities on the team.

It shows the hard work, determination, ethics, passion, brutality, stress, commitment, etc.

The question does remain - how do these girls endure so much stress, over work, deterioration of the body. Severe physical and mental health- for so little money/payoff?

I guess I'll never truly understand the sisterhood and community (to the point that's it's their personality and identity) that their life revolves around.