A season of being Bold on Freeform’s “The Bold Type”

This week, the season one finale of “The Bold Type” premieres on Freeform. After a season of love, loss and hard work, our girls have all taken big steps and have grown into their own. Jane, Sutton and Kat have all evolved and are more mature versions of the girls we met in episode one. As this season comes to a close, let’s take a look back at our bold girls and see how far they have come.

Let’s start with Jane.

When we first met Jane Sloan, she had just gotten her dream job- writer at Scarlett Magazine. She’s done what she came to NYC to do. But now, she has to keep it that way. On her first day in her new job, the pressure sets in as Jane approaches her boss, Editor-in-Chief Jacqueline. Jane wants to do a good job for the magazine, but Jacqueline is quick to shoot down Jane’s ideas. Finally, Jacqueline assigns Jane an article about her ex-boyfriend (who Jane hasn’t gotten over quite yet). The article is challenging, but Jane completes it in her own unique way, and gets Jacqueline’s approval. Jane learns that it is hard to write about your own experiences, especially when millions of people will read about it, but her work will be better because of it. When she truly opens herself up, she will find the closure she has been searching for, and will find confidence that she hadn’t found before.

All season, Jane forms a bond with Jacqueline. Jacqueline becomes her mentor, pushing Jane further with every assignment. Because of that push, Jane is growing with every experience into a more confident woman and writer.

Jane has also grown a lot when it comes to her love life. At the beginning of the season, Jane was very coy about her sexuality (not nearly as open as her best friends Sutton and Kat). But soon, she meets Ryan, a sex columnist from another magazine. With Ryan, Jane lets herself go for the first time, and lets go of her nerves. She’s happier, and he’s happy to be satisfying her.

The chemistry between them is undeniable, but eventually Jane looks at what she really wants. She realizes that her relationship with Ryan is fun, but she wants more. What Jane  really wants is true love, and she isn’t confident that she will find it with “Pinstripe guy.” Jane ends things with Ryan, and looks to the future, no matter who it may be with.

As the season comes to a close, Jane is dealing with her hardest decision yet. She has been approached by an online magazine and has been offered a job with them. Jane loves Scarlett and the life she has created there. After all, it was her dream job. She’s weighing the pros and cons of both jobs, but what it really comes down to is whether she wants to play it safe, or whether she wants to grow into a new challenge. After days of going back and fourth, Jane accepts the job offer, and decides to leave Scarlett. Will she really go? Will she really leave her life at Scarlett behind? We’ll find out in this week’s finale.

Next, Sutton

Sutton is the girl who looked like she had it all- but on the inside, she wanted so much more. Sutton began the season stuck in an assistant job that she had been in for over three years. She watched both of her best friends move on to bigger things professionally, and felt like she was falling behind. Sutton had dreams of entering the fashion world. At first, she was hesitant, and considered a more stable career. But ultimately, her dreams took over. Fashion was the job for her.

Sutton had many struggles when it came to entering the fashion world. Struggle number one: she had virtually no fashion experience. She didn’t go to a big fashion school and she hadn’t been working at a fashion studio for the past few years. When it came down to it, Sutton’s biggest asset was her passion. She took what she knew and loved about fashion, and used it to show what made her so fitting. Ultimately, her boss saw her vision for the fashion world, and offered her the first real opportunity she’s ever had in her dream career.

But of course, with great work comes great responsibility. Sutton faced some challenges in her dream job. First- money issues. Sutton realized that her dream job didn’t come along with her dream salary. Next- high pressure. When given more responsibility, Sutton’s superior couldn’t handle the added pressure. Sutton had to step up to the plate, and she shined. She stayed calm and handled every work situation with a level head. This let her boss know that she could be trusted and she could handle the fast paced environment of the fashion world.

Work wasn’t the only transformation we’ve seen Sutton go through. Perhaps her biggest transformation came with her love life. When we first met Sutton, she was engaged in a top-secret relationship with Richard, a board member of the magazine. Risking her job, and his, the two kept their relationship a secret. But this caused for some tension- Richard couldn’t engage with Sutton at work, and Sutton was risking the loss of her new dream career. At first, Sutton tried to deal with it. But she made it clear that she wanted more from their relationship. She tells Richard in episode one that she wants to be the girl he can’t stop thinking about. But little did she know that Richard really couldn’t stop thinking about her- and wouldn’t stop.

Richard and Sutton tried their hardest to make a relationship work. Eventually, the secrets became too much for the both of them to handle, and Sutton and Richard called it quits. The break-up was hard on both of them, and the two were clearly missing each other.

After breaking up with Richard, Sutton needed a relationship that on some level, wasn’t complicated. She got one step closer to such a relationship with her work colleague, Alex. The two were comfortable around each other, and trusted each other. Eventually, the sparks between them were undeniable, and the two admitted their feelings for each other. Now Sutton and Alex are still co-workers, and as Sutton knows from past experience, this could cause some issues. And after being friends for years, Sutton and Alex aren’t exactly sure what to call their “relationship”- if it even is one. But with all that Sutton has learned, she’s closer than ever to finding what she wants. And she can handle the struggles that come with getting it.

Finally, there’s Kat.

From episode one, Kat was confident and seemly fearless. She spoke her mind and took risks when she knew they would pay off. It seemed like nothing could throw Kat off of her game- but that all changed when she met Adena.

Suddenly, Kat’s world is turned upside down. She finally felt nerves and fears that she hadn’t felt before. For once, she had her eyes on something that didn’t feel in reach. Kat struggled with her sexuality all season long, until finally, she admitted her feelings for Adena. Luckily, Adena felt the same.

But it wasn’t happily ever after just yet- Adena was headed to Paris. Kat and Adena tried living their lives apart while remaining friends long distance. But the two realized that even countries apart, they still had feelings for each other and wanted to be together.

Kat also had to deal with a few work-place issues. She had to fire her first assistant-a task that is never easily, let alone your first time doing it. Following that, Kat began to re-evaluate her life and her work. Although she is confident with her work, a part of her feels unfulfilled. Perhaps this job isn’t really for her, perhaps she is not living up to her full potential. Perhaps she is meant to be doing something else, somewhere else.

This thought brought her back to Adena. Kat thought that maybe Adena was the answer, and traveling the world with Adena would be what she wanted. But when the opportunity came, Kat wasn’t ready to leave her life behind. The seemingly fearless girl decided against the biggest risk she’d ever taken, and ultimately decided to stay in New York. For every option that Kat considered (changing careers, changing countries, trying new relationships), Kat finishes this season of “The Bold Type” with a feeling of un-fulfillment. And even worse, the things she thought would fulfill her haven’t done the job. So Kat is at a crossroads: even with all of her confidence, she is still finding herself. She is still finding her place in the world. She is still finding where she feels the happiest, and she is diving in headfirst.

After 10 episodes together, the first season of “The Bold Type” concludes this Tuesday at 9 on Freeform. We may not know what’s ahead for these three girls. But we do know that this season has seen big transformations for each one of them. And not matter what happens to each of them, they can handle it, banding together and being bold.

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