The Surreal Pleasures of ‘The Masked Singer’ The Surreal Pleasures of ‘The Masked Singer’
By discarding all the tropes of standard reality TV, this singing competition allows viewers to revel in pure weirdness.
Jun 2, 2021 / Books & the Arts / Erin Schwartz
The Rigorous Satire of Search Party The Rigorous Satire of "Search Party"
In its fourth season, the HBO show cements its status as cutting, if imperfect, send-up of millennial self-actualization.
Apr 15, 2021 / Books & the Arts / Vikram Murthi
The Places John Lurie Can Take You The Places John Lurie Can Take You
A cult musician, actor, and director returns with a television show that’s nominally about painting but is in reality a creative and spiritual journey.
Mar 31, 2021 / Books & the Arts / Vikram Murthi
The Four Horsemen of the Media Apocalypse The Four Horsemen of the Media Apocalypse
The legacies of Trump, Limbaugh, Murdoch, and Ailes are a lasting plague of misinformation, propaganda, and fake news.
Mar 9, 2021 / Robert Lipsyte
What Popular Culture Misunderstands About Addiction What Popular Culture Misunderstands About Addiction
Much of the film and TV we consume misleads audiences with inaccurate and harmful depictions of recovery and treatment.
Feb 18, 2021 / Books & the Arts / Zachary Siegel
Luca Guadagnino’s Meditation on Youth Luca Guadagnino’s Meditation on Youth
His HBO series We Are Who We Are looks at teenagehood less as a time in one’s life than as a mindset one inhabits.
Jan 27, 2021 / Books & the Arts / Erin Schwartz
A ‘Daily Show’ Cocreator on Karens, Crickets, and Comedy After Trump A ‘Daily Show’ Cocreator on Karens, Crickets, and Comedy After Trump
Lizz Winstead says, “If you can still laugh, you haven’t lost your capacity for hope.”
Jan 13, 2021 / Q&A / Rima Parikh
‘PEN15’ Is So Good It Hurts ‘PEN15’ Is So Good It Hurts
How the Hulu show reinvents the coming-of-age story.
Oct 26, 2020 / Quinn Moreland
The Disabled Community Doesn’t Want Your Pity The Disabled Community Doesn’t Want Your Pity
Why former telethon participants are protesting the return of the Muscular Dystrophy Association’s most famous fundraising effort.
Oct 22, 2020 / Sara Luterman
The Tangle of Desire and Class in ‘Normal People’ The Tangle of Desire and Class in ‘Normal People’
The television adaptation of the Sally Rooney novel depicts how people can fall in love in a world structured by power.
Jul 28, 2020 / Books & the Arts / Erin Schwartz