Put me in the stocks and excoriate me in town square, because I am not a fan of The Handmaid’s Tale. But maybe don’t put me in the stocks, because a) we’re a somewhat civilized people in 2017, and also b) I loved Alias Grace, the other major slash high-profile Margaret Atwood television adaptation released this year. I am … Continue reading
Shocking revelation: I’m a big-time sucker for a good sitcom. My love for Brooklyn Nine-Nine is well-documented, I watched The Mindy Project religiously until it went to Hulu (because, y’know, I didn’t have Hulu at the time), I grew up on Family Matters and Full House and The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, and you get the idea, right? So, basically, I’m … Continue reading
Oh, Top of the Lake: China Girl; I wish I liked you better. The first season of Jane Campion’s SundanceTV series is phenomenal, make no mistake; also make no mistake that she should have left it at one season, assuming that her plan for following it up was always, well, this. Top of the Lake: China Girl … Continue reading
There’s an internal debate raging in the pop culture center of my brain as to whether Epix’s new show, Get Shorty, is actually as good as I think it is, based on its existence as the second adaptation of Elmore Leonard’s 1990 novel (the first being, of course, 1995’s Get Shorty); I’m still mulling over whether it’s … Continue reading
Trust me: I really wanted to love Comrade Detective. I’m fond of most of the people involved, and if I’m naturally inclined to consider the basic conceit of dubbing comic vocal tracks over material that is not at all innately comic, I’m okay with it on the off chance that the people doing it nail the … Continue reading
Well, would you look at that! I got an article up at The ARTery, the arts and culture hub for our local NPR station here in Boston, good ol’ WBUR: It’s a review of Room 104, a new anthology series running on HBO, which just began airing on 07/28. In my estimation, based solely on what … Continue reading
I know it is unfashionable for men to talk about sex and arousal in context with pop culture, but I’m a big dummy who doesn’t know what’s good for him, so I went ahead and did exactly that for The Playlist’s Bingeworthy Breakdown feature, in which I say a bunch of smart stuff, and smartass … Continue reading
Get ready to be bummed, gang: This is my last Brooklyn Nine-Nine write-up. For now! For now. Easy there, you didn’t let me finish. This is my last Brooklyn Nine-Nine write-up for now, as I’ll be unable to cover the rest of the season (ending on the 23rd). But it’s all good! You can still tune into … Continue reading
I know neither how nor why I have managed to forget to share my review of last week’s Brooklyn Nine-Nine. For as long as I’ve been writing about this show, my write-up for “Moo Moo” stands out as one of my favorites, much as “Moo Moo” itself stands out as one of the best episodes in the … Continue reading
Honest admission: I’m not sure if my critique of this week’s Brooklyn Nine-Nine is fair or if I’m just reaching for something critical to say about a pound-for-pound solid episode. It is a little bit of a bummer that the real dramatic “stuff” of the episode is shunted to the side to make space for an A-plot … Continue reading
I can’t stop reviewing The Get Down! Actually, no: That’s a lie. I can. And I have. Sad face. Well, c’mon, you didn’t think the show would go on forever, did you? Granted, Netflix split the first season into two halves, which kinda gave the show a sense of unnatural longevity, but we all knew it … Continue reading
I’ll admit it: I have a hard time writing about The Get Down, not for lack of things to say, but because there’s so much that can be said and should be said about it, and so much that needs to be said to satisfy the purpose of a recap. This is what I get for knocking … Continue reading
I say this a lot, particularly whenever Brooklyn Nine-Nine returns to air after its mid-season break or its season ender, but: Brooklyn Nine-Nine is back, baby! Just like Gina Linetti! I failed, in my recap of “The Audit” for Paste Magazine, to properly salute Dirk Blocker for his perfect delivery of that exact line upon Gina’s return … Continue reading
It’s back! The Get Down is back! Sure, we had to wait for the length of one human reproductive cycle for that to happen, but boy, it’s worth it; episodes seven and eight of season one* are stellar, and let me tell you in advance that they generally get better from here (if a bit messier). The best … Continue reading
I’m officially free of my Taboo-reviewing duties, at least until the next series (because there are two more, apparently, which is as much a surprise to me as it might be to you all) goes to air in 2018, presumably. If I’m being honest, I’m going to miss writing about this thing; I wouldn’t say I … Continue reading
I think I finally figured out how Taboo could have been a better show to start with, and it involves introducing Lucian Msamati’s Sons of Africa lawyer way, way earlier in the narrative than “Episode 5.” George Chichester has a clear cause that could have given the story backbone; by contrast, James Delaney’s cause is muddled, which … Continue reading
…man, I don’t even know with this Taboo show anymore, guys! I’m riding a fucking roller coaster here! The frosted side of me is in love with its unapologetic, bizarre narrative course as well as its aesthetic, which borrows as much from Game of Thrones and Deadwood as it does Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory and Alice in Wonderland. … Continue reading
This week on Taboo: Andy can’t take it anymore, so he dives deep on the show’s lack of focus on its non-Tom Hardy people, especially its non-Tom Hardy people who are ladies. Maybe it’s Oona Chaplin’s lot in life to be cast as women caught under the heels of patriarchal violence, domination, and abuse; I don’t … Continue reading
I’m a big fan of weirdness and debauchery in my visual media, and when you mash them together, all the better. So it’s fair to say that Taboo is slowly but surely becoming more and more my jam as it leans more into its weirdness and its flagrant aristocratic indulgences. To wit: This week’s episode, where … Continue reading
Alright! A quality episode of Taboo! After the stumbles taken in “Episode 2,” it’s nice to see the show get its footing back by actually telling a story instead of just checking off plot points. Plus, people who are not Tom Hardy are now getting more opportunity to strut their stuff, though Hardy is still the … Continue reading
A Constant Visual Feast 