This is disappointing. Second season showed that the series was improving. I really don't like the position sitcoms seem to be in today, being written in a small room and filmed well in advance of its release, and not given the chance to respond organically to audience reaction. The show didn't get the opportunities…

And to think, this could’ve all been Greta Gerwig’s...

Yeah, I used to be a purist on this (ie: no alterations ever), but as a teacher I’ve come to see the utility of approaching texts with an eye to careful editing. My go-to example here is Huck Finn. It’s a classic and one of the great American novels. But would I teach it in one of my college courses? Not in its…

“But how will I be extra naughty???!!!” -- Jimmy Franco

In fairness, the book is almost 400 pages long. This anecdote does not take up that much space and is part of a larger discussion about chemistry where he is primarily talking about how chemistry was key to Frasier-Niles working and to Will & Grace and that this is just an example where the chemistry doesn’t work. It’s…

I thought her being awful and awkward with everyone including Ross was the entire point...!

i had done so much reading about that scam beforehand it was a little boring for me, but i love the story of that scam.

This article is missing several J’s in Patrick J Pespas’ name. Please fix this. I am not a crackpot.

Decided to give this a try to sort-of-watch while I’m working at home and was pulled in right away, first the buckwild culture of the telemarketing world (and the highlighted company in particular) and then the ernestness with which drug-crushing telemarketer Patrick turns into a pretty good investigative reporter who…

When I was younger I made the mistake of donating a small amount to what I thought was our local police department’s fund for supporting the families of disabled or dead officers. They obviously put me on some sort of list because within weeks I was getting similar calls every day and it took me a couple of years of…

I’m increasingly getting the impression that the heads of the studios would rather just get out of the whole entertainment business entirely and move into something more reliable like furniture wholesale

Good. We don't need the executive class anyway. They contribute nothing and, like landlords, siphon money off of people while doing literally nothing all damn day.

If this is an opportunity to advocate for Malick’s most recent movie, A Hidden Life, it is an incredibly beautiful film. Challenging but powerful. Don’t let any ill will created from his prior works affect your opinion on this one. It was a magnificent return to form.

Why are the studio heads the ones in the room making offers? They should be sending their best professional negotiators, not the morons who got into this mess in the first place. There is absolutely no “good faith negotiation” that involves the physical presence of David Zaslav.

The take is ALWAYS “this would have been so much better than what we got!” Which completely ignores Sturgeon’s law.

Rebel Moon Part 1: Been There Dune That 

It’s great that Baruchel and Craig Robinson are basically the two best characters in the movie too

The biggest mistake the CW ever made was not renewing their Netflix contract. It basically paid for all of their shows. The CW thought the revenue from HBO Max from their shows would make up the difference. It did not. If the CW renewed that contract, Warner and CBS probably don’t sell their stake in the network.…

It’s just refreshing to see practical effects still being done these days with the absolutely sensory overload of the modern CGI blockbuster spectacle. One of my biggest problems with CG-heavy films that they’re totally disorienting; so much shit flies at me so quickly that I can’t even process it or even be excited…

I haven’t done disc by mail since the early 10s but I remember they often weren’t in great condition either with a lot of scuffs and scratches. The vast majority of them are probably completely worthless, even if they’d have been worth a little something if they still had packaging, so yeah they may just end up in a…