What’s So Funny About Tragic Things?
Scepanski’s Tragedy Plus Time takes a serious look at how comedy and satire in American media make light of dark matters.
Television
Can Michael Gandolfini Embody The Sopranos’ New Devil?
James Gandolfini’s crime boss Tony Soprano endeared himself to millions of ostensibly law-abiding Americans. Can Michael Gandolfini fill his blood-stained shoes?
Netflix’s ‘High on the Hog’ Is an Overdue Celebration of African American Cuisine
Entertaining and informative, High on the Hog disrupts the Eurocentrism entrenched in the culinary world that tends to devalue so-called ethnic foods.
Nida Manzoor’s Comedy ‘We Are Lady Parts’ Shatters Muslim Stereotypes One Punk Song at a Time
Nida Manzoor’s punk rock comedy We Are Lady Parts beautifully captures that the performance and expression of Muslim identity are complex and multifaceted.
Bo Burnham’s Pandemic Comedy Special ‘Inside’ Is the Krapp’s Last Tape of Our Times
Like Beckett’s Krapp’s Last Tape, Bo Burnham’s Inside offers rich insights into how our psyches and sense of self get warped by ever-advancing technologies.
Chris Brancato on the Moral Conundrum in ‘Godfather of Harlem’
Chris Brancato talks about addressing today’s hot-topic social issues through the lens of the ’60s in the television series, Godfather of Harlem.
PopMatters Seeks Television Critics and Essayists
We are interested in articles about quality television shows. These TV series challenge prejudices and subvert assumptions, and are as artful in their depiction as the best cinema.
Anthony Bourdain’s Last Word on Travel
In World Travel, readers are once again welcomed to Anthony Bourdain’s world, although that world is trapped in time.
Why We Didn’t Need a ‘Friends’ Reunion
The Friends Reunion has awakened the beast of ’90s nostalgia…but what else has it unearthed?
Anja Marquardt’s Storytelling Sorcery in ‘The Girlfriend Experience’ S3
Anja Marquardt, co-creator of ‘The Girlfriend Experience’ with Lodge Kerrigan and Amy Seimetz, talks about the magic of creating something outside one’s self.
HBO Crime Drama ‘Mare of Easttown’ Perpetuates a Familiar and Dangerous Trope
Typical of crime dramas, HBO’s Mare of Easttown‘s police and witnesses blatantly display their contempt for sex workers.