Sometimes comedy illuminates hard truths with a pointed urgency that other means can’t quite achieve. Sometimes comedy is just funny. This series of posts is mostly about the former instances, but the latter is valuable, too. Before I ever watched … Continue reading Laughing Matters — Taxi Driver, the sitcom
Who Dies by Sarah Jones As the national tragedy of the the COVID-19 pandemic has amassed miseries, it has also exposed a multitude of flaws in our existing systems. Many of these flaws are basically known to the monied individuals … Continue reading Outside Reading — The Care Divide edition
Since great television comedy always begins with the script, this series of posts considers the individual episodes that have claimed the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series over the years. “Election Night,” the final episode of … Continue reading Golden Words — Veep, “Election Night”
Voter Fraud Is a Right-Wing Fiction by John Nichols It can’t be put much plainer — or more accurately — than it is in the headline to this article by John Nichols, published by The Nation. The cheap hand-wringing of … Continue reading Outside Reading — Postmarked Democracy edition
Sometimes comedy illuminates hard truths with a pointed urgency that other means can’t quite achieve. Sometimes comedy is just funny. This series of posts is mostly about the former instances, but the latter is valuable, too. About the only good … Continue reading Laughing Matters — Veeps
Since great television comedy always begins with the script, this series of posts considers the individual episodes that have claimed the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series over the years. A familiar woman stands before one … Continue reading Golden Words — Fleabag, “Episode 1”
Sometimes comedy illuminates hard truths with a pointed urgency that other means can’t quite achieve. Sometimes comedy is just funny. This series of posts is mostly about the former instances, but the latter is valuable, too. Perfect writing, perfect acting, … Continue reading Laughing Matters — Nichols and May, “Mother and Son”
A Plea to the TV Networks: Please Release Your Unaired Pilots by Ben Lindbergh I apologize to everyone. There have been many times when I’ve openly mused that it would be nice if we had an extended break creation of … Continue reading Outside Reading — Summer Playhouse edition
These posts are about great acting performances sustained across the full run of a television series. When Dr. Frasier Crane first bellied up to a certain Boston, below-ground bar, there was no inkling that the character would be a fixture … Continue reading The Long Haul — Kelsey Grammer in Cheers and Frasier
If the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences can go ahead and pretend they can proceed with the usual glad-handling and self-congratulation of an awards season, I guess I can keep up my corresponding tradition. Tradition holds that the … Continue reading Top Ten Television, 2019-2020 season
Coffee for Two 