As the classic series The X-Files returns to television, Donald McCarthy explores the ways the show both responded to and predicted our current age of paranoia.
Our list of the 10 Best Television Series of 2015.
Including: Better Call Saul, Daredevil, Fargo, Jessica Jones, The Late Show with David Letterman, The Leftovers, Mr. Robot, Other Space, Rick and Morty, Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt
Kamden Hilliard looks at the hit TV series Black-ish and Empire, and how the shows reflect Black representation in the media.
Donald McCarthy delves into the challenging yet brilliant second season of the HBO's The Leftovers.
TELEVISIONOne For the History Books: A Look at the Fargo Universe
Kamden Hilliard breaks down the odd, homey, brutal shared universe of the Coen Bros. classic film Fargo and its critically-acclaimed TV spinoff.
The Walking Dead is one of the biggest hits in cable television history, so a spin-off was inevitable. So, does Fear the Walking Dead live up to its source material? M.G. Poe takes a look.
The title of Caitlyn Jenner's E Network reality TV series is I am Cait, but who is Cait, really? M.G. Poe explores the series, which charts Caitlyn's struggles with dealing with her gender change, and the reactions of her family, and the rest of the world.
Show Me a Hero, from David Simon and Paul Haggis, has critics raving but audiences are staying away. Donald McCarthy digs into the themes and the real history behind the series, and explains why it's not only gripping television, but important television.
As the dust settles from the complaints and controversies of True Detective Season Two, Donald McCarthy takes an in-depth look at the structure of the season.
HBO's crime anthology series True Detective became a smash hit in its first season by building on the literary noir tradition. As the series delves deep into the mysteries of its second season, Donald McCarthy takes a look at the history of noir fiction, and how it informs the series.
Game of Thrones the HBO series differs from its source material, George R.R. Martin's A Song of Fire and Ice, in many ways. One area that it often falls short is in pacing and character development. Donald McCarthy takes us through a few recent comparisons from the final episodes of Season Five, and how they match up to A Dance With Dragons.
Meditations on a Finale: A Mad Men Discussion
Did Don Draper create the Coke commercial? Is Peggy Olson's ending truly happy? The Drunk Monkeys staff gets together to discuss the series finale of Mad Men, and look back at the series itself, its charactres, and its place in television history.
Because these twists are not outlandish, the show can get away with them, since our own lives are filled with sudden changes. Someone we know suddenly dies. We find out we’re being laid off without warning. A lover decides to end a relationship. In hindsight there may have been signs, but in the moment it’s like a smack in the face.
If network television has been slowly dying for the past decade, then 2014 was the year that the plug was pulled. Of our top ten picks, only two of them (Bob’s Burgers and Brooklyn Nine-Nine, both of FOX Sundays), came from one of the four major networks. And only two of the other choices in this year’s poll came from either ABC, CBS, NBC, or FOX.
I’m going to discuss this year’s best television show, Shameless, by committing just a little bit of blasphemy. Here goes: Shameless is like The Wire.
No, don’t stop reading. I get it, it’s not as good as The Wire. It’s certainly not as gritty or complex or unrelentingly cynical. It’s not Important Television. But it gets one thing exactly like The Wire: It doesn’t sugarcoat the truth, and it earns every small moment of grace.
When Boardwalk Empire arrived on the scene in September 2010, it was expected to be a ratings hit for HBO. With Martin Scorsese directing the pilot, former The Sopranos writer Terence Winter scripting, longtime actor Steve Buscemi as the star, and a gangland setting in the 1920s, Boardwalk Empire had a lot going for it. The premiere episode had about 5 million live viewers. By the time the season finale rolled around, the ratings would be around 3 million. Currently, during its last season, Boardwalk Empire, averages around 2 million live viewers per episode.
Can you name any Islamic characters on western TV? Okay, Abed from Community. And that guy from Lost. Also that one guy on Bones. Any others? If you’re particularly well-versed in television and TV lore, then you might be able to think up a handful of supporting characters, maybe a dozen cameos, and a few bit-parts might come to mind, but how many regular characters on television are Muslim? The answer is very few.
When I was young, I had a nightmare about a creature living in my kitchen. The creature had three eyes, but no other features on its half-circle face other than dark hair on top of its head. It sat on the floor, moving only by dragging itself around the room. I could not speak if the creature was near me; I could not call out for help from my parents nor could I ask the creature to leave me alone.
Historically, I never cared a whole lot about the Emmys. TV tended to fall short of what I considered to be “high art” (that designation belonged to the cinema) and therefore the awards for such a medium didn’t really seem to be worth that much, ultimately. It’s like your kid winning best actor in his elementary school. But, as we all know, TV is indeed high art now. The worm has absolutely turned, and while my first love will always be movies, there has been some damn good television for a decade or more, and it shows no sign of slipping in quality. For everyBreaking Bad we lose, we gain an Orange is the New Black and a True Detective. Time is a flat circle.