If you want to talk to Bill Gates about megabytes versus gigabytes or Linux’s vulnerabilities, the Microsoft co-founder will be happy to engage. But if you want to see what happens when a human being freezes in the same your sh*tty old PC is always doing, just ask him a question about his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein.
On Tuesday night, PBS News Hour’s Judy Woodruff sat down with the Microsoft co-founder, who is in New York City this week as part of the United Nations General Assembly to address global threats including climate change, COVID-19, and racism. But when the topic turned to Epstein, well, things got painfully cringey—both for Gates and viewers alike.
After more than 10 minutes of niceties, Woodruff turned the topic to Gates’ relationship with Epstein, as Mediaite notes. Here’s how that conversation went:
Woodruff: You had a number of meetings with Jeffrey Epstein, who—when you met him 10 years ago—he was convicted of soliciting prostitution from minors. What did you know about him when you were meeting with him, as you’ve said yourself, in the hopes of raising money?
Gates: You know, I had dinners with him. I regret doing that. He had relationships with people he said would give to global health, which is an interest I have. Not nearly enough philanthropy goes in that direction. Those meetings were a mistake. They didn’t result in what he purported, and I cut them off. You know, that goes back a long time ago now. So there’s nothing new on that.
Woodruff seemed to question that version of events, noting: “It was reported that you continued to meet with him over several years, and [that there were] a number of meetings. What did you do when you found out about his background?
Gates’ response?
PBS News Hour
Then he just basically repeated himself: “You know, I’ve said I regretted having those dinners, and there’s nothing, absolutely nothing new on that.”
Then came the real kicker:
Woodruff: Is there a lesson? For you—for anyone else looking at this?
Gates: Well, he’s dead, so… Ahhhh… In general, you always have to be careful. Uhhhh…
It’s hard to argue with that: Epstein is dead.
You can watch the super awkward exchange beginning around the 10:50 mark above.
Earlier this week, BTS popped up at the 76th United Nations General Assembly to perform “Permission To Dance” and discuss vaccines. They are, after all, the “special presidential envoy for future generations and culture,” a formal diplomatic designation bestowed upon them by South Korea president Moon Jae-in. Naturally, the group’s visit was the topic of much discussion, and now James Corden finds himself on the receiving end of some backlash over comments he made on The Late Late Show.
During a monologue after the BTS UN appearance, he cracked some jokes, most of which were innocent, like noting that BTS — who have been on The Late Late Show on numerousoccasions — has one of the largest armies (their fan base is known as the BTS Army) in the world. Where he ruffled some feathers, though, was when he said, “Historic moment: It actually marks the first time 15-year-old girls everywhere found themselves withing that they were Secretary-General António Guterres.”
The reaction to Corden’s comments got him trending on Twitter, and one BTS fan summarized the tone of and/or the reason behind the reactions well, writing, “James Corden, as a teenage girl myself I just want to take a moment to say leave us alone. I’m not brainless for liking a boy band, and neither does me liking a boy band invalidate their achievements. Stop using my gender and age as a way of mocking other people and what they do.”
James Corden, as a teenage girl myself I just want to take a moment to say leave us alone. I’m not brainless for liking a boy band, and neither does me liking a boy band invalidate their achievements. Stop using my gender and age as a way of mocking other people and what they do.
Others took exception with Corden referring to BTS’ appearance as “unusual.” One user pushed back on that characterization, noting that BTS has “dropped millions on donations, voice their views on climate change, and have spoken up about equality of gender, age, and sexual identity.”
james corden was never bts’ friend, stop kissing his ass already. to call bts “unusual guests” of the UNITED NATIONS as if they havent already dropped millions on donations, voice their views on climate change and have spoken up about equality of gender, age and sexual identity +
Didn’t really expect James Corden to say some bs about BTS. How is he gonna talk about BTS performing & attending UNGA when he’s literally demeaning them by calling their presence unusual and our fandom a bunch of 15 y/o girls? Smh I’m disappointed af https://t.co/TnangRpa24
Papa Mochi no more. James Corden talked about BTS appearance at the UNGA in his show and he thinks the UN guesting BTS was an “unusual” and “weird” experience by BTS “visiting” the UNGA, he also called ARMYs a bunch of “15 years old GIRLS”#BTSatUNGA#BTS#방탄소년단pic.twitter.com/j3VjKOoHej
i disagree about corden’s clip being “not that bad” or “BARELY problematic”. the reason why i & many others were put off by corden is not bc he made a “mild joke”. it’s because we saw that there had never been respect in those years of his “long supportive relationship” with bts https://t.co/UQeKuDVGGe
I think you’ve all said what needed to be said about Corden’s distasteful & unfunny bit, but I will repeat — it is so exhausting to see this continued misogyny against BTS fans, and the constant downgrading of BTS’ own impact & influence. It’s never funny.
According to Variety the show was thrown by New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft, and was just a small concert held at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro, Massachusetts. During the set, Mick addressed the fact that it was the band’s first performance in close to sixty years without Charlie keeping time for them. “This is the first show of our 2021 tour, this is it, this is the tryout,” he began. “I must say though, at this point it’s a bit of a poignant night for us: This is our first tour in 59 years that we’ve done without our lovely Charlie Watts. And we all miss Charlie so much.” From there, the band went on to dedicate the entire show to their fallen friend and bandmate. Check out Mick’s speech below.
The Golden State Warriors keep popping up as a potential trade destination for Ben Simmons despite the fact that the team seems adamant that it does not want to make a deal happen. The logic for including them in these conversations is sound: they like stars, Simmons is a star, and as their core is aging, he can serve as a bridge and a featured member of whatever the team looks like in the post-Steph Curry/Klay Thompson/Draymond Green era.
The issue is that the Warriors aren’t especially keen on doing this. While it had been reported in the past, owner Joe Lacob confirmed the team has major reservations about a Simmons deal in an interview with Rusty Simmons of the San Francisco Chronicle. While he did not specifically name Simmons — he said a “Defensive Player of the Year candidate in Philadelphia” — it’s not hard to read between the lines.
“In some ways, it doesn’t really fit what we’re doing. He makes a lot of money. And, can he finish games? I don’t know,” Lacob said, per ClutchPoints. “He’s very talented. The problem is: We have Draymond. Draymond and him are very similar in the sense that neither one really shoots and they do a lot of the playmaking. That’s one issue. The salary structure is another.”
The fit with Green has been a reason folks bring up while expressing reservations about a Simmons-to-Golden State trade, because while Curry is Curry and Thompson was a flamethrower prior to his back-to-back serious injuries that have kept him out since 2019, two non-shooters negate the advantage that comes here. And while there are avenues for the Warriors to make this trade happen financially, it would be largely dependent on Philly being willing to take Andrew Wiggins back in a deal along with whatever number of young players they’d want.
This trade is a fun hypothetical, and it would certainly not be the first time an executive used the media as a smokescreen before doing the exact thing they said wouldn’t happen if the Warriors choose to go down that route. Having said that, it appears Lacob is steadfast in saying that the team isn’t in the Simmons market right now, and they might not ever end up there.
This year’s Emmys did a bit better in the ratings than the one before. Perhaps that had to do with it mostly being an in-person affair again, with only a few (like The Crown winner Olivia Colman) beaming in from elsewhere. (And no one accepted an award in their basement in a kimono this time.) But it didn’t all go off swimmingly. One of the breakout moments came early on, when presenter Seth Rogen ranted against the show for being indoors, in a “hermetically sealed tent” with a roof.
Now we know two things: a) Rogen went off-script, and b) the show’s producers were pissed. Ian Stewart and Reginald Hudlin gave an exit interview with Variety, and they went off about the ad-libbed screed.
“We have worked for months and months to make that a safe space,” Stewart said. “We’ve worked with all the health authorities. We were signed off by LA County, we came up with a plan with them. Those tables were distanced. Everyone was vaccinated. Everyone was negative tested in that audience. And also he had rehearsed. So he knew exactly what it was. So, I just felt it was an unfortunate misdirect from him. Because it wasn’t just our decision. This is the health authorities’ decision as well, to say that it’s a completely safe environment if you do all those things.”
They tried to put out the fire by asking host Cedric the Entertainer and DJ Reggie Watts to point out all the safety protocols they put in place. But the damage was already done.
“It made three months of very hard work and many, many discussions to get it absolutely right feel a little bit wasted, really,” Stewart says. “And then we just sort of played catch up. Because we wanted the audience to know how safe it was in there. We work in this industry, we’re desperately aware of COVID. I’ve done 50 productions nearly in COVID and no have people get sick. So, it’s deeply frustrating.”
Rogen wasn’t the only one who enraged Stewart and Hudlin. The Queen’s Gambit writer/director/co-creator Scott Frank’s four-minute-plus speech also drew their ire. As Stewart put it:
“It’s a simple equation. These people are professionals. They understand what’s going on, it’s their industry. It’s not a sports awards. So they know what they are doing and the simple fact is, they know there’s only a finite amount of time. I’d love them to be able to speak for half an hour if they wanted to. But we don’t have that time. So it’s a simple equation. If you think that you have to speak for four or five minutes, that means somebody else can’t. It’s just incredibly disrespectful to your fellow nominees.”
One smaller headache: The show ran so long — almost three-and-a-half hours — that they wound up cutting a pre-taped bit that included Bernie Sanders. But there were lots of things that, to them, went well. They had nothing but praise for Conan O’Brien randomly heckling TV Academy CEO Frank Scherma as he tried to give a speech, though they did struggle to get a shot of the late night legend as he loudly shouted. “I love those moments, that’s what we love as producers,” Stewart said. “When those things happen that you didn’t know was going to happen. And you know he was only doing it in good humor.”
Oh, and Rita Wilson rapping, which puzzled a lot of viewers? That was Hudlin’s idea.
When all else fails, sue. That’s long been Donald Trump’s philosophy. Last year, after he lost re-election by several million votes, he clogged the courts with lawsuits, most (if not all) of them frivolous, most (if not all) of them laughed out of the room. (Meanwhile, he and many of his associates are facing genuine legal peril.) So when he filed lawsuits against his niece (and frequent critic), Mary Trump, as well as The New York Times, all the former could do was laugh.
Donald’s case, as reported by The Daily Beast? It alleges that Mary, who wrote a bestselling takedown of her uncle, was coerced by the paper to “smuggle records out of her attorney’s office and turn them over to The Times.” The findings were made public in the 2018 story that revealed how little he’d paid in federal income taxes, which he’d previously refused to disclose. Mary’s actions, the suit alleges, is in violation of confidentiality agreement she signed in 2001. Trump is seeking “an amount to be determined at trial, but believed to be no less than One Hundred Million Dollars” from both parties.
It’s not the first time Mary Trump has been sued for saying or doing mean things against her uncle. A suit filed on behalf of the former president last year tried to stop her book Too Much and Never Enough: How My Family Created the World’s Most Dangerous Man. That did not work, as per the Beast:
Judge Hal Greenwald ruled in that case that the 2001 confidentiality agreement had been too vaguely defined to stop her from writing about the sitting president and noted that her publisher had not been a signatory to that agreement. Robert Trump died in August 2020.
But Mary doesn’t appear to be worried. “I think he is a f*cking loser, and he is going to throw anything against the wall he can,” Mary told the Beast about her uncle’s new suit. “It’s desperation. The walls are closing in and he is throwing anything against the wall that will stick. As is always the case with Donald, he’ll try and change the subject.”
In the meantime, guess who’s already in the midst of suing Donald Trump? Mary Trump. Shortly after Too Much and Never Enough was published, she filed a lawsuit against him; his sister, retired federal appeals court Judge Maryanne Trump Barry; as well as the executor of his brother Robert Trump’s estate. She accused them of fraud, claiming they’d stolen millions from her after death of her father, Frederick Trump Jr., in 1981. One guess on which lawsuit will likely hold water.
If we’ve learned one thing during the age of the streaming wars it’s this: don’t sleep on Hulu.
Sure, Netflix has the original series on lock, but Hulu’s got all of the peak TV happening everywhere else — from FX dramas to NBC comedies and OG favorites on prestige networks. Whether you’re watching for the first time or in need of a re-watch, there are plenty of shows to keep your binge-watching schedule busy. So here are the best TV shows on Hulu right now.
Nicole Kidman plays an ambiguously accented wellness guru in this mindf*ck of a dramedy about a group of privileged and plagued people searching for enlightenment in the strangest of places. Kidman’s Masha is the ringleader, a woman with a mysterious past and an even more muddled plan for the future of her psychedelic-minded commune. She tries to heal various mental and emotional ailments — a family mourning the loss of their son, a woman swindled by an internet predator, a couple on the rocks, a divorcee with anger issues, and a former pro-footballer with a drug problem — but you quickly get the feeling that whether she succeeds in that is secondary to her greater ambitions for the group. Everyone from Melissa McCarthy to Bobby Cannavale and Michael Shannon is in this thing, and they’re all terrific.
Reservation Dogs is proof we’ve come a long way in terms of representation on TV. Not only is this a comedy show about Indigenous people, made by Indigenous people, on Indigenous land – it’s also a story that doesn’t relegate its characters to background noise. A story about Native American kids that focuses solely on their triumphs and struggles – as hilarious and ridiculous and low stakes as they may be. It pulls from tones in other shows like Betty and Atlanta, so if you vibe with those, you’ll probably enjoy the comedic atmosphere here.
There are plenty of worthwhile animated comedies on TV right now (a few are already on this list), but it’d be a mistake to overlook Fox’s Bob’s Burgers. The show centers on the Belcher family — Bob, Linda, and their three children, Tina, Gene, and Louise — who own a hamburger joint in a nondescript seaside town. There are rivalries with fellow restaurant owners, running-gags involving inappropriate business names (Moist Yoga anyone?) and plenty of filthy family humor to keep you hooked.
What happens when a documentary crew trails a group of thousand-year-old vampires rooming together in a Staten Island mansion? This punchline of a comedy series created by geniuses Taika Waititi and Jemaine Clement. The show, which borrows inspiration from its film predecessor, introduces a trio of undead friends – Nandor (Kayvan Novak), Nadja (Natasia Demetriou), and Laszlo (Matt Berry) – stuck in a house with their familiar Guillermo (Harvey Guillén) and an energy-sucking vamp named Colin Robinson (Mark Proksch). Weird sh*t goes down in every episode but the show really flourishes in season two. Vampire councils, semen-thieving witches, Haley Joel Osment as a zombie, and small-town American hero Jackie Daytona were just a few highlights.
Sandra Oh and Jodie Comer go head-to-head in a gripping, globe-trotting game of cat-and-mouse in this spy-thriller from BBC. Oh (who earned a history-making Emmy for this role) plays the titular Eve (Polastri), a British Intelligence operative obsessed with catching an elusive assassin named Villanelle (Comer). Villanelle is a psychopath, one with a dark past and a love for the work she does — she’s damn good at it too — and the two capable women soon find their lives entwined in ways neither of them expected.
The fifth season might have been the one minor letdown in its run, but Justified came back strong in its sixth and final season, making it one of television’s best all-time complete series. Justified boasts not only the two most charismatic characters around in trigger-happy Raylan Givens (Timothy Olyphant) and its sly villain, Boyd Crowder (Walton Goggins), but also the quickest 42 minutes on television. No hour-long drama flies by faster than Justified, which also makes it a great series to binge-watch. Moreover, Justified not only boasts smart, economic Elmore Leonard-inspired writing and crackling dialogue (under the direction of showrunner Graham Yost), but the stories are as engrossing as Leonard’s were page-turning. It’s not a perfect series, but even its flaws are endearing. (Bonus: Justified also features nearly every major actor from Deadwood at some point in the series.)
Damon Lindelof’s hit TV series about the survivors of a horrific plane crash, who try to find a way off the island they’ve been stranded on, is much more than the sum of its parts. Sure, a polar bear makes a strange cameo, smoke monsters haunt the group, and the finale left much to be desired, but at its core, Lost was always a show that tackled the big themes: Life, death, science vs. faith. It treated us to brilliant performances by an ensemble cast and broadened the imagined horizons of the TV landscape. Without Lost, some of the most epic series we enjoy today wouldn’t be possible. Show some respect and give it another watch on Hulu.
The antics of this New York police precinct are endlessly hilarious, with every character getting their moment to shine. Brooklyn Nine-Nine has one of the most wonderful casts currently on television, and it hasn’t slowed down a bit from its banner freshman season. While it is technically Jake Peralta’s (Andy Samberg) show, it’s one of the few true ensemble shows on television right now. It’s not that Samberg isn’t good, he is, but the same could also be said of Stephanie Beatriz’s Rosa or Terry Crews’ Terry or almost every other character. A workplace comedy at its core, Brooklyn Nine-Nine proves that showrunner Mike Schur is on a hot streak that shows no sign of slowing down.
Few people thought showrunner Noah Hawley could pull off a TV adaptation of the beloved crime thriller from the Coen Brothers but here we are, four seasons later with Fargo cementing itself as one of the best dramas on TV. Instead of a rote retelling of the classic crime tale, viewers were treated to a top-notch cast, shocking violence, incredible character names, and stunning visuals. While honoring the legacy of the original film in the details, Fargo managed to become a unique and essential addition to the current television landscape and it’s given names like Ewan McGregor and Chris Rock a chance to reinvent themselves for a new audience.
It’s not enough to praise Atlanta for being the most inventive show on TV — though plenty of critics have. To understand the genius of Donald Glover’s sometimes-comedy series, you simply have to watch it. The show follows Glover’s Earn, a young black man living in the titular city who’s down on his luck. He’s basically homeless when we meet him in the first episode, selling credit cards, making no money, and trying to manage the rap career of his cousin, Paper Boi (Brian Tyree Henry). Over the course of the first and second season, Earn wrestles with issues of race, classism, and his own sense of self-worth. It’s a show that will probably feel familiar to some and strangely alien to others, but it should be required viewing for everyone.
Few shows have as many jokes per minute as 30 Rock. The brainchild of Tina Fey, 30 Rock shows the daily madness of an SNL-like variety show, which Fey’s Liz Lemon at the helm. As she tries (sometimes failing) to wrangle her writers and her actors (Tracy Morgan and Jane Krakowski), Lemon also attempts the ever elusive dream of “having it all.” Her quest will feel very, very familiar to viewers, particularly women, as they try and balance, work, life, love, and even a small bit of success. With Alec Baldwin turning in his best performance to date (come at me, Glengarry Glen Ross fans) as Jack Donaghy, Lemon’s boss, mentor, and eventual friend, 30 Rock has the perfect blend of weirdness, sharp writing, and genuine laughs that will make it a favorite for years to come.
Few shows have become as influential in the cultural lexicon as this Margaret Atwood adaptation. The timing of this dystopian classic, combined with its stellar cast and gripping storylines has propelled it to something more than just another TV show. America as we know it is no more, taken over by a Christian fundamentalist organization newly christened Gilead. However, things are not as idyllic as the name would suggest, as women are no longer allowed to have jobs, rights, hold property, or have any sort of agency. Instead, they are either handmaids, a select few still-fertile women who are essentially used as broodmares for powerful men, and Marthas, who work in rich households. Elisabeth Moss turns in a strong performance as Ofglen, the titular handmaid who is trying to survive and escape to her fugitive family, but Alexis Bledel, Samira Wiley, Ann Dowd, and Yvonne Strahovski all deliver memorable moments as fellow women trying to survive this harsh new world.
For a show about nothing, Seinfeld has left a cultural imprint that few shows can boast of achieving. Back before shows about neurotic people were the latest trend, Jerry Seinfeld blended his own neuroses with his stand up act, creating a New York landscape that many could relate to. With stories based on the minutiae of relationships and every day living, Seinfeld embedded itself in the cultural zeitgeist like few shows have done. Even if you’ve never seen an episode, you still know about the Soup Nazi and Newman. Plus, Veep fans will enjoy seeing a pre-presidential Julia Louis-Dreyfus as the hilariously frazzled Elaine Benes. If you’ve been meaning to watch the show that has made people laugh for decades, Hulu has you covered.
Joss Whedon has gone on to giant blockbusters since his days on The WB, but Buffy the Vampire Slayer will forever be his magnum opus. Buffy offered the perfect blend of horror, comedy, and feels, with episodes and characters that have stuck with viewers for years. Sarah Michelle Gellar’s titular slayer perfectly balanced the ordinary pains of growing up against the extraordinary and supernatural circumstances that come with living on a Hellmouth. The clothing and catchphrases might be deeply rooted in the ’90s, but the themes are timeless. Even if you don’t know your standard demon curse from an ancient rune, Buffy is essential. It’ll rip your heart out, but you’ll like it anyway.
Has there ever been a sitcom as downright clever as Community? Aside from the gas leak year, Community was quicker than nearly every other comedy out there, with jokes flying fast but also taking seasons to reach a punchline. After getting caught with a phony degree, former lawyer Jeff Winger (Joel McHale) heads to Greendale Community College to get a legitimate degree. There he gets into increasingly hilarious hijinks with his Spanish study group. Between paintball wars, zombie outbreaks, and the increasingly ridiculous presence of Senor Chang (Ken Jeong), Community is never, ever boring. Quit living in the darkest timeline and get to watching.
There’s no denying that the protagonists of It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia are amoral psychopaths. (Looking at you especially, Dennis.) But there are few shows out there that will elicit the same belly laughs. As these raging narcissists hang around Paddy’s Irish Pub, you will be struck by the lack of self-awareness while at the same time hoping things never change. Glenn Howerton and Charlie Day shine especially bright, sucking into a vortex of kitten mittens and Nightman. Whether or not you believe in a higher power, you will thank your gods that you are better adjusted than these assholes. What might be even more miraculous than so thoroughly enjoying a show about such sh*tty human beings though is how the series manages to continue to operate at such a high level, 14 seasons later.
There’s so much to love about Joss Whedon’s space cowboy series, it still boggles our minds that the show was canceled before it could get a second season. Still, the 14 episodes available on Hulu are worth a binge. Nathan Fillion plays Mal Reynolds, captain of a clunk of metal scavenging the galaxy 500 years into the future. He’s got a motley crew on board — Gina Torres, Alan Tudyk, and Morena Baccarin also star — and he regularly gets into trouble with his less-than-legal side jobs. The writing is top-notch, the world-building is fascinating, and the chemistry is off the charts.
Despite being off the air for decades, the mysteries of Twin Peaks still tormented viewers, and even after the 2017 revival, they’re left more confused than ever. After the murder of homecoming queen Laura Palmer (Sheryl Lee), FBI Special Agent Dale Cooper (Kyle MacLachlan) peers beneath the veneer of the small town of Twin Peaks, Wash., and finds a strange darkness under the surface. If you’re a fan of bizarre mysteries and a damn fine cup of coffee, Twin Peaks is the head trip for you.
Many sci-fi shows have come into the geeky pantheon of television, but The X-Files remains a benchmark. While the revival series wasn’t quite what fans were hoping for, seeing the unbeatable team of Mulder (David Duchovny) and Scully (Gillian Anderson) back in action was a treat. Still, going back to the beginning is the only way to go with the show. Whether you get caught up in the monster of the week storylines or like digging into the overarching mythology, The X-Files will stick with you for years to come.
t’s been over 20 years since NBC canceled this coming-of-age comedy, but now that it’s available to stream on Hulu, why not watch (or re-watch) it, if just to have a laugh at how stupid the TV exec who trashed this show looks right now. The series acts as a primer for the contemporary generation of comedy. Judd Apatow, Seth Rogen, James Franco, Jason Segal, and Paul Feig (among others) honed their craft over the course of 18 episodes, and the only true gripe you’ll come away with after sitting through one season is that there isn’t more.
While it started as a hilarious James Bond spoof, Archer has really evolved into a show that can stand on its own. As super spies Sterling Archer (H. Jon Benjamin) and Lana Kane (Aisha Tyler) are out doing the cool derring-do for ISIS (not that ISIS), the rest of the desk jockeys are left to deal with their mess and a lack of unionization. Archer quickly banishes the idea that cartoons are just for children (seriously, this show is not for children) with enough sex, drugs, and terrible behavior that Bond himself would blush. We’re still all in, 11 seasons, one trip to outer space, and an extremely long coma later.
Many wondered how Dan Harmon would follow up the perfection that was Community at its peak, and he certainly delivered with Rick and Morty. Like a demented version of Back to the Future, Rick and Morty follows a super scientist and his less-than-genius grandson on a variety of adventures. It’s part cartoon, part “cosmic horror.” Who knew that following a vomiting scientist and his dimwitted grandson could be so brilliant? Rick and Morty is a demented work of escapism for adults that’s not to be missed. It’s also a still relatively underground show that’s waiting to burst forth into a broader audience. Get in on the goodness now.
This cult teen drama has enjoyed a handful of revivals over the years — most notably a Kickstarter movie and a Hulu-produced fourth season — but to truly enjoy this noir, Nancy Drew-like adventure, you’ve got to go back to the beginning. We meet Veronica Mars (Kristen Bell) as a fresh-faced teenager who’s become a social pariah following the murder of her best friend. As she investigates a death that rocked the sea-side town, graduates to college sleuthing, and juggles romantic interests, Veronica takes down bad guys and stays a step ahead of the adults around her. And she keeps kicking a** into adulthood. Come for the witty banter and thrilling games of cat-and-mouse, stay for Bell, who’s never been better.
The brains behind sci-fi thrillers like Ex Machina and Annihilation gives us another mind-bending drama, this time for the small screen. Devs focuses on a young software engineer named Lily Chan who begins digging into a secret division of the cutting-edge tech company she works for in Silicon Valley because, get this, they probably murdered her boyfriend.
Michael Chiklis stars in this Golden Globe-winning police drama about a corrupt PD unit and the officers who operate within it. Chiklis plays Detective Vic Mackey, a thuggish anti-hero with a brutal methodology when it comes to police work. He leads a team of cops who aren’t afraid to get their hands dirty to take down criminals in L.A.’s notoriously crime-ridden district known as The Farm. It’s a gritty, violent look at police work that feels a bit more honest than others of its ilk and loves to paint its leads in shades of grey.
Noah Hawley might’ve proven he could shatter expectations with his Fargo reboot but what he’s done on FX’s comic series Legion is truly mind-blowing. The show, which exists in both the Marvel universe and the X-Men series, follows David Haller (Dan Stevens), a man with incredible powers, a murky past, and a demon parasite leeching his abilities while slowly making him go insane. The series begins in an insane asylum before traveling to secret government facilities, astral planes, and the future so good luck keeping track of the action. Better to just strap yourself in, enjoy the wild ride, and not worry whether what you’re seeing is real, or just all in David’s head.
There is a rough-around-the-edges quality that makes Misfits irresistible. A rotating team of adolescents gains supernatural powers while they’re fulfilling their criminal community service requirements, but the X-Men they are not. It’s not easy to categorize them as “the good guys” considering all of the people they accidentally kill, but they certainly mean well. Fans of Game of Thrones and Preacher will see some familiar faces, but the whole cast is aces. There are rumblings of an American remake, but hopefully, that will never come to fruition. There is something so decidedly British about Misfits, but not in the stuffy way that people assume. It’s gritty, it’s crass, and to water that down for stateside sensibilities would be a crime.
Fans of Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz need to return to the show that birthed the miraculous creative team of Edgar Wright, Simon Pegg, and Nick Frost. Spaced captures the Gen X experience in a totally unique way. Like a hopelessly nerdy Reality Bites, the trials of Tim (Pegg) and Daisy (Jessica Hynes) will feel painfully real for those of us who have had dead-end jobs, dead-end relationships, and a seemingly dead-end life. It’s not all so bad, though. Despite the sometimes dire circumstances, the show maintains a pleasant optimism. Even if The Phantom Menace let you down, at least you can rewatch the original Star Wars trilogy as many times as you want. While the show is decidedly more low key than Wright’s future film endeavors, you can see the trademark style coming through in every single frame.
While the show may have lost a little steam in the middle of its run, when Sons of Anarchy was good, it was electric. As Jax Teller (Charlie Hunnam) struggled to find his place as the leader of his father’s old motorcycle gang, he is often made to wonder if the violence and stress on his family is worth the adrenaline and power. Kurt Sutter is a divisive figure in Hollywood, but he caught lightning in a bottle with SoA. With an endless parade of shocking moments and killer characters, few shows will keep you on the edge of your seat in the same way. You’ll be awfully glad you aren’t a part of SAMCRO, but you won’t be able to look away all the same. Just don’t go out and buy a motorcycle on a whim. You probably can’t pull off the leather. A television binge is the safer way to go.
What can we say about this genre-defining workplace comedy that hasn’t been said before? Ricky Gervais’ mockumentary has influenced some of the greatest works on television, and despite its many predecessors, it remains the best example of what a good, mundane comedy series can do. Gervais as clueless boss David Brent, whose desperate attempts at connecting with his underlings are a painful exercise in futility. Martin Freeman is also a stand-out, playing a role that John Krasinski inhabited in the American remake, but it’s the British sarcasm that really elevates this series and makes it worthy of a watch.
If you’re looking for a show that will kick you in the balls and then pass you a mimosa, You’re the Worst is that show. It might have you crying tears of laughter in one scene, then leave you wondering “this is a COMEDY, right?!” in the next. It’s that dichotomy that makes it so vital to the modern television landscape. You owe it to yourself to be introduced to the familiar toxicity of Gretchen (Aya Cash) and Jimmy (Chris Geere) before the FX comedy returns. There are few comedies that so aptly mock modern mores of adulthood while still treating its characters with compassion, even if they don’t deserve it. Plus, there are few shows that perfectly express how it feels to be clinically depressed. Come for the trash juice, stay for the insight.
Comedian Ramy Youssef stars in this semi-autobiographical dramedy, playing a version of himself, a character named Ramy Hassan. Ramy navigates life growing up in New Jersey while straddling the line between the millennial generation he’s a part of and the Muslim community he belongs to. He wrestles with the constraints of his religion and his upbringing, while searching for meaning in more modern pursuits — drinking, partying, and hooking up. It’s heartwarming, eye-opening, and never takes itself too seriously.
There are few sitcoms as endlessly inventive and bitingly funny as Peep Show. Born from the hilariously warped minds of British comedians David Mitchell and Robert Webb, the series focuses on Mark and Jez, two combatant roommates who are both failing at being an adult in their own awful ways. Told from different character perspectives, viewers get an inside look into their inner monologues. You may cringe into your sofa at some of their foibles, but never stop laughing. As these two idiots try and fail to successfully navigate life, at least they have the best and sharpest jokes.
There is always a little twinge of sadness when you finish a Party Down binge. With only two short seasons, there is always a feeling of “what could have been.” A show about people who can really only be classified as “losers,” Party Down masks a sharp emotional pain beneath hilarious guest stars and “Are we having fun yet?!” If you have ever been disappointed by how your life has turned out, be it by circumstance or your own bad choices, you will painfully relate with someone on the titular catering crew. Adam Scott and Lizzy Caplan have killer chemistry as two self-destructive people who see themselves as better than their circumstances but refuse to make the kind of decisions that will help them get what they want. It’s easier to coast along and mock the absurd customers than to actually try.
When Evan Goldberg and Seth Rogen announced plans to create a TV series based on the DC comic book series Preacher, the gut reaction was to ask, how? The series (anti)hero is a bad-boy preacher who is imbued with supernatural abilities after being possessed by a creature named Genesis. It’s a tall order for a TV show to tackle, even one on AMC, but somehow Rogen and Goldberg were able to translate the over-the-top weirdness of the comic book (think angels, demons, drunken vampires, and a character with an a**hole for a mouth) into a strangely poignant, at times frustrating, drama. Seeing is believing with this one.
Scrubs is more than “Guy Love.” Despite the show’s penchant for trafficking in absurd humor, Scrubs managed to pack in deeply emotional moments while also getting called “the most accurate television show about the medical profession.” While the final season may have been a departure from the original charm (it did give us Eliza Coupe, though, so it gets a pass), Zach Braff has never been more likable than he was as J.D., who was navigating his time at Sacred Heart from intern to physician. With hilarious moments of genuine friendship to the most cutting insults you wish you could use but fear HR repercussions, Scrubs proves that you don’t have to be an over the top soap opera or led by a genius misanthrope to keep people watching.Scrubs is showrunner Bill Lawrence at his best, and it definitely holds up to repeat viewings.
There are few shows out there that are as consistently manic and hilarious as Broad City. The dream team of Ilana Glazer and Abbi Jacobson make living in New York seem like a screwed up fairy tale, and yet it is still more realistic than almost every other depiction of twentysomething life in the Big Apple. Their apartments are terrible, their sex toys are plentiful, and they are there to expose the cult-like nature of the co-op. While the jokes fly fast, they still manage to work in some pathos, especially in season three, which examines the changeable nature of friendship and how some relationships aren’t made to last.
If the animation of Futurama looks familiar, it’s because Simpson’s creator Matt Groening helped craft the show. His signature brand of humor’s part of its make-up too, but the plot strays from the relatively normal world of Springfield and takes into the future when a pizza guy is accidentally frozen in 1999 and thawed out in 2999.
Removed: Superstore, ER, South Park, Dead Like Me, Parks and Rec
Added: Justified, The Office U.K., What We Do In The Shadows, The Great, Devs, Bob’s Burgers, Reservation Dogs, Nine Perfect Strangers
The Weeknd has some new legal troubles on his hands. The singer has been accused of plagiarism by an electro-house duo in a new lawsuit. Epikker’s Suniel Fox and Henry Strange claim the singer’s 2018 track, “Call Out My Name,” off his EP My Dear Melancholy, ripped off their 2017 song “Vibeking.” The lawsuit also takes aim at the song’s co-writers Frank Dukes and Nicolas Jaar, their publishers, and Universal Music Group.
In court documents, Fox and Strange claim that “Vibeking” was created in April 2015 and published “in or around April or May 2017.” The duo adds that they sent the song to PNDA, one of The Weeknd’s engineers, with the hope that he would hear the song. They add that the track was one of many songs they sent to him for consideration.
On April 29, 2015 PNDA allegedly responded to one of the writers and told them that the song is “fiiiire” in emails that contained the track. Later, on May 15 of that year, PNDA added that The Weeknd heard the song and said that “it’s fire.”
PNDA then responded to Strange saying, “Just gonna tell [The Weeknd] that our production team wrote the track. Cool? Or u have another idea? Just don’t wanna say ‘hey, [Strange] wrote this’ when he doesn’t know u.” Strange replied, “[The Weeknd] knows me. Say both. [Strange] with Ponytail you met on Drake tour. Who is part of our production team.”
Despite this, the “Vibeking” writers did not receive a license or agreement from The Weeknd’s team to use the song for “Call Out My Name.” Chris Ghazarian, the lawyer representing the “Vibeking” writers, spoke on behalf of them in regards to the lawsuit.
“The Weeknd is no stranger to accusations of infringement, and this one is probably the most egregious case to date,” he said. “Epikker (Suniel and Henry) works with many artists in the industry, and was profoundly disappointed when The Weeknd and his team copied ‘Vibeking,’ an original Epikker song that was shared with them years ago in good faith.” He added, “I look forward to working with Doniger Burroughs to secure reasonable compensation and credit for Epikker in connection with ‘Call Out My Name.’”
After going more than three years without a solo album, J. Cole made his return earlier this year with The Off-Season. The 12-track project saw the rapper step away from his formula of working without guest features. Instead, it included appearances from Bas, 21 Savage, Lil Baby, Morray, and 6lack. Four months after its release, Cole is back in action with a new remix of Drake’s “Pipe Down” called “Heaven’s EP.”
A video for the remix shows him riding around Las Vegas, as well as relaxing in the city’s Flamingo Hotel & Casino and on a plane as Bas sits beside him. The track finds Cole grappling with fame and success.
“Heaven’s EP” comes weeks after Cole teamed with Bas and Lil Tjay for their single “The Jackie.” That track also came with a video, which found the trio cruising around New York. Cole is also gearing up to hit the road soon, accompanied by 21 Savage and Morray, for The Off-Season Tour, which kicks off later this week in Miami. It was also recently announced that comedian Druski will join the rappers as a host for the tour, presumably to make people laugh.
Willie Garson, the character actor best known as Carrie Bradshaw’s stylish male best friend Stanford Blatch on Sex and the City (and its forthcoming revival), passed away, it was reported on Tuesday. He was 57 years old.
Born in Highland Park, New Jersey, Garson studied theater at Wesleyan and acquired an MFA from Yale Drama School. In the ‘80s, he started his long run as a TV fixture. He could be seen on shows like Cheers, Family Ties, Quantum Leap, Twin Peaks, The X-Files, Ally McBeal, and Friends. On NYPD Blue, he had a recurring role over seven episodes from 1996 through 1999. He appeared in movies as well, among them Groundhog Day (as Bill Murray’s assistant), The Rock, Mars Attacks!, and three movies for the Farrelly brothers: Kingpin, There’s Something About Mary, and Fever Pitch.
It was Sex and the City that made him a name. Stanford, a gay talent agent with as much fashion sense as Carrie, if not moreso, was the only character who wasn’t one of the main foursome to occasionally get his own storylines. Garson himself was heterosexual, but his excitable turn as Stanford became one of the show’s most beloved characters. Garson will be seen in the limited revival series And Just Like That…
Garson’s son Nathen posted a loving tribute to his father on Instagram.
“I love you so much papa,” Nathen wrote. “Rest In Peace and I’m so glad you got to share all your adventures with me and were able to accomplish so much. I’m so proud of you. I will always love you, but I think it’s time for you to go on an adventure of your own. You’ll always be with me. Love you more than you will ever know and I’m glad you can be at peace now. You always were the toughest and funniest and smartest person I’ve known. I’m glad you shared your love with me. I’ll never forget it or lose it.”
The cause of Garson’s death is currently unknown, but the sudden news inspired widespread mourning across social media, from friends, fellow performers, and fans alike.
This breaks my heart. Willie Garson, a friend who loved me at my worst, (and always let me know it) is gone. Goodbye, Fatty. I love you always. https://t.co/Cow3esS0YB
I’ve known Willie Garson for so long, most of our photos together are in albums. He was the best person to travel with, a great gambler, my favorite person to eat mediocre food with and an amazing father. Sending love to his family and fellow friends. Godspeed, buddy. Love you. pic.twitter.com/vbPvZwVdUo
One of many fundraisers I did with my friend. We both felt so lucky we got to adopt. Willie Garson worked from his heart, which lives on in his son. God bless you Willie. You raised a child and brought laughter into our lives too. Rest in peace. You did well. pic.twitter.com/s2zjyDp8lg
Heart breaking! I can’t believe this hilarious, talented, & kind soul has left this world. God I had a blast working with Willie Garson on an episode of #CSI Rest in peace sweet Willie. https://t.co/hbyLM8dZaA
WHAT A DELIGHT IT WAS TO WORK WITH WILLIE GARSON AS DICK DICKER ON PUSHING DAISIES – HE WAS ALWAYS IN ON THE JOKE AND WILL BE MISSED BY SO MANY. R.I.P. WILLIE. pic.twitter.com/y6OvGPrUfw
So sad to hear about Willie Garson. He had several all-time great gay lines on Sex and the City that we’ve quoted dozens of times over the years, this one the most: pic.twitter.com/m9ae1dbHKj
RIP Stanford ….. you always reminded me at a young age to live fearlessly, fabulously, and fiercely from your character on SATC as a young gay male! Thank you pic.twitter.com/xODeA5xXY1
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