13
Jan

Emmy Predictions 2023: Comedy, Variety and Talk

COMEDY SERIES
Abbott Elementary (ABC)
Barry (HBO)
The Bear (Hulu)
Jury Duty (freevee)
The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel (Prime Video)
Only Murders in the Building (Hulu)
Ted Lasso (AppleTV+)
Wednesday (Netflix)

Will and should win: The Bear
Could win: Ted Lasso
Should have been nominated: Reservation Dogs (Hulu)

The skinny: It’s really odd that The Bear just won multiple awards at the Golden Globes for Season 2 and these Emmys will be for Season 1. No matter. Either season is better than that last season of Ted Lasso.

ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES
Bill Hader, Barry
Jason Segel, Shrinking
Martin Short, Only Murders in the Building
Jason Sudeikis, Ted Lasso
Jeremy Allen White, The Bear

Will and should win: Jeremy Allen White
Could win: Jason Sudeikis
Should have been nominated: Nathan Fielder, The Rehearsal

The skinny: With Hader and Sudeikis already winning, I would be shocked if either of them repeated instead of White (who’s no spring chicken, but hasn’t been as famous as he is now).

ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES
Christina Applegate, Dead to Me
Rachel Brosnahan, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel
Quinta Brunson, Abbott Elementary
Natasha Lyonne, Poker Face
Jenna Ortega, Wednesday

Will win: Quinta Brunson
Should and could win: Natasha Lyonne
Should have been nominated: Devery Jacobs, Reservation Dogs

The skinny: It seems like Brunson will return to the stage after winning for her pilot script last year, but Lyonne and Ortega are serious threats. Of course, they all fall short of Jacobs in my eyes, but Reservation Dogs will never get its due from this awards body.

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12
Jan

Emmy Predictions 2023: Limited/Anthology Series and Movies

The delay to January was necessary because of the strikes, but now this awards show feels even more like an afterthought. As such, I’m not going in-depth with these categories. It’s looking mostly like a Beef sweep, except in the supporting acting categories, which are anyone’s guess. While I haven’t seen most of these shows, there’s no conceivable world where Obi-Wan Kenobi or Welcome to Chippendales are better than The English, which got completely shut out.

LIMITED/ANTHOLOGY SERIES
Beef (Netflix)
Dahmer (Netflix)
Daisy Jones & the Six (Prime Video)
Fleishman Is in Trouble (Hulu)
Obi-Wan Kenobi (Disney+)

Will win: Beef
Could win: Daisy Jones & the Six
Should win: N/A
Should have been nominated: The English (Prime Video)

ACTOR IN A LIMITED/ANTHOLOGY SERIES OR MOVIE
Taron Egerton, Black Bird
Kumail Nanjiani, Welcome to Chippendales
Evan Peters, Dahmer
Daniel Radcliffe, Weird: The Al Yankovic Story
Michael Shannon, George & Tammy
Steven Yeun, Beef

Will win: Steven Yeun
Could win: Evan Peters
Should win: Daniel Radcliffe
Should have been nominated: Chaske Spencer, The English

ACTRESS IN A LIMITED/ANTHOLOGY SERIES OR MOVIE
Lizzy Caplan, Fleishman Is in Trouble
Jessica Chastain, George & Tammy
Dominique Fishback, Swarm
Kathryn Hahn, Tiny Beautiful Things
Riley Keough, Daisy Jones & the Six
Ali Wong, Beef

Will win: Ali Wong
Could win: Jessica Chastain
Should win: N/A
Should have been nominated: Emily Blunt, The English

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11
Jan

The Best TV Performances of 2023

As I mentioned earlier, the strikes this summer and fall didn’t actually give me time to catch up on new shows I’d heard good things about. Instead, I watched a lot of movies and plenty of older TV. So this year I’m forgoing any limited/anthology series awards. I could have finagled those categories to include Justified: City Primeval and The Curse, but that didn’t feel right. So here are my picks for comedy and drama.

ENSEMBLE IN A COMEDY SERIES
Party Down
Adam Scott, Ryan Hansen and Martin Starr rejoined Ken Marino in the trenches, while Megan Mullally and Jane Lynch had some success outside the catering world. But it was new cast members Tyrel Jackson Williams (as an aspiring social media star) and Zoe Chao (as a hopeful chef) who brought their own chaotic energy to this shit job, producing some of the biggest laughs of the year.

ACTOR IN A COMEDY SERIES
Harvey Guillén, What We Do in the Shadows
Guillermo finally got his wish (becoming a vampire), but with a slew of unintended consequences. The conflict led to some of the show’s most tender moments, in addition to some of its grossest sight sags.

ACTRESS IN A COMEDY SERIES
Diane Morgan, Cunk on Earth
I thought long and hard about putting another redhead here (Emma Stone), but ultimately I had to choose the woman who kept a straight face asking real experts the dumbest questions about world history. It’s a remarkable achievement, but not as remarkable as Belgian techno anthem “Pump Up the Jam.”

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10
Jan

The Best TV Shows of 2023, Part 2

COMEDY SHOWS & SPECIALS

I Think You Should Leave with Tim Robinson (Netflix)
The sketches had a meaner edge this season, but they were no less hilarious or memorable. That Robinson has cemented himself as a meme king hopefully means we’ll keep getting more madness until he decides he’s had enough.

Gary Gulman: Born on 3rd Base (Max)
Stand-up comedy has been dissected, deconstructed and (arguably) destroyed in the last decade. So sometimes it’s nice to just watch a consistently funny special with no agenda or ulterior motive. Gulman has been something of a “comedian’s comedian” for years, occasionally going viral with a great routine on Conan. But this full hour proves his penchant for fancy words isn’t a put-on or pretension. He just genuinely loves words, and uses them effectively.

Stavros Halkias: Fat Rascal (Netflix)
The King of Crowd Work, the Giant of Social Media. Those are nicknames I just made up, but mainly because I’m tired of people attributing similar praise on Matt Rife, the chiseled opposite of this beefy boy. In a fun and filthy hour, Halkias lobs bombs at Silicon Valley and airport security, but saves his best shots for himself (pun intended).

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9
Jan

The Best TV Shows of 2023, Part 1

The strikes of the Writers and Actors Guilds cut off the supply of new shows (and that’s good… withholding labor to get a fair contract is the right thing to do), but it didn’t matter. It still felt overwhelming to keep up with every new recommended show, not to mention the returning shows I loved. So once again, I’m expanding my list of favorites. This is Part One.

10. Justified: City Primeval (FX)
It shouldn’t have worked, and many would argue it didn’t. But transferring Raylan Givens from the hollers of Kentucky to the urban squalor of Detroit (adapting a story that didn’t originally involve the character) played seamlessly to me. This years-later sequel found time to focus on Raylan’s failings as a father, but also gave plenty of time to several Black characters, something it didn’t always do well in its original incarnation. But even outside of his usual haunts, Raylan soon discovered all cities run on some mix of bribery, corruption and chicanery, and no one’s hands are clean.
Standout episodes: “City Primeval,” “Backstabbers,” “The Smoking Gun”

9. Party Down (Starz)
Life being what it is under late capitalism, this premise needed absolutely no updating. Of course people in their 40s are still stuck catering the parties of rich assholes. But this new season perfectly integrated its original upwardly immobile waiters with a new generation of influencers. Jennifer Garner was the warmest of the new additions. As the recently divorced new girlfriend of Henry (Adam Scott), her role could have been thankless as a relatively normal person observing all the chaos. But she made it into something thornier. Of course, the show still belongs to Ken Marino, whose fearless performance has only gotten better (and sadder) over the years.
Standout episodes: “Kyle Bradway Is Nitromancer,” “First Annual PI2A Symposium,” “Sepulveda Basin High School Spring Play Opening Night”

8. The Great (Hulu)
Though some fans were bummed by the unceremonious cancelation, the show didn’t really have anywhere left to go after its dramatic (and ahistorical) shift midway through this season. The show was as funny, sexy and complicated as ever. And while I would have enjoyed seeing more of this extremely horny, extremely foul-mouthed, extremely well-dressed court, the show ended, quite literally, on a perfect note.
Standout episodes: “You the People,” “Fun,” “Once upon a Time”

7. Barry (HBO)
Speaking of perfect endings. While it seemed like Season 3 had the perfect place to end the show, Hader had one more season of insanity left in him. After getting arrested (and breaking out of prison after a botched hit against him), the show went even darker than before. A huge time jump showed the ripple effects of Barry’s chain reaction of bad decisions, with previously goofy characters like NoHo Hank and Fuches adopting hard exteriors to mask their pain. It was the least funny season of the show so far, but featured the best filmmaking yet.
Standout episodes: “Yikes,” “The Wizard,” “Wow”

6. Abbott Elementary (ABC)
All hail the return of the 22-episode network sitcom! The show remained a consistently hilarious and honest look at public education in America, while also delivering tremendous character growth and the single most romantic moment of the year (pictured above).
Standout episodes: “The Fundraiser,” “Teachers’ Conference,” “Festival”

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4
Jan

The Best Songs of 2023

Below are my top 50 songs of the year, plus a bonus track that’s among the year’s best, but not really available anywhere. Check out the Spotify playlist here.

Blur – “The Narcissist”
boygenius – “Not Strong Enough”
Brother Marshall and the Choir of Fire – “All the Gold in California”
Zach Bryan feat. Kacey Musgraves – “I Remember Everything”
Bully – “Days Move Slow”
Kelly Clarkson – “mine/me”
Cliffs + Caves feat. David Ramirez – “Mint Gum”
Lauren Daigle – “Waiting”
De La Soul – “A Roller Skating Jam Named ‘Saturdays’”
Ingrid De Souza – “You Can Be Mean”
Madi Diaz feat. Kacey Musgraves – “Don’t Do Me Good”
Billie Eilish – “What Was I Made For?”
Everything but the Girl – “Nothing Left to Lose”
Explosions in the Sky – “Ten Billion People”
Margaret Glaspy – “Act Natural”
Kyle Gordon – “Ugliest Girl on the Beach”
Glen Hansard – “The Feast of St. John”
Brittany Howard – “Red Flags”
Jungle – “Candle Flame”
Noah Kahan – “Stick Season”
The Killers – “Your Side of Town”
Julie Klausner – “Silence”
MJ Lenderman – “Rudolph”
Lil Yachty – “drive ME crazy!”
M83 – “Oceans Niagara”
Steve Martin – “Which of the Pickwick Triplets Did It?”
Marvelous 3 – “If We’re on Fire (Let It Burn)”
Lizzy McAlpine – “A Little Bit of Everything”
Mereba – “Space and Time”
Brian Metolius – “Here to Jake, Gone Tomorrow”
Midwife – “Miss America”
Nicki Minaj – “Last Time I Saw You”
MUNA – “One That Got Away”
Nation of Language – “Sole Obsession”
NewJeans – “Super Shy”
Angel Olsen – “Nothing’s Free”
Genesis Owusu – “Leaving the Light”
Caroline Polachek – “Welcome to My Island”
Olivia Rodrigo – “All-American Bitch”
Romy – “Weightless”
Slowdive – “Skin in the Game”
The Smile – “Wall of Eyes”
Sufjan Stevens – “Will Anybody Ever Love Me?”
Tedashii feat. Trip Lee and Lecrae – “Texas Pete”
Thee Sacred Souls – “Running Away”
Tiffany Topol – “Teenage Feeling”
Joshua Ray Walker – “Christmas in Dallas”
Jessie Ware – “Hello Love”
Waveform – “Lonely”
Wednesday – “Quarry”

Bonus Track: Ken Pomeroy – “Cicadas”

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3
Jan

The Anniversary Albums Project: Best of 2023

1973

  1. Pink Floyd – The Dark Side of the Moon
  2. Led Zeppelin – Houses of the Holy
  3. Stevie Wonder – Innervisions
  4. Marvin Gaye – Let’s Get It On
  5. Sarah Vaughan – Live in Japan
  6. Bruce Springsteen – The Wild, the Innocent & the E Street Shuffle
  7. Elton John – Goodbye Yellow Brick Road
  8. The Who – Quadrophenia
  9. Paul McCartney and Wings – Band on the Run
  10. Kinky Friedman – Sold American

Honorable Mentions
• The Beatles – 1962-1966/1967-1970
• David Bowie – Aladdin Sane
• Albert Brooks – Comedy Minus One
• Can – Future Days
• Creedence Clearwater Revival – More Creedence Gold
• Faust – Faust IV
• Herbie Hancock – Head Hunters
• Hawkwind – Space Ritual
• Iggy and the Stooges – Raw Power
• Roxy Music – For Your Pleasure
• Steely Dan – Countdown to Ecstasy
• Tom Waits – Closing Time
• Various Artists – Precious Lord: New Recordings of the Great Songs of Thomas A. Dorsey

1983

  1. New Order – Power, Corruption & Lies
  2. R.E.M. – Murmur
  3. Violent Femmes – Violent Femmes
  4. Tom Waits – Swordfishtrombones
  5. Various Artists – The Big Chill (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)
  6. U2 – War
  7. Talking Heads – Speaking in Tongues
  8. Madonna – Madonna
  9. Marshall Crenshaw – Field Day
  10. Cyndi Lauper – She’s So Unusual

Honorable Mentions
• David Bowie – Let’s Dance
• Billy Bragg – Life’s a Riot with Spy vs Spy
• ESG – Come Away with ESG
• Hall & Oates – Rock ’n Soul Part 1
• The Jam – Snap!
• Malcolm McLaren – Duck Rock
• P-Funk All Stars – Urban Dancefloor Guerillas
• The Police – Synchronicity
• Sparks – In Outer Space
• The Style Council – Introducing the Style Council
• U2 – Under a Blood Red Sky
• The Who – Who’s Greatest Hits

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1
Jan

Streaming Picks: January 2024

All titles premiere on the first of the month, unless otherwise noted.

FILM
Top Pick
Cinema Paradiso – Paramount+
If you care about movies, love or history, this Italian Oscar-winner is an absolute must-see.

New Releases
Plan 75 – Criterion Channel
Society of the Snow – Netflix 1/4
Foe – Prime Video 1/5
Transformers: Rise of the Beasts – Prime Video 1/5
Landscape with Invisible Hand – Prime Video 1/9
Role Play – Prime Video 1/12
Fast X – Prime Video 1/16
The Origin of Evil – AMC+ 1/19

Essential Viewing
21 Jump Street – Hulu
22 Jump Street – Hulu
Adventureland – Paramount+
The Adventures of Tintin – Paramount+
Airplane! – Prime Video
Almost Famous – Paramount+
Atlantic City – Paramount+
The Blair Witch Project – Criterion Channel
The Breakfast Club – Max
Bridesmaids – Prime Video
Blood Simple – Criterion Channel
Cat People (1942) – Criterion Channel
Chameleon Street – Criterion Channel
Days of Heaven – Paramount+
Do the Right Thing – Peacock
The Doom Generation – Criterion Channel
Dr. Strangelove – Max
The Elephant Man – Paramount+
Face/Off – Paramount+
Fast Times at Ridgemont High – Peacock
Fight Club – Peacock
Forrest Gump – Prime Video
The Godfather – Paramount+
The Godfather Part II – Paramount+
Gone Baby Gone – Paramount+
Good Will Hunting – Prime Video
Heat (1995) – Hulu
High Noon (1950) – Paramount+
Hoop Dreams – Criterion Channel
If Beale Street Could Talk – Prime Video
Inside Llewyn Davis – Criterion Channel
Inside Man – Peacock
John Wick 1-3 – Netflix
Jurassic Park – Netflix
The Killing – Prime Video
Killing Them Softly – Max
The King of Comedy – Hulu
The Last Black Man in San Francisco – Max
The Long Goodbye – Prime Video
Miller’s Crossing – Paramount+
Mission: Impossible 1-4 – Prime Video
The Mummy (1999) – Hulu
My Left Foot – Paramount+
The Nightmare Before Christmas – Hulu
No Country for Old Men – Prime Video
Notting Hill – Prime Video
Ocean’s Trilogy – Peacock
Paris Is Burning – Criterion Channel
The People vs. Larry Flynt – Paramount+
Pretty in Pink – Paramount+
Pulp Fiction – Prime Video
RoboCop (1987) – Max
Saving Private Ryan – Prime Video
Scream (1996) – Paramount+
Scream 2 – Paramount+
Searching for Bobby Fischer – Paramount+
Shoplifters – Hulu
Sideways – Peacock
Slacker – Criterion Channel
The Social Network – Starz
Something Wild (1986) – Prime Video
Step Brothers – Prime Video
Sweeney Todd – Paramount+
The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974) – Prime Video
Team America: World Police – Paramount+
Terms of Endearment – Paramount+
Tropic Thunder – Paramount+
True Grit (2010) – Peacock
True Lies – Peacock
When We Were Kings – Criterion Channel
The Wolf of Wall Street – Peacock
Snowden – Max 1/15
Burn After Reading – Prime Video 1/16
Train to Busan – Peacock 1/17
Nope – Peacock 1/18

Spotlight Collection
HandMade Films – Criterion Channel
Criterion highlights the many unique (and often hilarious) films financed by George Harrison’s HandMade films in the 1980s. Originally begun to provide last-minute funding to Monty Python to film Life of Brian, the independent studio released some of the most impressive films of the Thatcher era, including John Mackenzie’s The Long Good Friday, Terry Gilliam’s Time Bandits, Dick Clement’s satire Water, Neil Jordan’s Mona Lisa and Bruce Robinson’s dark comedy classic Withnail and I. The collection also brings the 2019 documentary An Accidental Studio to its audience of cinephiles.

Hidden Gems
Changing Lanes – Paramount+
The Devils – Criterion Channel
Side Effects – Prime Video
Support the Girls – Paramount+
Compliance – Hulu and Peacock 1/2
Take This Waltz – Peacock 1/19

Nostalgia Pick
Beethoven – Netflix

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29
Dec

The List: Top 10 ‘Mr. Show’ Sketches

Mr. Show with Bob and David ended 25 years ago this week. The cult favorite only lasted for 30 episodes and rarely got the attention it deserved. But thanks to DVDs, reruns and (eventually) streaming, the innovative series got its due. Now, feel free to tell me to “eat shitty fruit from a rotten tree.” This list does not contain “The Story of Everest.” Nor does it contain “Coupon: The Movie.” Two of the show’s most beloved and ridiculous sketches were definitely considered for this list, but ultimately I went with the ones that made me laugh the hardest.

10. (tie)
“Good News” (Season 1, Episode 2)
“Hail Satan Network” (Season 3, Episode 1)
“Swear to God” (Season 3, Episode 5) 
I’m cheating right off the bat. But these three brief sketches delivered spot-on parodies of televangelists and other TBN programming, especially Praise the Lord. As someone who grew up Christian – but thankfully did not have to regularly endure shows like these – I found them all especially funny. But they made this list because of how accurately they nail the misplaced passion of these caricatures.

9. “Spite Marriage” (Season 4, Episode 7) 
Gleefully skewering homophobia and macho antics, Larry (Bob) and Tom (David) refuse to back down after a barroom scuffle, leading to a decades-long marriage. Taking the joke to a new level every few seconds paved the way for other troupes like Key & Peele and Human Giant. Bonus points for having the guys wear sleeveless shirts in every scene, even at the wedding.

8. “Phone Sex” (Season 4, Episode 3) 
Another brilliant example of commitment to the bit. After losing a bet, Glen (Bob) owes Mike (David) “two hours worth of phone sex.” But instead of redeeming his winnings from a qualified sex worker, he demands to cash in immediately, while Glen’s at work, in 30 second increments. The silver lining? Bob’s hidden talent makes him the biggest name in auditory fantasy.

7. “Titannica” (Season 3, Episode 10)
It may be hard to remember now, but in the ’90s pop culture was blamed just about every time a kid did something violent. Could it be unresolved mental health issues or easy access to guns? Nah, it’s gotta be the obscene lyrics or bloody video games! In this masterpiece of poor taste and puppetry, metal band Titannica pays a visit to young fan Adam (David Cross), who tried suicide after listening to their song “Try Suicide.” They hope to absolve themselves with backstage passes and merch, but grow horrified when they see Adam’s acid-shriveled body in the show’s greatest sight gag. It’s both dark and gross in a way only this show could pull off.

6. “The Fairsley Difference” (Season 4, Episode 4)
This series of fake grocery store ads perfectly mirrors ugly political attack ads. The claims grow more ridiculous and disingenuous, preying on customers’ fears. Is it any surprise that our own political candidates would use these same tactics?

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23
Dec

Oscar Picks: December 2023

The picture’s starting to come into focus. Both New York and L.A. critics have given out their awards, and the newly revamped Golden Globes have revealed their nominees. Both of these are imperfect precursors, but they have shown who’s up (May December) and who’s down (The Color Purple).

BEST PICTURE
American Fiction
Anatomy of a Fall
Barbie
The Holdovers
Killers of the Flower Moon
Maestro
Oppenheimer
Past Lives
Poor Things
The Zone of Interest

Falling off: None
Rising star: May December

The skinny: I’m still holding onto these 10, but American Fiction, Anatomy of a Fall and Past Lives are looking weaker by the minute. All three are exceptional, but if May December keeps this up, one of them will find their awards prospects greatly diminished.

BEST DIRECTOR
Greta Gerwig, Barbie
Martin Scorsese, Killers of the Flower Moon
Christopher Nolan, Oppenheimer
Yorgos Lanthimos, Poor Things
Jonathan Glazer, The Zone of Interest

Falling off: None
Rising star: Justine Triet, Anatomy of a Fall

The skinny: One thing’s remained constant for the last several months: Christopher Nolan is the front-runner for this award, and if he loses it will be a shock.

BEST ACTOR
Colman Domingo, Rustin
Paul Giamatti, The Holdovers
Cillian Murphy, Oppenheimer
Andrew Scott, All of Us Strangers
Jeffrey Wright, American Fiction

Falling off: Bradley Cooper
Rising star: Joaquin Phoenix, Beau Is Afraid

The skinny: Believe it or not, Paul Giamatti has only been nominated for one Oscar: as the corner man in Ron Howard’s boxing biopic Cinderella Man. But in the nearly 20 years since, he’s cemented his place as one of the most reliable character actors in Hollywood. Winning a career achievement award, especially in a comedy, seemed highly unlikely even a few weeks ago. But it’s looking more and more likely now, even if with such stiff competition.

BEST ACTRESS
Lily Gladstone, Killers of the Flower Moon
Carey Mulligan, Maestro
Natalie Portman, May December
Margot Robbie, Barbie
Emma Stone, Poor Things

Falling off: Greta Lee
Rising star: Fantasia Barrino, The Color Purple

The skinny: It’s a three-way race (between Gladstone, Robbie and Stone). But honestly, giving this to anyone but Gladstone would be a huge mistake.

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