Tag: Television

The Ghost in the Shell | Episode 1

July 7, 2026

The Ghost in the Shell is so much. For reasons within and without, it feels precious and rare like a gemstone in every second, every frame. It is true there hasn’t been a recent installment, the latest now six years old, but it’s also an example of anime, a craft initially defined by limited movement in comparison to Western animation, and yet Science Saru adapts Masamune Shirow’s kinetic manga with buttery-smooth animation, an active camera, and generous colors. The only visual element withheld is the gore, the opening body explosion covered in a digital mosaic – which somehow makes it more obscene – leading to the splat of a bloody stick-figure against the wall. Where traditional adaptations pare back the farcical, even manic quality of the source material, opting instead for deadly serious meditations which, honestly, better fit the subject matter, The Ghost in the Shell is paced with a punchline rhythm, and is altogether a carousel of great faces. One of the small joys of the manga is the candid glimpses of characters in repose, where Batou might be wearing an enormous grin or otherwise be looking silly (or pervy). This is practically the animating philosophy at the heart of 2026’s Ghost in the Shell, if the first episode is any indication. … More The Ghost in the Shell | Episode 1

The Worst Television of the Year

December 23, 2025

I watch bad TV for a living, and I don’t mean the fun, “so bad it’s good” sort of material, but the hours and hours of mundane CBS procedurals and sitcoms that aren’t designed for one’s full attention – “brain-melting” content, which serves a purpose, sure, however encroached upon by TikTok. I say this because it takes a lot to shock me these days, and for whatever reason, 2025 was generous with truly terrible, offensively bad TV. Discussing the worst TV shows of a given year has not been a regular feature here, nor will it be – with any luck – but I had to make something of the experience of watching this dreck. … More The Worst Television of the Year

Physical: Asia, Part I [PODCAST]

October 31, 2025

Our favorite stress inducer returns, the latest in Netflix’s expanding Physical saga, Physical: Asia. Representatives from eight countries (not six, as I keep saying) gather to fiercely compete in the old games of sand and crate. In addition to a superstar like Manny Pacquiao and new favorites like Australia’s Eddie Williams and Japan’s Nonoka Ozaki, South Korea’s put up a dream team including season two’s winner Amotti and our forever captain, Jang Eun-sil. Donovan and I discuss how the old rewards of the show filter through a somewhat tricky new lens, and balance anxieties of what’s to come with the excitement for breakout players and their respective cultures. … More Physical: Asia, Part I [PODCAST]

Physical: 100 Season 2 Part I [PODCAST]

March 24, 2024

Don’t forget to turtle up! This week, Donovan and I discuss the first four episodes of Physical: 100 Season 2 — Underground, the triumphant return of the greatest show on TV. Despite loving the first season, we definitely had issues with the production and the ambitious but inevitably uncomfortable mission statement as it pertains to gender. Did they listen? … More Physical: 100 Season 2 Part I [PODCAST]

Made It

March 4, 2024

It’s March now, so we’re nearing the end of the first quarter of our entertainment year, which is exactly how entertainment is measured. I have to say, of the titles I previewed in this earlier post, not one that I’ve seen has been good. I like Gyeongsong Creature, but it’s so deeply flawed that the flaws become its very substance, for one’s acceptance or rejection — I don’t think it cares either way. I found Echo to be empty, and True Detective: Night Country uneventful. One show I did not list was FX/Hulu’s Shogun, something I’d seen in snippets last year for my job and assumed, when it made landfall, it would be brushed off as hoary-old white-savior nonsense. Wow, how wrong I was. … More Made It

Notes on The Dropout

September 12, 2022

After a phenomenal debut with one of the best seasons of television in the 21st century, the American Crime Story anthology slowly drifted off my radar. I got partway into the second season, The Assassination of Gianni Versace, but it didn’t grab me the same way as the original. Season three (or possibly two) was supposed to be about Hurricane Katrina, and that was delayed before being reworked into this year’s Five Days at Memorial. Finally, we have Impeachment: American Crime Story, and I haven’t seen it yet. In the meantime, I have The Dropout. … More Notes on The Dropout

New K-Drama Alert! “Our Blues”

April 6, 2022

This looks really great, and it’s special for a number of reasons. But first, especially after Twenty-Five Twenty-One, I appreciate an “older” cast. Older than 19, which is what Ji-woong was, by the way. Our Blues reunites Shin Min-a and Lee Byung-hun, two of Korea’s biggest stars who co-starred in A Bittersweet Life as well as a show called Beautiful Days, possibly as siblings. Also starring is Kim Woo-bin, who’s dating Shin Min-a in realidad. It’s like a big happy reunion, with at least one more notable name — Noh Hee-kyung. … More New K-Drama Alert! “Our Blues”

K-Drama Report: Twenty-Five Twenty-One, Part IV – Endgame

April 5, 2022

As part of my tortured logic with “perfect episodes,” there can’t be more than one per show! There has to be a best episode, right? Maybe you can imagine, then, me biting my nails after making the declaration for episode 13, because episodes 14 and 15 were eliciting a more powerful emotional response. However, episode 15 especially showcases why structure is important in that make-believe conversation, because when Twenty-Five Twenty-One moves into the endgame, its units of story divide as sequences and then scenes. For me, the climax of Na Hee-do and Go Yu-rim’s story was the series’ emotional peak. We already knew the outcome, that Hee-do defeats her ultimate rival, so it’s doubly impressive that the match was so thrilling and the conclusion so cathartic. Striking right to the heart of the show’s themes, the duel also ropes in journalism, expressing how both athletes have matured. They’ve developed a trust that transcends direct communication. Instead of the victory screams that have punctuated the tournament, Hee-do pulls off her mask to reveal silent tears and Yu-rim does the same. I broke. This is a show that took its time, and didn’t mine breakups or sudden tragedies for repetitive drama. When the big hit came, it landed. And then I recovered, checked the runtime: it’s only half over. From there, the episode veers into unexpected territory, forfeiting its whole for the next phase of story — and it’s a doozy. … More K-Drama Report: Twenty-Five Twenty-One, Part IV – Endgame