Last year I witnessed a woman walk into a packed theater dressed up like a robot puppet, complete with the head of a bubble gum dispenser. Instantly, everybody cheered and she had to take a bow. That’s because, thankfully, she was with her people – that is, MSTies, those of us who profess undying love […]

“Paw Patrol” is the name, but the popular Nick Jr. cartoon might as well be called “Puppy Sue.” The pups that star in it are, after all, idealized versions of their preschool viewers, just like “Mary Sue” characters are for adults. In this case, they are small and spunky but ultra-capable creatures, loaded up with […]

To cope with your mental illness, might I suggest jazz hands? At least, that’s the strategy of Rebecca Bunch, who frequently bursts into song as the titular “Crazy Ex-Girlfriend” in the CW’s musical satirical rom-com. The fourth and final season premieres Friday, October 12. Rebecca taps, she tangoes, she shimmies in her Spanx. There are […]

Karen Beck is a freelance writer, friend, and aficionado of science fiction and dystopian books and television. You can Follow @Karenofnine on Twitter Quick fandom litmus test: is this just a box? Or a shining celebration of quirky adventure and moral intellectualism? If the former, you’re probably new to Who–Doctor Who, that is, the 54-year-old British science fiction show. If […]

Your media’s mind-numbing predictability is about to get a jolt of motherforking fun. After all, most shows deliver dully on their promises, right? “America’s Got Talent” gives you talent. “This is Us” is all about them. The news gives you a stomach ulcer. But in NBC’s “The Good Place,” you truly have no idea where […]