The Take: Recent Episodes
The Roost
This is the Take. It's where you come to understand more about your favorite movies, shows and culture. Our video essays make the story worlds you enter richer and deeper. Think: Endings Explained, Character Studies, Hidden Messages and Symbols Revealed, Actor and Director Profiles, and more.
We want to share our love of visual culture with the world. So here's our Take.
The Sopranos’ Adriana La Cerva was beautiful, smart and an early 2000s fashion icon - but above all else, she's remembered for her tragic story. So what is it about her that we love – and that in turn, makes her the perfect tragic character?
Here’s our take on And Just Like That’s season two finale, what worked and what missed the mark, and that Samantha Jones cameo.
Suits has become the surprise hit of the summer, so we're taking a deep dive into one of the characters that make the show so bingeable: Rachel Zane!
Michael Oher's recent revelation that the family he thought had adopted him actually placed him under a conservatorship has ignited a number of important conversations. Here's our rundown of the case & how it fits into the larger conversations about guardianships.
SATC reboot And Just Like That has been struggling to replicate Samantha Jones' special spark. So here are the characters that come the closest to filling her stilettos and the one that might actually have a chance at bringing the sparkle back to the show.
Is Rihanna the ultimate example of the changing face of modern motherhood? She can surprisingly teach us a lot about what it means to create your own path as a working mom today.
Despite recent wins for women in high-profile court cases, the new Netflix Depp v. Heard trial Netflix documentary makes it clear that society hasn’t totally moved on from treating the case as one-sided tabloid fodder. Here’s our take on the aftermath of the media circus, the myth of the “perfect” victim, and how more recent cases are paving a way forward for victims.
Today we're taking a look at cultural icon Mickey Mouse's weird & fascinating history, his lasting legacy, & the truth about his rumored entry into the public domain & retirement.
The Wizard of Oz's Dorothy and her friends journeying to the Land of Oz has been adapted into countless sequels, spinoffs, stage musicals, animated specials, and tv series. So what is it about this story that continues to capture the public imagnation?
Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning has made over $500 million at the box office... and yet is still considered a major underperformer. So what went wrong? And what does this film getting outpaced by Barbenheimer mean for Hollywood going forward?
She’s beautiful, charming, and sweet as pie… or, at least, that’s what she wants you to think. Whether she’s a Queen Bee we love to hate, a comedic obstacle, or a full on villain, there’s just something about her that keeps movies and shows coming back to the trope.
Friends is a cultural icon, but even its most ardent fans can agree that along with all of the great moments, the show has also had some duds... but did it ever truly Jump the Shark?
And Just Like That has been a disappointment to Sex and the City fans since the beginning, but as it nears a second finale… is the show finally starting to get its magic back?!
In all of the discourse about the difference between generations, people have kind of let out the effect of 'online generations' - that is, the era in which you became a regular user of the internet. Today we're taking a quick look at how when we hopped online also had a huge part in shaping us.
The Graduate didn’t invent the quarter-life crisis, but it might have been the first movie to really dramatize it. It also laid the groundwork for some of our favorite more recent quarterlife crisis films!
Barbie had so many great easter eggs and references, both in the film itself and the press tour before hand! So today we're taking a look at all of the best Barbie references.
Bromance movies exploded in the early 2000s, and then kind of disappeared for a while... Today we're looking at the evolution of male friendships onscreen, and why it’s so valuable for men to feel secure in their bromances!
Amnesia is often used as a plot device on screen, but memory loss in real life often looks quite different from what we see in movies & shows. So what are the real thematic reasons filmmakers keep returning to their Hollywood vision of amnesia?
Here's the true scoop on the live-action Snow White casting debacle. Plus, how can Hollywood toe the tumultuous cultural line without overcorrecting in either direction?
Barbie is the Blockbuster of the summer, and everyone's loving it! But the creative team did run into one obstacle when trying to make the movie of their dreams - so what really caused the problem, & how did they do their best to overcome it?
Christopher Nolan’s three-hour epic Oppenheimer has managed to turn what would normally just be cinema-lover Oscar-bait into a huge summer blockbuster. But how much of the film is actually true, and what did that ending really mean?
Jayne Mansfield might be best known as Hollywood’s attempt at a Marilyn Monroe replacement, who also met a tragic end – but there’s a lot more to her story! So here are some interesting things you might not have known about Hollywood icon Jayne Mansfield.
Have we really made it to a place where women are free to wear whatever they want, whenever they want? Don't miss our take on the history of fashion shaming, the strides women have made to escape it, and how we’re finally starting to see the light on the other side.
We've already covered everything that went wrong with The Idol, so today we're diving into what the show could have been (and how it could maybe turn things around in the 2nd season...)
Season one of And Just Like That proved to be… pretty lackluster. And now it seems that even the second season won’t be able to recapture the magic of the original series. So why has the reboot been so unable to reproduce what we all loved so much about the original show?
Stranger Things has been immensely popular ever since its debut, its themes have especially resonated with queer audiences. Today we're taking a look at all of the underlying queer elements at play within the show.
George O’Malley often complained about being a maligned underdog, but… was the world really out to get him, or was it mostly all in his head?
Reality TV practically runs on controversy, and as “scripted” as reality TV can be, it still illuminates something about human nature... Don't miss our new video on reality TV’s biggest controversies, & what they can teach us about both reality TV as a whole & the world beyond the cameras.
Kim Wexler quickly became a fan favorite on Better Call Saul. So, who is Kim, and what makes her so intriguing?
Modern hyperfemininity isn't just a fad, it's a movement. It aims to be a more nuanced & intentional brand of Girl Power that celebrates traditionally feminine characteristics as strengths, while being more inclusive and forward thinking.
American movie culture and rating systems are pretty squeamish about sex onscreen – so why do we readily accept graphic violence? Don't miss our take on the sex and violence paradox, and what it says about our culture that we hold one to a higher account than the other.
The Idol was initially hyped up as a scandalous, dark, and erotic new must-see from director Sam Levinson and musician The Weeknd (Abel Tesfaye) but it turned out to mostly just be… a boring mess. So what went wrong? (And did anything go right?)
With her youthful charm and naivete, the ingénue is a long-time Hollywood staple… but in recent years, she seems to be disappearing. So is this trope really on the way out because it no longer works in the modern day, or is it just changing with the times?
Are viral content houses a new type of cult? Today we're looking at the dark truths behind the internet’s most viral content houses.
It's becoming less taboo and more normalized, but there are still a lot of obstacles to the older woman-younger man pairing... Here’s our take on the rise of the older woman younger man relationship, what it offers, and what it tells us about romance in the 21st century.
Here’s our take on the ups and downs of Black Mirror’s sixth season, and what its notable shift in storytelling says about the future of the series as we know it.
Here’s our take on how the fashion of the first episodes of Season two of And Just Like That reflects the characters’ emotional journeys, including Carrie getting her groove back, through fashion.
The sitcom wife has been portrayed as many stereotypes, from a nagging nay-sayer to a stern and strict wet blanket to a trophy wife. But with societal norms shifting over the years, it’s led to more creative freedom in the depiction of a wife on television.
Rita Hayworth is one of Old Hollywood’s greatest stars, but while her roles have remained iconic, many important facts about her life have been forgotten. Join us in a deep dive on Rita's often less-than-glamorous real life story.
Samantha Jones was one of the best parts of Sex and the City, and we all can’t help but wonder... what if Samantha had been the star of the original show?
In the past 30 years, reality tv has become its own genre, filled with its own cliches & character types. The best reality TV is made from the same ingredients, from the lies to the villains to the drama. Today we're breaking down the most essential tropes & characters in reality TV.
Modern Family's Phil Dunphy may not be cool, but he is a cool dad. Here are Phil's seven lessons on how to ace parenting.
Black Mirror's “Joan Is Awful” suggests Netflix’s style of content is making people today… kind of miserable. So, how, exactly?
It seems like we’re finally moving out of the “friend zone” tropes of the past and seeing more positive platonic relationships between men and women on screen.
What are the worst and weirdest movie and TV tropes about careers? Here are the most commonly misrepresented professions in TV and movies – and why they’re so off-base.
Succession has a knack for finding Shakespearean drama & dark hilarity in an honest reflection of today’s billionaires & media ecosystems. But how much of it is directly inspired by specific facts?
Jules Vaughn is just one of the many magnetic characters in HBO’s Euphoria – so why does everyone seem to be obsessed with her?
Barry’s harrowing final season was a bleak genre-defying story that was ultimately about how the stories we tell ourselves matter.
On screen, motherhood is still depicted as the idealized end goal for all women, to the point where depictions of childfree women often feel reductive or even vilified. Watch our take on the childfree woman, why she desperately needs an upgrade to reflect society’s changing attitude towards the decision to not be a parent.
The new generation of female BFFs onscreen are finally dispensing with so many bad cliches and showcasing how having a true friend makes everything in life better.
Why is there still so much shame and belittlement directed towards popular female media?
How did Kristen Stewart go from child actress to Twilight superstar to indie darling? Above all, by owning her authentic self, no matter what anyone thinks. Click to watch our new video on how Kristen became an icon through her non-conformity & authenticity.
Elon Musk’s purchase and redesign of Twitter – a place that was once a public forum for underdogs to question those in power – could be its ultimate downfall.
Here’s our take on the way boomers mythologized themselves, the stories they left out along the way, and how they’re more similar to their Gen X and millennial children than anyone might expect.
Who is the trophy wife, really? How do the qualities that make her a prize shift over time, and what does her evolution says about “ideal” womanhood?
In our new video, we're looking at who gets canceled, who doesn’t, and why there needs to be a better system for holding people accountable for their actions, while still allowing for second chances in our culture.
The British Monarchy has always had a dark side – but in recent years a lot of the public has been willing to ignore that out of a deeply-rooted respect for Queen Elizabeth II. So, with their matriarch gone, how long can the rest of the family go without a scandal they can’t come back from?
On Derry Girls, while Erin, Orla, and Clare are all some shade of meek, nervous, or unusual, the leader of their pack Michelle acts like she’s got it all figured out, and can’t wait for adulthood to start – but how real is that act?
Our take on Doomerism, its impact on Gen Z and mental health, and how – even if there’s a lot that is bad right now – there’s also a better way to deal.
What made The Notebook the romance movie of the early 2000s, and how much of it actually holds up?
After a few years of exceptional uncertainty, does the rise of the coastal grandmother aesthetic prove that above everything, gen-z just wants to slow down?
A study from Google found that nearly 40% of gen-z use TikTok as their primary search engine... How worried should we be that gen-z is using TikTok to search for facts?
Why are liberal film and TV characters always so annoying? Here’s our take on why movies and TV try to present themselves as being in the reasonable middle—by punching at anyone trying to make a change.
The Crown season 5 is dredging up one of the darkest times for the royals’ reputation, the 1990s. So what exactly are the royals worried about? We're breaking down the controversy surrounding the show.
Culture is coming for the “wife guy” – because can anyone who’s that performative about simply having a wife really be trusted?
Why are daddy issues mocked or fetishized, when they’re a byword for absent, neglectful, or dysfunctional parenting?
It can sometimes be hard to put words to the fear of losing the right to control your own body – but horror movies have been putting those fears on screen for decades. The female body horror genre is all about the terrifying idea that a woman’s body does not belong to her.
The Rings of Power Finale had some big reveals, which all underlined the biggest takeaway of the story: that it can be difficult to tell the light from the dark. So how did all this come together and where did the first season leave us?
Gorgeous, heartless, and almost supernatural - the Vamp is as evil as she is beautiful and one of culture’s most alluring villains. The Vamp embodies exaggerated versions of all the things women are told they can’t be, and eventually, she’s punished for it.
Wednesday Addams, the sick, subversive, unfailingly cool and composed daughter of Gomez and Morticia is a powerful and extremely important character for us to look to right now.
Is female representation in film and TV actually getting any better? Did the Me-Too era resurgence of interest and attention around the Bechdel Test and female representation make a difference in what we’ve seen since?
It’s time to ask: how does House of the Dragon stack up against the original Game of Thrones?
Maddy Perez is the Queen Bee of Euphoria High, but unlike the other on screen mean girls we’re used to, she has something special: a heart.
Bridget Jones is smart, successful, and... deeply insecure. Why does Bridget have such low self-esteem?
"Quiet Quitting" itself is probably overblown and not enough of a solution to our collective burnout, but this craze does signal an opportunity to, as a culture, find a more enlightened understanding of the role work should take in our lives.
Was charismatic mean girl and queer icon Santana Lopez ever really a villain, or a secret hero all along?
The sad girl is having a moment. And her sadness isn’t a heavily politicized rage; it’s an internalized burden — a directionless angst that’s being filtered through music, film and literature.
The British Monarchy is facing a long-dreaded question: what is the future of the Royals in the public’s eyes and hearts?
Is feminism going out of fashion? And is it possible to channel all of the recent setbacks to reignite our passion for women’s rights with a more meaningful feminist framework for our times?
Cady Heron’s journey in Mean Girls showcases how seductive peer pressure can feel, and in the end illustrates that adolescence is about figuring out who you are, not who other people think you should be.
Drama ostensibly comes from problems and obstacles—so why do we love watching people who seemingly have none? Here’s our take on our love-hate affair with the socialite and whether the voyeurism of watching her is really hate or rooting for her.
Is it a problem that Hollywood’s stars are too beautiful – especially when they’re playing real people?
For most of the Modern Family's run, Hayley was pigeonholed as the pretty, dumb, popular character – but did the show let her down by not letting her be more?
What would it cost to buy your soul? In The Devil Wears Prada, Andy gets the kind of opportunity people dream of. But in order to benefit from it, she needs to give up part of herself...
There are five main types of red herring male love interests – and each represents a particular type of guy to be wary of, with a good reason: he’s not Mr. Right.
We’ve all been watching the rise of Gen Z as they replace millennials to dictate the rules of today’s cultural capital – but what comes next? It won’t be long before members of Gen Alpha are driving youth culture and popular media.
Why is everyone on Gossip Girl so obsessed with Serena, and is her “nice rich girl” persona just an act?Gossip Girl encourages us to strive to be rich and gorgeous like Serena, while it reminds us there’s no way we’ll ever truly be like her.
When does a person stop being a person and become a symbol? Marilyn Monroe as an idea has taken on a meaning all its own—the blonde bombshell, and the ultimate embodiment of a certain type of mythic femininity.
The Con artist is all over today’s film and TV – so are we supposed to be appalled by this figure, or are we actually… impressed?
So often stories resort to lazy, easy shortcuts we’ve seen a million times before. When are they effective or timeless, and when is this just a boring lack of imagination?
Roman Roy is an exhibitionist, but his kinkiness doesn’t just make him a memorable treat of a character. His particular perversities outline the Roy family’s psychological pitfalls.
Sydney Sweeney is putting a Gen Z stamp on the sex symbol. Here's our Take on how Sydney has deconstructed and rebuilt the sex symbol in a more serious way:
The damsel in distress character has fallen majorly out of fashion – and for good reason – but have we overcorrected against her?
Nepo babies are everywhere in entertainment these days – from Maude Apatow to Dakota Johnson to Nicolas Cage, one of your favorite actors is probably related to the Hollywood elite. So what do these stars really say about inequality in entertainment, and in America more broadly?
Hannah on Girls was widely deemed one of the most annoying TV characters of the 2010s, but was she just misunderstood?
So many stories center around the mystery of a beautiful dead girl who is often flattened into a symbol and treated as a mystery to be solved. Here’s our take on the dead girl story, and the loss she really represents in our culture:
Beyonce may have quietly removed a portion of her song Energy that interpolated Kelis’ Milkshake… but did she do anything wrong in the first place? Here’s our take on the drama, where the line is drawn, and why maybe even if you don’t legally deserve a credit, maybe you still deserve respect.
Freaks and Geeks taps into 80s nostalgia (from a late 90s perspective) – but in a genuine, complex way. The show got youth culture right - and it still resonates now.
Barbiecore is the fashion trend of the moment, but the fun act of reclaiming this hot pink femininity can still be so fraught with controversy, debate and criticism.
Why do women often fall for the rich guy – even when there are a lot of red flags he’s a total fraud? It’s not fair to blame these victims or sim ply assume they’re shallow and materialistic when there’s a much bigger cultural problem at play here.
Manifesting is everywhere these days, especially in the cultural collective of gen z. But today’s mainstream resurgence of manifesting also hints at a larger feeling of powerlessness in the face of bigger, systemic problems out of our control.
Did you ever think about the meaning behind Cher Horowitz’s most memorable looks in Clueless? Are all those perfectly curated clothes an expression of power – or are they actually hiding a teenage girl who feels powerless?
The daddy's girl onscreen is an idealized – but stunted– version of femininity, who is seen through the rose-colored glasses of a father who never wants her to grow up. Here’s our take on the daddy’s girl, and what happens if she doesn’t outgrow seeing her dad as the greatest guy in the world.
Rebel Wilson’s attempted outing at the hands of an Australian newspaper was a shocking and revealing window into our current moment. Here’s our take on why it might prove we’re finally moving on from the shocking history of tabloids targeting LGBT people for profitable scoops.
In season 2 of Euphoria, Cassie goes through some major changes, and so does her style. So what’s the secret emotional meaning underneath each of Cassie’s looks?
Gen Z is just getting started with adult life. So what does it say if the youngest adults are feeling burnt out already – and will the kids be alright?
So often we’re led to believe that, after a certain age, people are just stuck with their lot in life, however bad the job or relationship is. But the celebrity-starting-over trend is here to give us hope!
Fight Club has long been a cult classic, and today Tyler’s complaints about the spiritual costs of turning ourselves into consumers instead of people feel more prophetic than ever – so do any of his solutions make any sense, too?
Stories about women being deceptive or manipulative have been embedded in our culture for millennia, dating all the way back to Adam and Eve. Here’s our take on how narratives around the Depp-Heard trial draw on the tropes of the perfect victim and the devious manipulative woman, and how both of these fictional ideas fuel dangerous societal misogyny.
The “It” girl represents something indefinable — a quality, charisma, or spark that makes her stand out and captures something of her time. So what truly makes a generation’s It Girl?
Three years after the end of Game of Thrones, we’re heading back to Westeros. But what can we expect from HBO’s upcoming House of the Dragon?
The Cougar used to be a punchline, but has the joke of an older woman preying on younger men stopped being funny? And was it ever?
For all its confusion and ambiguity and humanoid rabbits, what major takeaways did Donnie Darko leave us with?
Is America truly becoming Gilead? How much of The Handmaid’s Tale’s terrifying fiction has already come to pass? Maybe more than you’d think.
As quickly as they arrived, it seems like millennials might be over. So where is the Elder Millennial today – and will they be okay?
Stranger Things’ epic fourth season hits close to home: unlike in the previous two seasons, the threat feels personal. So what did season 4 really mean?
Aging is an unavoidable part of life - or at least it used to be. But this doesn’t seem to be true for today’s celebrities. Here's our take on the mixed messages that today’s never-aging celebrities send us about how (and whether) it's okay to get older.
Teens on screens big and small are having some wild times. But is the risque teen trope an accurate depiction of what teenage life is like (now or ever)? Or is it an adult’s imagination of what kids today are up to?
Are we finally moving into a new age where the single lady is aspirational? While she may still have her challenges, the single lady has come a long way from being shunned, to being celebrated.
Millie Bobby Brown is breaking free of the child star curse with poise and confidence – and exposing a lot of what’s pretty shocking in today’s culture along the way.
What are the messages the Fifty Shades trilogy leaves us with – and are any of them actually useful in real romances, or should we pretty much view this story as a cautionary tale?
The workplace sitcom has given way to widespread workplace dystopia and how it reflects our angst that the nature of work today is not just soul-crushingly meaningless but actively wrong.
Who is the real Barbie, and who is she for? Here’s our take on how Barbie has managed to remain relevant and iconic for so long, and the essence of this character that’s persisted across her series of changing models.
Daria made it cool to be a wry and cynical loner and was the picture-perfect example of ‘90s alienation. Years later, Daria still resonates with anyone who’s ever questioned whether the problem is you or the system you’re living in.
The term is often thrown around as an insult, but the diva is a figure of self-created power many of us can take inspiration from. Here’s our Take on why the diva has become an icon to so many people.
True to its name, Everything Everywhere All At Once has a lot going on. What’s the deeper symbolism?
Jennifer Aniston was the archetypal girl next door of the 90s – but has that label limited her career, and did it ever actually represent who she really was?
Bookish, quiet, intelligent… and brown haired? The brainy brunette is embedded in our culture, but why do we correlate female smarts with hair color?
Riverdale's Jughead Jones is part of a longer tradition of obnoxious, indie guys in movies and TV who serve to make the rest of the cast look good by comparison, and give us someone we love to hate.
Are you a Carrie, Samantha, Charlotte, or Miranda? For years, Sex and the City viewers have used this question as a kind of sorting hat or personality quiz. Each woman feels so real, distinct, and clearly defined – so we can easily see ourselves in them. So, which one are you – and what can we learn from each of the ladies?
The "closeted homophobe" trope dominates pop culture today, from Power of the Dog to Sex Education. So why is this tired cliche still so easy to spot?
Abbott Elementary has become an unlikely hit and critical darling. So what makes it so fresh, and popular? The characters are endearing and place in a setting that’s, above all, realistic.
Bridgerton will be back for a third round of perfect couples, pastel frocks and lots of flirting – here’s what we know, what we don’t, and our Take on what might be in store for our favorite Georgian beaus!
The court case between Johnny Depp and Amber Heard is messy, complicated, and full of mixed evidence for and against each person – so why has so much of the online response rushed to assume his innocence and her guilt?
Like an ancient Greek tragic hero, Dune's Paul Atreides has options to avoid his inevitable downfall, but instead leans into his fatal flaws – his desires for power and revenge, thus becoming all of the things he's afraid of.
Dating red flags persistently get romanticized in modern media – but they should probably send you running for the hills IRL.
Tech villains on screen are nearly as old as film itself, but the trope is surging today – reflecting the non-stop stories of tech companies behaving badly.
Modern Family’s Claire Dunphy refuses to remain boxed in by prescriptive and restrictive roles, making her the model for the husband-wife.
Age gap relationships make us uncomfortable, but where exactly is the line – and can they ever be a good thing? Right now, these relationships are being explored a lot in culture, for good and for bad.
Belle is the ultimate bookworm hero princess. Her skills like empathy, insight, and knowledge aren’t as flashy as princess-type characters with superpowers or fierce warrior skills. But Belle’s model of heroine is an important one that we probably need more than ever.
Will Smith has been a pillar in Hollywood for decades – until his decision to slap Chris Rock at the 2022 Oscars seemingly toppled his carefully-built reputation overnight. So what happened inside Will Smith’s mind in that moment?
Quarter-life stories onscreen make us see that recognizing this crisis can be an impetus to go out and get what you want from your life at exactly the right time. Because in your twenties you have so much more of life left to live.
Parks and Rec's Ron Swanson is a mix of three key myths that underpin our culture: the manly man, the authentic libertarian, and the wise elder. This vintage superhero teaches us how to feel hopeful about the world, even when we don't all agree.
Pamela Anderson has long been defined by her infamous sex tape. Now, with an upcoming official Pamela Anderson documentary, it looks like Pam is finally aiming to retake control of her narrative, her way.
Bruce Willis is more than an action hero, and as he ushered in a new kind of movie star, he cemented his place as one of the most influential actors of his era. So how did he do it?
Most antiheroes repeat the same mistakes in their lives and commit monstrous acts as they pass their emotional trauma on to future generations. But why?
In Season 2 of Bridgerton, Anthony Bridgerton and Kate Sharma are star crossed lovers, but rather than being thwarted by external forces, it’s their internal hostility to one another that gets in the way of their obvious desire.
The "Other Woman" is a threat to the family unit, always wants what she can't have, and is seemingly motivated to 'steal' a married man. Despite attempts to humanize her, The Other Woman remains a powerful, often hated taboo.
Who is Jennifer Lawrence, really – the cool girl who can hang with the guys she long acted like in public appearances, or the steely, resilient and deep heroine she’s often played onscreen?
The surreally intimate and disturbing Kim-Kanye-Pete feud, as well as celebrity drama as a whole, reveal a lot about the state of social media and fame today.
The Heather is popular, coveted, and mean. But she's also often unhappy and voiceless. So what can we learn about pop culture’s most mysterious, and most misunderstood archetype?
The Buff Clown has become one of today’s masculine ideals that seems to dominate blockbuster movies, and he’s often used to skewer stereotypes of toxic masculinity and ridiculous egotism. So who is this new Hollywood hero?
How I Met Your Mothers' Lily often has her professional and personal goals sidelined. She serves as the show's ultimate "domestic goddess," modeling true, long-term romance with her own kind of assertiveness.
At its core, Cruel Intentions is about elite society, and the emotional reality of kids who grow up in a rich but loveless environment and then go on to perpetuate cruelty in the greater world. So is Kathryn's rage justifiable?
If the "Special Girl" onscreen is given her status by a guy, then surely her specialness can be taken away as quickly as it’s bestowed. So beyond loving the special girl, what really makes her more deeply special?
In season 2 of Euphoria, Cassie goes bananas. Her arc has a lot to say about self-esteem, sexuality and the “slut” trope in today’s world.
In 2022, it’s harder than ever to know what the Oscars are supposed to be. If the “slap” is the main thing we’ll remember about the 2022 Oscars, what does that say about any deeper value the Academy Awards even still hold in our zeitgeist and cultural conversation?
Coverage of Zendaya and Tom Holland's relationship often centers on the Tall GF/Short BF debate. What’s the real reason behind the media’s fixation over just a couple of inches – and why is a shorter man dating a taller woman even a story at all?
What’s expected by the time we turn 30 has changed drastically over the last decades, leading to the new 30-crisis, as seen in titles like tick, tick... BOOM!, Inside, Starstruck and The Worst Person In The World.
The Power of the Dog is ultimately a story about how toxic masculinity is a corrosive force that destroys people from the inside, and so the movie’s title refers to those dark, secret selves we fear.
While 1961’s West Side Story is a tragic love story with a laser focus on the Romeo and Juliet romance between Tony and Maria, Stephen Spielberg’s 2021 update is a wider story about the bigger forces in society that contribute to hate.
On How I Met Your Mother, Barney's "rules of dating" reflect our “laws” about how to act on a hook-up, who’s an acceptable match, and how a potential partner’s behaviors should be interpreted. But real love demands throwing out the rulebook.
Modern Family's Gloria Pritchett tore up the "second wife" playbook, proved those caricatures aren’t all real, and gave us hope that sometimes you really can get it right the second time around.
Celebrities - they’re just like us! Or that’s what we like to believe, and nothing sells that story better than when celebrities get together with “normos”.
Game Of Thrones rushed toward a finale that left a confusing and disappointing legacy. So, are we ready yet to talk about the show again - and can it ever regain that place in our hearts?
When does something stop being trendy, and start being "cheugy" – and is it time to just stop trying ever to be “up to date”?
Paul Thomas Anderson's films present a portrait of love that entails accepting the good, the bad, and the ugly in another person – seeing all your partner's flaws and adoring them anyway.
We can spot the “Disposable Black Love Interest” character almost instantly: they’re the fleeting guest star, presented as great in theory, yet we know the main character’s not actually going to end up with them.
When you’re a teenager everything can feel overwhelming and intense. Euphoria takes this to an extreme, communicating "emotional realism" through cinematic techniques.
The Material Girl TikTok Trend can be viewed as an inclusive rallying cry for marginalized people and increasingly disenfranchised youth to declare and flaunt their fabulousness, however much material wealth they have (or don’t...).
Unreliable narrators of books, film, and TV often explore mental illness, the fickle nature of memory, and revisionist bias. And these days, it’s gotten harder and harder to trust the narrator of any story, fictional or not. This is the unreliable narrator, explained... Or is it?
Margot Robbie has always managed to bring something extra to her "bombshell" roles, but she became a master of her own destiny and widened the range of roles available to her by developing not just as an actor but as a producer.
Anna Delvey embodies the 21st century American dream gone haywire in a “fake it 'till you make it” world that treats image as reality. So what lessons can we take from her playbook on how to hustle?
While "That Girl's" lifestyle promises shortcuts toward fulfillment, does it actually create more work, and raise expectations for women yet higher?
The Imperfect Mother is so jarring because she doesn’t fall in line with our culture’s assumption that a good mother must be selfless. The controversy around this figure reveals we haven’t come as far as we might think.
Why are we even more enthralled by Bennifer’s second go-round than their first one? In part, it’s because we’re fascinated by the concept of “the one that got away.”
The upcoming release of the Pam & Tommy miniseries coincides perfectly with the resurgence of interest in Barbie-&-the-Bad-Boy pairings to reexamine the couple’s cultural significance, as well as the most infamous part of their story - the leaked sex tape.
How I Met Your Father understands that today, the totally uncynical rom-com sitcom is a rare, if not extinct, relic – but that struggle to keep believing in love is still real if not far more dire.
The Matrix is far more than a sci-fi action classic - it's a practical guide to freeing your mind and fulfilling your potential, to becoming "The One" yourself. The Wachowskis ground-breaker - now celebrating its 20th anniversary - shows us how to follow the 7 steps of Neo's journey to Enlightenment.
While And Just Like That faltered early on, it ultimately got its groove back, and left us with the classic Sex And The City takeaway that it’s the ever-evolving relationship you have with yourself that matters most.
Pam Beesly is the "normal" one in The Office. Is that actually a good thing? Here's our take and find out how being normal is both the strength and the downfall of our favorite "Girl Next Desk."
How I Met Your Mother's Tracy was the perfect love interest viewers spent 9 seasons waiting for... and then the finale undercut the romantic ideals at the show's core and underestimated it's audience by treating the Mother as disposable.
Is The Little Mermaid actually a story about realizing you’re queer and the world you’ve grown up in can’t accept you as you really are? If it is - it suggests that there's a lot of pain, sacrifice, and compromise ahead of anyone who wishes to come out.
She's a Smart Girl, and it's never been cooler to be one, to be proud of what you know and what you can achieve. So how has this archetype evolved, and what does it really mean to be a smart girl today?
The unexpected life of the new Cool Mom both onscreen & in real life is defined by enlightened parenting philosophies, mom hacks, & venting sessions over wine with other Cool Moms. But can she really exist?
How do you win an argument? Learn from the master of rhetoric: Cher Horowitz, star of Clueless. The Alicia Silverstone character may be remembered as a 90s fashion icon, but she's in fact most impressive for the debate skills she puts to use in all aspects of her life. She teaches us a few things about how to make our case so that people will listen.
While strides are being made around disability representation on screen, disabled characters are still often reduced to monsters, bridges to the supernatural, or bad guys.
In Sex and The City, growing old with Aidan would have made more sense for Carrie if marriage was what she truly wanted – but secretly, it seems like she really prefers to be alone.
Dyed hair was once a visual shorthand to convey a character’s “edginess” or "alternativeness.” It even came across to some as scary, unsettling, a threatening challenge to the social status quo. Today, though, it's almost the norm. So what changed?
Don’t Look Up is an eerily accurate echo of how we continue to mine our world for non-renewable resources instead of investing in green energy, even though burning fossil fuels is explicitly causing our downfall.
We’re told to worship (or try to be) the "Pretty Girl," but that pursuit can erode a deeper sense of self. When people see you as the "Pretty Girl" type, they’re really seeing preconceived, culturally entrenched notions of what your beauty represents.
Much of Gossip Girl focuses on Chuck Bass and Blair Waldorf’s endlessly destructive love affair. Why are viewers so compelled by their toxic love, and why does it make so much sense that they end up together?
In Tangled, Rapunzel’s mental imprisonment and her desire to take the agency to see the world herself speak generally to how young girls need to free themselves from damaging longstanding cultural myths.
Friends' Emily is the Runner-Up Love Interest, a character who serves as a transition to the show's one true pairing. Let's take a look at what we can learn from her side of this story.
How much do we want to see the Covid-19 pandemic reflected in our Films and TV shows – should stories be helping us process, or just letting us enjoy a much-needed escape?
Many of the labels we still put on women - good girls and bad girls, wifeys and femme fatales – come from Madonna-Whore dichotomy. Here’s how to spot these archetypes on-screen.
Is How I Met Your Mother’s Ted Mosby the good guy he claims to be? Or is his romantic journey more self indulgent and sometimes sinister than he claims it is? What if he's the bad guy?
Helen is that woman you hate -- but also want to be. What's the problem of the Bridesmaids antagonist? Why is she incapable of getting what she really wants: friends?
The Matrix Resurrections is an interrogation of the original film and its legacy, asking whether anything has improved as a result of the Matrix’s message to free your mind, or if the mind-control in our actual world has just gotten worse.
Today's "Pick Me Girl" often manifests like the traditional "Good Girl Wifey” who judges single women. She can can even be an antifeminist who disavows women’s rights. But she is truly defined by her lack of time or respect for other women.
Janet Jackson's early music tackled the body insecurities she’d dealt with throughout her early life as a child performer. Now, she's taking back control once again with her own 2022 documentary. So let's celebrate her legacy of centering female bodily agency in pop.
The Girlboss Villain is everywhere -- but are these stories about toxic female bosses incisive capitalist critiques, or are they actually kind of misogynistic, suggesting their desire for power is unwomanly or unnatural?
The less dreamy traits of Grey's Anatomy's Derek Shepherd have been the topic of discussion since the seemingly charming doctor was written out of the show. So what can we learn from his lack of growth?
Classic cinema is rapidly declining in popularity, largely because streaming services prioritize only the newest content. As a result, viewers are actually losing the ability to engage with the language of older movies. So how can we save dying classic cinema?
Friends’ Phoebe Buffay is quirky, unique, and has lived an interesting life, while by comparison, Mike Hannigan is... kind of bland. So did Phoebe actually settle or did they find the key to happy ever after?
The Season 3 finale of Succession leaves us with some key takeaways about the nature of power: so much of it stems from others believing you have it, and that it’s not just about winning the stated game, but setting the terms of winning -- making up the rules and defining what power itself even is.
In the premiere episodes of revival series And Just Like That, Sex and the City catches up with its characters to show us what it's like for women to grow older, though it remains to be seen if ladies can resurrect the seemingly joyless, sexless city that was once theirs.
Since The Office ended, theories on Toby have proliferated, with many even finding a bunch of clues that he’s the true Scranton Strangler. But Toby doesn’t deserve the hate, so why is he such a punching bag?
A key mission of Legally Blonde's Elle Woods is fighting the bias against blondes -- in particular, the "dumb blonde" stereotype. But where does this stereotype come from? Let's all dig into the roots of the assumptions about blondes and find out what's really behind them.
The story of Forrest Gump is a myth of 20th-century America. Like any good myth, it filters historical facts through allegory, creating a symbolic journey that helps us make sense of a complicated era. So, what does Forrest Gump has to say about us -- and our national identity?
The good girl of film and tv plays by the rules. She's nice, polite, and probably a straight A student. Yet this perfect-seeming facade can mask her darker struggles, even from herself.
Media coverage of Pete Davidson suggests a society that’s still as obsessed as ever with conventional female beauty and a “hotness gap” between the men and women in celebrity couples. But Pete's attractiveness is actually pretty obvious, and the coverage of his relationships needs to calm down and catch up with the times.
Variations on the terrible trio, like The Plastics and the Unholy Trinity, have long dominated cinema’s and TV’s fictional high school hallways. So what is it about this rule of three and these particular recurring character types that add up to the perfect recipe for high-school popularity and oppression?
East Asian women onscreen have long been haunted by the figure of the Dragon Lady: a violent seductress who will do anything to achieve her goals. At the same time, the dragon lady is unapologetically driven, ultra-assertive, and has agency.
She's a Weird Girl, the black sheep of all female character tropes. Why do people misunderstand her, or are even scared of her? What secret powers does the weird girl have?
Privileged and miserably insecure Andy Bernard is The Office's cautionary tale about the limits of what wealth can (or rather can't) do for you. Many Office fans found Andy’s arc disappointing, but his choices eventually proved how many who grow up in toxic, status-obsessed environments often don’t transcend their learned behaviors.
In capitalist terms, housewives as a group are highly influential, shaping everything from department-store stock to global politics. But whether she’s framed as an object of envy or pity, the housewife figure is routinely disrespected in our culture.
How I Met Your Mother's ending has never sat right with fans. Why is this conclusion regarded with such infamy? Should Ted and Robin have gotten together? Did the Mother live up to your expectations? Let's take a look at what doesn't work about the How I Met Your Mother series finale.
The evolving discussion over symbolism in The Matrix is a testament to how much meaning the film holds for audiences. So which interpretations offer the most insight, and what does the Matrix teach us about the fundamental nature of art?
Why are we still talking about whether or not female characters are likable? Historically, female characters have been over-defined by how much a male viewpoint character likes, or indeed, doesn’t like them -- creating a gendered bias of likability.
The female victim-survivor binary of film & tv has produced both hapless "victim" characters and unrealistic "survivor" heroes -- so it's time we truly listen as the person who lived through hell tells her complicated story herself.
He's not like the other guys. He's a NICE guy -- but wait, is he really that nice? What's behind his sweet, romantic act? In this episode, we take on the Nice Guy archetype and figure out what he represents in our world today.
Is Miranda Priestly actually "the devil" in The Devil Wears Prada? Her pursuit of excellence actually makes her a role model for working women, and we can all use a touch of Miranda in our professional lives -- that is, of course, if you’re willing to pay the price of perfectionism.
Netflix's Clickbait uses the same kinds of techniques as internet clickbait to keep us pressing “next episode”: focusing on sensational, violent spectacle; raising tantalizing questions that it delays answering, and ending episodes with cliffhangers that tease a big reveal, only to send us down a lot of false paths.
The anti hero’s wife enables him to self-identify as a ‘family man,’ but they also serve to highlight that -- however much these men claim that their wrongdoing is separate from their pure family home -- it’s impossible to cleanly close the door on dirty business and retreat into the realm of pure domesticity.
The mug speaks the truth: The Office’s Michael Scott (Steve Carell) IS the world’s best boss.
More than ever today, the Quirky Black Character is becoming a well-rounded protagonist in a Black-created story -- expressed not just as a personality, but through an individual or downright weird worldview that shapes the whole texture of the narrative.
Did you know Regina George (Rachel McAdams) actually tells us a lot about how dictatorships work? Listen to our take and find out more about this iconic character and her North Shore High “regime.”
Ted Lasso’s relentless optimism won us all over in season one. But by season two, Ted’s refusal to look anywhere but on the sunny side of things is looking less and less healthy. So what really went wrong with Nate, and how can you achieve a “Light Side” that’s based on a genuine, rock-solid foundation?
She’s not like other girls. She’s a COOL girl. But does this fun, junk food-loving hottie actually exist? And what’s behind this myth? In this episode, we take on how the Cool Girl has evolved onscreen and what she represents in our culture.