A Battlestar Galactica book update, a Spartacus revival & a Chicago sitrep
Before I head into the New England woods to do a LOT of writing, here are some updates, links and thoughts on the occupation of New Caprica (a.k.a. Chicago)
Latest
It's official: My next book is about Battlestar Galactica!
I'm writing a book about Battlestar Galactica, with many new interviews with the cast, crew and creative team. Subscribe to get updates on the pre-order date and many more BSG treats. Mo Say We All!
On the firing of Alan Sepinwall, the scary place we're in, and attempting to de-stupid the media
The past decade or two has not been a good one for members of the media. And it keeps getting worse on a lot of fronts. Cultural coverage in particular has been stomped pretty thoroughly, in dribs and drabs over the years, and then rather decisively in recent months. The
A generous sampler of my investigative reporting, TV coverage, features and criticism
Hi! If you don't know much about what I've done or who I am, here are some pieces from recent years I’d love you to check out. First up, here are handy links to the work I've done for Vanity Fair (where I&
Coverage of my book Burn It Down: Power, Complicity, and a Call for Change in Hollywood
I've assembled an array of coverage of my first book, Burn It Down: Power, Complicity and a Call for Change in Hollywood, which came out June 6, 2023. Burn It Down is my reaction to and examination of the trends that produced #MeToo and various racial reckonings as
Roundup! A cool podcast, gardening tips, TV and book recs and more!
Hello! I hope you are doing OK and taking care of yourself. That’s a pretty tall order at the moment and if you are taking on even more — i.e., trying to help others and your communities — I’m grateful to you. I’ve got a roster of good
Two ways to help great charities and a Battlestar Galactica return
First up, a professional announcement: I will once again be the emcee, host and moderator at the three-day Battlestar Galactica convention that Creation has put together. The first one, as I wrote in this post, was a blast. I am hoping you can come to the next one, in New
RIP David Lynch (and links to help LA)
Oh, this one hurts. This hurts a lot. A lot of things in the world are terrible, so it takes something major to burst through and occupy the center of my mind. No one could do that like David Lynch. With the death of Lynch, we’ve lost one of
The Battlestar Galactica convention was fab — and all this will happen again!
Would you like a bit of good news? I would! This past weekend, Creation Entertainment put on a convention paying tribute to Battlestar Galactica. Many members of the show’s acting troupe and creative team were on hand, and I had the honor of being the MC and also moderating
Sending up the Batsignal and asking for help
Countless times, when people in the entertainment industry needed help, I’ve answered the call. I’ve done things behind the scenes and helped however I could more times than I can count. I’ve listened to folks’ stories and told them they weren’t wrong to feel the way
A Burn It Down video extravaganza, and thoughts on Neil Gaiman, creative gods, American Gods and rotten pedestals
Hello! Chicago folks, on Wednesday, Aug. 14 at 7 p.m., I’ll be in conversation with my friend Steve Darnall at The Book Cellar in Chicago. The occasion is the reissue of Uncle Sam, a brilliant graphic novel by Steve and Alex Ross. It’s about a lot of
On Kamala Harris, Barack Obama and a theory. On Sleepy Hollow, moving forward and Not Going Back
Politics is, to some degree, a game of symbolism. But the phrase “political theater” isn’t an inherently negative one: We all respond to symbols and images that are brilliantly arranged. Under the right conditions, we create real meaning from those building blocks. That is all to say, if I
books
One year of Burn It Down (plus an LA event!)
There are a couple of interviews (and an event) I’d like to draw your attention to. And then I’m going to share a few thoughts on one year of Burn It Down (now out in paperback!) existing in the world. A number of folks asked me during the
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Books. Bakes. Battlestar Galactica. (Recent Work and Upcoming Funtimes)
It’s been a while. One big reason is that it’s now gardening season and I spend every spare minute doing dirt-based outdoor therapy in my yard. I'm having a lot of fun with it, while also dodging a massive brood of dazed cicadas, who are truly
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Welcome back to The O.C. (with a rant and other bonus content!)
I’d been writing about popular culture for some time when The O.C. premiered in 2003, but what I didn’t know about the entertainment industry back then could fill several books. And that’s one of the many benefits of time, growth and perspective: Looking back at the
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Sinéad O’Connor
I cannot say I was overly surprised to hear that Sinéad O’Connor died. It’s hard to think of a public figure who has endured more struggles, nightmares and tragedies. And no one was more devoted to being ruthlessly honest about those struggles than O’Connor. She constantly interrogated
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Eight things I'm digging lately
I have a couple of book-related items to share, but then I'll list a few other thoughts/recommendations on this random Wednesday, which I hope finds you well. First, baby's first major review! Kirkus Reviews wrote up my book, Burn It Down: Power, Complicity and a
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RIP (?) Twitter (?!) I hope you had the time of your life
As I write this, some of us are having a wake for Twitter, which is weird, because it’s not dead yet, but it might be soon. The signs aren’t promising. As often happens when someone dies in real life, I am thinking about the good times. This thread.
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Community and Cocktails in Austin, Texas
Well! Here is a post about things that happened two months ago — some of which you can still enjoy! I had meant to put this post up much earlier this summer, but I’ve been finishing the writing and reporting for my first book — Burn It Down, due out next
Star Trek
For All Mankind and Star Trek: Deep Space Nine: The Definitive Comparison
Star trek Deep Space Nine and For All Mankind: Are they the same show?
TV Lists
My Top TV Shows & Movies of 2021
Hello! It’s too late to post my favorite TV shows and films of 2021, because it’s now 2022 and no one cares! Or maybe someone cares. In any event, it pleases me to post this information and at least give my WordPress skills a workout. Normally I write
TV Lists
My Top TV Shows of 2020
I love reading critics’s end-of-year lists and, because I’m a nerd, I also enjoy making lists of things I should check out (at this point, my Things to Watch Google Doc is one of history’s greatest epics). It’s weird how other critics’ lists are correct and
TV Lists
My Top TV Shows of 2019
This is a love story. Television, there’s too much of you. Stop. But also, don’t. I didn’t do individual writeups of each show on this list, as I did with my 2018 list, in part because this was a looong year and I still have a lot
TV Lists
The 101 Best TV Shows of 2010-2019
This is my personal list of the top 101 programs of the decade. I only considered programs that premiered after January 1, 2010. If you get mad about an omission, there’s a 98% chance that the show you’re cranky about premiered before that date. I’m almost annoyed