The State of Scary TV
‘The Returned’ and ‘Ash vs Evil Dead’ join ‘The Walking Dead’ in offering high-quality horror.
May 7, 2012
The Beastie Boys’ Lost Chappelle’s Show Performance
We lost Adam “MCA” Yauch of the Beastie Boys on Friday to cancer. While this has pained fans of the man and his music, it’s been wonderful to witness the various tributes across the cultural landscape. From great writers penning great words about Yauch to Coldplay performing a hauntingly Coldplay-ish version of “Fight for Your […]
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Mad Men Power Rankings: Episode 508, ‘The Lady Lazarus’
[Production notes: If you queue up Revolver in your media player of choice and press play at the end of this Production Note, nothing will happen. Well, you’ll be listening to some great music as you muddle through these Rankings, but there’s no magic synchronization thing that will reveal previously unimagined layers of each work. […]
Read moreLittle Brother Syndrome: Eli Manning and SNL
Look: Peyton Manning killed it on SNL in 2007, especially with the United Way sketch, during which he slammed kids with footballs and punished one little boy by sentencing him to 20 minutes in a Port-O-Let. I wouldn’t have wanted to follow that act, and neither, for some time, did Eli Manning. Professional sports and […]
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Mad Men: Eating Men Like Air
“Well let me tell you ’bout the way she looked / The way she’d act and the color of her hair / Her voice was soft and cool / Her eyes were clear and bright / But she’s not there” — The Zombies, “She’s Not There” Michael Ginsberg pitches an Axe body spray commercial about […]
Read moreThe Avengers Record-Breaking Box Office Numbers Already Shaming The Hunger Games
Guess how much money The Avengers made this weekend?
Read moreGame of Thrones Season 2, Episode 6: ‘The Old Gods and the New’
Usually when I call a show “visceral,” I mean it figuratively. It’s a convenient adjective to have in the ol’ word holster to describe emotional beats that land not through dialogue, but via images of shock or “aww,” tear-inducing scenes like a beloved character’s death on The Wire or crying over every single thing that […]
Read moreMay 4, 2012
Trailers of the Week: Spider-Man, The Dark Knight Rises, and Prometheus
The Amazing Spider-Man (July 3) Dan Silver: As a kid I bought more Spider-Man comics than those of any other superhero. I attended the midnight screenings for both Spider-Man 1 and 2, and yet, outside of some lingering loyalty to the character and minor curiosity as to why this series needed another reboot, I have […]
Read more20 Seconds With the President
Suppose you were given the opportunity to spend 20 seconds with the President of the United States. Just you and him. A few of his handlers watching from a short distance, of course — provided they weren’t preoccupied with South American vixens. But your conversation is otherwise private. What would you say to him? Recently […]
Read moreNBC Comedy Recap: The Trial of the Greendale Seven
Every week in this space, Grantland pop culture correspondent Andy Greenwald will run down the happenings and mishappenings in NBC’s Thursday comedy night done mostly right. (Note: The order reflects newsworthiness, not quality. Although occasionally the two just might overlap.) 1. Community Could there be a more perfect metaphor for Community’s relentless, occasionally foolhardy individuality […]
Read moreVideo on Demand Report: Starring Madonna and MMA Fighters (Though Sadly Not Together)
The Headliner New Year’s Eve EVERYTHING ALL OF THE TIME!!!!!!!!
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Grantland Reality Fantasy League: Welcoming Back an Old, Blurcled Friend
Screw this, we’re adding Survivor to the GRTFL. With the spring reality TV season winding down and the summer trash yet to be lugged out to the televised curb, something had to be done. Plus, this season of Survivor is starting to get good. If you haven’t been watching Survivor: One World, fear not, you […]
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Mystery Masterpiece: Please, Please Watch ‘Sherlock’
How does one go about making something modern? It’s rarely as simple as updating the threads and snipping the telephone cords; not all stories can be unstuck from their time. So what’s the secret? Is it swapping some genders and boosting the adrenaline? Is it raising the (wooden) stakes by adding vampires and stovepipe hats […]
Read moreThe Avengers’ Samuel L. Jackson Offers the New York Times’ A.O. Scott Free Job Counseling
Sam vs. A.O., round one.
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