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Melanie McFarland (page 12)

Melanie McFarland is Salon's award-winning senior culture critic. Follow her on Bluesky: @McTelevision

Pedro Pascal wins Male Actor in a Drama Series for "The Last of Us" at the 30th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards held at the Shrine Auditorium and Expo Hall on February 24, 2024 in Los Angeles, California (Michael Buckner/Variety via Getty Images)

A post-strike SAG Awards lets it all hang out, partying like the Golden Globes used to

Melanie McFarland
Alan Cumming on "The Traitors" (Euan Cherry/PEACOCK)

“The Traitors” and the lying liars who make it the reality treat of our time

Melanie McFarland
Where Is Wendy Williams? (Photo illustration by Salon/Getty Images/Tuomas A. Lehtinen/Lifetime/Calvin Gayle)

Wendy Williams won’t be silenced yet

Melanie McFarland
Avatar: The Last Airbender (Netflix)

This “Avatar: The Last Airbender” coasts along by improving on M. Night Shyamalan’s mess

Melanie McFarland
Jodie Foster and Kali Reis in "True Detective: Night Country" (HBO)

Nic Pizzolatto’s “Night Country” ire reminds us some “True Detective” mysteries are easily solvable

Melanie McFarland
True Detective: Night Country (Michele K. Short/HBO)

“True Detective: Night Country” leaves us in a place between the truth of crime and feminine mystery

Melanie McFarland
Jon Stewart on "The Daily Show" (Matt Wilson/Comedy Central)

Jon Stewart returns “The Daily Show” to old times. His successor may be a retrofit, too

Melanie McFarland
Franklin Armstrong in "Snoopy Presents: Welcome Home, Franklin" (Apple TV+)

It’s about time the Peanuts gave Franklin a home, and an overdue identity of his own

Melanie McFarland
Dominic Sessa, Paul Giamatti and Da'Vine Joy Randolph in "The Holdovers" (Focus Features)

How “The Holdovers” writer was inspired by Michelangelo to create a “broken” holy family

Melanie McFarland
Bobi Wine on top of his vehicle with his wife Barbara Itungo Kyagulanyi as they campaigned in Kasanda district, Central Uganda on November 27, 2020. (Southern Films/Lookman Kampala)

Bobi Wine, “The People’s President,” has a message for us: “Be inspired to defend your democracy”

Melanie McFarland
Finn Bennett in "True Detective: Night Country" (HBO)

The children in “True Detective: Night Country” may be the ones who suffer the most

Melanie McFarland
Usher performs onstage during the Apple Music Super Bowl LVIII Halftime Show at Allegiant Stadium on February 11, 2024 in Las Vegas, Nevada (Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for Roc Nation)

Sorry, Swifties: Super Bowl LVIII belonged to Usher and Beyoncé

Melanie McFarland
Taylor Swift reacts during the first half of a game between the Chicago Bears and the Kansas City Chiefs at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium on September 24, 2023 in Kansas City, Missouri (Jason Hanna/Getty Images)

Will the “Swift Effect” raise Super Bowl ratings to new heights?

Melanie McFarland
Larry David on "Curb Your Enthusiasm" (John Johnson/HBO)

“Curb Your Enthusiasm” proves that it’s only a matter of time before we all become Larry David

Melanie McFarland
Tracy Chapman and Luke Combs perform onstage during the 66th GRAMMY Awards on February 04, 2024 in Los Angeles, California (John Shearer/Getty Images for The Recording Academy)

How “Fast Car,” a 1988 hit, became the vehicle that travels between cultural divides in 2024

Melanie McFarland
Kali Reis and Jodie Foster in "True Detective" (HBO)

In “True Detective: Night Country” it’s better to ask questions than pray for answers from the dead

Melanie McFarland
Jon Stewart on the set of "The Daily Show" (Photo courtesy of Comedy Central/Instagram)

Jon Stewart returns to “The Daily Show” as the voice of past generations. What about future ones?

Melanie McFarland
Genius: MLK/X (Nat Geo)

Where Nat Geo’s “Genius” meets America’s remix of Martin Luther King and Malcolm X

Melanie McFarland
Mr. & Mrs. Smith (Prime Video)

“Mr. & Mrs. Smith” lands its mission to be an intimacy study. As an action comedy, it may be a miss

Melanie McFarland
Feud: Capote vs. The Swans (FX)

“Feud: Capote vs. The Swans” makes us miss Ryan Murphy’s facility for writing difficult women

Melanie McFarland
The Many Lives of Martha Stewart (CNN)

From “Living” to scandal and Snoop, we’re already familiar with “The Many Lives of Martha Stewart”

Melanie McFarland
Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor in "Origin" (Courtesy of NEON/Atsushi Nishijima)

Ava DuVernay’s “Origin” synthesizes a massive human injustice in something personal

Melanie McFarland
America Ferrera in "Barbie" (Warner Bros.)

“Never forget the system is rigged”: Why America Ferrera’s “Barbie” nomination is the one we needed

Melanie McFarland
Roy Wood Jr. guest hosts "The Daily Show" (Comedy Central)

“The Daily Show” may be moving forward without a host. Is this a good thing or simply inevitable?

Melanie McFarland
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