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Melanie McFarland (page 58)

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

Youths chat at a cafe modeled after the "Central Perk" cafe in the "Friends" sitcom (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)

Why millennials and Gen Z love “Friends”

Melanie McFarland
Laura Carmichael stars as Lady Hexham, Elizabeth McGovern as Lady Grantham and Michelle Dockery stars as Lady Mary Talbot in DOWNTON ABBEY, a Focus Features release. (Liam Daniel / © 2019 Focus Features, LLC)

“Downton Abbey” is entirely unnecessary, and essential viewing for super-fans

Melanie McFarland
Shane Gillis on Comedy Central Stand Up (Comedy Central)

Shane Gillis fired from “Saturday Night Live,” robbing world of racist, homophobic originality

Melanie McFarland
Still from Amazon Prime Video's "Undone" (Amazon Prime Video)

The rules of TV are coming “Undone”

Melanie McFarland
Dwight Yoakam signs Martin D-28 guitar. Yoakam is among the 76 of the 101 country music artists interviewed for the series who signed two Martin D-28 guitars. (Jared Ames)

Think you don’t like country music? Ken Burns’ new PBS opus will play your heart like a fiddle

Melanie McFarland
Bowen Yang (IMDB/ Alex Schaefer)

With Bowen Yang, “Saturday Night Live” has finally hired its first cast member of Asian descent

Melanie McFarland
Shoshannah Stern as Kate, Josh Feldman as Michael in "This Close" (Michael Moriatis/SundanceNow)

Step into the “This Close” bubble with two deaf best friends in a hearing world

Melanie McFarland
The two-year FRONTLINE investigation "Flint's Deadly Water" uncovers the extent of a deadly Legionnaires' disease outbreak during the Flint water crisis — and how officials failed to stop it. (PBS/ Frontline)

This is our “Chernobyl”: Frontline’s “Flint’s Deadly Water” exposes shocking Legionnaires’ crisis

Melanie McFarland
TV personality Tamron Hall attends the ABC "TCA Summer Press Tour" Carpet Event at the Soho House, in West Hollywood, California, on August 5, 2019. (VALERIE MACON/AFP/Getty Images)

Tamron Hall is back, and she’s ready to talk with America

Melanie McFarland
Margarita Levieva and James Franco in "The Deuce" (HBO/Paul Shiraldi)

Smart Watch: A week to look back with “The Deuce” and . . .”The Brady Bunch”?

Melanie McFarland
Sacha Baron Cohen in "The Spy" (Netflix/David Lukacs)

“The Spy”: Sacha Baron Cohen uses his identity-shifting talents in solid Netflix drama

Melanie McFarland
"Dave Chappelle: Sticks & Stones" Netflix Special (Netflix/Mathieu Bitton)

What happened to Dave Chappelle: The cruelty of “Sticks & Stones” is a sign of the times

Melanie McFarland
Harvey Weinstein (Getty/Stephanie Keith)

“Untouchable” Harvey Weinstein: Everyone agreeing with Dave Chappelle on #MeToo needs to watch

Melanie McFarland
James Franco and Daniel Sauli in "The Deuce" (HBO/Paul Shiraldi)

Smart Watch Fall preview: 7 must-see TV shows returning in September

Melanie McFarland
Cara Delevingne and Orlando Bloom in "Carnival Row" (EPK TV/Amazon Studios/Jan Thijs)

“Carnival Row”: Orlando Bloom and Cara Delevingne’s fairy tale is fractured by competing narratives

Melanie McFarland
"The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance" on Netflix (Netflix/Kevin Baker)

“The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance”: A seductive fantasy very relevant to our reality

Melanie McFarland
Kirsten Dunst as Krystal Stubbs in "On Becoming a God in Central Florida" (Patti Perret/Sony/Showtime)

“On Becoming a God in Central Florida” exposes unfettered capitalism as a rigged and failing game

Melanie McFarland
Grace Saif, Dylan Minnette and Christian Navarro in "13 Reasons Why" (David Moir/Netflix)

Smart Watch: Why is there yet another season of “13 Reasons Why”?

Melanie McFarland
(Getty/Salon)

A Fox News afterlife for Sarah Huckabee Sanders: Why she’s perfect for the job—and Sean Spicer’s not

Melanie McFarland
Former White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer; Brian Cox and Matthew Macfadyen in "Succession" (AP/Evan Agostini/Peter Kramer/HBO)

Watch “Succession” to understand why media companies reward the worst people

Melanie McFarland
"South Side;" "Sherman's Showcase" (Comedy Central/Michael Moriatis/IFC)

“South Side” and “Sherman’s Showcase” give rarely-seen perspectives on black American life

Melanie McFarland
Pat Buchanan, 2008 (Brendan Smialowski/Getty Images)

Pat Buchanan back on PBS, really? Why we don’t need a “McLaughlin Group” revival now

Melanie McFarland
Isaiah Johnson and Akili McDowel in "David Makes Man" (Rod Millington / ©Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.)

Smart Watch: “David Makes Man” and “Lodge 49,” where fantasy and reality collide

Melanie McFarland
Betty Gilpin and Geena Davis in "GLOW" (Ali Goldstein/Netflix)

What “GLOW” season 3 reveals about the working woman’s gamble

Melanie McFarland
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