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Melanie McFarland (page 7)

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

Caption David Jonsson as Andy in "Alien: Romulus" (Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios)

We need to talk about Andy: The best “Alien: Romulus” character has glitches

Melanie McFarland
Rapper Lil Jon (R) performs with the Georgia delegation during the Ceremonial Roll Call of States on the second day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center on August 20, 2024 in Chicago, Illinois. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

From pop stars to insult comedy, the Dems threw a cookout where the real joke was on Trump

Melanie McFarland
Pachinko (Apple TV+)

Then and now, “Pachinko” remains one of TV’s richest shows about life and living

Melanie McFarland
Jennie Garth, Halle Berry and Miranda July (Photo illustration by Salon/Getty Images)

Menopause is all the rage, from Hollywood stars to “The Change”

Melanie McFarland
Chimp Crazy (HBO)

“Chimp Crazy,” the latest from maker of “Tiger King,” is disturbing in more ways than the obvious

Melanie McFarland
Caption Xenomorph in "Alien: Romulus" (Photo courtesy of 20th Century Studios)

Don’t overthink “Alien: Romulus,” a thrilling adventure that doesn’t aspire beyond its homage orbit

Melanie McFarland
B-Girl Raygun of Team Australia competes during the B-Girls Round Robin - Group B on day fourteen of the Olympic Games Paris 2024 at Place de la Concorde on August 09, 2024 in Paris, France. (Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

Breaking made Olympics history, but sent a mixed message thanks to an Aussie b-girl’s audacity

Melanie McFarland
Joe Rogan: Burn the Boats (Troy Conrad/Netflix)

In Joe Rogan, Netflix continues mainstreaming misinformation and panic for laughs

Melanie McFarland
Flavor Flav, Snoop Dogg and B-Boy Mounir Biba. (Photo illustration by Salon/Getty Images)

From Snoop to Flavor Flav and breaking, American hip-hop is winning the Paris Olympics

Melanie McFarland
Jemaine Clement in "Time Bandits" (Apple TV+)

“Time Bandits” creators on their remake: “How lucky to get a chance to use the word ‘Pythonesque'”

Melanie McFarland
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz | Menards hardware store (Photo illustration by Salon/Getty Images)

Tim Walz shops at Menards, making our Hallmark governor dreams a reality

Melanie McFarland
Emma D'Arcy as Rhaenyra Targaryen in "House of the Dragon" (HBO)

“House of the Dragon”: When the best action in the finale is mud wrestling, that’s a problem

Melanie McFarland
Hugh Jackman as Wolverine/Logan and Ryan Reynolds as Deadpool/Wade Wilson in "Deadpool and Wolverine" (Jay Maidment/20th Century Studios/Marvel Studios)

“Deadpool & Wolverine” shows how the Marvelization of movie storytelling loses the plot

Melanie McFarland
Former US President and 2024 Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump answers questions during the National Association of Black Journalists annual convention in Chicago, Illinois, on July 31, 2024. (KAMIL KRZACZYNSKI/AFP via Getty Images)

The NABJ welcomed Trump to insult them and spread lies about Kamala Harris

Melanie McFarland
Mother with daughters in a field (Getty Images/Westend61)

The Ballerina Farm furor explains why people love being childless cat ladies

Melanie McFarland
Archie Barnes as Oscar Tully in "House of the Dragon" (HBO)

Westeros may be on fire, but in “House of the Dragon” at least the kids are alright

Melanie McFarland
Close-up of actor/comedian Bob Newhart in his office at home, September 1972. (Getty Images/Bettmann Contributor)

“One of the main inventors of the form”: Bob Newhart’s stand-up comedy mind, unbuttoned

Melanie McFarland
Vice President Kamala Harris speaks onstage during a Pride Celebration hosted by the Vice President Of The United States and Mr. Emhoff in collaboration with GLAAD on June 28, 2023 in Washington, DC. (Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images for GLAAD)

In her national debut Kamala Harris was better TV than Donald Trump’s rerun. Can she keep it up?

Melanie McFarland
Wayne Brady: The Family Remix (Freeform)

“I wasn’t being authentically me”: Wayne Brady paints a portrait of pansexuality through reality TV

Melanie McFarland
Time Bandits (Apple TV+)

Apple’s “Time Bandits” reboot is a worthy journey, venturing more broadly through history

Melanie McFarland
Clinton Liberty as Addam of Hull and Seasmoke in "House of the Dragon" (HBO)

“House of the Dragon”: What it means when a dragon swipes right

Melanie McFarland
Antony Starr (Homelander) on "The Boys" (Prime Video)

“The Boys” gives us a grim warning of Trumpism’s endgame

Melanie McFarland
William Zabka as Johnny Lawrence, Sean Kanan as Mike Barnes and Ralph Macchio as Daniel LaRusso in "Cobra Kai" (Curtis Bonds Baker/Netflix)

The problem with “Cobra Kai” is “Star Wars”

Melanie McFarland
Sonoya Mizuno as Mysaria and Emma D'Arcy as Rhaenyra Targaryen in "House of the Dragon" (HBO)

Is America headed the way of “House of the Dragon,” with two weak leaders tearing the realm apart?

Melanie McFarland
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