Review: Orange is the New Black
I want to love Orange is the New Black. I really, really do. Based on the memoir of the same name by Piper Kerman, the Netflix original series exploded onto computers across the US this July and...
Category: Feminism
Feminist Solidarity and Fuck Yous: ‘The Heat’ Takes on the Buddy Cop Genre
It’s tempting to review The Heat, the lady-centric buddy cop comedy from Bridesmaids director Paul Feig, by focusing on what the movie is not. It is not an action vehicle made by men, for men; the...
Director Maxim Pozdorovkin Discusses “Pussy Riot – A Punk Prayer”
Suffice to say that by now – thanks to Amnesty International and/or Madonna – you’ve probably heard of Pussy Riot, the feminist punk rock collective that burst onto the international scene...
Steubenville and Rape Culture – Why women can’t feel free in Western Societies
When important media outlets such as CNN sympathize openly with the rapists, it is about time we as a society begin to think about what is wrong with us. That is precisely what occurred recently in...
Companion Cannon Fodder: The Doctor Who Finale
Oh, gentle readers, do let’s discuss Clara the Impossible Girl and the thrilling or perhap insipid conclusion of the seventh season, which just aired on televisions ‘round the world. We were...
If I Could Trust TV…
Every now and then, I like to indulge myself with fantasies of storylines that could be, if only I could trust television to do them right. Those dreams loom especially large in the wake of finale...
This Mothers’ Day, let’s celebrate by listening to mothers
Try this exercise: What’s the last thing your mother said to you? If you can’t remember, you’ve got company: I failed that exercise myself. The power of a mother's voice is undeniable; it comes...
On Sam Morril’s Response
On April 23, I wrote to Sam Morril that I wanted to work with him to change the conversation about rape jokes. That conversation, I said, was stuck in a frustrating, repetitive pattern: “Feminists...
Not So Funny: Sam Morril’s Rape Jokes and Female Comedy Fans
I tried not to embarrass Sam Morril. To understand how hard this was, for me, I should start at the beginning. Which was: On April 15, I went to a comedy show. The opener was one Sam Morril. And his...
Elementary, My Dear Joan Watson: An Egalitarian Sherlock?
CBS’ Elementary has been saddled with the difficulty of distinguishing itself from the beloved BBC Sherlock, and, in a sense, justifying its existence. Sherlock fans were incensed when the rival...