The Wire (2002-8)

David Simon landmark series holds up in the waning years of the Golden era of television. The technology may be outdated by now, but the drama is timeless. Simon pioneered bingeable television (along with the Sopranos, I suppose), plotting a mystery to unfold over the course of a whole season. And today in the streaming era, every TV show worth its salt has an overarching plot. Some may criticize him for being slow, but it's a methodical slow burn that allows for deep characterization of even secondary characters. We come to know not just the cops, not just the head honcho drug dealers but even the street level kids (a very young Michael B Jordan). His sense of realism comes through in his unknown actors, character actors, non-actors, and many real Baltimoreans. The show is about characters who are trapped by the institutions (a set of rules) that plague the city.

The Wire is Simon's love letter to Baltimore. It may not always seem that way given all the crime and corruption he highlights but indeed it is. No city has ever gotten such a thorough treatment on TV, exposing its underbelly. He doesn't do it out of malice or hatred but he genuinely believes that it can do better. Despite the specificity, it could have been about any city because in general terms it is about the decline of the American city. Other cities also have drug problems, docks, corrupt city government, schools, and print media. He would give post-Katrina New Orleans a similar treatment in Treme, but Simon has a personal connection to Baltimore. He (and writer Ed Burns) have first hand experience about the things they write (the Baltimore Police and the Baltimore Sun).

Seasons 3 and 4 are the strongest. Simon's analysis on the flaws in our education system is brilliant. I thought season 2 at the docks was kind of weak while watching it but in retrospect it was also very good. There are so many characters and by the end I felt like we got satisfactory closure on each one. It was kind of weird that McNulty doesn't feature much in season 4, but honestly, it's all the better without him. His twisted story line in season 5 is probably the weakest, most cynical (most ironic).

The Queen's Gambit (2020)

The Queen's Gambit is a very watchable limited series that manages to make chess engaging. That's no small feat. This will be the cause of a whole new generation of chess fans. Funnily enough, it succeeds by not explaining any of the chess whatsoever. That way, novices who don't know the first thing about chess aren't left out. But people that do understand some chess don't have anything to follow either. The drama is not in the tactics of chess. They discuss strategy without explaining the strategy. She moves a piece but it doesn't mean anything to us. She just looks good doing it. I do feel like there was a missed opportunity to contextualize the movie more in the Cold War. The final episode sets up Chekov's gun that never goes off; Borgov makes two unexpected moves in the game, potentially a signal that he wants to defect, as the State Department official had warned Beth to be on the lookout for, but they never play that out.

Anya Taylor-Joy is magnetic. The whole show does have an amazing look. The Sixties set pieces and costumes are luscious. Beth criss-crosses the globe like she's in a spy movie (but again the Cold War spies don't really factor in). I love the visual of the imaginary chess pieces on the ceiling. The camera sometimes sits right behind the upside-down piece so you get something like an over-the-shoulder shot where you see a fraction of the rook or knight in the foreground--it's an interesting choice.

The Americans (2013-8)

The Americans is an extremely suspenseful Cold War-era spy thriller, perhaps the best TV has ever seen. Similar to Breaking Bad, The Americans excelled at character development of antiheroes, and at slow-burn long cons unfolding over the course of a whole season. The series follows two "illegals", Soviet sleeper agents posing as travel agents, living in Virginia (though recognizably filmed in New York) at the height of the Cold War with their two American-born children. Though not a true story, it is based in truth. The Soviet Union took espionage very seriously; it is kind of incredible (read: crazy) how integrated they were in American society. That combination of extreme dedication and pettiness is, I think, uniquely Russian, maybe also kind of Chinese. I think the inverse, the Russian version of the Americans, probably didn't work because it's unbelievable that American spies were so nuts.  They characteristically over react a lot, and devise wild over-the-top schemes to achieve small goals.

Philip says it best in Season 6, that they were always worried about what the Americans would do them, but in the end it was other Soviets that would ultimately be their downfall. Meanwhile, Stan (a stand-in for the bureaucracy generally) fails to see why Gorbachev's leadership matters. If he had asked someone at State, Gorbachev's opening up of the Soviet Union would be far more important than his mission to catch illegals--Stan fails to see the forest for the trees or is so focused on winning the battle he can't fathom winning the war. He is blinded by his narrow focus. Similarly, Elizabeth sees her job as a spy as purely ideological, so stone cold that she doesn't even realize the other tactical qualities it takes to be a spy. It's why she thinks Paige could become a spy herself, even though it is so obvious that she could not. 

Some highlights:

• The assassination attempt on Reagan as seen from Russia as a coup in motion was eye-opening
• The bio-weapon plot line is a clear example of defense spiral, the classic IR theory. The Soviets cannot discern the difference between offensive and defensive weapons, so when they discover that the Americans are developing bioweapons, allegedly serums for potential bioweapons, they must escalate their own stockpile, bound to spiral out of control. 
• Spying isn't all just assassinations, it's mostly intelligence gathhering
• Great use of 80s music
• Fantastic costumes and hair styling for the many disguises
  
• Mischa's son never really comes in to play. It's like they had plans for him but then forgot and left him hanging.  
• The first season is very exciting. I think it's the strongest season along with the last.
  
• The ending is brilliant. I called Henry's ending, but did not see Paige's gut-punch ending coming.
  

Patriot Act with Hasan Minhaj (2018-20)

Gone too soon. Netflix has had a bad week, first pushing the creators of Avatar: The Last Airbender to walk away and now canceling Hasan Minhaj just as he is getting into the groove of things. Despite the very expensive looking set, he was never quite as polished as his fellow Daily Show alumni Colbert, Oliver or Bee. But he is young, charming and Asian American. He was hitting the target demographic with culturally specific content, and frankly cooler references than you're going to find on Last Week Tonight. He actually shined brightest in his off-the-cuff Deep Cuts web exclusives. He is a natural comedian interacting with an audience that doesn't need the culturally specific jokes explained to him. He never did quite figure out what to do with his hands. Hopefully this now frees him to do something new.

Unorthodox (2020)

Unorthodox is an extraordinary Yiddish-language drama about a young Hasidic woman from the very insular Satnam ultra-orthodox Jewish community in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. Consigned to an unhappy marriage and a community that does not support her as an individual, she escapes to Germany where her exiled mother lives.  German Nazis, of course, are the raison d'etre of the Satnam community, arising as a reaction to the Holocaust, turning inward to find solace in Judaism and repopulate the Jewish race. The heroine Esty learns to find her solace in secular music (and in the fitting ending, Jewish music). That tension between cosmopolitan, diverse, and secular modern Berlin and her former life in Williamsburg is a driving force. It's a well researched look at a community that is loathe to air its dirty laundry.

The Eddy (2020)

I feel like I was a little deceived. I thought that Damien Chazelle was doing the whole series but it turns out that he only directed the first two episodes. But the marketing worked; his name drew me to this Parisian jazz drama. I didn't actually care much for the drama. But I love the jazz. I wish there was more music and less plot because the plot is messy. The characters' motivations are often fuzzy. They make irrational choices and most of them are pretty annoying. It was ultimately worth watching for the music and the great jazz memorial scene.

Mrs. America (2020)

The miniseries from FX on Hulu is quite good on the whole though some episodes in the middle are not as interesting. I think especially powerful is the Shirley Chisholm episode, helmed by an excellent Uzo Aduba. The episode speaks to the power of representation, even symbolic. Chisholm is the first woman and first African-American to make a run for president. And even if she never really stood a chance, seeing her on the stage was incredibly important. The Bella Abzug episode is also very good, helmed by Margo Martindale who tends to play politician-types, always very well; her costumes and accent and gestures are really great. What makes her episode especially powerful is the argument it makes about radical change. Ideas that may sound radical, over time, can and do move into the mainstream. The moment she realizes this while visiting Betty Friedan, known for her own brand of radicalism. Feminism, which once seen as radical, in her own lifetime, moved into the mainstream, and today (at least in the Obama era) are self-evident ideals, that a woman deserves equal pay as a man, for instance.  And then I also thought the Houston episode was very good, which takes place at the 1977 National Women's Conference. The STOP ERA women are at the Convention without their leader, and left on her own, Sarah Paulson's character in her drunkenness starts to see the light. The episode is a trip like something out of The Good Fight.

In a terrific ensemble cast, Cate Blanchett is the crown jewel as the awful Phyllis Schlafly. Even playing such a hypocritical brainwashed witch, Blanchett is typically excellent. I remember learning about Schlafly in school specifically as part of the anti-ERA movement but not as the mother of modern Republicanism. I think the series may give her a little too much credit for birthing Reaganism. Her valuable mailing list becomes the base of the modern Republican party. The irony is Reagan doesn't offer her a place in his administration, supposedly because he is already unpopular enough with female voters. However the line from Schlafly to Trumpism is much darker.

Forever (2018)

This one-off series from the co-showrunner of Master of None is a fantastic gem of a show. Over its short 8 episode arc, it morphs itself incessantly, bringing pleasant surprises every episode. My lone criticism is they could have worked on the world building a little bit more. Riverside is actually relatively fleshed out (save for the inexplicable mold) but Oceanside asks more questions than it provides answers. This does not detract from the funny script, and characteristically funny Maya Rudolph and Fred Armisen, who plays essentially himself in Portlandia.

There are two noteworthy scenes/episodes of pure beauty that alone make the series worthwhile. The first is the opening of episode 1, a wordless montage, rhyming scenes from a marriage as the carousel of life passes by while Miles Davis's plays wistful trumpet in the background. The other is episode 6, a bottle episode, featuring two new characters, a bold move for a short series. The episode spans a full lifetime in just 35 minutes, fleshing out the overarching themes of the series with a new couple. Hong Chau and Jason Mitchell are both excellent in that episode. Their dialogue on realty, experience, race, and life is natural, funny, and touching, watching them fall in love at the wrong time, unfortunately it's never the right time. We watch them yearn and deny themselves the happiness that is within reach, a la Wong Kar Wai. It's a perfect episode that spurs June to take action in her life so that her "life" does not meet the same end.

Billy on the Street (2011-17)

I am not embarrassed to say that Billy on the Street is the greatest thing to ever air on TV. I'm only sorry to say that I never ran into Billy on the street, or I would even have been elated to come across Elena. I would have loved to have him yell at me for a dollar or to get quizzed in the face or to be seriously asked a rhetorical question in disgust. Billy Eichner, a Stuyvesant alum, has a unique brand of man-on-the-street comedy that is admittedly not for everyone, but I am firmly in that niche of pop culture elitists crossed with New Yorkers that don't give a shit about anything. The format is so simple yet so effective. Billy is endlessly quotable and this gem of a show makes me laugh uncontrollably. There is a Billy clip for everything. So I went back and watched seasons 2-5 on Netflix and season 1 on TruTV. Now his only new content is infrequent and digital only. Bring on more content!

Chernobyl (2019)

The HBO miniseries was remarkably prescient. In 2019, it was a warning, of the inevitable dangers that were waiting around the corner for a society built on lies and more lies. Craig Mazin and Johan Renck could not have predicted the arrival of the Coronavirus, arguably the worst global disaster since Chernobyl in 1986. "Why worry about something that isn't going to happen?" Especially when we know it is bound to happen...In 2020, the warning goes unheeded. As those in power continue to lie to each other and to the public and to themselves, the pandemic worsens. And they devalue expertise. Is Anthony Fauci our Legasov? The coal miner refusing to wear the mask is scarily accurate.

The first three episodes are frustratingly excellent, while the final two episodes are admittedly a little slow, though make science quite interesting.  The depiction of the Soviet Union in all its flaws, and styles, and bleakness is striking. I found a line in episode 4 to hit particularly close to home: "What you are proposing is that Legasov humiliate a nation that is obsessed with not being humiliated?" Donald Trump and Xi Jinping have this in common with the Soviet Union, caring only about appearances but being completely deluded as to how they are actually perceived. They are societies  that don't care about their people, ready to cut corners and silence the truth at the cost of lives. Comparisons to the Soviet Union are not complimentary.

Quick aside, I don't think Chernobyl should have won all the Emmys over When They See Us. Both express exasperated frustration in their early episodes, but Ava Duvernay's series evolves into an emotional journey that takes it to another level.

The Legend of Korra (2012-14)

As an independent show, The Legend of Korra is pretty good, but it cannot escape comparison to Avatar: The Last Airbender, to which it pales. For one, it lacks the cohesion of Avatar, which tells a single grand overarching story over 60 episodes. Korra has four seasons, each season with a new enemy. Korra also doesn't have the rewarding story arcs that Avatar did. Everyone on Team Avatar was a sympathetic, relatable character that grew over the course of the series. On the other hand, Mako and Bo Lin are extremely annoying. There are some cameos from the old characters; some serve more purpose (Katar and Iroh) than others (Zuko and Toph). The newer show updated the graphics, creating 3D depth, that admittedly look kind of weird sometimes, especially the robots. The style is also more overtly anime than the unique Western/Eastern hybrid from Avatar. The music is not as hauntingly beautiful as in Avatar, though the 20s jazz is a welcome touch, along with the old-timey newsreel recaps.

Now for what Korra does well...It continues to build on the themes that made Avatar so good: real-world politics. Republic City is the bustling immigrant city that transcends the boundaries of nations. Such a United Nations is what follows a world war. Season 1 is about The Equalists. They are portrayed as a domestic terrorist group on the surface, but there is always some ambiguity as to their evil, after all they're only asking for equality in a land that may or may not deny them their (super-)humanity. It is similar to X-Men, overtly political. It might not be too off to compare them to the PLO or the Black Panthers. Season 3 is about a group of anarchists and in parallel rebuilding a culture nearly lost to genocide (a beautiful example of the type of balance that the Avatar is meant to restore to the world).. Season 4 is about a warlord who has taken advantage of a power vacuum to seize legitimate control. Season 2 is the outlier, portraying an irrelevant and unrealistic civil war between the Northern and Southern Water Tribes. A big caveat though is that the best episodes of the series come in Season 2, that's the two-part story of the first Avatar, told in beautiful Kaguya-esque animation.

The bending in Korra is also pretty cool. All the elements are taken up a level, unlocking new bending styles that make sense in the established magic system: lava bending, flight, expanded metal bending, etc. I was slightly disappointed that Korra didn't really discover her spiritual side until Season 2, because the spiritual balance the Avatar brings is really the defining characteristic of its purpose, rather than the flashier mastery of the four elements. When she finally does find her inner spirit, they muddy the rules of the Avatar state and the spirit world almost beyond recognition.

In conclusion, not as good as Avatar but a worthwhile viewing experience.

Quiz (2020)

Quiz is an enjoyable dramatization of the Charles Ingram scandal on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire. It is part courtroom drama, part heist, part game show drama. The genius of Millionaire was always its simplicity: questions, and four possible answers, unlimited time. It was unbelievably suspenseful. Quiz is about appointment TV in an era that no longer has appointment TV thanks to streaming. I readily admit that there is a nostalgia factor to this miniseries.

I really appreciated the different perspectives displayed in the movie, not only from Charles and his wife, but his brother-in-law, and the showrunners. There is a very real community (especially in the land of the pub quiz) of trivia enthusiasts that only formed by word of mouth in the early internet era, before the advent of Facebook and Reddit. And while they didn't break the game, they very cleverly broke the process to get on the game. The show rightly asks whether that is against the spirit of the game, and if that's even a real problem? A show would kill to have a community of devoted fans; publicity of that sort is priceless. In the era of James Holzhauer, is there something wrong with studying for a test of knowledge? Is there something wrong with preparing for a once in a lifetime chance at a million pound prize? And then the central tension of the plot is whether Ingram cheated at all. Episode 2 certainly looks like cheating but Episode 3 throws in sufficient ambiguity to raise serious doubt. You sympathize for this couple who was skewered in the tabloids and by the public. The Army Major is portrayed as a simpleminded guy compared to his wife, but he earned membership in Mensa, he answered many questions without any coughs, and maybe he just got lucky? And didn't he make for great TV?

Avatar: The Last Airbender (2005-8)

The greatest children's show, maybe the greatest TV show period, recently came to Netflix, and it holds up really well fifteen years later. As a kid, watching the animated bending was really cool. But as an adult watching again, I appreciate how complex and beautiful the plot and character development are: Zuko has a highly satisfying redemption arc. Drawing heavily on Asian (and Inuit) philosophy, martial arts and design, the creators put genuine thought into world building at a level we wouldn't see again until Game of Thrones. Ba Sing Se is a clear reference to Beijing, complete with the secret police and oppression.

The Avatar is the bridge between the physical world and the spirit world, and it is the Avatar's responsibility to maintain/restore balance in the world. The Avatar has the ability to bend all four elements: Earth, water, fire and air. And the Avatar is a spirit reincarnated in a different bender based on a cycle. Over the last hundred years, while the Avatar Aang has been frozen in an iceberg, the Fire Nation has embarked on an imperial war of world domination, committing genocide in the process. Yes, that's war crimes, refugees, and totalitarianism in a children's show at the height of America's war in Iraq. It is profound.

Even the Art of War is explored in the show. Omashu surrenders to fight another day. Earth benders are masters of "neutral jing", waiting for the right moment to strike. I'm not sure how I feel about the ending watching it back. The penultimate episode sees our hero struggling with having to kill the Fire Lord. It is a serious and deep introspective exploration that looks like he is about to come to peace with his fate. The show acknowledges the idea of just violence in which it is necessary to be violent to stop further violence (a just war). And Aang must selflessly put aside his own reservations for the greater good of the world to fulfill his duty as Avatar. That is a profound message for a kid, but the show ultimately goes in another direction. Aang unlocks a new superpower and saves the day in a non-fatal way.  It is visually awesome but I think not in line with the serious themes that the show explored throughout.

The music is beautiful. The writing is smart and funny and poignant. The animation cleverly combines both Japanese and Western elements. All the characters have fully realized arcs that develop over a tight three seasons. Even having a series-long episodic plot was pretty unique for a TV show in 2005, let alone a children's show. I can't wait for the live action remake of the series; hopefully M. Night Shyamalan stays far away. I think we'll give Legend of Korra another try now.

When They See Us (2019)

Ava Duvernay's signature style of gut-punch filmmaking puts the viewer in the shoes of Kevin Richardson, Antron McCray, Yusef Salaam, Korey Wise and Raymond Santana, the five young boys who were coerced to make false confessions by the NYPD under duress, skewered by the mainstream press, wrongfully imprisoned, dehumanized and finally vindicated in 2002 after 13 long years. The story of the Central Park Five is infuriating, and though the press, police and prosecutor are specifically blamed, everyone is at fault. Blinded by institutional racism and contempt for poor black and brown kids, the white public (and specifically Elizabeth Lederer and Linda Fairstein) condemns the five kids, deluding itself into believing an obvious fabrication.  What is extraordinary about Duvernay's miniseries is that she manages to still display the incredible strength and resilience of the oppressed, not just the boys in prison and their families outside. Further still, she portrays the cruel and punitive criminal justice system at every stage, from the corrupt police, to the baiting press, to the biased courts, to the atrocious prisons, to probation, and the institutional obstacles to life on the outside as a convicted felon. Jharrel Jerome as both kid and young adult Korey is a standout, but the acting is phenomenal from the entire ensemble cast. It's emotional, devastating and absolutely required viewing.

The Last Dance (2020)

It's no coincidence that The Last Dance was released at the height of the Coronavirus quarantine, while everyone is stuck at home, while all live sports are on hiatus until further notice. If the world, of sports and period, ever needed saving, the time is now and Michael Jordan maybe the hero we need. The Last Dance features unprecedented footage from Jordan's final season (the second time in 1998--the series ends before the third time with the Wizards) and cuts back and forth between the final season (the eponymous Last Dance) and his legendary career up to that point from the beginning. The time jumping is a little confusing, but it serves for heightened drama. The really unprecedented access is only the final season footage, so it's sprinkled through every episode. At a time when there is no sports, we were pleasantly reminded of the reason we love sports. It's not just the competition, it's the stories. The playoffs are exciting, but it's Dennis Rodman disappearing to Las Vegas that makes them interesting. In recent years, LeBron James and Stephen Curry may have soaked up all the thunder, in an era that the NBA has gone global thanks to Michael Jordan, but Jordan has returned to remind the world who the boss is. He's a competitor at heart; pushed by his drive to take revenge on anyone that ever "showed him up," even if he had to fabricate the sleight. You don't have to be a basketball fan to enjoy The Last Dance. It's accessible to everyone as a reminder of the outside world we used to enjoy.

Asian Americans (2020)

Happy Asian Pacific American Heritage Month! To celebrate, PBS released a five-part docuseries chronicling the story of Asians in America, from the California Gold Rush and the transcontinental railroad to today. It is both informative and emotional. It does an extraordinary job at covering a variety of stories. Asian American is an incredibly broad term comprising people as diverse as South Asians, East Asians and Southeast Asians and the documentary gives each group some screen time. The series zooms in and zooms out effectively, picking individuals to highlight the essential role of Asian Americans in building the fabric of America. Three Asian names in early Supreme Court jurisprudence help define America: Wong Kim Ark, Yik Wo and Bhagat Singh Thind. Hawaii sends a majority Asian American delegation to Washington. Filipino Americans in the California fruit fields go on strike. Students fight for ethnic studies. The Rodney King riots are a definitive experience in creating a Korean American identity. For over a hundred and fifty years, Asian Americans have contributed to American life. This wondrous docuseries should be required viewing for all Americans.

Little Fires Everywhere (2020)

This miniseries adaptation of Celeste Ng's New York Times bestseller is good, not great, but certainly interesting in its deviations from the source material. First is the casting of Kerry Washington. In the novel, Mia is not racially ambiguous but by casting an African American actress, it reified layers of racial subtext. The racial undertones are extremely uncomfortable, intentionally so. Reese Witherspoon as the "well-meaning", oblivious white lady is very unlikable, kind of curious that she would cast herself in what is surely the villain role. For the first several episodes, Washington isn't very likable either. The way she plays Mia is very off-putting. If she was just a little more sociable, she would be more sympathetic. The actress that plays young Washington nails her mannerisms precisely. But the young Elena and Bill look nothing like Witherspoon and Joshua Jackson--he actually looks older than Jackson. The second half of the series is better than the first, in my opinion, after all the secrets have been revealed to us. I think that's because I didn't care much for the secrets.

Schitt's Creek (2015-20)

Schitt's Creek is the delightful Canadian import that surprised Emmy prognosticators last year when it nabbed nominations Best Comedy Series. Since coming to American Netflix, it has found new audiences looking for something positive and uplifting in these uncertain times. That's right, this was our Coronavirus binge. And we watched six seasons in about a month. The Rose family gets scammed out of their immense wealth, left only with the deed to a town they bought as a joke, called Schitt's Creek (serious tinges of Arrested Development). Naturally, they come to make a home at the motel in the small town in the middle of nowhere comprised of an array of charming and infuriating characters. And that is when the show really starts to get into its stride after the first couple seasons, when they've gotten past the fish-out-of-water jokes. The family was unfortunately very relatable. Alex, David, Johnny and Moira are hilariously quotable. It was tender, sometimes verging on saccharine, but that's kind of what we all need, isn't it? We all need a Patrick, a Ted, a Stevie, a Twyla. Even the supporting characters have their moment in the sun, some musical. Stevie's rendition of Maybe This Time was perhaps the show's finest moment. Oh, and David's outfits are fabulous.

Modern Family (2009-20)

Modern Family has been on for eleven years, and in many ways it represents a past era of television. Modern Family was arguably the last great network sitcom amidst the takeover of cable and streaming (and maybe the last great mockumentary after slew of hits like The Office and Parks and Recreation while the gene was in vogue), 24 episodes of sustained excellence per season, a big ensemble cast, and multiple star-making turns. We've watched the child actors grow up. New Lily and Joe grew on me as time went on, assigned funny one-liners. The earlier seasons have become iconic in syndication. There were some less funny bits in the later seasons, but I always appreciated its Shakespearean sense of comedy, relying on miscommunication and mistaken identity. The writers balanced comedy and emotion nicely.

Modern Family came at a time when Obama was newly elected president. And in the intervening years, Obgerfell v. Hodges legalized gay marriage across the country. Mitch and Cam had their own wedding in the show. What Will and Grace did for our society's acceptance of gay men, Modern Family has done for a gay couple. It normalized a non-traditional, wholly modern, and newly socially acceptable family. And several seasons in, Trump became president. And progress was not only halted but our society regressed. Modern Family never really reckoned with that new reality. Rather than recognizing this as a fault, it actually provided some reprieve from the infuriating reality that we live in. TV had the power to change the way people think in the days when we had network shows that everyone was familiar with. In the golden age of television when there is simply so much quality programming, I'm afraid these impactful cultural touchstones get lost in the inundation.

Fresh Off the Boat (2015-20)

Fresh Off the Boat, loosely based on Eddie Huang's memoir. An Asian American family on network TV in a family 90s-era sitcom. That's not nothing. It is a watershed moment in American culture. It paved the way for Crazy Rich Asians. It paved the way for Awkwafina, Lulu Wang, Hasan Minhaj and the plethora of new Asian voices we're seeing in film and TV. Representation matters. You don't fully comprehend how much it matters until it is achieved and you realize what the world has been missing out on. Not only does it normalize your own experience, it exposes white society to broader expectations of normalcy too. While maintaining its cultural specificity, it also clearly demonstrates that we all undergo similar experiences. It was always pleasing to identify my friends and family being represented on screen in these relatable characters. Constance Wu and Randall Park became mainstream stars in their own right. And we watched the kids grow up over the last six years. It has been a good run. Let's hope we don't have to wait long for more Asians on network TV.

The Oscars 2020

My Top 12:
1. The Farewell
2. Amazing Grace
3. Parasite
4. Pain and Glory
5. Little Women
6. Booksmart
7. High Flying Bird
8. Ad Astra
9. A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood
10. Jojo Rabbit
11. Uncut Gems
12. Marriage Story

This year, Lulu Wang's The Farewell got snubbed across the board. Adam Sandler should have been nominated for Best Actor. And Booksmart should have gotten a writing nomination. But alas these are the nominees we got...


Best Picture Personal Ballot:
1. Parasite
2. Little Women
3. Jojo Rabbit
4. Marriage Story
5. Joker
6. 1917
7. The Irishman
8. Ford v. Ferrari
9. Once Upon a Time in Hollywood


Best Picture Prediction:
1. 1917 (can it win without a Film Editing nom?)
2. Parasite
3. The Irishman
4. Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
5. Marriage Story
6. Joker
7. Little Women
8. Jojo Rabbit
9. Ford v. Ferrari


Best Director:
Will Win/Should Win: Bong Joon Ho, Parasite

Best Actress:
Will Win: Renee Zellweger, Judy
Should Win: Scarlett Johansson, Marriage Story

Best Actor:
Will Win: Joaquin Phoenix, Joker
Should Win: Antonio Banderas, Pain and Glory but they're all really great

Best Supporting Actress:
Will Win/Should Win: Laura Dern, Marriage Story but Florence Pugh, Little Women is delightful

Best Supporting Actor:
Will Win/Should Win: Brad Pitt, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (he is the epitome of cool, but this is actually not as good as his lead performance in Ad Astra this year)

Best Adapted Screenplay:
Will Win: Jojo Rabibt
Should Win: Little Women

Best Original Screenplay:
Will Win/Should Win: Parasite, but I wouldn't mind if Marriage Story won

Best Cinematography:
Will Win/Should Win: 1917, probably the biggest lock of the night

Best Costume Design:
Will Win: Little Women
Should Win: Jojo Rabbit

Best Film Editing:
Will Win/Should Win: Parasite

Best Makeup and Hairstyling:
Will Win/Should Win: Bombshell

Best Production Design:
Will Win: Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
Should Win: Parasite

Best Score:
Will Win/Should Win: Joker, but they're all good

Best Song:
Will Win: I'm Gonna Love Me Again, Rocketman
Should Win: Stand Up, Harriet (that will give Cynthia Erivo an EGOT)

Best Sound Editing:
Will Win: 1917

Best Sound Mixing:
Will Win: 1917

Best VFX:
Will Win: 1917
Should Win: The Irishman

Best Animated Feature:
Will Win/Should Win: Toy Story 4, but it has been a weird year for animation awards

Best Documentary Feature:
Will Win: American Factory
Should Win: For Sama

Best International Film:
Will Win/Should Win: Parasite, but I also love Pain and Glory

Best Animated Short:
Will Win/Should Win: Hair Love

Best Documentary Short:
Will Win: Learning to Skateboard in a Warzone
Should Win: In the Absence

Best Live Action Short:
Will Win: Nefta Football Club (the least predictable category)

I did decently this year. I scored 20/24. I got Live Action Short wrong, which was a tossup, but having watched the winner and my choice after the fact, I think Nefta Football Club was better. Who could've predicted that the sound categories would split? Parasite winning the night's top prize was a pleasant surprise. It's a big deal for the Academy to award a foreign language film, especially an Asian one. It's a bigger deal for the Academy than it is for the movie itself which would have passed into legend even without a win. Honestly, Bong Joon Ho's charm (4 times on stage!) and Hollywood's love for Parasite saved a pretty terrible show. It had a presenter present a presenter present a clip present Eminem--inexplicable. And Parasite lost film editing, but it won enough so I'm satisfied.

Watchmen (2019)

In a word, Damon Lindelof's HBO-adaptation of the beloved graphic novel Watchmen is extraordinary. It is actually not really an adaptation, it is a sequel that takes place 34 years after the comic. It satisfies fans by respecting the source material in themes, characters, and structure. You don't need to be familiar with the original, but you can certainly better appreciate the brilliance if you are.

Lindelof uses Watchmen to make the an incisive, honest, and hard-hitting reckoning with race in America. Our hero is Angela Abar, played by Oscar-winner Regina King (and surely a future Emmy-winner). She is a former Tulsa police officer who has since retired but now dons a mask and costume as the vigilante Sister Night who collaborates closely with the police. In this alternate Tulsa, the police by law are now required to wear masks to protect their identities. It asks the question that the original did but brilliantly about the police: what do people feel empowered to do behind a mask? Tulsa was the sight of the real-life massacre in 1921 that demolished "Black Wall Street", one of the most prosperous black communities in the country at the time. This is an event that is inexcusably not taught in schools. Our society has not reckoned with the wrongs it has committed. And until it does, it will never move past it. Watchmen gives this massacre the respect it deserves. The ending is extremely satisfying. The story closes all its loose ends perfectly. The early episodes have you asking lots of confusing questions but if you can make it to the end, it will all make sense.

In addition to writing a compelling story, Lindelof has crafted beautiful character studies. Episodes 5, 6 and 8 are character studies of Looking Glass, Hooded Justice and Dr Manhattan respectively. Tim Blake Nelson's Looking Glass is probably the most interesting character and he is an excellent actor. Hooded Justice was the first masked crusader. Assumed white, he is cast black here and not only does it make sense, you realize he must've been black all along. Without spoiling it, his origin story makes clear that the first superhero had to be black, as the superhero emerges out of necessity. The symbolism obviously pointed to lynching; it was all right there and we didn't realize it. This episode, a bad trip on Nostalgia, is mostly in black and white and is filmed in what looks like one long take. Dr Manhattan's episode tells a beautiful love story to explain who he is. The music supervision is fabulous throughout the series, but this episode cleverly uses multiple songs with the theme "blue" as Dr Manhattan is blue.

This is a TV program for our time and for all time. 

Notes:

• Veidt's alien squid is literally Professor Daniel Deudney's theory on space politics! 
• We are not told who Lube Man is but in the supplemental documents online, we discover it Agent Petey. It's not crucial to know this, but it makes sense. Just like the original comic, there were supplemental materials; yes, even down to that level Lindelof respects the source material
• No season 2! The ending is so perfect and self contained, I'm ok with just one season.

Mr. Robot (2015-9)

Mr Robot was a little inconsistent in the middle two seasons, but the final season delivered a highly satisfying ending. Even when the story line got a bit too confusing, the show could still drop a powerful, cathartic, euphoric episode. It started out as an avant garde show about hacktivism, a thematically relevant topic for our times. But the show became much more than that. At its heart it was an introspective character study of a troubled man dealing with mental illness. It delivered twists abound, even at the end when you thought this was it. The music supervisor nailed it every episode. The cinematography created the most stylish stills on cable. Sam Esmail's extraordinary vision was brought to life by a brilliant Rami Malek, one of the only Middle Eastern leading men on TV. Some notable episiodes:

• eps3.7_dont-delete-me.ko when Elliot contemplates suicide
• eps3.4_runtime-error.r00 is the single shot episode
• 407 Proxy Authentication Required is the 5 acts theatrical drama