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Margo’s Got Money Troubles Season 1 Episode 5 Review

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“Flamingos”

  • Creator: David E. Kelley
  • Starring: Elle Fanning, Michelle Pfeiffer, Nick Offerman, Nicole Kidman, Thaddea Graham, Marcia Gay Harden, Michael Angarano, Greg Kinnear, Michael Angarano

Grade: B+

Warning: This review of episode 5 of Margo’s Got Money Troubles will contain spoilers.

It makes perfect sense that a Vegas matinee magic show would expose all the flaws within Kenny (Greg Kinnear) and Shyanne’s (Michelle Pfeiffer) relationship. Margo’s Got Money Troubles episode 5 is the longest of season 1 so far, and it gives Pfeiffer more opportunities to show why she’s such an integral part of the show. I was initially concerned that the show was burning through its plot too quickly, given the looming “will-they-won’t-they” nature of Jinx (Nick Offerman) re-entering Shyanne and Margo’s (Elle Fanning) lives, but based on this week’s entry, it seems that we’re far from done with this storyline in the grand scheme of the series.

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TV Reviews

Margo’s Got Money Troubles Season 1 Episode 4 Review

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“Buddies”

  • Creator: David E. Kelley
  • Starring: Elle Fanning, Michelle Pfeiffer, Nick Offerman, Nicole Kidman, Thaddea Graham, Marcia Gay Harden, Michael Angarano, Greg Kinnear, Michael Angarano

Grade: B

Warning: This review of episode 4 of Margo’s Got Money Troubles will contain spoilers.

We’ve arrived at a strange cultural moment when it comes to on-screen representations of sex. On the one hand, there’s so many reports and studies of the younger generation’s aversion to sex scenes. On the other, romance and romantasy novels – of which Margo’s Got Money Troubles is adjacent to at least – are keeping book stores alive, and careers are made from influencers who traffic in the genre. Episode 4 of season 1 sees Margo (Elle Fanning) get her feet wetter in the OnlyFans community, and the further development of its lead trio’s characters.

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TV Reviews

Margo’s Got Money Troubles Season 1 Episodes 1-3 Review

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“The Hungry Ghost, Homecoming, Jinxed”

  • Creator: David E. Kelley
  • Starring: Elle Fanning, Michelle Pfeiffer, Nick Offerman, Nicole Kidman, Thaddea Graham, Marcia Gay Harden, Michael Angarano, Greg Kinnear, Michael Angarano

Grade: B+

Warning: This review of episodes 1-3 of Margo’s Got Money Troubles will contain spoilers.

The sad reality of Margo’s Got Money Troubles lies in the fact that, despite some of the outlandishly comedic details, there are hundreds, if not thousands of similar stories from real women across America facing the same predicaments. Perhaps that’s why Rufi Thorpe’s bestselling novel of the same name was so quickly snatched up to be adapted into the star-studded AppleTV+ series. Thorpe’s novel presents an ordinary American family, and an ordinary heroine, whose circumstances, resulting from an unplanned pregnancy, force her to uncomfortable extremes. Regardless of the show’s familiarity or relatability, TV superproducer David E. Kelley provides a showcase for Elle Fanning in perhaps her best performance yet.

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TV Reviews

Daredevil: Born Again Season 2 – TV Review

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Daredevil: Born Again Season 2

  • Creators: Dario Scardapane, Matt Corman, Chris Ord
  • Starring: Charlie Cox, Vincent D’Onofrio, Margarita Leviava, Deborah Ann Woll, Michael Gandolfini, Arty Froushan, Jon Bernthal, Wilson Bethel, Nikki M. James, Genneya Walton, Ayelet Zurer
  • Eight episode season, eight episodes watched for review

Grade: B+

A group of ersatz thugs masquerading as lawmen are given carte blanche by the administration, patrolling the streets, rounding up ordinary citizens in the name of preventing violent crime, where they’re taken to black sites and never heard from again. No, you’re not watching CNN, you’re watching Daredevil: Born Again season 2, which airs its season premiere today on Disney+. Season one of the MCU show touched on the real-world parallels by electing Wilson Fisk (Vincent D’Onofrio, still doing career-best work) as the mayor of New York City, despite his blatantly corrupt past, and the setup of the Anti-Vigilante Task Force (AVTF). The new season fully leans into what happens when laws and norms are ignored by those in power, while still making an entertaining superhero show.

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TV Reviews

Shrinking Season 3 – TV Review

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Shrinking Season 3

  • Creators: Bill Lawrence, Jason Segel, Brett Goldstein
  • Starring: Jason Segel, Jessica Williams, Michael Urie, Lukita Maxwell, Luke Tennie, Harrison Ford, Christa Miller, Brett Goldstein, Damon Wayans Jr.
  • Eleven episode season, eleven episodes watched for review

Grade: B

Certain television creators have their own unique brand of storytelling, and co-creator Bill Lawrence leans hard into his sensibilities in season 3 of Shrinking. The ensemble comedy, which premieres today on AppleTV, has firmly established its vast roster of characters and who they are, and while the show can start to feel repetitive at times, it’s a welcome reminder that a TV show doesn’t need to reinvent the wheel at every turn. Indeed, Scrubs, Cougar Town, and Ted Lasso all share similar DNA (and a few performers) with his latest show: they’re all essentially workplace sitcoms that function as hangout experiences where different characters can bounce off one another.

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TV Reviews

Fallout Season 2 – TV Review

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Fallout Season 2

  • Creators: Geneva Robertson-Dworet, Graham Wagner
  • Starring: Ella Purnell, Walton Goggins, Aaron Moten, Moisés Arias, Kyle MacLachlan, Sarita Choudhury, Kumail Nanjiani, Leslie Uggams, Macauley Culkin, Frances Turner, Dave Register, Zach Cherry, Johnny Pemberton
  • Eight episode season, six episodes watched for review

Grade: B

Nobody needed Fallout season 2 to hew closely to any of the pre-existing video games. In fact, the first season broke away almost entirely, telling a brand new story with brand new characters within the limitless sandbox that was available. Given the stinger at the end of season 1, it seemed that showrunners Graham Wagner and Geneva Robertson-Dworet were priming an adaptation of the “New Vegas” entry in the franchise. The magic of the series is that this new season is a faithful recreation of the game, for better and worse, while still trekking its own path.

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TV Reviews

Long Story Short Season 1 – TV Review

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Long Story Short

  • Creator: Raphael Bob-Waksberg
  • Starring: Ben Feldman, Abbi Jacobson, Angelique Cabral, Max Greenfield, Nicole Byer, Lisa Edelstein, Paul Reiser, Michaela Dietz, Dave Franco
  • Ten episode season, ten episodes watched for review

Grade: B+

There’s certain creatives whose careers you’ll follow to the ends of the earth based on the success of even a single project. After Raphael Bob-Waksberg wrapped up one of the best comedies of the 21st century with Bojack Horseman in 2020, it was all but inevitable that I’d tune in for whatever he decided to do next. With Long Story Short – which drops its entire first season now on Netflix – Bob-Waksberg further hones his already sharp comedic voice in a more grounded world. Ya know, one without talking animals.

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TV Reviews

The Rehearsal Season 2 Episode 6 Review

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“My Controls”

  • Creator: Nathan Fielder
  • Starring: Nathan Fielder

Grade: A

Warning: This review of episode 6 of The Rehearsal will contain spoilers.

Episode 6 of The Rehearsal is the most audacious episode of television I’ve ever seen, transcending its premise to become a profound meditation on loneliness, while also being hysterically funny. I did not always view the season 2 finale this way; my first reaction was more apprehensive, more confused about what Nathan Fielder was trying to achieve. But after reading reviews, and listening to a podcast or two, of last week’s episode, I saw it from a different perspective.

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TV Reviews

The Rehearsal Season 2 Episode 5 Review

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“Washington”

  • Creator: Nathan Fielder
  • Starring: Nathan Fielder

Grade: B+

Warning: This review of episode 5 of The Rehearsal will contain spoilers.

How dramatic do we need a comedy show like The Rehearsal to be? To take it one step further beyond episode 5, what happens when a comedy show, or a comedian, suddenly takes things seriously? This week’s installment is easily the least humorous of season 2, but it shows Nathan Fielder’s genuine efforts to affect real change. Remember in episode 1, when Fielder first approached former NTSB member John Goglia, and his voiceover narration said that he would need to work extra hard to get someone to trust a comedian, working on a comedy show, seriously?

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TV Reviews

The Rehearsal Season 2 Episode 4 Review

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“Kissme”

  • Creator: Nathan Fielder
  • Starring: Nathan Fielder

Grade: B+

Warning: This review of episode 4 of The Rehearsal will contain spoilers.

So far in season 2, The Rehearsal has dodged most of the ethical concerns that came around the edges of the show last season. Episode 4 will likely bring those conversations back to the forefront, with Nathan Fielder acting at his most manipulative so far. The ethics in question concerned Fielder’s real-life subjects, how aware they were of the show’s purposes before signing on to appear, and how manipulative Fielder was being with what they were asked to do. With “Kissme” – another hysterical outing overall – I don’t feel icky or uneasy towards Fielder or his methods, but I won’t entirely begrudge those that do.

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