TV Archives - Public Books https://www.publicbooks.org/section/tv/ a magazine of ideas, arts, and scholarship Sat, 17 Jan 2026 02:16:30 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9.4 https://www.publicbooks.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/cropped-favicon-2-300x300.png TV Archives - Public Books https://www.publicbooks.org/section/tv/ 32 32 Hijabs On the Small Screen Only, Please! https://www.publicbooks.org/hijabs-on-the-small-screen-only-please/ Tue, 08 Jul 2025 15:00:10 +0000 https://www.publicbooks.org/?p=60132 Why is hijabi representation divided between small-screen success and big-screen blunders?

The post Hijabs On the Small Screen Only, Please! appeared first on Public Books.

]]> The Costs of Having It All: On Netflix’s “Dubai Bling” https://www.publicbooks.org/the-costs-of-having-it-all-on-netflixs-dubai-bling/ Thu, 23 Jan 2025 16:00:57 +0000 https://www.publicbooks.org/?p=58831 “Dubai Bling” reveals contemporary shifts in public discourse on feminism and the patriarchal family unit.

The post The Costs of Having It All: On Netflix’s “Dubai Bling” appeared first on Public Books.

]]> Pre-Recession Bliss, or Ignorance: “Laguna Beach” @ 20 https://www.publicbooks.org/pre-recession-bliss-or-ignorance-laguna-beach-at-20/ Tue, 05 Nov 2024 16:00:20 +0000 https://www.publicbooks.org/?p=58011 There’s a connection between Laguna Beach’s lush close-ups of LC’s face and its recurrent, luxuriating shots of Orange County mansions.

The post Pre-Recession Bliss, or Ignorance: “Laguna Beach” @ 20 appeared first on Public Books.

]]> Addiction’s Bestiary: “BoJack Horseman” @10 https://www.publicbooks.org/addictions-bestiary-bojack-horseman-10/ Tue, 06 Aug 2024 15:00:58 +0000 https://www.publicbooks.org/?p=57105 BoJack’s alcohol and drug use are played for laughs as typical vices of a Hollywood has-been... at first.

The post Addiction’s Bestiary: “BoJack Horseman” @10 appeared first on Public Books.

]]> Payback: Korean Revenge Dramas Will Do It for You https://www.publicbooks.org/payback-korean-revenge-dramas-will-do-it-for-you/ Tue, 30 Jan 2024 16:00:10 +0000 https://www.publicbooks.org/?p=55028 South Korean media excels at the revenge plot. Here are seven shows you can stream right now to get your fix.

The post Payback: Korean Revenge Dramas Will Do It for You appeared first on Public Books.

]]> Name Drop, No Exit https://www.publicbooks.org/name-drop-no-exit/ Mon, 23 Oct 2023 15:00:25 +0000 https://www.publicbooks.org/?p=53911 “The Other Two” and a spate of recent comedies claim to mock celebrities while juicing their star power for references and cameos.

The post Name Drop, No Exit appeared first on Public Books.

]]> Reboot, Squared https://www.publicbooks.org/reboot-squared/ Fri, 22 Sep 2023 15:00:10 +0000 https://www.publicbooks.org/?p=53324 TV can’t reboot its way out of its past errors, any more than an individual can fix their past trauma by reliving it, over and over again.

The post Reboot, Squared appeared first on Public Books.

]]> And Just Like That… the Viewer Cringes https://www.publicbooks.org/and-just-like-that-the-viewer-cringes/ Thu, 21 Sep 2023 15:00:14 +0000 https://www.publicbooks.org/?p=53564 The show’s white, middle-age, upper-class liberals clumsily realizing their privilege are an accurate mirror of some of its viewers.

The post And Just Like That… the Viewer Cringes appeared first on Public Books.

]]> Refreshing the Fresh Prince https://www.publicbooks.org/refreshing-the-fresh-prince/ Wed, 20 Sep 2023 15:00:21 +0000 https://www.publicbooks.org/?p=53488 The turn toward an aesthetic of Black excellence on TV reveals a mode of self-fashioning that celebrates neoliberal markers of merit and prestige.

The post Refreshing the Fresh Prince appeared first on Public Books.

]]> Fixing Nostalgia: “Star Trek” Boldly Goes to Less Utopian Futures https://www.publicbooks.org/fixing-nostalgia-star-trek-boldly-goes-to-less-utopian-futures/ Tue, 19 Sep 2023 15:00:05 +0000 https://www.publicbooks.org/?p=53506 “Picard” is perhaps the least utopian of any “Star Trek” media. But’s that because its political pragmatism shows how to build a better reality.

The post Fixing Nostalgia: “Star Trek” Boldly Goes to Less Utopian Futures appeared first on Public Books.

]]>