Ali Barthwell Author Archive
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Ali Barthwell

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@wtflanksteak

Ali Barthwell is a writer who has been recapping reality TV shows—The Bachelor and Real Housewives among them—since 2015. She is an Emmy-winning writer for Last Week Tonight With John Oliver. Her work has been featured on The AV Club and Chicago Magazine.

  1. overnights
    Empire Recap: Softer Than ButterHow does Empire do an entire episode about rap beef in 2015 without mentioning Meek Mill?
  2. the industry
    When It Comes to Falling in Love, Where Are All the People of Color on TV?Interracial pairings in popular culture still tend to necessitate one white person. 
  3. overnights
    Empire Recap: The Return of MimiComplex characters? Logical plot development? This can’t be Empire.
  4. overnights
    Empire Recap: Doin’ Too MuchSymbolism was never your strong suit, Empire.
  5. overnights
    Empire Recap: It’s a Wonderful Gutter LifeThis episode was flipping tremendous.
  6. overnights
    Empire Recap: My Heart Can’t Take ItThis show is what I see when my close my eyes at night to dream.
  7. overnights
    Empire Recap: What Can’t Cookie Do?Is Empire set in a universe where the majority of hip-hop artists exist but also somehow don’t? 
  8. overnights
    Empire Recap: Hashtags Do Come TrueI’m ready for the Better Call Thirsty spinoff after Empire is finished. 
  9. overnights
    Empire Season Two Premiere Recap: Double-Crossing DivasThis episode wasn’t so much of a thrill ride as expert table-setting and reminders of the damage these people are capable of doing. 
  10. overnights
    Bachelor in Paradise Finale Recap: Love Is Real. Long Live Love.Jade doesn’t make for thrilling TV, but damn if that girl didn’t find real love.
  11. overnights
    Bachelor in Paradise Recap: Famous Last WordsHow dare ABC make me feel actual real feelings for a bangtestant.
  12. overnights
    Bachelor in Paradise Recap: Dueling Date CardsIf you call sex “stuff,” you’re not allowed to have it.
  13. overnights
    Bachelor in Paradise Recap: High-School ParadiseI think I love JJ. Help.
  14. overnights
    Bachelor in Paradise Recap: Commiserate With Our MiseryIf a woman has a framed poster of Marilyn Monroe and says she hates drama, RUN.
  15. overnights
    BIP Recap: 1 Tequila, 2 Tequila, 3 TequilaThis was, without a single doubt, the best episode of Bachelor in Paradise so far.
  16. overnights
    Bachelor in Paradise Recap: The Case Against JoeFrom ABC and Chris Harrison, this is “Serial” … er, Bachelor in Paradise.
  17. overnights
    Bachelor in Paradise Recap: The Good, the Bad, and the JoeThis week on Bachelor in Paradise, we get three stories of how men deal with new relationships.
  18. overnights
    Bachelor in Paradise Recap: Trapped in a Love SquareOh my God. Joe is an evil mastermind.
  19. overnights
    Bachelor in Paradise Recap: Man FeelingsSummer camp, jail, Bachelor in Paradise. It’s all not a great idea.
  20. overnights
    Bachelor in Paradise Recap: Bachelor Is the New ParadiseNo, ABC. You do not get to be all jokey and fun when you’re telling people that they are failures if they don’t find love here.
  21. overnights
    Bachelor in Paradise Recap: Suspend Your DisbeliefThe Madonna-whore complex continues to play out all over this franchise.
  22. overnights
    The Bachelorette Recap: Oh, Honey, the Final RoseKaitlyn approaches life like a child looking at Golden Corral’s chocolate fountain.
  23. overnights
    The Bachelorette Recap: Unanswered QuestionsIt’s the Men Tell All special, and I did not feel they told all.
  24. overnights
    The Bachelorette Recap: Little Ado About NothingThey spent all that time in Europe and never once engaged in hand-to-hand combat.
  25. overnights
    The Bachelorette Recap: Give It a Rest, Already!We get it! Kaitlyn had sex. She had sex before the Fantasy Suites, the producer-approved point at which sex becomes acceptable.
  26. overnights
    The Bachelorette Recap: A Streetcar Named BacheloretteShawn is a tragedy at this point. He’s a character in a piece of 20th-century American theater waking up to his irrelevance.
  27. overnights
    The Bachelorette Recap: The Bang Heard ’Round the WorldKaitlyn says they deserve this time together. What? How do you deserve a bang?
  28. overnights
    The Bachelorette Recap: Is She a Cool Chick or an Amazing Woman?The arrival of Nick V.
  29. overnights
    The Bachelorette Recap: Hip-Hop, Please StopEverybody hates Nick.
  30. overnights
    The Bachelorette Recap: The Heart of a Sumo WrestlerKaitlyn is very willing to march right toward the uncomfortable situation and solve it on her terms.
  31. overnights
    The Bachelorette Recap: Mama Said Knock You OutBeing self-aware on this show can be your death sentence.
  32. overnights
    Bachelorette Recap: The Woman You Are There ForHans Christian Andersen was hired as this season’s metaphor consultant.
  33. overnights
    The Bachelor Recap: The Final RoseDid Chris make the right choice? Yes.
  34. overnights
    The Bachelor Recap: A Great Big Bali of EmotionsWe’re going to Bali! 
  35. overnights
    The Bachelor Recap: Home Is Where the Boobies AreBritt falls from hotness and Jade gets honest and emotional with some nudes.
  36. overnights
    The Bachelor Recap(s): Cows, Corn, and Chris — an Iowa Spectacular!Can you live in Arlington?
  37. overnights
    The Bachelor Recap: Bad Girls and BadlandsThis week, we travel to the place “where Calamity Jane did her business.”
  38. overnights
    The Bachelor Recap: Intrigue on the Santa Fe ExpressWhen in doubt, talk about your dead husband.
  39. overnights
    The Bachelor Recap: The Virgin and the PeaDid you catch that? She’s a virgin.
  40. overnights
    The Bachelor Recap: The Patriarchy ThrowdownIs this show actually a metaphor for women’s lib?
  41. overnights
    The Bachelor Recap: No Rules, All Zombie MurderBachelor Chris thinks it’s pretty sexy to watch girls shoot zombies.
  42. art
    Sex and the City’s Guide to the Art World, in 8 GIFsLessons from a 1990s caricature.
  43. vulture lists
    The 7 Most Messed-Up Things About Sex and the CityA great show with some memorably non-great moments.