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Jen Chaney

TV Critic
See all their articles from across New York Magazine
@chaneyj
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Vulture and New York TV critic Jen Chaney previously worked for the Washington Post and has bylines at the New York Times and Vanity Fair. She also wrote As If: The Complete Oral History of Clueless.

  1. awards season
    Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper Singing ‘Shallow’ Was the Highlight of the OscarsIt was sexy, it was intimate, and it totally lived up to the hype.
  2. tv review
    At Home With Amy Sedaris Is a Bizarre ComfortSedaris continues to be her delightfully weird domestic self in season two of her TruTV sketch-comedy series.
  3. tv review
    Amazon’s Lorena Docuseries Will Make You Rethink the Bobbitt CaseThe Amazon docuseries takes a deeper look at the woman who became infamous for cutting off her husband’s penis in 1993.
  4. tv review
    Miracle Workers Fades Into the So-So BeyondSteve Buscemi is God, but this TBS comedy doesn’t have much higher power.
  5. tv review
    One Day at a Time Is Still Old School in Its Third SeasonIn season three, this traditional sitcom has more obvious flaws, but still has plenty of charms, too.
  6. oscars 2019
    An Oscar Win for ‘Shallow’ or ‘All the Stars’ Would Be Significant. Here’s Why.Popular songs used to rule the original song category at the Oscars. Could a win for A Star Is Born or Black Panther change that?
  7. true crime
    Abducted in Plain Sight Director on Why the Brobergs Were in ‘Absolute Denial’Skye Borgman answers lingering questions about her absolute shocker of a true-crime documentary.
  8. tv review
    PEN15 Is an Irresistible Millennial Coming-of-age SeriesThe Hulu series finds creators Maya Erskine and Anna Konkle going back to middle school to tap into all your Y2K nostalgia.
  9. close reads
    From Groundhog Day to Russian Doll, the Inescapable Power of the Time LoopPop culture is no stranger to stories in which people keep reliving the same event. But Russian Doll digs into deeper territory.
  10. true crime
    Abducted in Plain Sight Is a Documentary That Must Be Seen to Be BelievedThink of the wildest story you’ve ever heard, multiply it by 50, and then you’ll have a sense of how nuts this doc is.
  11. no day but yesterday
    The Highs and Lows of Rent: LiveThe live musical that wasn’t actually live. Until the very end.
  12. spoilers
    Why Do I Feel So Conflicted About Chidi and Eleanor on The Good Place?Chidi and Eleanor’s relationship doesn’t always feel natural, yet I’m still rooting for this sitcom couple to end up together.
  13. unbreakable kimmy schmidt
    Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt Ends But Still Feels Alive, DammitThis Tina Fey sitcom is still smart as hell.
  14. tv review
    The Other Two Is the Year’s First Great New ComedyThe Comedy Central sitcom about the adult siblings of a preteen pop star is great, right from the get-go.
  15. tv review
    Broad City Is Back for One Last Time, and That Feels RightAbbi and Ilana are still funny, but Broad City is taking its final bow at the right moment.
  16. the crime scene
    Why 2014 Was a Watershed Year for TV CrimeFive years ago, True Detective kicked off a golden era for prestige limited crime shows.
  17. tv review
    SMILF Season Two Is an Intimate Portrait of Womanhood, With an AsteriskDespite allegations about SMILF creator Frankie Shaw, season two excels at depicting the personal struggles of its women.
  18. tv review
    Which Fyre Festival Documentary Is Right for You?Honestly, the Netflix and Hulu docs are both worth your time.
  19. tv review
    Black Monday Isn’t Worth the InvestmentIn the ’80s Wall Street comedy, greed is good, and also one-dimensional.
  20. close reads
    What The Good Place Teaches Us About Politics“The Book of Dougs” makes a sly political point, but it’s not made in blatantly political terms.
  21. tv review
    The Passage Is Decent, at a Time When Decent Might Not Be EnoughFox’s adequate adaptation of Justin Cronin’s vampire novel keeps exposition and plot development flowing at the cost of nuance.
  22. theater
    Amy Heckerling on the ’90s Hits That Made It Into Clueless, the Musical’N Sync got in. The Backstreet Boys? Sadly, that didn’t work out.
  23. tv review
    You’re the Worst Is Still the Best in Its Final SeasonWill Gretchen and Jimmy actually get married? One of the great pleasures of the final season is finding out the answer.
  24. tv review
    The 2019 Golden Globes Were Anything But a RhapsodyThe show had its moments (Regina King! Glenn Close! The Americans!), but was mostly a disappointment.
  25. awards season
    Who Should (and Will) Win at the Golden Globes This Weekend?A Star Is Born or Bohemian Rhapsody? Killing Eve or Homecoming?
  26. tv review
    Tidying Up With Marie Kondo Is Surprisingly WatchableIn Marie Kondo’s Netflix reality series, conspicuous consumers are just like us.
  27. tv review
    A Choose-Your-Own-Adventure Review of Black Mirror: BandersnatchEveryone’s talking about Black Mirror’s interactive movie. But is it any good? Hopscotch through this review to find out.
  28. let it d’oh
    How The Simpsons’ Christmas Debut Changed TV“Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire” felt like a watershed moment 30 years ago, and seems even more significant in retrospect.
  29. tv review
    With The Innocent Man, Have We Reached a True-Crime Tipping Point?The Netflix series, based on John Grisham’s book, is a cautionary tale for the genre.
  30. best of 2018
    The 10 Best TV Scenes of 2018The year’s most memorable TV moments, from The Americans to Sharp Objects.
  31. best of 2018
    The 10 Best New TV Shows of 2018A wildly eclectic year of debuts, from Queer Eye to Sharp Objects.
  32. best of 2018
    Jen Chaney’s 10 Best TV Shows of 2018Including Soviet spies, telenovela twists, and a couple of foul-mouthed cartoons.
  33. golden globes 2019
    Which TV Shows and Movies Will Be Nominated for the 2019 Golden Globes?Vulture’s picks in all major categories.
  34. tv review
    The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel Season Two Doesn’t Slow Down One BitThe Emmy Award–winning comedy is even more marvelous in its second outing.
  35. viewing guide
    What to Watch and Stream This Thanksgiving WeekendYour TV marathon planning starts here.
  36. vulture lists
    The 18 Best Dogs in Netflix’s Dogs, RankedA list of the best boys and girls.
  37. tv review
    Queen America Earns Half a CrownThe Catherine Zeta-Jones–starring Facebook Watch series is not great, but it gets points for attempting to bring nuance to the beauty pageant world.
  38. tv
    The Wine Show Season Two: More Wine, More British Accents, and More PunsNo one makes a quality wine-tasting face like Matthew Goode.
  39. behind the scenes
    How Black-ish’s Prince Tribute Episode Came Together“We were all Prince fans. We would have done 20 or 30 songs if we had the time,” says Black-ish showrunner Kenny Smith.
  40. tv review
    Must Love DogsThis six-part Netflix docuseries is such a good boy.
  41. homecoming
    Homecoming’s Season Finale Sticks It to the ManIt’s an immensely satisfying ending.
  42. chat room
    Homecoming’s Bobby Cannavale on His ‘Antagonistic’ Chemistry With Julia Roberts“Julia used to joke that she was hearing my voice in the middle of the night yelling at her.”
  43. tv review
    Room 104 Season Two Is Weird, Surprising, and Packed With Great ActorsThe new season of the Duplass brothers’ HBO anthology series lands a lot more hits than misses.
  44. spoilers
    Homecoming’s Ending Credit Scene, ExplainedWho is Audrey Temple, and what is her relationship to the mysterious Mr. Geist?
  45. tv review
    Sally4Ever Is an Unbridled Squirm FestEveryone on this HBO show is awful. This will either amuse you or drive you crazy.
  46. cable news
    In Praise of MSNBC’s Steve KornackiHe’s the best election night analyzer there is. He also might be a robot.
  47. close reads
    The Legacy and the Lunacy of House of CardsThe show’s final season considers serious issues raised by the 2016 election, and it also gets completely nuts.
  48. tv review
    Shut Up and Dribble Makes a Powerful Case for Athletes Who Speak UpLeBron James co-exec produces this thoughtful docuseries, which explores the NBA’s history of racial justice and protest.
  49. best of 2018
    The Best TV Shows of 2018 (So Far)Atlanta, Sharp Objects, Pose, Killing Eve, Better Call Saul, and more.
  50. tv review
    Outlander Season 4 Is As Outlander As It GetsClaire and Jamie move to America, but this Starz drama maintains the same escapist spirit, for better and worse.
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