Kathryn VanArendonk Author Archive
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Kathryn VanArendonk

Critic
See all their articles from across New York Magazine
@kvanaren
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Kathryn is a critic who writes about TV and comedy. She gets mad when people say TV is a 10 hour movie.

  1. profile
    ‘I’m Not Letting You Laugh at Me. I’m Perfect.’Twenty years into his stand-up career, Anthony Jeselnik remains the king of crossed lines.
  2. best of 2024
    The Best TV Shows of 2024 (So Far)A punchy comedy, a spy thriller with complex politics, and a beautiful series that feels like a warm hug.
  3. backstories
    What I Saw Inside the Love Is Blind Control RoomToggling between ten simultaneous pod dates is like standing in front of a fire hose of gossip.
  4. relationship goals
    PASCAL, GUY C., JONATHAN R., CHOCK, JORDAN H., JOAN VASSOS
    Actually, They Are Here to Make FriendsIn an age when casts prioritize camaraderie, reality TV has finally retired its most infamous cliché.
  5. close read
    Politics Won’t Tear Love Is Blind ApartMarissa and Ramses’s conversation marks a watershed moment for the series — and reveals a truth about what makes or breaks the show’s relationships.
  6. tv review
    Slow Horses Got the Chance to Get ComfortableWhen a series perfects its formula, even the weakest seasons feel like a triumph.
  7. this is trifficult
    Every Bluey Minisode, RankedSome are almost — almost — enough to make you forget you’re not watching Bluey proper.
  8. network notes
    Now That’s What I Call Network TVA promising slate of new dramas counters prestige fatigue with tried-and-true procedural appeal.
  9. tears of dog
    The Bluey Method of Reducing Grown-ups to TearsIn its most disarming episodes, child and adult experience blend into something beautiful — and sob-inducing — in under seven minutes.
  10. theater review
    Hannah Gadsby Won’t Give You ClosureThe comedian’s new show, Woof!, offers a kaleidoscopic tour of their current state of mind but no pat takeaways.
  11. soda shop problems
    The Book of Rumors
    Secret Lives of Mormon Wives Keeps the Transgressions ComingBreaking the rules is so much more thrilling when you actually believe in them.
  12. to the pods
    The Love MachineLove Is Blind creator Chris Coelen drops a new group of singles into his strange experiment — and wrestles with all the lawsuits against the series.
  13. best of 2024
    The Best Comedy Specials of 2024 (So Far)There have already been several instant stand-alone knockouts.
  14. remembrance
    Maggie Smith Rejected IrrelevanceIn matronly roles that suggested their own replacement, the late performer shone from the margins.
  15. they’re proud of you
    Dad TV Is for Everyone NowIn the streaming era, the irresistible optimism of a competent hero working to restore the social order defies age, gender, and parental status.
  16. just keep clapping
    Ellen DeGeneres’s Netflix Special Has 70 Applause BreaksSeriously. 70. We counted them.
  17. definition
    What Is a Bottle Episode?The people on the internet are wrong. Or are they?
  18. emmys 2024
    The Highs, Lows, and Whoas of the 2024 EmmysHigh: Shōgun dominance! Low: Emmys spon-con? Whoa: Hacks upset???
  19. beach read book club
    ‘Too Much Hugging and Learning’Our book club discusses the ending of Long Island Compromise.
  20. dance break
    Everyone Is Having Fun in The Perfect Couple Opening Credits, Damn It!Lest you forget this is a show about murder, it’s also a show in which the entire cast performs a choreographed dance at the start of each episode.
  21. beach read book club
    ‘Real Shiv Vibes’Our book club discusses the Jenny section of Long Island Compromise.
  22. comics to watch
    2024’s Comedians You Should and Will KnowTwo dozen of tomorrow’s stand-up, sketch, and online comedy superstars, according to over 100 industry insiders.
  23. beach read book club
    ‘He’s Not Off by Miles, He’s Off by Crucial Inches’Our book club discusses the Nathan section in Long Island Compromise.
  24. comedy review
    No One Loves This More Than Adam SandlerHis new Netflix special is an earnest portrait of a comedian in the middle of constant chaos.
  25. fall preview 2024
    56 TV Shows We Can’t Wait to Watch This FallWe don’t need dragons to have a good time.
  26. beach read book club
    ‘Mandy Patinkin — Icon, Legend’Our book club discusses the Beamer section in ‘Long Island Compromise.’
  27. artifacts
    100 Pieces of Pop Culture That Defined ObamacoreYou know them when you see them — whether they were genius or, well, not.
  28. beach read book club
    ‘Watching How Long the Rot Can Happen’Our book club discusses the introduction to ‘Long Island Compromise.’
  29. gold rush
    Walton Goggins Knows Every Moment of The Ghoul’s LifeWhile preparing for the role, Fallout’s Emmy nominee read the script 250 times and screened westerns in the makeup chair.
  30. comedy review
    Joe Rogan Plays an Unconvincing FoolHis first live Netflix comedy special is as exhausting as it is lazy.
  31. endings
    House of the Dragon Has a Prophecy ProblemRaising questions that really should be answered by now, like: What is this show even about?
  32. profile
    Casey McQuiston Is Trojan-Horsing Trans Romance“You’re gonna be 60 percent of the way in before you know that’s what you’re reading.”
  33. tv review
    Decameron
    There’s Nothing Quite Like The DecameronIt’s thrilling to see something so idiosyncratic on TV. If only it were more successful.
  34. endings
    It Was All in the Reaction ShotsPresumed Innocent pulls off an impressive reveal with carefully deployed clues waiting for the moment their meaning would become clear.
  35. debates
    Is The Bear a Comedy? And Should I Care?We can only answer one of those questions.
  36. gold rush
    The Good, the Bad, and the Weird of the 2024 Emmy NominationsShōgun leads the pack: good! Devery Jacobs snubbed: bad! And, wait, the Pop-Tart movie got a nom?
  37. endings
    Reservation Dogs Closes the Circle of Peak TVThe end of Sterlin Harjo’s singular half-hour dramedy might also be the end of a small but astounding moment in post-prestige television.
  38. tv review
    3 Body Problem Is Not Afraid to Be TVAn unadaptable novel invites a perfect attempt at adaptation — if not a perfect TV show.
  39. tv review
    An Architectural Digest Home Tour Turned Spy ShowIn Prime series Mr. & Mrs. Smith, Donald Glover and Maya Erskine achieve their dreams through some truly terrible work-life balance.
  40. notes on camp
    11 Brief Meditations on Why I Love The Gilded AgeEven though it’s inarguably bad.
  41. tv review
    The Bear Is a Different AnimalGood-bye to the restaurant known as the Beef. Hello to a looser, lighter season two.
  42. talking shift
    My Lady Jane Has What Every Other Tudor Drama Is MissingYeah, yeah, it’s a metaphor, but more important, it’s fun.
  43. a song of light and fire
    House of the Dragon Loves LampWhoever upped the budget for candles, lanterns, and sconces this season, we thank you.
  44. off-menu
    Whither the Sandwiches?I have beef with The Bear’s window into the other side of the business.
  45. tv review
    The Bear Is TrappedCarmy can’t move ahead when he’s haunted by his past, and neither can season three.
  46. way too close read
    Three Seasons of Bridgerton Culminate in One Ecstatic Line Reading“There is only one way to deliver that, and that is with urgency.”
  47. post-carriage comedown
    Bridgerton Just Can’t Pull Off a ClimaxBut it almost doesn’t matter when the foreplay is this good.
  48. a bad idea worth considering
    It’s Not Too Late to Fix House of the Dragon’s Color WarsIt should be Team Gold versus Team Red.
  49. behind the scenes
    COUPLES THERAPY
    How Couples Therapy Put Therapy on TV (Without Ruining the Therapy)“Every week you’d go in knowing that there’s cameras somewhere, but three minutes into the session, you forget.”
  50. couples therapy
    108 - "Episode 8"
    Couples Therapy Built the World’s Most Convincing Reality-TV SetHow the Showtime docuseries filmed inside a fake therapy office without participants ever seeing any cameras.
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