The Take

Nepo babies are everywhere in entertainment these days – from Maude Apatow to Dakota Johnson to Nicolas Cage, one of your favorite actors is probably related to the Hollywood elite. So what do these stars really say about inequality in entertainment, and in America more broadly? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hannah on Girls was widely deemed one of the most annoying TV characters of the 2010s, but was she just misunderstood? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

So many stories center around the mystery of a beautiful dead girl who is often flattened into a symbol and treated as a mystery to be solved. Here’s our take on the dead girl story, and the loss she really represents in our culture: Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Beyonce may have quietly removed a portion of her song Energy that interpolated Kelis’ Milkshake… but did she do anything wrong in the first place? Here’s our take on the drama, where the line is drawn, and why maybe even if you don’t legally deserve a credit, maybe you still deserve respect. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Freaks and Geeks taps into 80s nostalgia (from a late 90s perspective) – but in a genuine, complex way. The show got youth culture right - and it still resonates now. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Barbiecore is the fashion trend of the moment, but the fun act of reclaiming this hot pink femininity can still be so fraught with controversy, debate and criticism. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Why do women often fall for the rich guy – even when there are a lot of red flags he’s a total fraud? It’s not fair to blame these victims or sim ply assume they’re shallow and materialistic when there’s a much bigger cultural problem at play here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Manifesting is everywhere these days, especially in the cultural collective of gen z. But today’s mainstream resurgence of manifesting also hints at a larger feeling of powerlessness in the face of bigger, systemic problems out of our control. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Did you ever think about the meaning behind Cher Horowitz’s most memorable looks in Clueless? Are all those perfectly curated clothes an expression of power – or are they actually hiding a teenage girl who feels powerless? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The daddy's girl onscreen is an idealized – but stunted– version of femininity, who is seen through the rose-colored glasses of a father who never wants her to grow up. Here’s our take on the daddy’s girl, and what happens if she doesn’t outgrow seeing her dad as the greatest guy in the world. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Rebel Wilson’s attempted outing at the hands of an Australian newspaper was a shocking and revealing window into our current moment. Here’s our take on why it might prove we’re finally moving on from the shocking history of tabloids targeting LGBT people for profitable scoops. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In season 2 of Euphoria, Cassie goes through some major changes, and so does her style. So what’s the secret emotional meaning underneath each of Cassie’s looks? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Gen Z is just getting started with adult life. So what does it say if the youngest adults are feeling burnt out already – and will the kids be alright? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

So often we’re led to believe that, after a certain age, people are just stuck with their lot in life, however bad the job or relationship is. But the celebrity-starting-over trend is here to give us hope! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Fight Club has long been a cult classic, and today Tyler’s complaints about the spiritual costs of turning ourselves into consumers instead of people feel more prophetic than ever – so do any of his solutions make any sense, too? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Stories about women being deceptive or manipulative have been embedded in our culture for millennia, dating all the way back to Adam and Eve. Here’s our take on how narratives around the Depp-Heard trial draw on the tropes of the perfect victim and the devious manipulative woman, and how both of these fictional ideas fuel dangerous societal misogyny. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The “It” girl represents something indefinable — a quality, charisma, or spark that makes her stand out and captures something of her time. So what truly makes a generation’s It Girl? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Three years after the end of Game of Thrones, we’re heading back to Westeros. But what can we expect from HBO’s upcoming House of the Dragon? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Cougar used to be a punchline, but has the joke of an older woman preying on younger men stopped being funny? And was it ever? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For all its confusion and ambiguity and humanoid rabbits, what major takeaways did Donnie Darko leave us with? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Is America truly becoming Gilead? How much of The Handmaid’s Tale’s terrifying fiction has already come to pass? Maybe more than you’d think. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What is it about Euphoria’s portrait of Rue and her addiction that feels so honest? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As quickly as they arrived, it seems like millennials might be over. So where is the Elder Millennial today – and will they be okay? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Stranger Things’ epic fourth season hits close to home: unlike in the previous two seasons, the threat feels personal. So what did season 4 really mean? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Aging is an unavoidable part of life - or at least it used to be. But this doesn’t seem to be true for today’s celebrities. Here's our take on the mixed messages that today’s never-aging celebrities send us about how (and whether) it's okay to get older. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Teens on screens big and small are having some wild times. But is the risque teen trope an accurate depiction of what teenage life is like (now or ever)? Or is it an adult’s imagination of what kids today are up to? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Are we finally moving into a new age where the single lady is aspirational? While she may still have her challenges, the single lady has come a long way from being shunned, to being celebrated. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Millie Bobby Brown is breaking free of the child star curse with poise and confidence – and exposing a lot of what’s pretty shocking in today’s culture along the way. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

What are the messages the Fifty Shades trilogy leaves us with – and are any of them actually useful in real romances, or should we pretty much view this story as a cautionary tale? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The workplace sitcom has given way to widespread workplace dystopia and how it reflects our angst that the nature of work today is not just soul-crushingly meaningless but actively wrong. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Who is the real Barbie, and who is she for? Here’s our take on how Barbie has managed to remain relevant and iconic for so long, and the essence of this character that’s persisted across her series of changing models. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Daria made it cool to be a wry and cynical loner and was the picture-perfect example of ‘90s alienation. Years later, Daria still resonates with anyone who’s ever questioned whether the problem is you or the system you’re living in. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The term is often thrown around as an insult, but the diva is a figure of self-created power many of us can take inspiration from. Here’s our Take on why the diva has become an icon to so many people. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

True to its name, Everything Everywhere All At Once has a lot going on. What’s the deeper symbolism? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Jennifer Aniston was the archetypal girl next door of the 90s – but has that label limited her career, and did it ever actually represent who she really was? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Bookish, quiet, intelligent… and brown haired? The brainy brunette is embedded in our culture, but why do we correlate female smarts with hair color? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Riverdale's Jughead Jones is part of a longer tradition of obnoxious, indie guys in movies and TV who serve to make the rest of the cast look good by comparison, and give us someone we love to hate. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Are you a Carrie, Samantha, Charlotte, or Miranda? For years, Sex and the City viewers have used this question as a kind of sorting hat or personality quiz. Each woman feels so real, distinct, and clearly defined – so we can easily see ourselves in them. So, which one are you – and what can we learn from each of the ladies? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The "closeted homophobe" trope dominates pop culture today, from Power of the Dog to Sex Education. So why is this tired cliche still so easy to spot? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Abbott Elementary has become an unlikely hit and critical darling. So what makes it so fresh, and popular? The characters are endearing and place in a setting that’s, above all, realistic. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Bridgerton will be back for a third round of perfect couples, pastel frocks and lots of flirting – here’s what we know, what we don’t, and our Take on what might be in store for our favorite Georgian beaus! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The court case between Johnny Depp and Amber Heard is messy, complicated, and full of mixed evidence for and against each person – so why has so much of the online response rushed to assume his innocence and her guilt? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Like an ancient Greek tragic hero, Dune's Paul Atreides has options to avoid his inevitable downfall, but instead leans into his fatal flaws – his desires for power and revenge, thus becoming all of the things he's afraid of. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Dating red flags persistently get romanticized in modern media – but they should probably send you running for the hills IRL. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tech villains on screen are nearly as old as film itself, but the trope is surging today – reflecting the non-stop stories of tech companies behaving badly. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Modern Family’s Claire Dunphy refuses to remain boxed in by prescriptive and restrictive roles, making her the model for the husband-wife. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Age gap relationships make us uncomfortable, but where exactly is the line – and can they ever be a good thing? Right now, these relationships are being explored a lot in culture, for good and for bad. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Belle is the ultimate bookworm hero princess. Her skills like empathy, insight, and knowledge aren’t as flashy as princess-type characters with superpowers or fierce warrior skills. But Belle’s model of heroine is an important one that we probably need more than ever. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Will Smith has been a pillar in Hollywood for decades – until his decision to slap Chris Rock at the 2022 Oscars seemingly toppled his carefully-built reputation overnight. So what happened inside Will Smith’s mind in that moment? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Quarter-life stories onscreen make us see that recognizing this crisis can be an impetus to go out and get what you want from your life at exactly the right time. Because in your twenties you have so much more of life left to live. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices