Ben Travers

‘A Man on the Inside’ Season 2 Solves a Lighter, Merrier Mystery — and Adds Real Romance 'A Man on the Inside' Season 2 sends Ted Danson's undercover agent back to college, where a thief threatens a billionaire's school-saving donation.

Went a tad long praising one specific Max Greenfield moment in “A Man on the Inside” Season 2 and now I’m realizing I should’ve made more space for Mary Steenburgen (+Ted Danson +David Strathairn +++)

…so look for them in IW’s 2025 Best Performances list, I guess. www.indiewire.com/criticism/sh...

NBC’s Sunday Night Football Pushes 2026 Emmys to a Monday in September, as the Network ‘Wheel Deal’ Expires As has been the case in recent years, when it's NBC's turn to air the Emmys, the telecast must run on Mondays due to football.

TV's biggest night... Monday! 🤨 variety.com/2025/tv/news...

if you're holiday shopping at bookshop dot org, you should shop via our affiliate page! we get a small commission that goes toward us opening a storefront in queens: bookshop.org/shop/NoBorders

‘The American Revolution’ Review: In Divided Times, Ken Burns Trumpets a Unifying Dictum: No Kings Much has changed in 250 years, but Ken Burns' encyclopedic study of 'The American Revolution' finds a rallying cry in rejecting despots —then and now.

“Those who have interests in keeping the political story alive and growing have to really work to keep it front and center; to define the problem as something present in the minds of ordinary people.”
- Jane Kamensky, historian www.indiewire.com/criticism/sh...

Drama in a Time of No Consequences The Lowdown finds hope in a world where most crimes go unpunished.

wrote an essay about the lowdown, and how it can be hard to think about drama at a time when there never seem to be consequences for bad guys, and how the lowdown offers us a way out

www.vulture.com/article/the-...

I think Jon would like it, tho!

‘Palm Royale’ Season 2 Is a Ritzy, Riotous Rebuke to the Haters Despite catching flak for putting style over substance, 'Palm Royale' Season 2 doubles down on glitz, glamour, and outlandish stories. Thank goodness.

(A streaming rep recently asked to use “a tastefully manicured middle finger to the haters,” which, lol, never gonna happen — but you can read it here!) www.indiewire.com/criticism/sh...

As a critic, pull-quotes are weird because sure, it’s nice to see your words magnified in support of a show you love, but if those words are so generic they could be anyone’s, I don’t get the excitement.

Amanda Kludt’s One-Pan Cake Image CreditsPhoto by Alpha Smoot ingredientsfor the cake 1½ cups all-purpose flour 1 cup granulated sugar 1 teaspoon kosher salt 1 teaspoon baking soda 3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder 1 teaspo...

Ummm I don't believe I've experimented with any new savory, Thanksgiving-appropriate dishes of late — certainly none as hearty as the hot dish — but I have been keen on this very easy, very delicious cake! cherrybombe.com/blogs/recipe...

Gen AI is a tool that allows people to cheat themselves of growth.

truly the most convincing argument to watch a show I have ever read

The ‘Death by Lightning’ Dudes, Ranked from ‘That Guy’ to ‘My Man!’ A scientific breakdown of what the 'Death by Lightning' cast brings to James Garfield's unconventional picnic table (so to speak).

A piece @bentravers.bsky.social was born to write: www.indiewire.com/lists/death-...

Explaining to my tiny nephew that I was late to play with trucks 🚜because his grandma asked me if I liked the Springsteen movie and we missed our train. 🚂

‘Pluribus’ Review: Vince Gilligan’s Intrepid Sci-Fi Series Is Greater Than the Sum of Its Parts Bucking convention at every turn, 'Pluribus' can be fitfully satisfying from scene to scene but its big ideas create a potent overall impact. [REVIEW]

Good show. www.indiewire.com/criticism/sh...

Screenshot of a review headline: fun tag: PRESIDENTS DON'T RESPOND ON MONDAYS headline: 'Death by Lightning' Review: Michael Shannon Leads a Rollicking Elegy for the American Experiment dek: Briskly covering James Garfield's unexpected nomination for the presidency through his…..

Rattled around my brain the whole show!

‘Death by Lightning’ Review: Michael Shannon Leads a Rollicking Elegy for the American Experiment Recounting James Garfield's assassination, 'Death by LIghtning' is a Netflix series driven by a rip-roaring cast, wily humor, and keen insight.

Impossible to overstate how much Shea Whigham Shea Whighams in this. Top-tier entertainment.
www.indiewire.com/criticism/sh...

‘All Her Fault’ Review: Don’t Blame Sarah Snook for Peacock’s Missing-Kid Mystery Falling Apart In a trashy-fun whodunit that overstays its welcome, a young boy is taken and his family members become the prime suspects.

I was amped after the first episode of "All Her Fault" — Sarah Snook and Dakota Fanning teaming up in a trash TV mystery to expose the perverse laziness of disconnected dads? hell yes! — but then it... kept going. And going. And yawn. www.indiewire.com/criticism/sh...

As the cold reality of Cuomo’s defeat sets in, this is a moment for centrists to ask themselves: Have we lost touch with the common voter? Get out and spend time in the tattoo parlors and dispensaries. The drag shows, community gardens and outsider art galleries where Real New Yorkers congregate

A SSRS/CNN poll showing 61% people think Trump has gone too far using the power of the presidency and 57% think he's gone too far deporting immigrants.

People fucking hate this guy. They fucking hate ICE. They fucking hate how much power he has. He is at 63% overall disapproval to 37% approval. That's lower than their poll after January 6th. And this poll was done before he started intentionally starving people. I wish our media would reflect this.

The Best TV from October — New Shows, Great Finales, and Hidden Gems In October, 'Bob’s Burgers' delivered its 300th episode, 'Mr. Scorsese' introduced himself, and Tim Robinson began his reign over HBO.

October turned out to be a pretty great month for TV, from exciting series premieres (🪑) to standout new episodes (🍔) — and a few random gems scattered throughout (🧢). A little roundup: www.indiewire.com/gallery/best...

Bonus good thing: Walter Mosley wrote last night’s episode and graciously agreed to talk about it. www.indiewire.com/features/int...

‘Welcome to Derry’ Review: HBO’s ‘It’ Prequel Series Is the Wrong Kind of Clown Show 'Welcome to Derry' floats down Pennywise's sewers in an eight-episode first season that's light on frights and weighed down by mythology. [REVIEW]

When I say “Welcome to Derry” is way sillier than it is scary, just know I’m generally a big ‘fraidy cat.

And when I complain that Pennywise isn’t around much, you should also know I hate clowns.

www.indiewire.com/criticism/sh...

‘Welcome to Derry’ Review: HBO’s ‘It’ Prequel Series Is the Wrong Kind of Clown Show 'Welcome to Derry' floats down Pennywise's sewers in an eight-episode first season that's light on frights and weighed down by mythology. [REVIEW]

When I say “Welcome to Derry” is way sillier than it is scary, just know I’m generally a big ‘fraidy cat.

And when I complain that Pennywise isn’t around much, you should also know I hate clowns.

www.indiewire.com/criticism/sh...

Quote post from X by "OscarAI": Never do this: Passing off someone else’s work as your own. This Grok Imagine effect with the day-to-night transition was created by me — and I’m pretty sure that person knows it. To make things worse, their copy has more impressions than my original post. Not cool 👎 Quoted post: Prashant @Prashant_1722 Oct 15 Grok Imagine trick: Add "day to night transition" to your prompt. In shots like this, you’ll see a beautiful, harmonious effect as the day turns int... (AI slop animation video)

we are in a self-awareness crisis

Ben Stiller and Justin Theroux looking at their phones.

A close-up of Ben looking at his phone, flummoxed.

Ben Stiller photographed in The New York Times, fist resting against a blank wall, a black-and-white image

“The Leftovers” Season 1 poster, Justin Theroux punching a concrete wall — a black-and-white image

Available now on Apple TV!

Get your tickets now!!! Honestly, don’t miss my friend and colleague, the extraordinary Namir Smallwood, and our scrappy Chicago cast.
#Bug @mtc-nyc.bsky.social

‘The Chair Company’ Review: Tim Robinson’s Superb HBO Series Digs a Hilarious, Hypnotic Rabbit Hole A frustrated family man's simple customer-service complaint turns into an ever-deepening conspiracy in HBO's 'The Chair Company' from Tim Robinson.

I had to stop watching during dinner because I kept choking from laughter. 🪑 www.indiewire.com/criticism/sh...