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Kat Chow
Kat Chow at NPR headquarters in Washington, D.C., July 25, 2018. (photo by Allison Shelley) (Square)
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Kat Chow

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We Pack Our Knives And Go Deep On 'Top Chef'

Judges Melissa King, Padma Lakshmi, Tom Colicchio and Gail Simmons in Season 18 of Top Chef. David Moir/Bravo hide caption

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David Moir/Bravo

Review

Pop Culture Happy Hour

We Pack Our Knives And Go Deep On 'Top Chef'

Eighteen seasons of Top Chef, and we still get a thrill every time we hear "hands up, utensils down." The show has traveled to classic food cities like New York, Los Angeles and Chicago, but this season, Top Chef filmed within a COVID-19 bubble in Portland, Oregon. Controversial winners, heartbreaking losses, food that looks good enough to eat and the foolishness of even attempting risotto — they've all been backbones of the Top Chef franchise over its many, many years.

We Pack Our Knives And Go Deep On 'Top Chef'

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How Poet Maggie Smith 'Tried On' Hope To Keep Moving Forward
Marley Allen-Ash for NPR

Life Kit

How Poet Maggie Smith 'Tried On' Hope To Keep Moving Forward

In her most recent book, poet Maggie Smith compiled notes to self, and says that writing them was her way of 'trying on' hope.

How Poet Maggie Smith 'Tried On' Hope To Keep Moving Forward

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Poet Tracy K. Smith On Grief In The Holidays And 'Different Vocabularies For Feeling'
Hokyoung Kim for NPR

Life Kit

Poet Tracy K. Smith On Grief In The Holidays And 'Different Vocabularies For Feeling'

As we inch toward the holidays, Pulitzer Prize-winning poet Tracy K. Smith shares how she's processing grief, a subject at the center of much of her work.

Poet Tracy K. Smith On Grief In The Holidays And 'Different Vocabularies For Feeling'

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Checking In With HGTV And Home Makeover Shows

Drew and Jonathan Scott are the hosts The Property Brothers and a number of spinoffs, including Brother vs. Brother. Paul Ladd/Discovery/AP hide caption

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Paul Ladd/Discovery/AP

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Pop Culture Happy Hour

Checking In With HGTV And Home Makeover Shows

Whether you live in a big house or a tiny apartment, on a beach or in a bustling city, television is full of opportunities for you to ruminate on your living space. And nowhere is that impulse more prevalent than on HGTV. One of basic cable's most basic networks, HGTV has been handing out advice and house-envy for a long time. We're revisiting our discussion of HGTV and home makeover shows.

Checking In With HGTV And Home Makeover Shows

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2020 Election Day Distractions

Ellen Pompeo, as Meredith Grey, in a season 16 episode of Grey's Anatomy. Kelsey McNeal/ABC hide caption

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Kelsey McNeal/ABC

Pop Culture Happy Hour

2020 Election Day Distractions

Election Day is stressful. It's full of news that might or might not mean anything. The stakes are high, and the consequences are serious. And whatever you do from that point forward, first, you have to get through today. So we want to offer you some ideas for things you can use purely to manage Election Day itself. To stay away from the incremental updates and the high anxiety until you actually know what's happened. Which might take a while.

2020 Election Day Distractions

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'Taste The Nation': Padma Lakshmi Explores The American Palate

In the Hulu series, Taste the Nation, Padma Lakshmi showcases the different immigrant and indigenous communities that contributed to American cuisine. Dominic Valente/Hulu hide caption

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Dominic Valente/Hulu

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Pop Culture Happy Hour

'Taste The Nation': Padma Lakshmi Explores The American Palate

Food media has become one of the many arenas in which debates about inclusivity and justice have taken center stage in recent months. And now, into this troubled world comes Taste The Nation. Hosted by Top Chef's Padma Lakshmi, the marvelous Hulu series visits immigrant and indigenous communities around the United States to explore food. Taste The Nation puts everything from chop suey to pad Thai in cultural, political and culinary contexts, with Lakshmi as your hungry, curious guide.

'Taste The Nation': Padma Lakshmi Explores The American Palate

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'The King Of Staten Island': Outer Borough, Inner Mess

Marisa Tomei and Pete Davidson star in the latest Judd Apatow film, The King of Staten Island. Mary Cybulski/Universal Pictures hide caption

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Mary Cybulski/Universal Pictures

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Pop Culture Happy Hour

'The King Of Staten Island': Outer Borough, Inner Mess

In The King Of Staten Island, comedian Pete Davidson plays a wayward stoner whose life isn't going anywhere. He still lives with his mom, he doesn't have a job, and his plans for his life involve a vague — and foolish — plan to open "a tattoo restaurant." The film is directed by Judd Apatow, who also made Knocked Up, The 40-Year-Old Virgin, and Trainwreck. Apatow's movies often involve a protagonist who faces some sort of need to grow up, and The King Of Staten Island may feature the biggest reclamation project yet: Davidson's character barely functions as an adult, and through much of the film, we see a manchild with a lot of growing up to do.

'The King Of Staten Island': Outer Borough, Inner Mess

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Seamless, Or Only Sew-Sew?: Checking In With 'Project Runway'

Project Runway mentor Christian Siriano addresses the contestants in the workroom. Barbara Nitke/Bravo hide caption

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Barbara Nitke/Bravo

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Pop Culture Happy Hour

Seamless, Or Only Sew-Sew?: Checking In With 'Project Runway'

When Project Runway launched in 2004, competitive reality shows were in their infancy. Now, they're in their mature pantsuit years, but the series, now in its 18th season, rolls on. The show moved from Bravo to Lifetime, and last season it returned to Bravo with a new cast. Host Heidi Klum and mentor Tim Gunn have been replaced by Karlie Kloss and season 4 winner Christian Siriano. But the sewing machines continue to buzz, and it's still hard to make a dress in a day.

Seamless, Or Only Sew-Sew?: Checking In With 'Project Runway'

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Revisiting 'To All The Boys I've Loved Before'

Noah Centineo and Lana Condor star in the Netflix adaptation of the young adult novel To All The Boys I've Loved Before. Netflix hide caption

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Netflix

Review

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Revisiting 'To All The Boys I've Loved Before'

In 2018, Netflix had a big hit with its adaptation of Jenny Han's YA novel To All The Boys I've Loved Before, a high-school rom-com with a big heart. Stars Lana Condor and Noah Centineo are now back in the sequel To All The Boys: P.S. I Still Love You. Before you check that one out, we wanted to revisit our conversation about the first film. (This episode originally aired on September 5, 2018.)

Revisiting 'To All The Boys I've Loved Before'

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'Unbelievable' Is A Searing Drama About Violence And Justice

Merritt Wever and Toni Collette play two detectives investigating a series of sexual assaults. Beth Dubber/Netflix hide caption

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Beth Dubber/Netflix

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Pop Culture Happy Hour

'Unbelievable' Is A Searing Drama About Violence And Justice

The Netflix series Unbelievable brings together a group of actresses including Kaitlyn Dever, Toni Collette, Merritt Wever, Dale Dickey and Danielle MacDonald. It's based on a true story about a young woman named Marie who was sexually assaulted and pressured by the police into recanting her story. Based on reporting from ProPublica and the Marshall Project, the series follows Marie, but also the two detectives who, much later, gave her case a chance to be solved.

'Unbelievable' Is A Searing Drama About Violence And Justice

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In 'The Farewell', Awkwafina Grapples With A Family Secret

In The Farewell, Billi (Awkwafina) and her father Haiyan (Tzi Ma) return to China to visit Billi's sick grandmother. A24 hide caption

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A24

Review

Pop Culture Happy Hour

In 'The Farewell', Awkwafina Grapples With A Family Secret

In The Farewell, Akwafina plays Billi, a young woman whose beloved grandmother back in China is diagnosed with lung cancer. The family decides not to tell the grandmother that she's got only months to live — a decision that Billi strongly disagrees with. The Farewell was written and directed by Lulu Wang based on a piece she did on This American Life.

In 'The Farewell', Awkwafina Grapples With A Family Secret

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'Tidying Up With Marie Kondo' Is A Spark Of Joy

Netflix's Tidying Up With Marie Kondo is a different kind of cleaning show — one that prioritizes self-care. Netflix hide caption

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Netflix

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Pop Culture Happy Hour

'Tidying Up With Marie Kondo' Is A Spark Of Joy

If you've noticed your friends have been a little more "tidy" than usual, or your thrift store a bit better stocked, it might be because of Netflix. The streaming series Tidying Up With Marie Kondo has spurred an organizational renaissance. Or at least a conversation about one.

'Tidying Up With Marie Kondo' Is A Spark Of Joy

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Our Pop Culture Resolutions and Predictions
Nora Carol Photography/Getty Images

Review

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Our Pop Culture Resolutions and Predictions

Today, we look back on our 2018 resolutions to see how we fared, and make some new ones for the year to come. We also make our fearless pop culture predictions for the next 12 months, and see how last year's predictions panned out.

Our Pop Culture Resolutions and Predictions

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Code Switch's 2018 Book Guide

Ahhh, the joys of reading. Gulfiya Mukhamatdinova/Getty Images hide caption

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Gulfiya Mukhamatdinova/Getty Images

Review

Code Switch

Code Switch's 2018 Book Guide

We checked in with authors, poets and great literary minds to see what books they think everyone should read this holiday season.

Code Switch's 2018 Book Guide

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