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'Saturday Night Live' returns and shows that a lot of rebuilding is underway

Musical guest Kendrick Lamar, host Miles Teller, and Bowen Yang recording a promo for Saturday Night Live's 48th season opening episode. NBC/Will Heath/NBC hide caption

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NBC/Will Heath/NBC

Review

TV Reviews

'Saturday Night Live' returns and shows that a lot of rebuilding is underway

Judging by the relentlessly average, borderline uninspired season opening episode, this 48th season of SNL is off to a bumpy start, writes our critic Eric Deggans.

'Saturday Night Live' returns and shows that a lot of rebuilding is underway

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Trevor Noah's 'Daily Show' departure hints at deeper problems in late night TV

Trevor Noah announced Thursday that he'd be leaving The Daily Show after seven years. "My time is up," he said. "But in the most beautiful way." Noah is pictured above in Los Angeles in September 2021. Rich Fury/Getty Images hide caption

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Rich Fury/Getty Images

Opinion

Trevor Noah's 'Daily Show' departure hints at deeper problems in late night TV

Noah increasingly looked like a performer who was growing beyond the grind of a late-night Comedy Central show. If he doesn't find a new perch in the genre, the industry will be all the worse for it.

Trevor Noah's 'Daily Show' departure hints at deeper problems in late night TV

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'She-Hulk: Attorney at Law' is a smash — SMASHING THE PATRIARCHY, THAT IS!!!

Tatiana Maslany stars in She-Hulk: Attorney at Law. Marvel Studios hide caption

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Marvel Studios

Review

Pop Culture Happy Hour

'She-Hulk: Attorney at Law' is a smash — SMASHING THE PATRIARCHY, THAT IS!!!

In the Disney Plus series She-Hulk: Attorney At Law, Tatiana Maslany plays Jennifer Walters, an ambitious, eager lawyer. She's also the Hulk's cousin, and accidentally acquires some of his powers after an accident. So now she has to juggle her career as a lawyer with the fact that she sometimes turns into a super-strong green giant.

'She-Hulk: Attorney at Law' is a smash — SMASHING THE PATRIARCHY, THAT IS!!!

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Editing Reality
Ethan Miller/Getty Images

Throughline

Editing Reality

We live in divided times, when the answer to the question 'what is reality?' depends on who you ask. Almost all the information we take in is to some extent edited and curated, and the line between entertainment and reality has become increasingly blurred. Nowhere is that more obvious than the world of reality television. The genre feeds off our most potent feelings – love, hope, anxiety, loneliness – and turns them into profit... and presidents. So in this episode, we're going to filter three themes of our modern world through the lens of reality TV: dating, the American dream, and the rage machine.

Editing Reality

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We watched 'Maury,' but that doesn't mean we felt good about it

Maury Povich announces the 32nd Annual Daytime Emmy award nominations in 2005. Peter Kramer/Getty Images hide caption

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Peter Kramer/Getty Images

Review

Pop Culture Happy Hour

We watched 'Maury,' but that doesn't mean we felt good about it

For more than three decades, Maury has been a platform for flamboyant guests seeking paternity and lie detector tests for significant others. They've yelled, bawled and kicked over chairs. Now, the show's host Maury Povich is retiring and it's the end of an era for a particular brand of uber-trashy daytime TV.

We watched 'Maury,' but that doesn't mean we felt good about it

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Las Vegas mass shooting survivors tell their own story in '11 minutes' documentary

Mourners attend a vigil in Las Vegas following the Oct. 1, 2017, mass shooting at the Route 91 Harvest country music festival. Drew Angerer/Getty Images hide caption

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Drew Angerer/Getty Images

Review

TV Reviews

Las Vegas mass shooting survivors tell their own story in '11 minutes' documentary

Fresh Air

The new four-hour Paramount+ documentary is told mostly through cellphone videos and police body cams. It is surprisingly not gruesome — the visuals are selected and edited very judiciously.

Las Vegas mass shooting survivors tell their own story in '11 minutes' documentary

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Actor Judy Greer on 'Reboot' — and why are there so many TV reboots, anyway?

Judy Greer playing Bree Marie Jensen in the new Hulu sitcom 'Reboot.' Michael Desmond/Hulu hide caption

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Michael Desmond/Hulu

It's Been a Minute

Actor Judy Greer on 'Reboot' — and why are there so many TV reboots, anyway?

We talk TV REBOOTS. Guest host Elise Hu chats with Judy Greer about her role in the new Hulu series Reboot; her work as a comedic actress, and the state of television. Then, Elise talks with Daniel Herbert, associate professor of film and TV at the University of Michigan and co-editor of the book Film Reboots, about why so many old shows are being remade now. Plus, a special reboot-themed "Who Said That!" with Rob Pearlstein, co-executive producer and writer of the CBS MacGyver reboot (note: Rob is also Elise's partner) and his sister Joanna Pearlstein, opinion editor at The New York Times.

Actor Judy Greer on 'Reboot' — and why are there so many TV reboots, anyway?

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What's making us happy: A guide to your weekend reading, listening and viewing

Group photo of Bakers in the Tent (L to R) (back) Sandro, William, Abdul, Carol, Maisam, Syabira, Maxy (front) James Rebs Janusz, Dawn, Kevin on The Great British Baking Show on Netflix. Mark Bourdillon/Netflix hide caption

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Mark Bourdillon/Netflix

What's Making Us Happy: Recommendations From 'Pop Culture Happy Hour'

What's making us happy: A guide to your weekend reading, listening and viewing

Each week, the guests and hosts on NPR's Pop Culture Happy Hour share what's bringing them joy. This week: Industry, The Great British Baking Show, and more.

'Reboot' is a comedy that's fresher than it sounds

Keegan-Michael Key in a scene from the Hulu series Reboot. Hulu hide caption

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Hulu

Review

Pop Culture Happy Hour

'Reboot' is a comedy that's fresher than it sounds

The new Hulu show Reboot follows a fictional behind-the-scenes attempt to create a gritty update of a TGIF-style family sitcom. The effort is led by Hannah (Rachel Bloom) who is constantly clashing with the show's original showrunner Gordon (Paul Reiser). The reunited cast is played by Judy Greer, Keegan-Michael Key, Johnny Knoxville, and Calum Worthy. Reboot was created by Modern Family alum Steven Levitan.

'Reboot' is a comedy that's fresher than it sounds

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How HBO transformed television

HBO set out to do what networks wouldn't (and couldn't) do. In the process, the company changed TV as we know it. Thiago Prudencio/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images hide caption

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Thiago Prudencio/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

It's Been a Minute

How HBO transformed television

HBO gave us some of the most iconic television shows of our time: Sex and the City. The Sopranos. Game of Thrones. But is the era of HBO coming to a close?

How HBO transformed television

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'Reservation Dogs' co-creator says the show gives audiences permission to laugh

Paulina Alexis, Devery Jacobs, D'Pharaoh Woon-A-Tai, and Lane Factor play the title characters in Reservations Dogs, a series about teenagers living on a reservation in Oklahoma. Shane Brown/FX on Hulu hide caption

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Shane Brown/FX on Hulu

'Reservation Dogs' co-creator says the show gives audiences permission to laugh

Fresh Air

Sterlin Harjo says there's a tendency to be "very precious with Native people ... that's kind of how the world is trained to view us." The irreverent series follows four teens on a reservation.

'Reservation Dogs' co-creator says the show gives audiences permission to laugh

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These are the new movies and TV shows we can't wait to watch this fall

(Clockwise from top left) Seth Gilliam in The Walking Dead, Letitia Wright in Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, Brice Gonzalez and George Lopez in Lopez vs. Lopez, Susan Sarandon in Monarch, Harry Styles and Florence Pugh in Don't Worry Darling and Dwayne Johnson in Black Adam Jace Downs/AMC, Marvel Studios, Casey Durkin/NBC, Pete Dadds/Fox, Warner Bros. hide caption

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Jace Downs/AMC, Marvel Studios, Casey Durkin/NBC, Pete Dadds/Fox, Warner Bros.

Review

Culture

These are the new movies and TV shows we can't wait to watch this fall

Our critics' guide lets you search by genre and where to watch — whether on your couch or in the theater. Here's what NPR critics are looking forward to after a busy blockbuster summer.

Spanish 'Dracula' finds new blood, more than 90 years after its release

Carlos Villarías and Lupita Tovar starred in the 1931 Spanish language version of Dracula. Mike Gallegos for NPR hide caption

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Mike Gallegos for NPR

Latinos in Hollywood

Spanish 'Dracula' finds new blood, more than 90 years after its release

In 1931, an entire new cast and crew reshot Dracula into Spanish on the Universal Studios lot.

Spanish 'Dracula' finds new blood, more than 90 years after its release

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Into the raunchy, violent danger zone of 'Archer'

Lana Kane (Aisha Tyler), Sterling Archer (H. Jon Benjamin) in a scene from the series Archer. FXX hide caption

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FXX

Review

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Into the raunchy, violent danger zone of 'Archer'

The animated comedy Archer explores the exploits of Sterling Archer (H. Jon Benjamin), the world's most dangerous spy. Now in its 13th season, it's a workplace comedy full of guns, sex, and the occasional mad scientist. Created by Adam Reed, the series airs on FXX and streams on Hulu.

Into the raunchy, violent danger zone of 'Archer'

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