Melanie McFarland (page 62)

Melanie McFarland is Salon's award-winning senior culture critic. Follow her on Bluesky: @McTelevision

I May Destroy You; Better Call Saul; What We Do in the Shadows

The best TV shows of 2020 that made staying at home bearable Melanie McFarland

The Mandalorian

Is this the way? "The Mandalorian" depicts struggling belief more realistically than that last Jedi Melanie McFarland

Bridgerton

"Bridgerton" is Netflix's randy costume confection that you'll want to put in your face straightaway Melanie McFarland

Alice in Borderland

Forget "The Stand" – "Alice in Borderland" is the wild dystopian ride we've been waiting for Melanie McFarland

Barack Obama; The Boys; Homelander

Obama releases his TV Top 10 List, reminding Americans that he (unlike Trump) is just like us Melanie McFarland

Kristen Wiig; Saturday Night Live

Oh joy! Kristen Wiig comes home to "SNL" for a holiday edition rife with promise and peril Melanie McFarland

Ma Rainey's Black Bottom

"Ma Rainey's Black Bottom": Chadwick Boseman's finale performance is stunning Melanie McFarland

The Stand

"The Stand" is barely alive enough to capture this year's "end of the world as we know it" vibe Melanie McFarland

Small Axe

"Education" culminates Amazon's "Small Axe" film series, finding beauty in the necessary struggle Melanie McFarland

Sean Spicer; Newsmax

Watching Newsmax, the Fox News challenger: Like home shopping TV for dangerous far-right fantasies Melanie McFarland

The Mandalorian

The success of "The Mandalorian" made spinoffs inevitable – but at the expense of originality Melanie McFarland

Big Mouth

Even beyond the voice recast, "Big Mouth" nails the adventures of an awkward Black girl Melanie McFarland

Biscuit-Topped Pot Pie

This versatile biscuit-topped pot pie is the perfect dish for your leftover holiday turkey or meat Melanie McFarland

Ted Lasso

The "Ted Lasso" way is comforting – and a counter to the hollow nationalism Americans have embraced Melanie McFarland

Your Honor

Bryan Cranston is breaking bad in familiar ways for Showtime's dark thriller "Your Honor" Melanie McFarland

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