The Sunday edition.

Jamie Lee Curtis controversy, explained

Look, I like Jamie Lee Curtis as an artist, but I’ve soured greatly on her as a person due to her politics. Her latest controversy involving a tone-deaf comment about the Los Angeles fires and Gaza cemented that for me even further.

Let me explain what I mean. As some of you may remember, Curtis made a pretty appalling pro-Israel post on Instagram on October 9, 2023. In response to the October 7, 2023, attack by Hamas, Curtis shared a photo of alleged terrified Israeli children, followed by an Israeli flag. The issue is that the children in the photo were Palestinian kids. This post was roundly criticized across social media, eventually prompting Curtis to admit to making a “mistake” a month later.

‘It was a sham’: Embarrassing news for Trump as judge orders his administration to rehire the people they fired

The Trump administration has been dedicated to thinning out the federal government by firing workers en masse. Despite having laid off workers, Judge William Alsup demanded the reinstatement of the same employees.

U.S District Judge William Alsup ordered six federal agencies to reinstate probationary government employees fired “on or about February 13.” Alsup called the firings a “sham” and determined the terminations made by the Office of Personnel Management were unlawful. “It is a sad, sad day when our government would fire some good employee and say it was based on performance when they know good and well that’s a lie. That should not have been done in our country. It was a sham in order to avoid statutory requirements,” was Alsup’s scathing comment about the purge.

‘I have a sinking feeling’: The sale of Pokémon GO highlights weariness and distrust in the games industry

On Wednesday, March 12, 2025, Niantic announced it was selling its games division to Scopely for a whopping $3.5 billion. It’s understandable if you haven’t heard of Scopely, but if Niantic rings a bell, it’s because you—like many of us—have dabbled with Pokémon GO. The deal involves Niantic’s entire games division, which means Pikmin Bloom and the surprisingly successful Monster Hunter Now are headed to Scopely, too.

Ed Wu, the leader of the Pokémon GO team, assured players in a statement that “the entire Pokémon GO team is staying together through this partnership.” He also asserted that the move to Scopely will be “a positive step for all of you and the game’s future.” “Scopely expressed a deep admiration for this community and our team. I have every belief Pokémon GO will further flourish as part of Scopely, not only into its second decade, but for many more years to come,” Wu wrote.

DOGE slashing 10,000 USPS jobs isn’t exactly ‘government efficiency’

Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) is one of the worst ideas ever conceived. DOGE and USPS will slash 10,000 vital USPS jobs and call it an “efficient” strategy.

DOGE, named after the internet meme featuring a Shiba Inu dog, is an unofficial government department and the brainchild of President Trump and Elon Musk. The goal of DOGE is to cut out what the Trump administration sees as “wasteful spending” and to promote better State efficiency. However, this is a fraudulent claim, as DOGE has primarily been used to make needless layoffs and shut down diversity, equity, and inclusion policies and programs.

‘The Pitt’ episode 12 release date, confirmed

Episode 11 of the acclaimed medical drama The Pitt left audiences awestruck and deeply moved with its raw and hyper-realistic depiction of childbirth. This gripping scene has sparked widespread conversation about the show’s unflinching commitment to medical authenticity while cementing its reputation as a promising watch for lovers of medical dramas.

Led by Noah Wyle as the senior attending physician at the fictional Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Hospital, The Pitt debuted on Max on January 9, 2025, with a highly-anticipated 15-episode season order. Offering a fresh twist on the beloved medical procedural genre, each episode of the season captures a single hour within a grueling 15-hour emergency department shift.

Romance and romantasy: Is there such a thing as too many tropes?

Romance and romantasy are taking the publishing world by storm. Neither genre has ever been as popular as it is now, despite having existed for decades. Platforms like BookTok and Bookstagram are arguably what we have to thank for this sudden growth in readership—or blame, of course, if romance isn’t your thing or you’re tired of seeing the same books being touted on the internet over and over again.

Now, anyone familiar with either romance in general or romantasy more specifically will be well acquainted with the concept of tropes, which are story beats and character archetypes that can be found repeatedly in all of fiction. Tropes are an integral part of storytelling in any genre. After all, how many “Chosen One” stories are out there in the world? But it’s hard to deny that they are utilized most effectively, brazenly, and frequently in romance and its offshoots.

‘The Perfect Couple’ season 2 release window, cast, plot, and more

We could all use a little more of the mystery-drama The Perfect Couple in our lives. It was addicting!

The Perfect Couple is basically if you took Clue and turned it into a wedding murder mystery show. Created by Jenna Lamia, The Perfect Couple was released as a limited series on Netflix on September 5, 2024. It was directed by Susanne Bier, who also directed Serena (2014) and The First Lady (2022).

‘Karen Pirie’ season 2 release window, cast, plot, and more

In a roundabout way, the first season of Karen Pirie was Unforgotten meets Only Murders in the Building. Strange combo, right? But it was a hit, cementing Lauren Lyle’s Detective Sergeant Karen Pirie as a force of nature. When a true-crime podcast digs up the unsolved 1990s Rosie Duff murder, DS Karen Pirie is assigned to the case, but little does she know the horrors and emotional trauma she’s about to unearth.

The first season of Karen Pirie was a story of undeniable loyalty, terror, police negligence, abuse of power, and misogyny. I won’t spoil anything major here, but it’s worth your time.

10 best ‘Downton Abbey’ characters, ranked

After premiering in the United Kingdom in 2010 and in the United States in 2011, Downton Abbey quickly permeated the cultural zeitgeist. Created by Julian Fellowes, this 20th-century historical British drama captured the attention of audiences worldwide. Beyond viewers, the series was also critically acclaimed, taking home six Emmy Awards, three Golden Globes, four SAG Awards, and two BAFTA Awards during its six-season run, and a third movie is on the way.
Fans adore the aristocratic Crawley family and the hardworking servants who attend them. With so many memorable characters to choose from, it’s hard to narrow them down, but as matriarch Violet Crawley would advise, “Don’t be defeatist, dear, it’s very middle class.” So, let’s keep calm and carry on. Here are the 10 best Downton Abbey characters ranked for your consideration.

10. William Mason

William, played by Thomas Howes, is the second footman at Downton Abbey. William wanted to work with horses, but his mother wanted a better life for her son and pushed him into household service. This kind, honest, and hard-working man was often the victim of first footman Thomas Barrow’s vitriol, but everyone has a breaking point. When Thomas pushed him too far after the death of his mother, William punched him in the face. No one blamed him.

This Week’s Good News: legendary horror series comes back to life after a decade as exciting anime announcements flow

Good News is a weekly collection of stories from this week about things that were actually pretty nice. Given the general state of everything, we all deserve a concentrated dose of good news.

Granted, this week’s good news felt pretty limited, while the bad news felt overwhelming. But we will find it, dang it. We will find the good news!

‘LifeHack’ review: You’ll want to change your password after this

‘Black Bag’ review: Michael Fassbender and Cate Blanchett are hot spies and I need to lie down

A new social media meme is the best kind of optical illusion

A good meme is a good meme but sometimes they happen on accident. Like everyone reading #whoremembers…two different ways.

The hashtag has split the internet into two teams: Who Remembers and Whore Members. Which one you fall into is up to you and your sensitivities but it is kind of hilarious that we all collectively decided to have a bit of one with this one. The set up is simple: Post the hashtag and an image and let the people decide which you’re going with.

‘The Electric State’ is way more fun than you’re giving it credit for

Sometimes people are mean to movies just to be mean. That’s kind of what I think is happening with Joe Russo and Anthony Russo’s The Electric State.

The Netflix film throws us way back into the 90s (gross don’t remind me how old I am) after the rise of the robots, which led to a technological hero (played by Stanley Tucci) giving the world the way out they needed. The crux of the movie is focused on Michelle (Millie Bobby Brown) who mets a robot that isn’t supposed to exist. She learns that he is the embodiment of her brother, Chris, who she thought died.

‘Borderline’ review: Samara Weaving and Ray Nicholson delight in the fandom gone wrong thriller-horror

Will there be ‘Invincible’ season 4?

Following Invincible‘s explosive season 3 finale, viewers will be eager to know when or if Invincible season 4 is coming to Prime Video.

In Invincible season 3, Mark Grayson (Steven Yeun) continues struggling with his superhero identity and the fallout from his father Omni-Man’s (J. K. Simmons) attempted takeover of Earth. He struggles to balance his personal life and relationship with his brother Oliver (Christian Convery) with his increasingly difficult superhero life as he clashes with Cecil (Walton Goggins) and faces new and old enemies from every direction. The season effectively delivered on its finale with one of the bloodiest, most brutal episodes yet, featuring a 30-minute, epic superhuman showdown.

Elon Musk’s 120-hour work week isn’t just horrifying — it’s dehumanizing

Elon Musk is trying to normalize the 120-hour work week, which is both horrifying and dehumanizing.

Musk has long been known for his extreme workplace ideals. It seems that one of his methods of leading a business is to purge most of its employees before demanding extreme hours from those left standing. When he took over Twitter, he ultimately laid off 80% of staff before telling those remaining that he expected them to work 84-hour weeks, which is 12 hours a day, seven days a week. Musk claims he works 120 hours a week, though it’s unclear how much of that time is spent rage-tweeting, trolling, and being President Donald Trump’s shadow. However, he has been known to sleep in his work offices. If that’s the lifestyle that suits him, that’s fine. The problem is that he’s pushing this lifestyle on his own workers and disparaging those who work the typical 40-hour week.

Glen Powell stays booked and busy, this time teaming up with Barry Jenkins

The reign of Glen Powell continues. This time, he’s going to be working with If Beale Street Could Talk director, Barry Jenkins!

The Natural Order is going to be based on the unpublished manuscript by Matt Aldrich, which will be released as his first novel. But the news comes with the information that this is something that Jenkins and Powell have been working on. It will also mark the first film under Powell’s new production label, Barnstorm.

“A lesson that may serve you again”: The ‘Freakier Friday’ trailer sends Lindsay Lohan and Jamie Lee Curtis on a Gen Z adventure

Blake Lively gets a massive win in her case against Justin Baldoni

The case between Blake Lively and Justin Baldoni continues with Lively getting something of a win against her It Ends With Us co-star and director.

Lively was arguing against the public inclusion in certain documents, including texts from other celebrities. The information that Lively’s attorneys argued for included trade secrets, upcoming projects, marketing strategies, and more that would be bad if revealed to the public too soon. The judge, Judge Lewis Liman, agreed with Lively’s attorneys and granted her request to limit the information to “attorneys eyes only.”