We’re back with our yearly overview of some of our favorite essays from the past twelve months! In case you missed it, there’s a separate list for articles about fiction, writing, reading, and all things book-related; the list below focuses on discussions about other aspects of media and pop culture, and particularly film and television.
As always, we’ve focused on standalone essays and articles, here, but we’re also quite proud of the many reviews and all the film and television coverage we’ve published all year long, as well as our regular columns and rewatches, including our newest series, such as Tyler Dean’s ongoing ’80s Fantasy Film Club, which has covered everything from Willow and Return to Oz to Fire and Ice and The Beastmaster so far, with much more to come! Also new to the site this year are Petrana Radulovic’s excellent Watchlist articles, rounding up all the genre-related TV and movies premiering each month. In July, we also welcomed News Editor Matthew Byrd, who has been overseeing all of our news coverage and implementing new feature, including our regular “What to Watch and Read” recommendations.
We hope that you enjoy the selections below, and hope that you’ll take a moment to tell us about the articles and columns (and movies and shows) that struck a chord with you over the last year…
The Highs and Lows of Superheroes
Thunderbolts* Delivers the Best Marvel Villain in Years
by Leah Schnelbach
May 13, 2025
The villain of this superhero movie is depression. (And shame, guilt, trauma, PTSD, the whole merry gang — but mostly depression.)
A Realistic Take on a Fantastic Family: Revisiting James Sturm & Guy Davis’ Unstable Molecules
by Paul Morton
July 22, 2025
Looking back at a darker version of the Fantastic Four — a work of metafiction, which tells the “true story” of the superhero team and their “actual” origins in the late 1950s.
We Don’t Love Superman Because He’ll Save Us
by Emmet Asher-Perrin
July 24, 2025
Superman gives audiences hope — but not as a straightforward savior narrative.
Are the Fantastic Four Leading a Planet-Wide Cult?
by Emmet Asher-Perrin
July 29, 2025
“Are the Fantastic Four a cult? Perhaps their entire planet has been drugged? Or their history lends itself to easy global indoctrination? There’s just sooo much lead in everything on Earth-828, and no one has noticed? Please, I’m just trying to understand…”
Superman Fights for a Better Tomorrow — Even for His Enemies
by Rachel Kessler
August 5, 2025
“Is Superman a perfect movie? Probably not! At the same time, the film’s core message about radical kindness and hope speaks to something deep in my soul. We live in a moment when we frankly need a celebration of radical decency.”
The Lois Lane Test
by J.L. Akagi
August 25, 2025
“When it comes to a Superman movie, there is one thing that makes or breaks an adaptation: Lois Lane. […] How she’s portrayed offers a telling test of each film’s emotional stakes and overall vision of heroism.”
What Can Superheroes Do in the Face of Entropy?
by Leah Schnelbach
October 21, 2025
Three recent superhero movies respond to disorder, uncertainty, and other existential threats…
All Things Star Trek
We Need Corny Star Trek Now More Than Ever
by Joe George
February 3, 2025
Idealism, not cynicism, is how we persist in building a better future.
Some Thoughts About Spock’s Chest Hair
by Emmet Asher-Perrin
July 17, 2025
“When Spock appeared shirtless in Strange New World’s third-season I sat up and took notice. Not for the reason you’d think, though.”
In Star Trek: Strange New Worlds, Is Biology Destiny?
by Lily Osler
September 9, 2025
Vulcans are logic machines, Gorn are monsters… or so Strange New Worlds might have us believe.
Master and Commander Is a Great Star Trek Movie in Disguise
by Don Kaye
September 10, 2025
Guided by naval structure and a captain who adores his best friend (the ship’s doctor), the two series have more than a few items in common.
Star Trek: TNG’s Borg Collective Is the Perfect Monster for Our Time
by Surekha Davies
September 24, 2025
35 years on, what can we learn from the Borg and “The Best of Both Worlds”?
Star Trek Needs New (and Better) Villains
by Jaime Babb
October 14, 2025
The “villains” of Trek are meant to be foils to the Federation’s worldview, not blindly evil antagonists.
Exploring the Personal and the Political in SFF
I Finally Figured Out the Problem: Angel Hates Sex
by Jenny Hamilton
January 27, 2025
“In the landscape of this show, sex is disappointing at best, predatory almost always, and at worst it’s going to kill someone or kickstart the apocalypse.”
Severance Is the Future Tech Bros Want
by Tenacity Plys
February 26, 2025
The characters in Severance haven’t just divided their work and private selves, they’ve been severed from the life of the mind as well.
The Worldbuilding of Andor’s Ghorman Speaks Volumes
by Gavia Baker-Whitelaw
May 6, 2025
The site of an Imperial misinformation campaign, Ghorman has been carefully constructed to remind us of another revolution in particular…
Andor’s Participation in One Tired Trope Is Uniquely Infuriating
by Emmet Asher-Perrin
May 22, 2025
Those final shots really pull the rug out from under the whole thing…
Enemy Mine Is the Queer, Anti-War Sci-Fi You’ve Been Missing
by Meg Elison
May 27, 2025
’90s Star Trek may have tackled issues of gender, race, and interstellar war — but Enemy Mine got there first.
Creativity vs. Control: Bridge to Terabithia, The Boy and the Heron, and A.I. “Art”
by Wendy Xu
August 19, 2025
What happens when fictional main characters are forced to confront the fundamental unfairness of life, which cannot be escaped even through fantasy?
Serenity and the Myth of “Getting Out the Signal”
by Rachel Kessler
October 1, 2025
We want to believe that knowledge will change the world for the better, but it’s not always that simple.
Rebellion, Activism, Imagination: Why We Need Witches More Than Ever
by Asa West
October 7, 2025
Witches teach us how to push back — and raise hell — in the face of authoritarianism.
Pluribus Reimagines 1978’s Invasion of the Body Snatchers for a Generation With Nothing Left to Sell Out
by Matthew Byrd
November 25, 2025
Philip Kaufman’s Body Snatchers asked what happens when you trade your identity away. Pluribus lives in the world that bargain resulted in.
Thoughts on Grief and the Insidious Horrors of Nostalgia
The Grammar of Memory: On Mike Flanagan’s Oculus
by Julia Armfield
January 23, 2025
“Mike Flanagan is a filmmaker whose preoccupations tend towards the half-remembered. This is certainly true of his 2013 movie Oculus—a film I have found myself recommending over and over again at book events and online, always with the caveat that yes it is a movie about a magic mirror…”
Digital Doubles Halve the Grief: Black Mirror and Severance Are Kindred Spirits
by Natalie Zutter
April 17, 2025
The sci-fi anthology series’ digital “cookies” walked so Lumon’s innies could run.
Folk Horror Is Having a Moment — And That Makes Perfect Sense
by Ellery Weil
June 24, 2025
Horror always reflects that current moment — so why is folk horror resurging?
The Potent Magic of Music
Let’s Talk About the Irish Music in Sinners
by Leah Schnelbach
April 29, 2025
How director Ryan Coogler uses the Irish vampire Remmick and his three songs — two of which are Irish standards, and one of which very much is not — to shape the film’s plot.
KPop Demon Hunters Understands the Joyous Power of Music
by Kali Wallace
July 2, 2025
“I was a bit skeptical when I first heard about KPop Demon Hunters. Not because I wasn’t interested, but because I was, and I didn’t know if I needed to temper my expectations. You see, I am a K-pop fan. A pretty serious one…”
Memorable Characters and Unlikely Heroes
David Lynch and the Art Life
by Leah Schnelbach
January 22, 2025
Two documentaries that celebrate Lynch’s unique art, and his devotion to his work.
How I Found an Unlikely Millennial Icon in The Last Unicorn
by Asa West
February 11, 2025
“Molly is middle-aged and sour-tempered. Her hair is uncombed and her soup is watery. While the unicorn has never felt regret, Molly is steeped in it, spending her days taking care of a gaggle of men who take her for granted.”
Animated Animals and the Post-Human World
by Paul Morton
February 18, 2025
Examining three films that break with animated traditions of anthropomorphic animals, and explore a world beyond ourselves.
Farscape and the Princess Fallacy
by Constance Fay
March 11, 2025
Farscape’s princesses were never what — or who — they seemed.
I Didn’t Expect Gurathin to Be My Favorite Part of Murderbot
by Leah Schnelbach
July 22, 2025
I’d offer Dr. Gurathin a hug, but he’d HATE that.
Hope and the Loser Heroes of Bong Joon Ho
by Elaine U. Cho
October 22, 2025
Director Bong Joon Ho’s sci-fi films — such as The Host, Snowpiercer, and Okja — feature flawed heroes, but he never loses a sense of hopefulness.
As always, there’s much more to talk about, so let us know what you think about all of the above, and please recommend any favorite shows, movies, or articles that haven’t been mentioned yet! And of course, if you’re feeling nostalgic or just looking for more deep dives into pop culture, you can always check out our “Some of the Best…” article round-ups from previous years. Thanks for reading!
