Nina Metz
@ninametz.bsky.social
TV and film critic for the Chicago Tribune
https://www.chicagotribune.com/author/nina-metz/
Newsletter: Nina Watches Everything
https://buttondown.com/NinaWatchesEverything
https://www.chicagotribune.com/author/nina-metz/
Newsletter: Nina Watches Everything
https://buttondown.com/NinaWatchesEverything
Pinned
Nina Metz
@ninametz.bsky.social
· Oct 10
Why is the reboot of “Law & Order” so bad?
It’s as if everyone forgot how to make the show.
buttondown.com
Why is the reboot of “Law & Order” so bad?
I get into it in this week’s newsletter
Read! Subscribe! It’s free!
I get into it in this week’s newsletter
Read! Subscribe! It’s free!
“the moment requires more than just presenting questions and what-ifs. It needs a stance, a commitment to an ethos and to the story it's ostensibly trying to tell, and an honesty about consequences”
Yes!
Good piece looking back at the year in movies from @aishaharris.bsky.social
Yes!
Good piece looking back at the year in movies from @aishaharris.bsky.social
December 29, 2025 at 12:00 PM
“the moment requires more than just presenting questions and what-ifs. It needs a stance, a commitment to an ethos and to the story it's ostensibly trying to tell, and an honesty about consequences”
Yes!
Good piece looking back at the year in movies from @aishaharris.bsky.social
Yes!
Good piece looking back at the year in movies from @aishaharris.bsky.social
Reposted by Nina Metz
This is great, "Why one small American town won’t stop stoning its residents to death," a story where Isaac Chotiner interviews the guy who administers the lottery from "The Lottery"
archiveofourown.org/works/733964...
archiveofourown.org/works/733964...
Why one small American town won’t stop stoning its residents to death - Anonymous - The Lottery - Shirley Jackson [Archive of Our Own]
An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
archiveofourown.org
December 28, 2025 at 7:16 PM
This is great, "Why one small American town won’t stop stoning its residents to death," a story where Isaac Chotiner interviews the guy who administers the lottery from "The Lottery"
archiveofourown.org/works/733964...
archiveofourown.org/works/733964...
“the fact that almost a century since Olivier’s film, we are still calling it a love story — a great one! The greatest! It’s being released the day before Valentine’s Day! — when what actually happens is that Cathy rejects Heathcliff because she’s a snob, and he turns into a psychopath”
‘It’s no romcom’: why the real Wuthering Heights is too extreme for the screen
The new film adaptation by Saltburn director Emerald Fennell looks set to be provocative – but nowhere near as shocking as Emily Brontë’s original
www.theguardian.com
December 28, 2025 at 6:09 PM
“the fact that almost a century since Olivier’s film, we are still calling it a love story — a great one! The greatest! It’s being released the day before Valentine’s Day! — when what actually happens is that Cathy rejects Heathcliff because she’s a snob, and he turns into a psychopath”
Reposted by Nina Metz
Listen to @rubinallergy.bsky.social and get masked! youtube.com/shorts/03_0d...
Why wearing a mask is still important while traveling. #doctor #mask #travel
YouTube video by Dr. Zachary Rubin
youtube.com
December 27, 2025 at 9:26 PM
Listen to @rubinallergy.bsky.social and get masked! youtube.com/shorts/03_0d...
Reposted by Nina Metz
To stay or not to stay for a movie's end credits
Much to my surprise, some audiences ascribe a moral component to watching the closing credits
This week's newsletter. Subscribe! Share! It's free!
Much to my surprise, some audiences ascribe a moral component to watching the closing credits
This week's newsletter. Subscribe! Share! It's free!
To stay or not to stay for a movie's end credits
To my surprise, some audiences ascribe a moral component to watching the closing credits
buttondown.com
December 26, 2025 at 4:07 PM
To stay or not to stay for a movie's end credits
Much to my surprise, some audiences ascribe a moral component to watching the closing credits
This week's newsletter. Subscribe! Share! It's free!
Much to my surprise, some audiences ascribe a moral component to watching the closing credits
This week's newsletter. Subscribe! Share! It's free!
Reposted by Nina Metz
normalize drinking eggnog year-round
December 26, 2025 at 11:53 PM
normalize drinking eggnog year-round
(whispers)
It’s because none of these platforms care about cultivating a brand! It’s a travesty!
It’s because none of these platforms care about cultivating a brand! It’s a travesty!
i wish we could just go back to regular fucking tv. i’m trying to remember which streaming platform a show i’ve been watching is on - sure i could fucking google it but god damnit why did i search 4 platforms before finding it. i’m over it
December 26, 2025 at 5:08 PM
(whispers)
It’s because none of these platforms care about cultivating a brand! It’s a travesty!
It’s because none of these platforms care about cultivating a brand! It’s a travesty!
Reposted by Nina Metz
"Let people enjoy things" isn't the populist cri de coeur some people seem to think it is. It's giving everyone who gets rich making entertainment products for mass consumption cover to cater to the lowest common denominator. At least make them put some effort into taking your hard-earned money!
December 26, 2025 at 4:50 PM
"Let people enjoy things" isn't the populist cri de coeur some people seem to think it is. It's giving everyone who gets rich making entertainment products for mass consumption cover to cater to the lowest common denominator. At least make them put some effort into taking your hard-earned money!
Reposted by Nina Metz
I’m just going to be plain. A handful of universities consistently win in football. That can’t be the cover for broader dysfunction for really any university.
December 26, 2025 at 4:09 PM
I’m just going to be plain. A handful of universities consistently win in football. That can’t be the cover for broader dysfunction for really any university.
To stay or not to stay for a movie's end credits
Much to my surprise, some audiences ascribe a moral component to watching the closing credits
This week's newsletter. Subscribe! Share! It's free!
Much to my surprise, some audiences ascribe a moral component to watching the closing credits
This week's newsletter. Subscribe! Share! It's free!
To stay or not to stay for a movie's end credits
To my surprise, some audiences ascribe a moral component to watching the closing credits
buttondown.com
December 26, 2025 at 4:07 PM
To stay or not to stay for a movie's end credits
Much to my surprise, some audiences ascribe a moral component to watching the closing credits
This week's newsletter. Subscribe! Share! It's free!
Much to my surprise, some audiences ascribe a moral component to watching the closing credits
This week's newsletter. Subscribe! Share! It's free!
Reposted by Nina Metz
I see there’s a post about microplastics going around with a photo of drinking straws, so here is my semi-regular reminder that the 3 biggest sources of microplastics are tires (45%), synthetic clothing particles (35%) and paint (~10%).
Lay article attached:
Lay article attached:
One of the biggest microplastic pollution sources isn’t straws or grocery bags – it’s your tires
Every few years, the tires on your car wear thin and need to be replaced. But where does that lost tire material go? The answer, unfortunately, is often waterways, where the tiny microplastic particle...
www.pbs.org
December 24, 2025 at 4:49 AM
I see there’s a post about microplastics going around with a photo of drinking straws, so here is my semi-regular reminder that the 3 biggest sources of microplastics are tires (45%), synthetic clothing particles (35%) and paint (~10%).
Lay article attached:
Lay article attached:
Reposted by Nina Metz
I didn't find the season finale of Pluribus satisfying, but it isn't surprising. Like most modern TV storytelling, it lacks closure by design.
It's anti-weaning: milk from a teat that is only designed to keep you coming back. If it was nourishing milk, over time you'd grow enough to be weaned.
It's anti-weaning: milk from a teat that is only designed to keep you coming back. If it was nourishing milk, over time you'd grow enough to be weaned.
December 24, 2025 at 10:32 PM
I didn't find the season finale of Pluribus satisfying, but it isn't surprising. Like most modern TV storytelling, it lacks closure by design.
It's anti-weaning: milk from a teat that is only designed to keep you coming back. If it was nourishing milk, over time you'd grow enough to be weaned.
It's anti-weaning: milk from a teat that is only designed to keep you coming back. If it was nourishing milk, over time you'd grow enough to be weaned.
Reposted by Nina Metz
Again, getting an editor's notes on my writing makes me feel like a good editor is worth their weight in gold. Even if I ultimately push to keep something, it makes me sharpen my understanding of why that one line is vital.
December 24, 2025 at 7:07 PM
Again, getting an editor's notes on my writing makes me feel like a good editor is worth their weight in gold. Even if I ultimately push to keep something, it makes me sharpen my understanding of why that one line is vital.
Reposted by Nina Metz
Real-life fanfic is noxious, the NHL has a rampant history of homophobia that deserves ink
December 24, 2025 at 8:18 PM
Real-life fanfic is noxious, the NHL has a rampant history of homophobia that deserves ink
I don’t get it, is this supposed to fracture?
December 24, 2025 at 1:49 PM
I don’t get it, is this supposed to fracture?
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer was created in Chicago by Montgomery Ward copywriter Robert L. May to sell toys in 1939
@chicagorumormill.bsky.social looks back at Rudy’s origins
Gift 🔗
@chicagorumormill.bsky.social looks back at Rudy’s origins
Gift 🔗
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer was created in Chicago by Montgomery Ward copywriter Robert L. May to sell toys in 1939. Here’s how the popular Christmas character — and its author — went down in histo...
Here’s how the popular Christmas character — and its author — went down in history.
www.chicagotribune.com
December 24, 2025 at 11:24 AM
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer was created in Chicago by Montgomery Ward copywriter Robert L. May to sell toys in 1939
@chicagorumormill.bsky.social looks back at Rudy’s origins
Gift 🔗
@chicagorumormill.bsky.social looks back at Rudy’s origins
Gift 🔗
Reposted by Nina Metz
This piece was in our main library in 2015 for a couple of months & a woman told me she would stop by on her lunch break & just sit & look at it almost daily because it gave her some peace. Few better compliments.
Shore
55×40 140×101cm
Oil on Canvas
2015
#ArtAdventCalendar
Shore
55×40 140×101cm
Oil on Canvas
2015
#ArtAdventCalendar
December 24, 2025 at 4:27 AM
This piece was in our main library in 2015 for a couple of months & a woman told me she would stop by on her lunch break & just sit & look at it almost daily because it gave her some peace. Few better compliments.
Shore
55×40 140×101cm
Oil on Canvas
2015
#ArtAdventCalendar
Shore
55×40 140×101cm
Oil on Canvas
2015
#ArtAdventCalendar
Reposted by Nina Metz
I didn't write nearly as much as I wanted to this year — and I had tons of ideas for reported pieces, critical analyses, and other articles that never saw the light of day. But here's a thread of some of the stories I worked on that I am most proud of: bsky.app/profile/cand...
I interviewed historians about the White House's request to review the Smithsonian. While they are frustrated, none are surprised. They say we're in an uncritical era fueled by misinformation and a lack of nuance that the president is merely exploiting.
www.contrabandcamp.com/p/are-we-cre...
www.contrabandcamp.com/p/are-we-cre...
'Are We Creating Critical Thinkers?' Historians Say Smithsonian Review Reflects Today's Anti-Intellectualism
“We're in a very dangerous moment when everybody's considered an expert, where your training doesn't matter."
www.contrabandcamp.com
December 23, 2025 at 6:30 PM
I didn't write nearly as much as I wanted to this year — and I had tons of ideas for reported pieces, critical analyses, and other articles that never saw the light of day. But here's a thread of some of the stories I worked on that I am most proud of: bsky.app/profile/cand...
A reminder that the great Tracy Letts is in the Festivus episode!
December 23, 2025 at 8:03 PM
A reminder that the great Tracy Letts is in the Festivus episode!
Each year the Tribune’s culture writers look back on who and what we lost in the preceding 12 months
Here are my contributions
Gift 🔗
www.chicagotribune.com/2025/12/23/w...
Here are my contributions
Gift 🔗
www.chicagotribune.com/2025/12/23/w...
December 23, 2025 at 1:58 PM
Each year the Tribune’s culture writers look back on who and what we lost in the preceding 12 months
Here are my contributions
Gift 🔗
www.chicagotribune.com/2025/12/23/w...
Here are my contributions
Gift 🔗
www.chicagotribune.com/2025/12/23/w...
Reposted by Nina Metz
One of the things that needs to become clear in 2026 is that big changes are possible if you pitch them. Talk positively. Explain the pros and cons like an adult. Be enthusiastic. Repeat the idea. Answer questions about it. Sell the notion that we can make things better. People want to buy in.
December 23, 2025 at 5:37 AM
One of the things that needs to become clear in 2026 is that big changes are possible if you pitch them. Talk positively. Explain the pros and cons like an adult. Be enthusiastic. Repeat the idea. Answer questions about it. Sell the notion that we can make things better. People want to buy in.
Reposted by Nina Metz
Here's my first take on Chappelle's surprise drop on Netflix, fashioning himself as his town's Potter living his wonderful life is quite a choice this Christmas! decider.com/2025/12/22/d...
December 22, 2025 at 9:33 PM
Here's my first take on Chappelle's surprise drop on Netflix, fashioning himself as his town's Potter living his wonderful life is quite a choice this Christmas! decider.com/2025/12/22/d...
Reposted by Nina Metz
one of the things weiss suggested cutting was the section with the stanford students, where they show how a lot of this stuff is double checked
December 22, 2025 at 11:24 PM
one of the things weiss suggested cutting was the section with the stanford students, where they show how a lot of this stuff is double checked
Reposted by Nina Metz
I just uploaded @jasonparis.bsky.social 's recording of the segment CBS News pulled from "60 Minutes" to YouTube:
WATCH: Segment CBS News Pulled From "60 Minutes"
YouTube video by Phil Lewis
www.youtube.com
December 22, 2025 at 10:45 PM
I just uploaded @jasonparis.bsky.social 's recording of the segment CBS News pulled from "60 Minutes" to YouTube: