Contributor: Paul Asay

Paul Asay has been part of the Plugged In staff since 2007, watching and reviewing roughly 15 quintillion movies and television shows. He’s written for a number of other publications, too, including Time, The Washington Post and Christianity Today. The author of several books, Paul loves to find spirituality in unexpected places, including popular entertainment, and he loves all things superhero. His vices include James Bond films, Mountain Dew and terrible B-grade movies. He’s married, has two children and a neurotic dog, runs marathons on occasion and hopes to someday own his own tuxedo. Feel free to follow him on Twitter @AsayPaul.

A lost family in Endangered Species

Endangered Species

Endangered Species is about a family running from both the animals and the people who want to kill them.

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The Plugged In Show, Episode 79: Cruella & Disney’s Darker Turn

Our team tackles Cruella and then expands the discussion to Disney villains in general, truly exploring the good, the bad and the ugly.

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Marvel MODOK

Marvel’s M.O.D.O.K.

This comedy, like its star, isn’t normal at all. Nor is it nice, clean fun for the whole family.

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A woman in a white dress stands in front of a tree with many pictures wedged into it.

The Unholy

The Unholy, released on Good Friday of 2021, might be one of the year’s most spiritual movies.

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A concerned young man and woman walk through a forest.

Chaos Walking

This film feels more brutal, and sounds more profane, than you would expect for a movie intended, essentially, for kids.

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Piecing Together the Legacy of Friends

Countless Americans turned to the show to help them cope with difficult days, and many still do. But I think Friends deserves deeper, more cautionary consideration.

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Plugged In Picks, TV: ‘Star Wars: The Bad Batch’

TV has been called a “vast wasteland.” And in some ways the phrase fits: It can be tough to find good shows. But not this month.

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The Plugged In show, Episode 78: Instagram for Kids? Experts Say, ‘No Way!’

The Plugged In team took on this timely topic for this week’s podcast, discussing the influence social media has on especially its youngest users.

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Two soldiers in Counter Column

Counter Column

Counter Column shines as an illustration of God at work—healing the hurting, redeeming the rejects, making something beautiful.

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Cassie, Abigail and Joy in Good Witch

Good Witch

Hallmark’s gentle drama is, on its face, as sweet and innocent a show as you’ll find. But does it hide something sinister?

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3 Robots

Love, Death & Robots

The show is made for adults, with each episode featuring a grab bag of potential problems.

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Matthias Schweighöfer and Dave Bautista in Army of the Dead

Army of the Dead

Is this movie terrifying? Not really. Obscenely grotesque? Oh, yeah.

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Amy Adams as Anna in The Woman in the Window

The Woman in the Window

Even if a film is predominantly a psychological thriller, like this one, showing physical trauma is a requirement today, it seems.

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Conductors on The Underground Railroad

The Underground Railroad

Amazon Prime’s dramatization of a Pulitzer Prize book about slavery is powerful but difficult to watch.

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Caity Lotz as Sara Lance/White Canary in Legends of Tomorrow

Legends of Tomorrow

DC and CW attempt to mash the vibe of Guardians of the Galaxy, Doctor Who and a zany fever dream into one cheap, strange package.

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