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.

Castlevania

Netflix’s subscribers presumably demand a bit more from this graphic nod to an ancient video game with bad graphics.

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The Banker

The Banker offers respect for capitalism, a social conscience and a sense of fun—not a combination you find often.

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Burden

This movie delves deeply into the true wages of sin—what it costs the sinner, and what it costs those impacted by his sin.

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Star Wars: The Clone Wars

UPDATED REVIEW: A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away (1977, to be precise), George Lucas introduced us to the universe of Star Wars. Decades later, the animated Clone Wars series is still unraveling its mysteries.

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Knives Out

Knives Out layers on a bit more content than your typical Agatha Christie story.

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Frozen II

Frozen II is not a slam-dunk, take-the-whole-fam movie for everyone.

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MacGyver

CBS rescued an old show from a trash bin, gave it a younger protagonist, infused it with content issues and wrapped the whole works in duct tape.

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Jojo Rabbit

There’s a beauty that shines through this dramedy’s inherent darkness and dysfunction.

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A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood

Many a movie will make you laugh or cry or think. But very few make you want to be a better person.

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Katy Keene

Another Riverdale spinoff. Another teen-centric CW show. Another disaster.

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The Sinner

USA’s provocative mystery drama is drawing many viewers, but it’s also an extraordinarily problematic show.

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Doctor Sleep

Doctor Sleep doesn’t just want to scare you: It wants to shock and even sicken you.

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Messiah

The titular character in this Netflix show claims to be the second coming. But the show itself is both provocative and problematic.

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Under the Dome

Stephen King isn’t known for restraint in his novels. So we shouldn’t be surprised that a TV show based on one has its fair share of sex and severed limbs.

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The Good Place

Discerning families may wish The Good Place was a lot better than it actually is.

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