The TV Doctor

Send us some fan mail! In this episode, Ashley is not enjoying the Klingons. (Could it be because she hasn’t met WORF ?) Also, does not enjoying the Klingons mean you aren’t enjoying Star Trek? M. Foss continues her Saru Apology Tour, and wonders when—or if—Ashley will come to appreciate him. He might win her over if he promises to never run on camera again. Here's the SNL sketch about the Pa...

Send us some fan mail! In this episode, M. Foss and Ashley ponder the classic time loop episode and how a time loop works as a metaphor across a myriad of situations. Is it a metaphor for fandom and how we trust our beloved properties to get back on the horse if they tried a little something and it didn’t work? Yes. Is it a metaphor for this crazy ride we call life? Sure. Is it a metaphor for how...

Send us some fan mail! M. Foss accidentally uses an inappropriate (or is it?) slur to refer to Captain Gabriel Lorca (here's a hint: it sounds an awful lot like the word "horror") and Ashley absolutely knocks it out of the solar system with her take on Sarek's journey with guilt. Content Warning: The "Urgent Care/Prescription" portion of the episode contains a discuss...

Send us some fan mail! Good news for Tilly apologists (like M. Foss): Ashley is warming up to everyone’s favorite cadet. Bad news for fans of Saru (like M. Foss): we can’t say the same about everyone’s favorite Kelpian. Ashley still hates him. Also bad news for anyone who has ever seen The Original Series (like M. Foss): Ashley is all in on her choice of Harcourt Fenton Mudd as her favorite Star T...

Send us some fan mail! In this episode, M. Foss creates a rather robust list of things that “are Star Trek” or “are NOT Star Trek”…follow along to see if you agree or disagree! Also, a question for the room: can we truly invest in a character without the threat of the character’s demise on the table? Are life-or-death stakes the only ones powerful enough to break through our generational apathy an...

Send us some fan mail! If universal law is for lackeys, and context is for kings, then Star Trek is for lovers and we're fully shipping Lorca and Stamets over here. In this episode, Michael Burnham provides us with valuable lessons about leadership. Also, M. Foss is on the edge of breaking down and sliding Ashley a few Trek Trivia answers under the console.

Send us some fan mail! M. Foss and Ashley are back on the bridge with a fun but frank take on the hegemonic stifling of main character energy when said main character is Michael Burnham. We also tackle the topic of whether Klingons can be racist amongst each other (spoiler alert: they can). Finally, if you enjoy a classic "who's on first?" style exchange, then you won't want to...

Send us some fan mail! Welcome to the premiere of The TV Doctor, Season 5! This time around, we're doing things a little differently. Think of Season 5 as a clinical trial. M. Foss has returned, but she's not alone. For Season 5, the TV Doctor will be joined by a very special "intern" for a very special mission: to boldly go where few have gone before and some have had little-t...

Send us some fan mail! Nothing says "summer" like a heaping helping of Food TV! Welcome to the cookout. Come get you a plate. Your auntie made the Over-the-Counter potato salad, so you KNOW it's fire. Oh, and your uncle is over there grilling up a BOMB Second Opinion. The cousins said they're gonna make a run later for some Urgent Care. Go tell them to grab a bag of ice while t...

Send us some fan mail! Who doesn't want to wager one dollar or spin the wheel or get a Daily Double or offer their final answer or conquer Mt. Midoriyama? Everyone loves game shows, especially The TV Doctor. Join M. Foss for a countdown of the best traditional game shows of all time (and stay tuned for a future episode on the best reality-based competition shows). Links to a few favorite game...

Send us some fan mail! Have you ever felt like you were the only person in the world who watched (and loved) a show? Do you believe you are the sole member of the Official (insert disappeared show name here) Fan Club? Do you have a miles-long roster of shows that, in your opinion, were gone too soon? Well, The TV Doctor is here to let you know you are, in fact, NOT alone in your discontent. I too...

Send us some fan mail! Existing somewhere in the space between Empire and Annie Live! , the television musical is a  powerful elixir, capable of twisting up your entire emotional constitution with less than a minute of the ol' song-and-dance. You might think musicals are corny, but also...I don't know anyone who doesn't enjoy corn. It's corn!  Spoiler season begins around the 3...

Send us some fan mail! Perhaps an episode all about series finales would make a proper show for the end of this current season. But you know what? The TV Doctor is a little superstitious. I'm not trying to end up like those shows that create a season finale only to discover they've been canceled and the season finale turns into the SERIES finale. I'm nowhere near finished! I have MU...

Send us some fan mail! You know how they say you only hate something in others you also hate about yourself? Well, The TV Doctor is back with another "Physician, Heal Thyself" episode to try to prove that old saying wrong. We only hate when we're hate-watching, and it's all love, baby! Tune in if you want to know what show M. Foss loves to hate and hates to love more than all t...

Send us some fan mail! Join the TV Doctor on a journey into light, time, space, and place. Amongst the stars we go, with a raised fist! It's time to talk Afrofuturism, y'all! NOTE: You'll notice a little voice in the background during my chat with my Second Opinion. That's her daughter, who was present during recording. If you find yourself distracted by it, find comfort in the...

Send us some fan mail! The TV Doctor's back again with another entry in the "Physician, Heal Thyself" series. This time, the TV Doc answers the question, "In which television show would you like to live?" (Hint: the answer is NOT Star Trek ; pop in around the 05:05 mark if you want to know why not!) The real answer may surprise you, but only if you have never heard of Doug...

Send us some fan mail! The TV Doctor returns for a fourth season with a new series: Physician, Heal Thyself. On this episode, the TV Doc answers the question, "What was your favorite show when you were a kid?" (the answer: The Cosby Show ).  It's a complicated and controversial answer; luckily, the W. Kamau Bell docuseries We Need to Talk About Cosby is there to help those of us who...

Send us some fan mail! Homesickness is a funny thing, ain't it? Some of us feel it when we leave home for college. Some of us feel it when we leave college for the next thing. This episode is dedicated to those of us in that second camp: the ones for whom college is HOME, especially those of us who found home at an HBCU (Historically Black College/University). HBCUs are somewhat rare in the t...

Send us some fan mail! You know what every good television universe needs? A proper crossover episode, of course! Well, never let it be said that the TV Doctor doesn't give you what you need. In this episode, M. Foss welcomes legendary comic experts The Capeless Crusaders for a spicy conversation about WandaVision and Falcon and the Winter Soldier , in which we ponder both the inequalities in...

Send us some fan mail! In the [televised] criminal justice system, the majority of programs are considered especially heinous. In the world of podcasting, the dedicated host who investigates these vicious time-sucks is a member of an elite squad known as The TV Doctor. This is her episode about Law & Order. *doink doink* --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/tv-doctor/message

Send us some fan mail! Sometimes our favorite shows will try to convince us that we can't see what we KNOW we can see, or that we ARE seeing something that's not really there, like a phantom limb. Join the TV Doctor for a discussion of three shows that try to get away with this kind of okie doke: Married at First Sight , Basketball Wives , and 90 Day Fiancé . P.S. I mentioned an article...

Send us some fan mail! Join the TV Doctor as we graciously invite the poltergeist that was 2020 to stop haunting us. Our last episode of the year asks us to consider past, present, and yet to come, just like ya boy Scrooge (Dickens or Duck, take your pick). You'll be visited by three shows that speak to apparitions of atonement: The Umbrella Academy , Angel , and The Crown . Here's to a...

Send us some fan mail! It's not that you've got something in your eye; it's that you just worked your way through The TV Doctor's list of recommended tearjerkers. It's okay to cry. Let it all out. There, that's better. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/tv-doctor/message

Send us some fan mail! The TV Doctor is back after some time (a little bit of time? a long time? who's to say?) with some timeless questions: Why is it so difficult to wrap our heads around the concept of time? What can television do to center us in the here and now? And, most importantly, what day is it? --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/tv-doctor/message

Send us some fan mail! In this conclusion to my two-part conversation about the revelation that is I May Destroy You , my Second Opinion guest (the esteemed Elaine Welteroth) and I are joined by Elaine's husband, Jonathan Singletary, who provides an interesting Third Opinion from a man's perspective. We were all destroyed, yes, but you have to tune in to learn why destruction can be a go...