Substacks recommended by Mikhail Skoptsov

Recommended by Mikhail Skoptsov

Jokien with Tolkien delivers free weekly laughs and lore from J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Lord of the Rings." Upgrade to a paid subscription to join the Extended Edition, a community of Tolkien lovers going even deeper into the wonders of Middle-earth together!

Possibly the best (certainly the funniest) Tolkien newsletter out there.

- Mikhail Skoptsov

Extended Cut

By Eric

An irreverent collision of pop culture and life. True stories and things I wish were true.

Additional thoughts and insights from the editor of the best pop culture publication on Medium.

- Mikhail Skoptsov

The Long Take

By Jen Sopchockchai Bankard

Film and television reviews of Star Wars, Marvel, other pop franchises, and Oscar contenders.

Agent of Weird: Exploring the Write Fantastic

By Alec Worley

The craft of writing horror, sci-fi, fantasy – and all the weird that’s in-between! For readers, writers, role-players, connoisseurs and creators, from the writer of Judge Dredd, Warhammer, Star Wars, TMNT and more.

Alec Worley, who wrote the only comprehensive study of the fantasy genre in film, continues to publish well thought-out yet very accessible articles on the fantastic in literature, film, and other media.

- Mikhail Skoptsov

Wolf

By radicaledward's wolf

Reviewing old things.

Animation Obsessive

Exploring the best in animation from all around the world — part investigation, part treasure hunt.

Great writing about Animation, beautiful illustrations in articles.

- Mikhail Skoptsov

That Thing They Did

By Will Harris

Everybody's got a past. The people who can look back on it with an eye toward the experiences they've accrued and the lessons they've learned... Theirs are the stories that I want to hear.

LOTS of film/TV interviews you can't get anywhere else.

- Mikhail Skoptsov

Dust On The VCR

By Jeremy Burgess

Conversations on 20th Century Cinema and (Slightly) Beyond

The Reveal

By Scott Tobias

Deeper into movies (and a little TV). Essays, reviews, conversation. Past and present. From the editors of The Dissolve.

Excellent and regular film articles from two former AVClub film critics.

- Mikhail Skoptsov

Nostalgia Detective

By louis rabinowitz

Dedicated to covering the cultural histories, weird backstories and messy industry gossip behind cinema's biggest franchises!

Some amazing, no-holds-barred critiques of movies, including a whole series on 'Fast and Furious'!

- Mikhail Skoptsov

Jagger’s Substack

By Jagger Waters

Ideas, thoughts & meditations on AI, Hollywood and other topics.

The Screen

By Akos Peterbencze

Highlighting the low-key, forgotten, and overlooked pieces of television and cinema — and sometimes the popular, too.

TV's Moral Philosophy

By Andrew Heard

Exploring the moral and ethical concepts involved in bringing TV and other mediums to life.

Approaches TV shows from a unique and interesting perspective that you probably wouldn't consider.

- Mikhail Skoptsov

Posting Nexus

By Julia Alexander

A semi-regular series dedicated to the nexus of incentive structures that unite the pillars of our online ecosystems: attention, identity, and platforms.

Reviewing television one episode at a time like it's not going out of style.

AVClub-esque TV Recaps are back!

- Mikhail Skoptsov

Do You Know What I Love The Most?

By Spencer Irwin

One Man's Relationship with Media (From Quarantine and Beyond)

Really interesting articles on comic books and related media.

- Mikhail Skoptsov

Inneresting

By John August

A Quote-Unquote Newsletter about Writing

John August provides some really good advice on screenwriting.

- Mikhail Skoptsov

Formerly Dangerous

By Drew McWeeny

What does a movie site look like when you don't want anything from the studios but the movies?

Drew McWeeny, formerly of AICN and Hitfix, continues to provide his personal brand of film criticism.

- Mikhail Skoptsov

Serially Engaged: A Blog About Television

By John Aspler

John Aspler is an academic with a focus on media representation, stigma, and disability studies - and an occasional TV Critic! This Substack aims to have broad conversations on TV as a medium, reviewing specific shows as examples. Antifascist. He/him.

Salty Popcorn

By Thomas Johnson

Sending film reviews, trailers and trivia to your inbox every Thursday - just in time for movie night! 🍿

Textual Variations

Recommended by Mikhail Skoptsov