Sam Brooks 
The Movies, a documentary series that celebrates movies and their impact on culture, is available on TVNZ OnDemand today. Sam Brooks pulls some of the best quotes from its galaxy of stars. Ever wanted to get a snapshot of cinematic history without leaving the comfort of your couch, or even your bed if you want … Read more
Last night, the two titans of the cannabis referendum came together for their first televised debate on the issue – Paula Bennett and Chlöe Swarbrick. This was a matchup a long time coming. Paula Bennett and Chlöe Swarbrick have skirmished on the cannabis referendum for months, with heated exchanges on social media about the issue, … Read more
Sam Brooks recaps the third episode of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK, and wonders why some of these queens don’t know how to sew. This episode asks, and sort of answers the main question that millions of people across the world: why would you come on Drag Race and not know how to sew?! There is always a … Read more
Sam Brooks reviews Amazon Prime’s Modern Love, an anthology series based on the New York Times column dedicated to ‘love in all its forms’. A first date that ends up in the emergency room. A flagging marriage that finds new energy through tennis. The founder of a dating app who doesn’t believe in love, supposedly. … Read more
Jennifer Lopez gives the performance of her career in Hustlers, and mark Sam Brooks’ words, she’s going to get an Oscar for it. And it’s long overdue, he writes. My worst trait, at least according to me, is my tendency to side-eye people who are lumbering on up to bandwagons that I’ve been on for years. … Read more
Another acting challenge bites the drag dust with this take on Downton Abbey. Sam Brooks recaps the second episode of Drag Race. There is one truth abut Drag Race that we’ve all decided to accept without question: There will be acting challenges on this show and they will be terrible. These will happen every season, and the quality will … Read more
Sam Brooks reports on his time at the first weekend of the inaugural Te Tairāwhiti Arts Festival, which coincided with the launch of Tuia 250. Friday – The Festival Opening There are three things you expect at an arts festival opening. You expect free wine, you expect speeches, and you expect some kind of performance. … Read more
Start your Chitty-Chitty Bang Bangs and may the best lady win! Sam Brooks recaps the first episode of RuPaul’s Drag Race UK. I still can’t believe this spin-off actually happened. What a world we live in. My first observation: RuPaul absolutely loves England and finds everything about it hilarious. This show is stuffed with more puns than … Read more
Every single Lip Sync For Your Life/Legacy, ranked. “Two queens stand before me. Ladies this is your last chance to impress me and save yourself from elimination. The time has come for you to Lip Sync For Your Life. Good luck and don’t fuck it up!” No, it’s not Game of Thrones. Eleven regular seasons, … Read more
Ryan Murphy’s new show for Netflix indulges without excesses and fires off shots without finding a target, Sam Brooks writes. Ryan Murphy is a polarising figure in television. After a dodgy start to his career – the tonally bonkers Popular and the famously scuzzy Nip/Tuck – he achieved proper mainstream success with Glee, and pivoted … Read more
Covering Climate Now: Grim post-apocalyptic settings are a dime a dozen in gaming, but which ones are the most realistic? Sam Brooks talked to climate expert David Tong to find out. The Spinoff’s participation in Covering Climate Now is made possible thanks to Spinoff Members. Join us here! Every year there’s a good chance that … Read more
Bad erotica never sounded so good. Sam Brooks talks to Jamie Morton of My Dad Wrote a Porno, about the hit podcast’s fifth season and upcoming return visit to New Zealand. Forget Joe Rogan. The real superhero of podcasting is Belinda Blumenthal, the sex-loving protagonist of Rocky Flintstone’s Belinda Blinked series of erotica that serves … Read more
Countdown’s restriction on the sale of energy drinks to under-16s came into force this week. Near-lifelong energy drink consumer Sam Brooks writes on his relationship with the buzzy beverages, and what he thinks of the age restriction. I was seven years old when V launched in New Zealand. That radioactive green can made it look … Read more
Sam Brooks reviews Carnival Row, an Amazon Original which can’t break free from its own shallow edginess. The fantasy ghetto is real, and it’s hard to get out of it. Game of Thrones managed to get out of it through the sheer quality of the first season, and also by keeping its more fantastical elements … Read more
With Falling Inn Love, New Zealand gets its very own Netflix romcom – so how accurate is its depiction of small town NZ? Sam Brooks investigates. When the trailer for Falling Inn Love dropped earlier this month, I had my knives out, and so did the rest of The Spinoff office. A Netflix romcom set … Read more
The Pop-Up Globe will be popping down at the end of its 2020 season and setting off overseas. Sam Brooks talks to its founder, Miles Gregory, about where the future of the company lies. More than 650,000 tickets; 17 productions; 1206 performances; 212 acting jobs. Regardless of where you stand on the Pop-Up Globe, the … Read more
One part telenovela, one part family drama, one part addictive love story. Sam Brooks reviews Jane the Virgin, the great show with an unfortunate name that should be your next Netflix binge. The following piece contains very mild spoilers for Jane the Virgin. While watching the last season of Jane the Virgin, one of my … Read more
Over 300 hours of interviews condensed into five episodes that cover the entirety of New Zealand’s comedy history – how do you even start to approach that? Sam Brooks interviews Paul Horan, the documentarian behind the show. It’s one of those projects that sounds utterly futile – how does one cover the comedy history of … Read more
He’s the artist who launched a million memes and over a billion streams. Sam Brooks picks out Bazzi’s best moments so far, from his career-making breakthrough to his mature new mixtape Soulsearching. 1. ‘Mine’ “You’re so precious when you smile.” It’s the line – including an extra word that we can’t print here – which … Read more
Today, TVNZ released its latest findings on who is watching what on TVNZ OnDemand. Sam Brooks analyses the results. Today, TVNZ released the 2019 figures for who is watching TVNZ OnDemand, what they’re watching and in what kind of numbers. The big numbers are hopeful – over 1.4 million people reached so far this year, … Read more
Sam Brooks reviews the second season premiere of Succession, the dark-as-tar family drama from one of the minds behind The Thick of It. There’s one scene in the first season finale of Succession that sums up the family-slash-business drama in a few brutal, bleak moments. The wedding reception of Shiv (Sarah Snook), the only daughter of … Read more
What are all those shows you scroll through on Netflix with stars you don’t recognise and premises that are so out-there you can’t believe they actually got made? Wonder no more. We’ve all done it. We’ve all gone to Netflix for something to watch, scrolled through 102 shows that we’d totally watch if we had the … Read more
After 15 years, the satirical video game Metal Wolf Chaos XD is finally being released worldwide. Today its depiction of a crazed, militaristic America seems more prescient than ever, writes Sam Brooks. In gaming, very few things are truly inaccessible. If someone knows there’s a game they might love, they’ll do their best to get … Read more
Fire Emblem: Three Houses perfectly splits difference between staying true to its core while reinventing itself to appeal to a broader audience, writes Sam Brooks. Against all odds, Fire Emblem has become a stalwart gaming franchise. Created by Japanese developers Intelligent Systems, Fire Emblem‘s success is especially surprising considering its first English-language release, in 2003/4, … Read more
Sam Brooks reviews the final season of Orange is the New Black and finds a fitting end to the series’ tremendous legacy. Light spoilers for the final season of Orange is the New Black. “It was maybe four percent of my life, but it was enough to change absolutely everything, and I have no idea … Read more
Sam Brooks reviews The Boys, dropping today on Amazon Prime, and finds it far from the critique of superhero fantasies he was promised. In the third episode of Amazon Prime’s new superhero series The Boys, newly-official superhero Starlight (Erin Moriarty) has a meeting with corporate to discuss her new outfit, which is decidedly skimpier than … Read more
Sam Brooks re-assesses Assassin’s Creed Odyssey in the wake of ten months of post-release content and works out what the game did right, did wrong, and did weird. Twelve years on, Assassin’s Creed remains one of the most successful video game franchises of all time. Every release manages to garner critical acclaim and sell millions of … Read more
Sam Brooks embarks on a search to watch the much-hyped season four of Veronica Mars. For an update, scroll to the end of the piece to find out where you can watch. The short answer to that question in the headline: You can’t. At least not legally. The new season of Veronica Mars is not on Netflix, … Read more
Sam Brooks reviews the second season of Big Little Lies, which generated as much social media conversation as its first season did critical acclaim, for better and worse. Light spoilers for the second season of Big Little Lies. Big Little Lies felt like the TV phenomenon of 2017. It united three of the most acclaimed actresses of … Read more