A Strangely Moving Cartoon Show

The Atlantic

20-04-2025

This is an edition of The Atlantic Daily, a newsletter that guides you through the biggest stories of the day, helps you discover new ideas, and recommends the best in culture. Sign up for it here.
Welcome back to The Daily's Sunday culture edition, in which one Atlantic writer or editor reveals what's keeping them entertained. Today's special guest is Allegra Frank, a senior editor who works on stories about the changing trends in film, television, and culture.
Allegra recently spent a day trying out the new Nintendo Switch 2. She enjoys the works of the Japanese artist Yoshitomo Nara, making a lot of playlists, and listening to the indie-pop artist Jay Som.
The Culture Survey: Allegra Frank
The television show I'm most enjoying right now: YOLO is perhaps the most unfortunately named series on television right now—but it's also the funniest. Adult Swim's animated comedy is surreal, madcap, and somehow both nonsensical and strangely moving. Set in the city of Wollongong, which an Australian friend described to me as 'Sydney's equivalent of Staten Island,' YOLO follows the bizarre travails of longtime best friends Rachel and Sarah. Rachel's rage and Sarah's naivete often land them in unexpected situations: getting stuck on a planet inhabited by personified zodiac signs, a dance-off to the death hosted by a gigantic floating head, a park hang that ends in beheadings and someone transforming into a computer-animated werewolf. The inanity may be too much for a viewer not used to the creator Michael Cusack's abrasive style of storytelling, but Season 3, named Rainbow Trinity, combines these absurd stories with Sarah and Rachel's genuine growth. The affection I feel for these characters makes YOLO more than just one of the weirdest—and best—cartoons I've ever seen.
The product my friends are talking about most right now: Nintendo released its last major video-game console, the Switch, nearly a decade ago, making the release of its follow-up a major event. The excitement isn't just due to the fact that new systems bring new games; it's also because Nintendo is one of the most surprising developers in the industry, focused as much on innovation as improvement. So when I had the chance to spend an entire day with the Switch's aptly titled successor, the Nintendo Switch 2, I jumped at it.
After watching the hour-long live reveal with content creators and fellow journalists earlier this month, I got to play some of the new games and learn more about the console. I was most struck by Nintendo's emphasis on online social play. There are already robust platforms for those who want to stream their game or voice-chat with their friends. But Nintendo has baked those features into the Switch 2 itself, creating an exclusive and collaborative multiplayer environment (one perk is that you can video-chat a friend mid-game to walk them through a tricky spot). I remain most curious as to whether these new features will be compelling enough to persuade buyers to pick up the console. That question, outside of the console's controversial pricing—$150 more than its predecessor, with mounting concerns about an increase due to tariffs —is what my fellow Mario-lovers and I have been wondering about. [ Related: The Switch 2 is a new kart-racing appliance. ]
A piece of art that I cherish: I've hung a print of the Japanese artist Yoshitomo Nara's piece Oh! My God! I Miss You. on a wall wherever I've lived since I was 17 years old. Nara has a fixation on big-headed little girls who are often seen scowling or bristling—figures that have always resonated with me. I've always loved the irony present in this drawing, in particular: a brash little girl looking askance as a blaring plea for closeness hangs above her.
The last thing that made me cry: The Netflix docuseries Bad Influence: The Dark Side of Kidfluencing validated my disinterest in raising children in the age of social media. It's a harrowing look at how a group of teens were exploited by the mother of a popular YouTube influencer, who turned their awkward phases into clickbait. I was shocked by the number of tears I shed as the kids talked about their experiences with alleged emotional and, in some cases, sexual abuse in the name of content creation (the mother involved has denied all wrongdoing). I was less surprised to learn that the now-17-year-old daughter of the alleged abuser still actively posts dance videos and updates about her love life to a social media following of more than 21 million.
A quiet song that I love, and a loud song that I love: Throughout each month, I make several new playlists of the songs I'm into; once the playlist includes 30 songs, I have to make another. (I am very systematic about my music consumption.) I'm particularly struck by this one-two punch on my playlist from the end of March: the lullaby-like 'Little Trouble Girl,' by Sonic Youth, followed by 'Perfect Soul,' by the heavy-metal band Spiritbox. I love both of these songs and a dose of discordance, but I also love listening to music as I fall asleep—I have finally learned that this is not a good playlist to put on at night.
A musical artist who means a lot to me: The indie-pop artist Melina Duterte has collaborated or performed with several cult-favorite musicians over the years, namely the supergroup Boygenius. But I'd argue that her own solo efforts far exceed that of any of her peers. Under the name Jay Som, Duterte has released three pitch-perfect solo albums—gorgeous, keenly observed, textured works, in the first two of which she plays every instrument herself. She sings a lot about love, but also about career pressure and riding the bus. I listened to Jay Som's second album, 2017's Everybody Works, every day during a particularly low six-month period in my life, and it buoyed me to a much happier place. Duterte followed that up with the excellent Anak Ko in 2019, and I've waited impatiently for almost six years for the next one. Thankfully, Duterte recently revealed that Jay Som's fourth solo album is nearly done. Fingers crossed that the artist releases it sooner than later—if so, I'd be surprised if it doesn't end up as my favorite of the year.
The Week Ahead
The Accountant 2, a film starring Ben Affleck as a forensic accountant with deadly skills (in theaters Friday)
Season 5 of You, a drama show about a love-obsessed and charming stalker (premieres Thursday on Netflix)
The Project, a book by the Atlantic staff writer David A. Graham about Project 2025's ambitions (out Tuesday)
Essay
The employees who have so far survived the Trump administration's federal defenestration project are morose. For some, the new workload is untenable. For others, chaos reigns. Scientists have been unable to purchase mice for research, while human-tissue samples have sat on dry ice, unsent, thanks to worker layoffs. Lawyers at the Education Department are racing through a backlog of complaints from parents of special-needs children. And many employees are learning that teammates have been fired only when they receive an email bounce-back: Address not found.
More in Culture
Catch Up on The Atlantic
America's mad king, by Peter Wehner
They never thought Trump would have them deported.
Anne Applebaum: Kleptocracy, Inc.
Photo Album
Take a look at these photos of the week, showing an annual torch festival in India, a colorful tulip festival in England, ice climbing in Nepal, and more.