The Best Chris Gives the Best Gift Ever
"The Mindy Project" proves that the perfect present doesn't have to be gift wrapped.
You might be well aware of this enduring pop culture question: Who is the best Chris? There are four options, all of whom are movie stars who’ve headlined superhero franchises: Hemsworth (Thor), Pratt (a Guardian of the Galaxy), Evans (Captain America) and Pine (Captain Kirk and Wonder Woman’s love interest).
Of these four, Chris Pine is my pick (he gives good meme and makes interesting choices with his career and personal style). But if you’re a TV fan, especially of The Mindy Project, then you know that Chris Messina might really be The Best Chris.
I mean, just watch this. It’s impossible not to smile:
Taking the time to learn the choreography to a song even though it annoys you? Executing Aaliyah’s moves from “Try Again” to perfection? We are all Mindy in this scene, melting that our grumpy office frenemy/crush would know us so well—and risk embarrassment—to give the perfect Secret Santa gift.
Messina danced competitively as a kid, if you were wondering how he was able to pull this off so effortlessly. And that is what makes him The Best Chris. Or at least worthy enough to be included in the conversation.
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Reading recs:
-My good friend Erin Carlson, a romcom expert and pop culture historian, has a new book out this week: No Crying in Baseball: The Inside Story of a League of Their Own. (Yay Erin!) If you’d like a sneak peek, Vanity Fair also has an exclusive excerpt from the book about Madonna’s star power on and off the set.
-Elizabeth Held has a must-read newsletter for book lovers called What To Read If, and she wrote a really great article for Vulture about how a lot of bestselling romance novels have roots in fan fiction, particularly Kylo/Ren fanfic.
-And I channeled my feelings of confusion and rage about And Just Like That into an essay for Salon, in which I propose that the series needs to bring back Carrie’s SATC-style voiceover and column writing career.
Have a great week, and I’d appreciate it if you shared this newsletter with anyone you think might enjoy it too!
Messina is a stealthy, and correct, choice for best Chris!