Overall I feel that Philadelphia Weekly is far superior to City Paper when it comes to our weekly papers. I love both, I know plenty of people who have been involved with both, and both definitely have their strong points and imperfections. But when it comes down to it, City Paper is something that I tend to flip through, whereas I actually tend to stop and read a lot more things in PW. it really knows how to draw you in. I also feel that PW does a better job of sponsoring events. They were one of the major backers for this things like Popped Fest and realizePhiladelphia. and you can't go wrong with what they've done with Rittenhouse Square's Concerts in The Park series over the past few years. City Paper does have the better entertainment section by far though. read more

I'm of the opinion that one cannot review Philadelphia Weekly without comparing it to CityPaper. You can probably tell from my rating that I prefer CityPaper. First of all, CityPaper has This Modern World. As much as I love Savage Love, my vote for "Best Syndicated Feature in a Free Philadelphia Weekly Paper" definitely goes to This Modern World. Every time I wish I had lower taxes or start having doubts about the Democrats' vision of healthcare reform, Tom Tomorrow is there to violently return my political leanings to the left. Sure, it's not for everyone, but if you're the type of person who can enjoy a publication full of tranny ads, you can probably laugh at This Modern World. (And although I realize I'm pulling a bit of a "but I have a lot of black friends!" here, I'd like to point out that I have several Republican friends who love This Modern World... Well, they're really Libertarians, but they vote Republican.) And honestly, This Modern World is the perfect comic for CityPaper. CityPaper is unabashed about what it is, while I feel that Philadelphia Weekly frequently pulls its punches. I like PW's music reviews and events descriptions a lot, and I'm the first to admit that CP's movie haikus used to be far, far funnier than they are today, but in the end CityPaper feels like it sold out than Philadelphia Weekly. Adamma, Anastasia and Nina (I don't know who's really in charge) need to let their writers do their thing. To conclude, I'll take a page from John H.: CityPaper is Letterman, Philadelphia Weekly is Leno. If your grandparents were going to read a publication full of tranny ads, they'd choose Philadelphia Weekly. In my 11:35 time slot, I'm gonna go with CityPaper. read more

Dear Philadelphia Weekly, I stopped picking up your rag on regular basis a long time ago. I just couldn't bear to read what's written in your pages anymore. (Likewise, I'm sure.) \ \ \ \ \ \ \ \/\/\/\/\/\\\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\//////////////\\\\\\\\\\\\////// (The above review fragment was started over two years ago. I never finished it... until now... (if you can consider this finishing it). I was going to go on and commend PW on the one article I've ever enjoyed reading from their pages, an insightful piece about movies. The writer was spot on. I wish I could remember his/her name to give credit where credit is due. I can't. Sorry. This unfinished review has been sitting in my "unfinished reviews" thingee since then. I haven't had the heart to continue writing ... until now... whereupon reading the stupid series of articles on "The Winter Coffee Tour"... I had to comment... truly insipid drivel. Yeah. I picked up this issue thinking "I like coffee. How bad could this be?" The answer is "bad". I'm sorry I gave you another chance, PW. Now, I'll just go back to ignoring you. Thanks for next to nothing. P.S. I'm leaving the initial number of stars I intended to give intact. Just because ----[redacted]----- to the Greater Philadelphia Community. What that might be I've not yet exactly determined.) read more

Okay okay okay, so maybe I'm a little bitter because they didn't hire me for a marketing position, but I will try to let this review be unbiased. I believe that Philly Weekly has gone downhill in recent months, in both story interest and integrity. I used to respect PW and look forward to reading it weekly, but now I struggle to find much that is note worthy. Maybe it's me...but a lot of the stories they publish do not seem interesting. I also feel the quality of work is lacking. Last month, on their website they had a "feature video" of "Liz Spikol's Philadelphia" plastered in the middle of the homepage. This video consisted of her skating around the River Rink and struggling with her laces. I could make a better and more intriguing video on my digital camera, let alone an actual video camera. Come on Philly Weekly, you are better this, get your act together. read more

I have fleeting love affairs with alternative news weeklies in this city. But one thing this one got very, very right, was buying up---well, I don't know if that's the term---coming to an "agreement" with blogger Daniel McQuade whereby his humor blog about Philadelphia would thenceforth be published on the the PW website. The site is hilarious, and it got better than ever when Milton Street decided to run for mayor. D-Mac, as they call him (this kid is a friend of a friend, but I don't know I've ever actually met him), has such a knack for culling the hilarious information/footage that this city regularly spews forth, his stories rarely require any spin at all to make you pee your pants. read more