Writers have examined the show through a political lens. "It's not a political show", said Mike Judge in 1997. "It's more a populist, common sense point of view." In 2005, Matt Bai of "The New York Times Magazine" called it "the most subtle and complex portrayal of small-town voters on television." A 2016 reappraisal from "The Atlantic" dubbed it the "last bipartisan TV comedy", with writer Bert Clere noting the program "imbued all of its characters with a rich humanity that made their foibles deeply sympathetic. In this, "King of the Hill" was far ahead of its time, and the broader TV landscape has yet to catch up."