Around the Tubes: 5/26/2017

I have gotten a plethora of cool press releases have been flooding my inbox recently that you may find interesting. This post will include blurbs on I’m Dying Up Here, Gap Year, Oh Wonder, Hell on Earth: The Fall of Syria and the Rise of ISIS, POV, Pretty Little Liars: A Reries Retrospective, Outrageous Acts of Danger, The Last Ship, Space's Deepest Secrets: Strange Signals From Alien Worlds, Sea Turtle Rescue, East Los High: Finale Event, and Pride Month.

- Showtime is giving viewers nationwide an early opportunity to sample the series premiere of the network’s highly anticipated new drama series I’m Dying Up Here for free, ahead of its on-air debut on Sunday, June 4 at 10:00. Starting today, consumers who do not subscribe to Showtime can watch the series premiere for free on YouTube and SHO.com. Consumers can also sample the premiere of I’m Dying Up Here across multiple television and streaming providers’ devices, websites and applications and their free On Demand channels.

- From the BAFTA-nominated producers of the critically acclaimed series Glue and The Enfield Haunting, Gap Year, premieres exclusively on Hulu today, is an eight-part comedy-drama that follows a motley gang of travellers who embark on a three month trip around Asia. British lads Sean and Dylan meet American girls May and Ashley in Beijing and opt to undergo the first leg of their travels together, but soon find that their journey takes them much further than any of them expected. The series features a stellar writing team including Tom Basden (Fresh Meat), James Wood (Rev), Loren McLaughlan (Coronation Street), Amy Roberts (Shameless), Sam Leifer (Plebs), Charlie Covell (Banana), Tim Key (Alan Partridge) and Johnny Sweet (Together).

- Oh Wonder (Josephine Vander Gucht and Anthony West) have just shared a their new song “Heavy”, the fourth track to be released from their upcoming sophomore album, Ultralife which will be released later this summer on July 14th. “Heavy” follows Oh Wonder’s current single “Ultralife”, as well as previous releases “Lifetimes”, and “My Friends”. “Heavy” also launches with a video that stitches together 2665 individual photographs to create the allusion of the British duo dancing within a makeshift color cube, which you can watch HERE. Much of their new album Ultralife was written in New York City, where the duo resided for a period in between touring last year. Oh Wonder put the finishing touches to Ultralife, which was recorded and produced entirely by the duo, in South East London earlier this year. Ultralife is available now for Pre-Order HERE and Oh Wonder will be returning to the US this May for a run of tour dates which are listed below.

- Sebastian Junger's new documentary on Syria, Hell on Earth: The Fall of Syria and the Rise of ISIS, premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival. The film will have it's theatrical premiere on May 19 in NYC & LA and then TV premiere on National Geographic Channel on June 11. Hell on Earth chronicles Syria’s descent into the unbridled chaos that allowed the rise of ISIS.


- POV’s 30th season kicks off with a series of films on the Syrian war and the ongoing global refugee crisis. The first, Dalya’s Other Country, follows a young Syrian girl and her mother who have been displaced by the war at home and are adjusting to their new life in Los Angeles. The feature doc will premiere with two shorts also focusing on the refugee crisis. The Oscar®-nominated short 4.1 Miles spotlights a small Greek town on the sea and the coast guard’s daily efforts at saving thousands of migrants crossing the Mediterranean. In From Damascus to Chicago, two Syrian siblings recently resettled in Chicago enroll in a dance class, and their entire family makes efforts to navigate a new city and country.

- Pretty Little Liars: A Reries Retrospective, streaming today on PEN Fan Forum. As the popular ABC Family series Pretty Little Liars comes to an end, PEN brings together stars Ashley Benson, Shay Mitchell, Lucy Hale, Troian Bellisario, Sasha Pieterse and executive producer I. Marlene King as they reflect on the show's seven-season run, the emotional final table read and whether or not a reboot is in their future. Go to People.com/PEN or download the PEN app on mobile or connected-TV devices, and join the conversation with @PeopleEWNetwork.

- The laws of physics are absolute. They bind us together, tether us to Earth and govern everything we do, yet we rarely think about them. In the new Science Channel series Outrageous Acts of Danger, adventurer Todd Sampson puts his faith in science to the ultimate test through a series of epic and potentially deadly experiments. Outrageous Acts of Danger, premiering Wednesday, June 21 at 10:00, shows that it is one thing to believe in science, but another to literally trust it with your life.
In each of the six 30-minutes episodes, Todd, who once completed an unguided ascent to the top of Mount Everest, puts himself in a death-defying situation, however, the laws of physics dictate that he will escape unscathed. Todd calls upon leading physicists and experts who guarantee that the science behind each experiment is irrefutable, absent of human error.

- TNT's epic drama The Last Ship returns with a new mission to save humanity as the world continues to struggle for survival. Eric Dane, Bridget Regan, Adam Baldwin, Charles Parnell, Travis Van Winkle, Marissa Neitling, Christina Elmore, Jocko Sims, Bren Foster and Kevin Michael Martin star in this action-packed series chronicling the aftermath of a global catastrophe that nearly decimates the world's population. The fourth season of The Last Ship is slated to launch with a two-hour premiere on Sunday, Aug. 20, at 9:00, across TNT platforms.

- For centuries we’ve looked up at the night sky and wondered, are we alone? We’ve sent probes to the farthest reaches of the Solar System and broadcast messages out into the depths of space, but in all that time we’ve heard nothing back, until now. In the last few years a mysterious signal from space has shaken astronomy to its core. A special episode of Space's Deepest Secrets, tells the story of a genuine scientific mystery, the recent discovery, confirmation, and on-going attempts to understand the origin of Fast Radio Bursts (FRBs), enigmatic pulses from deep space that have so-far defied explanation. Theories of their origin range from colliding stars, to alien beacons created by an advanced civilization. Space's Deepest Secrets: Strange Signals From Alien Worlds premieres Tuesday, June 6 at 9:00 on Science Channel.

- At the South Carolina Aquarium Sea Turtle Care Center, wildlife heroes spend countless hours rehabilitating sea turtles back to health and safety with sheer determination and compassion. Smithsonian Earth’s new, original series, Sea Turtle Rescue, sheds light on each journey to recovery, from the time they are brought into the hospital to the moment they return home at sea. This new six-part, short-form series takes viewers to the front lines with the staff who are dedicated to helping preserve the endangered sea turtles, from massive loggerheads to the Kemp’s ridley, the world’s smallest and most endangered. All six episodes of Sea Turtle Rescue begin streaming exclusively on Tuesday, May 23 on Smithsonian Earth, available on Apple®, Roku®, Amazon, and at SmithsonianEarthTV.com.

- - Hulu has renewed East Los High for a final 60-minute event, titled East Los High: Finale Event to premiere Fall 2017 on Hulu.

- Turner Classic Movies (TCM) and FilmStruck will celebrate Pride Month this June with extensive movie lineups dedicated to exploring LGBT themes in cinema. Honoring a number of LGBT actors and artists whose talents helped them overcome the roadblocks they faced because of their orientation or gender identity, TCM will spotlight Gay Hollywood, hosted by entertainment journalist Dave Karger and author and historian William Mann, every Thursday in June, and FilmStruck will present a Gay and Lesbian Cinema showcase, hosted by film critic Alonso Duralde.

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Previewing Unearthed: Season Two

It is pretty fascinating that King Tutankhamun, one of the mot insignificant Egyptian Pharaohs, ended up becoming its most famous. Dying young tends to help. It also helps to be one of the few tombs in the Valley of the Kings that were not robbed long ago which has led to many of archaeologist wonder why. And why was his tomb smaller than the other kings? These are many unanswered questions asked in the season two premiere of Unearthed.

Unearthed utilizes the latest technology including LIDAR scanning, X-ray imaging, carbon dating, forensic microscopy, and 3-D imaging, and follows leading experts hunting for vital clues about these mysterious structures-- from engineers who have rebuilt obelisks, to scientists bombarding tombs with proton beams. Machu Picchu and Angkor Wat are among the epic sites also featured this season on Unearthed.

So why did King Tut go undiscovered for over three thousand years? There are plenty of theories and the more the experts dig, the more questions are asked. Why is tomb so unique? It is just a corridor that may have been extended. Could it have been made for someone else? All this and more are discussed on tonight’s premiere.

Unearthed airs Tuesdays at 10:00 on Science Channel.

Previewing Casual: Season Three

The end of the second season of Casual felt like a conclusion and not just a season conclusion. The series started with the funeral of their father, albeit a dream, and ended with the real funeral of their father. The show started with Valerie moving in with her bother and the season finale saw her move out into her own place. It would have been a very symbolic ending. Except television show do not end after two seasons, at least on purpose. So now we get a third season of the show, the first with Alex living on his own which should be interesting considering he is clearly codependent. Already in the first episode there are plenty of calls and texts to Val and Leon.

Oh yeah, and to cure his co-dependent streak, he has started to rent out his room and in the season three he gets a little too close to his new German roommate which of course includes making waffle. Later in the season he takes in a Midwestern couple which goes about just as well. But the good thing for his guests is that he still is a big fan of making waffles. He is also still using his sister’s neighbor as a free therapist a little too often.

On her own, life is not much better for Val, her kid is still pulling teenage stunts and her new place is not coming together like it should. Jamie Chung (Real World: San Diego) shows up as her landlord. Oh, and her mother drops a pretty huge bombshell at her father’s wake that pretty much changes the course of the whole season for her. And really, her daughter’s reaction to the news is the best.

New episodes of Casual are released every Tuesday on Hulu.

57 Channels and Only This Is On: 5/21/2017

Once Upon a Time: I knew a soft reboot was coming because they announced a couple of weeks ago if there was a new season only Mr. Gold, Regina, and Captain Hook would return (Emma was also on that list but Jennifer Morrison later announced she was not returning). Which was weird because Henry was kind of a big part of the show. But as it turns out Henry is actually still going to be on the show, just not the same actor, as they aged him twenty years. I guess the other three will have not aged in the Enchanted Forrest. Oh course the big question going into the next season is who is his baby momma? The girl does look a lot more tan than Henry who is pale as a ghost, she did have a scene with Tigerlily. That seems like a good guess for now.
You can download Once Upon a Time on iTunes.

Into the Badlands: Wait, they they really just kill off another main character? Man, these Barons are ruthless. Quinn kills his son and the Widow kills her surrogate daughter in kind of similar scenes.
You can download Into the Badlands on iTunes.

Gotham: Okay, fine, I am actually starting to enjoy Ivy and her weird performance.
You can download Gotham on iTunes.

Supergirl: Welcome back Kat Grant, the show has been much less entertaining without you. But we finally learned a little more about the alien president. Though it was weird that she made Martian Manhunter not engage with the Daxumites and not orders Alex to blow them out of the sky.
You can download Supergirl on iTunes.

Lucifer: Oh hey, the king from Galavant is God. Or I guess not. But what exactly went on there, was he actually possessed by God or was he just delusional while wearing that heavily belt?
You can download Lucifer on iTunes.

Harlots: So no one is going to end up punished for the death of a nobleman as they blackmailed and killed off the judge. Alrighty. But season two should be interesting as Charlotte going undercover in her mother’s enemy establishment.
You can stream Harlots on Hulu.

The Challenge: Champs vs. Pros: Poor Veronica, the most veteran of them all gets treated like a rookie. But just as I expected, the Pros are just going to dominate the Champs… unless they end up having to compete drunk in future challenges.
You can download The Challenge: Invasion of the Champs vs. Pros on iTunes.

The Americans: So Elizabeth wants to go back to Russia. But what does Philip want? I have to believe Paige and Henry would rather stay in America. Henry’s tour of the FBI. Nice shout out to the mail robot. And the Jennings learning about the safe room inside the FBI has to come up at some point. Will they try to bug it?

Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: Wait, didn’t robot Daisy shoot Talbot right between the eyes? I know this is a comic book show but how could a human possibly survive that? Unless he is not human. Then we have a tease for next season except much more vague than the LMD from the finale last season. I believe the Royal Family of Inhumans have a secret base on the moon so maybe that is why he is in space. Or maybe it had to with the deal he made with the Ghost Rider. I assumed when the organization that grabbed them in the diner was Talbot’s guys but maybe they are part of the Ghost Rider deal and that is why Coulson was business as usual when he looked out his space window.
Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. on iTunes.

The Handmaid’s Tale: The Commander’s wife just got interesting: a sex pot, writer who got arrested for civil disobedience before the war. It is also interesting that the religious zealots seem to be the environmentalist when those who claim to be the most religious in our society or okay with the destruction of the environment when you would think the most faithful would want to protect God’s creation. Then we had another big cliffhanger with the Mexican aide somehow knowing Offred’s real name and that of her husbands who he claims is alive. So who is this guy? Is he really part of the resistance in cahoots with Offred’s husband or is this a trap set by “The Eye”?

Survivor: Game Changers: Boooooooooo. Ever since Zeke threw out her name, you kind of had to know Andrea was not making the finals. Weird thing is, she kept on being brought up as a big threat (weirdly Sierra had this problem too) but both Aubrey and Cirie have been to the finals before, Sarah hs been playing very hard which recent jury members appreciate, and Not Dante Culpeper is a former NFL play who could go on an Idol run (and lo and behold, won the very next Immunity Challenge). Oh yeah, and speaking of Idols, Tai has proven to be very good at finding them.

But you could see that vote coming as soon as Andrea lost Immunity. The next Tribal was not as clear. And still is not very clear. Andrea was a treat, not someone you want to sit at Final Tribal with. But do you know who I want to sit next to: Michaela (or Tai or Troyzan). So why vote her out. I wonder what exactly the plan was going in. Sarah seemly changed her mind and went with the boys to get out Cirie, but what went down to keep Tai from playing his Idol? Isn’t six the last time he can play it? Why not play one at that Tribal, especially after Sarah steals his vote, and he still has one for six. Speaking of six, we could have all but one person safe with an Idol. Tai, Troyzan, and Sarah all have one. If someone else wins Immunity and Tai gives one away, that just leaves one person who is not safe.

But in retrospect, really horrible episode for Cirie. First she turns on her biggest ally, and then does not read the fine print resulting in her next biggest ally going home. She could have been sitting pretty had she just stuck with Andrea in the first vote and went for Brad or turning on Sarah instead. She could have had four strong with Aubrey also with her, and now she is kind of on an island and probably next out. Crap, we are going to get a Final Tribal of Sarah, Not-Dante, and Troyzan aren’t we. This is why you do not turn on Andrea.
You can download Survivor: Game Changers on iTunes.

Blindplot: So what happened in those two years? And Roman had to be the one who kidnapped the team, right?
You can download Blindspot on iTunes.

The Blacklist: Well that was an anticlimactic end to the Mr. Kaplan saga. Then we get the big bombshell that everyone assumed for episode one yet they spent four seasons pretending it was not the case, Red is really Lizzy father. At least we do not have to see them tease and then prtetend it is a red herring again.
You can download The Blacklist on iTunes.

The Five Most (and Least) Anticipated Shows of 2017-18

It seems like every year has a theme and two years ago it was superheroes with almost each network debuting a new one. Last season saw just one which did not even have anyone with superpowers. This season they are back with three new superhero shows (and that does not include already announced Krypton coming to Syfy, Hulu’s The Runaways and Locke and Key, Freeform’s Cloak and Dagger and New Warriors, and Teen Titans coming to the upcoming DC Comics streaming site). The other big theme is military shows. NBC, CBS, and even The CW are launching one and they all reminded me of History’s Six. Fine, I will watch the Superhero show, but I may have to start drawing the line, but all those military shows look bland. Most everything this year looks meh, and it is getting harder to even list five shows that pique my interest. But here is The Five Most Anticipated Shows of 2017-18, or as closest I can get.

1. Rise (Midseason, NBC): Last year NBC did not release any trailers for their midseason shows and that continues this year which is disappointing because the most buzzed about show of the season is being held out for after the Olympics. You would think the musical themed show would fit very well after The Voice but NBC is continuing their streak of law enforcement shows that have had varying degrees of success, The Blacklist is still chugging but is in its third timeslot in five seasons, Blindspot has been moved to the Friday death spot, its third in three season, and the Katherine Heigl show whose name I do not even care enough to look up was one and done. Lack of trailer aside, all I need to know about this show is that it comes from Jason Katims whose last high school show was called Friday Night Light.

2. The Mayor (Tuesdays at 9:30 on ABC): This was the new sitcom I actually laughed at.


3. Good Girls (Midseason): Here is a show that really could have benefited from a trailer. Three suburban moms turn to robbing banks for extra cash. If this is funny, be it intentional or unintentional, I will be more likely to watch it.

4. The Gifted (Mondays at 9:00 on Fox): I hit superhero fatigue a couple seasons ago, yet I still watch them (I may draw the line at the Teen Titans show that will be on an upcoming DC streaming site… okay, maybe I will watch if there is a free trial). But The Gifted does have Angel’s Amy Acker and my favorite Bunhead… um, not that I have a favorite Bunhead.



5. Um, Young Sheldon I guess, this slate of shows suck.

As the great philosopher Butt-Head once pondered, how would we know if something was cool if there weren't things that sucked, here are the five shows you could not pay me to watch next fall (click on their names to watch the trailers where available).

1. Law and Order True Crime: The Menendez Murders (Thursdays at 10:00 on NBC): Really, they are really just going to blatantly rip off American Crime Story (which I had no interest in that) and slap the Law and Order name on it?

2. The Orville (Thursdays at 9:00 on Fox): Nothing says “hard pass” more than “from Seth McFarlane” especially something that is live action and an hour long. I think I will pick this in the which show gets the ax first poll.

3. Dynasty (Wednesday at 9:00 on The CW): The CW has not aired any sitcoms in about a decade by they never fail to make me laugh every year at their upfronts. Seriously, a Dynasty reboot? And their other shows do not look much better, a fifth comic book based show, a show with the fourth best Pretty Little Liar (fifth if you count Mona), and… a military show?

4. All the crappy reality show: A writers strike loomed over much of the spring so it looked like ABC and NBC were prepared and have a bunch of shows coming midseason I have no interest in including Genius Juniors, The Awesome Show, Ellen’s Game of Games, The Bachelor Winter Games, and Dancing with the Stars Junior.

5. 9JKL (Mondays at 8:30 on CBS): There are a bunch of unfunny comedies on tap for the fall, but this one looks like the worst.

And here is the list of the show I will be watching this fall.

Mondays
8:00 – Supergirl ((The CW)
8:00 – Lucifer (Fox)
8:00 – The Big Theory (CBS)
9:00 – The Gifted (Fox)

Tuesdays
8:00 – The Middle (ABC)
9:00 – Blackish (ABC)
9:00 – Superstore (NBC)
9:30 – The Good Place (NBC)

Wednesdays
8:00 – Survivor (CBS)
8:00 – The Blacklist (NBC)
8:00 – The Goldbergs (ABC)
9:30 – Modern Family (ABC)

Thursdays
8:00 - Gotham (Fox)
8:30 – Young Sheldon (CBS)

Fridays
8:00 - Blindspot (NBC)
8:00 – One Upon a Time (ABC)
9:00 – Inhumans (ABC)

Sundays
Um, what happened to Sunday? I guess there will be plenty to watch on cable on Sunday nights.

Around the Tubes: 5/19/2017

I have gotten a plethora of cool press releases have been flooding my inbox recently that you may find interesting. This post will include blurbs on Casual, The Alienist, Sting, I’m Dying Up Here, Amazing Monkeys, EMOGENIUS, Aerial America, and More Than T,

- This week Hulu released the trailer and key art for Casual season three. The first three episodes of the third season will launch a week from today – Tuesday, May 23rd with one each following Tuesday.


- TNT has released its first trailer for The Alienist, the eagerly anticipated psychological thriller based on the Anthony Award-winning international bestseller by Caleb Carr. Set in 1896 amidst the vast wealth, extreme poverty and technological innovation of New York during the Gilded Age. The Alienist follows the hunt for a series killer responsible for the gruesome murders of boy prostitutes. Daniel Brühl (Rush), Luke Evans (The Girl on The Train), Dakota Fanning (American Pastoral) and Brian Geraghty (The Hurt Locker) star in the series, which follows the hunt for a serial killer responsible for the gruesome murders of boy prostitutes.


- A&M / Interscope Records / Deutsche Grammophon are honored to announce the release of The Complete Studio Collection on June 9th. Encompassing the entirety of Sting’s illustrious solo studio album catalogue on 180 gram heavyweight vinyl – from his 1985 debut album The Dream Of The Blue Turtles through to the latest 57th & 9th – The Complete Studio Collection is the first ever complete anthology of Sting’s unparalleled solo career.

- Comedian and I’m Dying Up Here star Andrew Santino returns to his Chicago hometown for the debut of his new one-hour comedy special ANDREW Santino: Home Field Advantage on Friday, June 2 at 9:00 on Showtime. Santino’s hard-hitting special is the second of three standalone comedy events from the stars of the network’s new drama series I’m Dying Up Here, which premieres Sunday, June 4 at 10:00.


- Journey back in time to retrace the astonishing rise of monkeys and uncover the amazing stories of what has made the world’s primates one of the most successful groups of creatures on Earth for almost 60 million years. Hosted by biologist Patrick Aryee, Amazing Monkeys tells the story of primate evolution and takes us on a journey along the bizarre and miraculous branches of the primate family tree. Join Patrick as he travels to wild locations in Asia, Africa and Central and South America to get eye-to-eye with some of the world’s most charismatic and mischievous monkeys. Amazing Monkeys premieres on Wednesday, June 14 at 8:00 on Smithsonian Channel.

- GSN, the leader in game shows and competitive entertainment, announced today the premiere of its newest game show, EMOGENIUS, hosted by Hunter March (AwesomenessTV). The show debuts Wednesday, June 14 at 9:00pm ET/PT (8pm CT) with back-to-back episodes.

- The most expansive aerial series in U.S. television history - Aerial America - is going global and local on Smithsonian Channel in all-new episodes, shot exclusively in 4k/Ultra High Definition. Having captured the stories of all 50 states in an epic seven-year journey, the landmark series now spends 24 hours in the life of New York City and takes viewers on bird’s eye adventures in Ireland and New Zealand, beginning Sunday, June 4 at 8:00.

- Showtime will debut More Than T, a timely documentary that depicts the daily lives of seven transgender and gender-nonconforming individuals on Friday, June 23 at 7:00. In celebration of Pride Month, SHOWTIME will make the documentary film available on the Showtime streaming service, Showtime On Demand® and Showtime Anytime® starting on June 1. The 50-minute film is directed by Silas Howard (Transparent, The Fosters) and is produced by M·A·C Cosmetics and its philanthropic arm, the M·A·C AIDS Fund, as part of the Transgender Initiative launched last year to support organizations and programs working to improve transgender lives across the country.

I Want My Music Television: 5/16/2017

Galway Girl - Ed Sheeran


Ed Sheeran only had blink and miss it in his early videos, but ever since dancing in his Thinking Out Loud video he has been front and center in all ofg them. I guess he is back to not wanting to be in front of the camera instead letting the camera stay focused on Saorse Ronan while he remains POV. I just wonder if those are actually his arms or someone put on fake tattoos.


Good Goodbye - LINKIN PARK feat. Pusha T & Stormzy


So is the new LINKIN PARK video supposed to be a dark version of NBA Jam or am I just seeing things where there are none because I love that game?


No Coffee – Amber Coffman


This video from Amber Coffman started sweet and fun enough, but ended up getting really weird.


Bon Appétit - Katy Perry feat. Migos


Speaking of getting weird quick, Katy Perry is mostly disgusting in this video.