Quote of the Week: Dan, somebody’s going to have to stick their finger up your butt and I think we’d both prefer it to be Jillian. (Dr. Sands, Mercy)
Song of the Week: Informer – Snow (How I Met Your Mother)
Big News of the Week: TV at Great Prices: To avoid having to talk about Tiger Woods again, I have moved the Deal of the Week up because Amazon is currently is having a TV on DVD sale with sets at the lowest I have ever seen anywhere. Here are some shows that I highly recommend that should please any television fan on your Christmas list, or just want it for yourself (click here for the full list of almost 300 deals, and not these prices are only for a limited time and most of the series sets have equally low individual seasons):
The Big Bang Theory: Always a good episode whenever there is a heavy dose of Penny and Sheldon interaction and Sheldon teaching Penny physics that failed as bad as I expected (hopefully there is an upcoming episode where Penny tries to teach Sheldon something which on paper should be even funnier). You can download The Big Bang Theory on iTunes.
Castle: The last time I wrote about this show I complained how whenever an actor I know shows up I instantly figure out they are the killer. And wouldn’t you know it, this episode had two (Riley Finn, the second Buffy alum in a row, and Shawn Hunter) and neither turned out to do the crime. You can stream recent episodes on Hulu. You can also download Castle on iTunes. Also be sure to check out my chat with Stana Katic.
Mercy: I liked at her Veterans meeting, everyone else there looked disheveled and dressing one step above a homeless person, but Ronnie struts in looking absurdly hot in a designer coat. Gotta love television. You can stream recent episodes on Hulu. You can also download Mercy on iTunes.
Real World-Road Rules Challenge: The Ruins: Well that sucked. How can you go so slow on the balance stage that five people can pass you, even after falling off and having a one stage lead. Hopefully the show puts a moratorium on inviting Kenny, Evan and Johnny because they have made their last couple challenges lame. You can stream recent episodes over at mtv.com. You can also download Real World-Road Rules Challenge: The Ruins on iTunes.
Survivor: Samoa: Now that is balls. Russell pulls out the hidden immunity idol and puts it around his neck and then doesn’t even play it. They should have voted him out just for that. They should do more of these double eliminations (with two separate tribal and immunity challenges instead of the two for ones like they have done in the past) as it can beat the doldrums that some of the later episodes have in a season when there are fewer people around. You can stream recent episodes over at cbs.com.
Community: That may have been the greater brawl in the history of television and almost as gay as the one my high school production of West Side Story, where I played Hispanic #3, staged. And yes you read my role right, I didn’t go to the most diverse school in the country. You can stream current episodes on Hulu. You can also download Community on iTunes.
Free Download of the Week: Holiday Sampler (iTunes): Last week I pointed you to Amazon’s 25 Days of Christmas Music and now iTunes if getting in the giving spirit with this twenty song sampler featuring holiday cheer from Weezer, Sarah McLachlan, Musiq Soulchild, Barry Manilow, and Stephan Colbert. Yes Stephan Colbert singing Another Christmas Song (that’s the title of the song).
Video of the Week: It is disappointed that Adam Sandler didn’t put out a proper video for any of his three versions of The Chanukah Song, but this Neil Diamond version more than makes up for it. Here’s hoping Neil gets around to recording the full trilogy.
Next Week Pick of the Week: Survivor, Thursday at 8:00 on CBS: Thanks to Russell, this season started out very exciting, but thanks to the ineptitude of Galu, it went downhill after the merge as none of them realized that Russell was getting them to vote out their own until they realized that they no longer had the majority. Hopefully Jaison and/or Mick wise up and we get some fireworks in the final two episodes and not just lie down and let Russell walk away with a million dollars.
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 Califiornication, Big Love, Chuck, Parenthood, and Life After Film School.
- Today at 3:00 (Noon PT), log onto sho.com to chat with Californication star David Duchovany about this Sunday’s season three finale which sees the return of Madeline Zima.
- It’s that time of the year and even the folks of Juniper Creek are getting into the Christmas spirit with their own eight song album of holiday classics. Head over to HBO.com to download them and listen to them in the widget below. And don’t forget Big Love season four starting up January 10 at 9:00 (and for those of you like me and catching it on DVD, season three is being released January 5).
- Here is a five minute “Super Preview” of Chuck (also premiere in January 10 at 9:00)featuring interviews with the cast. If that is not enough Chuck for you, TVGuide.com has an interview with Zach Levi.
- Parenthood was relegated to midseason to give time to recast Lauren Graham on the show and here is a first look at her on the show coming sometime after the Olympics finish:
- In other NBC news, NBC.com is getting into the Christmas spirit letting stream popular shows during the holidays. Look below for details:
All the episodes of the current seasons of Heroes, Trauma and Mercy are online! 30 Rock – Every 9 days, 3 more episodes from Season 4 will go live between December 11 and January 14 The Office – Every 9 Days, 3 more episodes from Season 5 go live between December 11 and January 21 Chuck – Starting now, 5 episodes from Season 2 will go live every 13 days until the January 10 premiere of Season 3
- Coming this Sunday to Fox Movie Channel on their Life After Film School show is Avatar producer, Jon Landau.
There have been a couple of videos that have caught my eye lately so I thought I’d give them some love since the death of Musical Television left a void for a forum on the art form. If you are interested in buying the video through iTunes, click the title link (where available). If you are interested in buying the song, look for a link in the analysis.
Adam Sandler once famously proclaimed “Bob Dylan was born a Jew, then he wasn’t and now he’s back.” And now for his first holiday album, Bob Dylan is saluting the patron saint of Christmas in this odd song (he inexplicitly slices recent US presidents with reindeer names) with an even weirder video where, for reason only Dylan knows, he wears a stringy wig. Someone needs to keep off the eggnog.
The Killers are also ready for Christmas with their new festive, albeit south of the border, tune. Complete with a video, half that looks like outtakes from the When We Were Young video featuring a bearded Luke Perry look-a-like, the other half looks like outtakes from a Mexican horror film. Feliz Navidad.
This video reminds me of the classic age of music videos when all of them had vague narratives that morph into a performance piece in some non descript area that really has nothing to do with the song. And I couldn’t stop laughing at their movements and especially David Gray’s weird mouth thing. It is too bad this won’t get enough attation because there could have been a decent SNL spoof here (the video is funnier than any Digital Short in recent memory).
In a story I broke Tuesday, Snoop Dogg has a new album out (see: Boss Dogg Chilin, Lookin Like a Million) and this is really the only song worth listening to. And it looks like Snoop wants to add superhero to his already long list of extra-curricular activities.
Feed Your iPod was created to highlight songs that may not have been hits, or even released as singles, but deserve a much bigger audience. And now I have posted enough for a second CD. Of course Feed Your iPod is just a catchy title and any of these can be for any mp3 devise, just your computer and now you can make a CD out of them as the first set comes in at 78:57. You can even help create volume three by emailing me (or use the comment section) song suggestions and a short description on way everyone should have it on their iPod for me to post. Click the links below to be taken to iTunes or the Amazon MP3 widet at the bottom where you can sample the songs or use the label function to scroll through what I had to say about these songs when I originally posted about them and full song previews.
Sometimes it hard to remember that Snoop Dogg still raps with all his acting, reality show, porn producing, wrestling enthusiast, product pitcher, Steelers and UFC cheerleader, and just general celebrity. It is hard to remember because despite releasing nine albums (six solo, three collaborations) this decade, he has only amassed one massive hit. And if you think about it, Snoop has had more hits being featured on a Dr. Dre track then ones credited to Snoop himself.
So it is not surprising on his tenth solo outing Malice N Wonderland, the best song on the set is the one that was produced by Dre. I Wanna Rock takes the intro from the seminal rap classic It Takes Two by D.J. EZ Rock and Rob Base and loops it into its own beat and turns the first three words by Rob Base into the hook to great effects even if Snoop shouts out Michael Vick who you would think would be the nemesis of the Doggfather. Though the only other producer who seems to get the best out of Snoop, Pharrell of the Neptunes, contribute to the album the slow jam Special featuring Brandy.
Other guest fall flat too, Soulja Boy Tell ‘em continues to suck massively with his auto-tune abusing Pronto with stupid lyrics like “I don’t freestyle because my rhymes aren’t free.” Lil’ John is resurrected from obscurity for 1800 that sounds like every other song he has ever produced. The-Dream, whoever that is, for some reason gets two spots (both of which he produced) on the album but also drowns his voice in unnecessary auto-tune which just makes the tracks worthless. Old schooler Kokain appears on Secrets which feature a sample Talking in Your Sleep by The Romantics that rivels anything by Puff Daddy has done for lamest 80’s sample ever.
The one guest spot that does actually work is by someone who doesn’t need any auto-tune R. Kelly (who recently released his own album that I won’t be reviewing because it didn’t feature any new chapters of Trapped in the Closet) on Pimpin Ain’t EZ which sounds like a fun extension of That’s That. But much like every album since Doggystyle, there is no reason to buy Malice N Wonderland in whole, just cherry pick the few good tracks and hope Snoop wises up and gets Dre to produce his whole album next time.
A warning to men younger than a certain age, watching Men of a Certain Age can feel like getting a visit from the Ghost of Christmas Future. The three lead characters pushing fifty act as worst case scenarios for those of us in the twenty or thirties. There is Ray Romano (Ice Age), recently separated, living in a hotel and has resigned to a life of gambling additions. Andre Braugher (The Mist) manages to have a loving marriage, but that barely makes up for his expanding gut, receding hairline, and the lack of respect that comes along with working at his dad’s dealership. Scott Backula (Quantum Leap) is the playboy of the bunch that has to come to terms with his dream of being a successful actor just isn’t going to happen.
The three college buddies routinely get together to hike, eat and talk about things I fear will happen to me, the copious amounts of creams and pills that need to be taken, working in a dead end job, the prospects of dating in your fifties (granted Ray’s first date is the best episode of the early batch), basically everything I do not want to happen to me, these guys are going through, and it is extremely depressing to watch.
Oddly enough, the most entertaining characters on Men of a Certain Age are the background characters, not the three man one. Another of the better episodes include when Ray spends the night hanging out with his bookie that is always good for some comic relief throughout the early episode. Same goes for his employees at his party supply store and the token white guy who works with Braugher. But they are still not enough of a distraction for men of a younger age who fear of turning into Men of a Certain Age.
Men of a Certain Age airs Mondays at 10:00 on TNT and is preceded by new episodes of The Closer at 9:00.
Quote of the Week: Like, I grew up watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer and I practiced these moves. I actually have a shot at this. (Casey Cooper, Real World/Road Rules Challenge: The Ruins)
Song of the Week: Girlfriend – Matthew Sweet (Trauma)
Big News of the Week: Tiger Woods: When Tiger Woods crashed his car in a post Thanksgiving romp, I could care less and though all the losers refreshing TMZ for updates needed to find something better to do with their time. He didn’t hurt anyone (except himself), he wasn’t drunk, he could easily pay for any damage. As a wise man once said, he didn’t kill nobody, he didn’t rape nobody. We all make mistake, just let him be.
But all that changed when it came out that one of Tiger’s alleged mistresses was one that appeared on Tool Academy. And not even one of the hot chicks. And the irony being that is was the one that stormed off the show when her Tool’s other girlfriend showed up. Apparently she doesn’t mind being the other woman when the dude is loaded. And just when you thought it couldn’t get better, she went on to say that Tiger had a fear that he would walk in on her having sex with Derik Jeter or, wait for it… David Boreanaz. Seriously, the dude from Angel. I don’t even fear walking in on my mistress hooking up with him. This is just the story that keeps on giving.
Now if you excuse me, I have to find something better to do with my life.
Trauma: Holy E.B. Farnum sighting! It took me awhile to recognize him without the stringy hair. You can stream recent episodes on Hulu. You can also download Trauma on iTunes.
Sons of Anarchy: Well that was excited. Sure there were some loose ends I would have liked for them to tie up, but it is hard to complain about the finale. You can stream recent episodes on Hulu. You can also download Sons of Anarchy on iTunes.
Real World-Road Rules Challenge: The Ruins: It is always a sad day when Casey goes home. She is easily the most entertaining reality star MTV has produced this decade even if she participates on a competition show with zero physical prowess. With that said I hope she is on every Challenge for the foreseeable future. You can stream recent episodes over at mtv.com. You can also download Real World-Road Rules Challenge: The Ruins on iTunes.
Survivor: Samoa: Has anyone ever been blindsided more in a season without being the one voted off than Shambo. This is about the fifth time she has been as shocked as the person going home at the outcome of the votes. But Galu will go down as the worst tribe in the history of the show. How do you go into a merge doubling the other tribe and let them vote four of yours straight to make the numbers even? With Shambo on the outs of both tribe, should make for an interesting vote this week. You can stream recent episodes over at cbs.com.
Free Download of the Week: 25 Days of Free Christmas Music (Amazon MP3): Amazon is getting into the spirit of giving this holiday season by giving away a new song every day up until Christmas. And for those that missed the first week, each song stays free up until Christmas.
Deal of the Week: Top Holiday Deals: Still looking for a good Christmas gift, Amazon has great deals every hour until it is too late for the gifts to get shipped by Christmas.
Video of the Week: When I released my list of The 100 Hottest Hot Chicks of the 00’s, Rachel Bilson nearly split the list at 51. But that was before the nude scene from an upcoming movie of hers was leaked and surprisingly after seeing this, not only would it not put her higher on my list, but I am not sure if she would even make it if I were to redo it now. Check out the behind the scenes footage to see why (obviously not safe for work):
Next Week Pick of the Week: Men of a Certain Age, Monday at 10:00 on TBS: Look for a full review of the show coming tomorrow.
If you remember back when I asked some of my buddies what The Best New Shows of Fall 2009 were, a couple more recently shared their ballots if you are interested on how the list took shape.
of almost 300 deals, and not these prices are only for a limited time and most of the series sets have equally low individual seasons):
, the best song on the set is the one that was produced by Dre. I Wanna Rock takes the intro from the seminal rap classic It Takes Two by 
) on Pimpin Ain’t EZ which sounds like a fun extension of That’s That. But much like every album since Doggystyle, there is no reason to buy Malice N Wonderland in whole, just cherry pick the few good tracks and hope Snoop wises up and gets Dre to produce his whole album next time.![Terror Alert Level: Guarded [BLUE]](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzCbHfExiuXqojow1zxkBUX6j-9BHg9IyrfzqR77jnja2Xq6dbv-7iiqMFzp_UKXGcUF9FyAHqCkNxa5uitXa5Xu2Q1OboN9-TLjsaeI1a2eoGLORU4vkTQ54l1C-_cZyn81QHyQ/s400/small_guarded.png)
on my 
), recently separated, living in a hotel and has resigned to a life of gambling additions. Andre Braugher (
) manages to have a loving marriage, but that barely makes up for his expanding gut, receding hairline, and the lack of respect that comes along with working at his dad’s dealership. Scott Backula (
) is the playboy of the bunch that has to come to terms with his dream of being a successful actor just isn’t going to happen.
and I practiced these moves. I actually have a shot at this. (Casey Cooper, Real World/Road Rules Challenge: The Ruins)
. I don’t even fear walking in on my mistress hooking up with him. This is just the story that keeps on giving.