Around the Tubes: 10/6/2017

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 Future Man, Johnny Cash, Elton John, Seal, Belly, new Hulu acquisitions, Ill Behaviour, Secrets of the Underground, No Bombings in Beirut, What on Earth?, Black Sabbath: The End of the End, Entre Nos: Part 1, and Let’s Make a Deal.

- Check out the official trailer for Hulu's upcoming comedy series Future Man starring Josh Hutcherson! All episodes premiere Tuesday, Nov. 14 only on Hulu. Thank you!


- In the last decade of a career that spanned half a century, Johnny Cash capped off his musical legend with a breathtaking final act, recording a series of raw, stripped-down albums with producer Rick Rubin. Those albums reestablished Cash as a vital artist, while adding a remarkable closing chapter to his incredible body of work. Available November 3, the Unearthed vinyl box features a pair of cloth-bound books housed in an LP-sized black cloth slipcase. One book holds the nine LPs, while the other is a gorgeous 60-page coffee table book that incorporates Sylvie Simmons' extensive liner notes, drawn from five days of interviews at Cash's home in Tennessee, as well as Cash and Rubin's comments on every song on the set, plus a copious selection of photographs from the recording sessions, including some of the last photos ever taken of Cash. Preorder Unearthed now.

- Elton John today announces the forthcoming release of ‘Diamonds.’ Released on November 10th through UMe, ‘Diamonds’ is the ultimate greatest hits collection from Elton John and will be available on 1CD, 2CD, 3CD limited edition boxset, 2LP heavy-weight gatefold vinyl and digital formats. Kicking off with the ever-stunning ‘Your Song,’ this definitive collection brings together all the landmark hits of one of the greatest song books of all time, including ‘Tiny Dancer,’ ‘Rocket Man (I Think It’s Going To Be A Long, Long Time),’ ‘Candle In The Wind,’ ‘Don’t Go Breaking My Heart,’ ‘Sacrifice,’ ‘Can You Feel The Love Tonight.’

- Today, British soul legend Seal releases new song “I’ve Got You Under My Skin” from upcoming album Standards available November 10 via Republic Records. An artist who’s been at the top of his game throughout his 30-year career, Seal’s 10th studio album breathes life into iconic hits, paying tribute to legends including Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald and Nina Simone. Listen to “I’ve Got You Under My Skin” HERE.

- 90's alt-rock group Belly are back - hitting the studio for the first time in more than twenty years for their third album, NameTBD. Through their exclusive PledgeMusic pre-order campaign, launching today, the beloved band is inviting fans to take part in their creative process with sneak peeks into the studio, limited-edition merchandise, special experiences, and much more. Fans can pre-order the album in digital, CD, or vinyl form now on Belly's campaign page. The leaders in direct-to-fan platforms, PledgeMusic allows artists to get more personal with their fans, offering pledgers behind-the-scenes content and items not available anywhere else.

- Hulu announced a new agreement with the Disney-ABC Television Group for the exclusive U.S. subscription video-on-demand rights to all episodes of iconic sitcoms Boy Meets World, Home Improvement and Dinosaurs. The deal will mark the long-awaited SVOD debut of the complete libraries of hit series Boy Meets World and Home Improvement. In addition, all episodes of fan favorite Dinosaurs, from The Jim Henson Company, will also become available to stream in SVOD exclusively on Hulu. All titles will begin streaming on Hulu September 29th. The series will join hundreds of episodes of previously announced hit shows from America’s favorite Friday night lineup from the 1990s on Hulu – including Full House, Family Matters, Step by Step, Perfect Strangers and Hangin’ with Mr. Cooper – and the agreement will make Hulu the exclusive subscription streaming home to the largest collection of series from the original “TGIF” lineup with the addition of Boy Meets World and Dinosaurs. All series launch exclusively on the service beginning September 29th, just in time for the 30th Anniversary of Full House and the 25th Anniversary of Hangin’ with Mr. Cooper.

- Showtime has acquired the BBC series Ill Behaviour, a six-part comedy thriller about the boundaries of friendship and the lengths taken to preserve it. Starring Chris Geere (You’re the Worst), Lizzy Caplan (MASTERS OF SEX) and Tom Riley (DaVinci’s Demons), Ill Behaviour focuses on Joel (Geere) who uses any methods, conventional or otherwise, to save Charlie (Riley) when Charlie announces that he is abandoning chemotherapy treatment for his cancer. Written by Sam Bain (Peep Show) and directed by Steve Bendelack (Friday Night Dinner), Ill Behaviour makes its Showtime debut on Monday, November 13 at 10:30.

- Using cutting-edge technology to investigate and uncover the world’s most fascinating subterranean mysteries, the Science Channel series Secrets of the Underground, is set to return for a second season. Explorer, adventurer biologist and tech fanatic Rob Nelson and his new co-host, geophysicist Stefan Burns, will dig deep into some of the world’s most notorious underground legends including the long-rumored Nazi Gold Train, America’s Atlantis, the Lost Temple of Jerusalem, Nikola Tesla’s buried master plans, and more. The new season, featuring eight one-hour episodes, premieres Saturday, October 28 at 10:00.

- From the man who pioneered stand-up comedy in the Middle East, Nemr: No Bombings in Beirut is a unique comedy event like no other, premiering Saturday, October 7 at 11:00 on Showtime. Filmed both in Lebanon and in the United States, No Bombings in Beirut is an hour of uproarious comedy that will leave viewers inspired as they witness the refreshing reality of a world they were told never existed. Journeying from his early days in the U.S. to his later years in Lebanon, Nemr touches on childhood, family, relationships, religion, war and the power of perspective while being able to laugh at our shared experiences. As Nemr explains, “We are at our finest when our paths cross.”


- Thousands of satellites orbit Earth, capturing images of our planet in unprecedented detail and revealing areas that have, until now, remained a mystery. These images, used by platforms like Google Earth, have uncovered baffling new structures and phenomena, many of which defy explanation. Science Channel’s top rated series What on Earth? uses state-of-the-art imaging technology, expert analysis from leading scientists, and hands-on investigation to search for answers to these mysteries. What on Earth? returns for its fourth season on Tuesday, October 17th at 9:00.

- Showtime will air Black Sabbath: The End of the End, a film showcasing Black Sabbath’s final concert, making its world television premiere Saturday, October 28 at 9:00. Black Sabbath: The End of the End captures the farewell performance by the Grammy®-winning band’s Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi and Geezer Butler in their hometown of Birmingham, England on February 4 at the Genting Arena – the culmination of their 81-date sold-out “The End” world tour.

- Riding on the success of Entre Nos: Part 1, comedians Vladimir Caamaño, Frankie Quiñones and Shayla Rivera will take the stage in the 30-minute stand-up comedy show Entre Nos: Part 2 when it premieres on Friday, October 13th at 9:30 exclusively on HBO LATINO®. In the hilarious English-Language special, the three comedians are joined by host and comedian Ben Gonzalez at Los Angeles’ El Portal Theatre for a laugh-out-loud night of stand-up. Directed by Joke Yanes and Adolfo Nowake, Entre Nos: Part 2 will air across all of the channel’s platforms including HBO NOW®, HBO GO®, HBO On Demand® and affiliate portals.

- GSN announced earlier it will celebrate the work of TV icon Monty Hall with a 6-hour marathon of Let’s Make a Deal on Sunday, October 8, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. ET.

I Want My Music Television: 10/2/2017

You’re the Best Thing About Me – U2


The last time U2 walked around the city streets of an American city, I Still Havn’t Found What I’m Looking For in Las Vegas, that felt epic. Three decades later, walking around the streets of New York City just seems mostly boring.


Selfish Love – Jessie Ware


I really dig this song by Jessie Ware, it gives me a very early Sade vibe to it.


Stand by My Girl - Dan Auerbach


Should I know who Ellia Sophia or JD Wilkes is? She kind of looks like Lili Simmons while he looks like Cochran from Survivor. Otherwise I am not sure while either gets a “starring” credit in ta Dan Auerbach music video.


Lift – Radiohead


Lift is off Radiohead’s OK Computer rerelease and the video feels like something out of the ninties (right down to the rectangular screen.

57 Channels and Only This Is On: 10/1/2017

Ray Donovan: Oh Darryl, you clearly are the dumbest Donovan. I take it Micky s going to put the body with the dead sensei in what may turn out to be Dexter situation. Those Donovan’s do like to take down west coast FBI heads. I wonder when they take on the overall head. Although I guess the current head is busy with the president doing illegal and crazy things. Then we got a big bombshell in the Abbie situation, she actually committed suicide because of the pain and for a brief second we were lead to believe Bridget provided the drugs, instead Terry admitted he was the one. And not surprisingly Ray punched him out.

The Challenge: Dirty 30: People falling from high heights is never not entertaining. But why were there so many shocked people at the end when we learn Nelson was not coming back. Dude punched Derek (and then bizarrely said check the tapes claiming Derrek approached him first which clearly did not happen). What I was shocked was TJ asking CT who he was picking to go into elimination. And then they ended the show before he answered. I hate when they do that. I do fear that they will go through the vote, maybe even the Double Cross before saying, “just kidding, no guy elimination because of Nelson.”
You can download The Challenge: Dirty 30 on iTunes.

Survivor: Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers: The Idol Train last season was one of the worst moments in the history of the show. Just not according to Jeff Probst who spent the summer telling people how much he loved it. He was either lying or all the criticism got to him because, yeah, we got an advantage right out the gate, but it was not the silly Legacy Advantage, it was a first Tribal only Super Idol. And if the finder does not go to the first Tribal, they can pass it to someone who does. When turtleneck nerd was safe, puking chick seemed obvious.

What was also obvious was with an ad right before Tribal, something big was going to happen. Whenever that occurs, someone quits, gets medically removed, or last season, the Zeke outing Tribal. Except puking chick ended up voted with the majority to get rid of who looked to be her only real ally. Either a stupid move or the editors did some very fishy editing to completely throw the viewer off the scent, something that happened way too many times last season too. Kind of an ominous start to the season for me.
You can download Survivor: Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers on iTunesr.

The Blacklist: Wait, to rebuild his evil empire, Red has employed two carneys? And why not take down the racist drug cartel and take their money? Or are they saving that for later in the season. But I have to admit, I like the bare bones version of Red’s operation. I hope it takes a while for him to rebuild his empire.
You can download The Blacklist on iTunes.

The Good Place: Please let us get a full episode of Real Eleanor’s version and not have it be just part of a montage like this week. If we are lucky, the rest of the season will be the foursome and Michael teaming up against the Real Eleanor. I was a little disappointed that the version with Eleanor’s soulmate being Tahani and a Golden Retriever were just part of the montage. Those could have been full episodes in themselves too.
You can download The Good Place on iTunes.

Gotham: I thought they were holding Barbara back last week because there was going to be some big return. Nope, it turns out after being electrocuted all she has been doing is stockpiling weapons and the only lasting change was a new unflattering hairstyle. I thought for sure she would rise like a phoenix out of the electrocution as something else, like Harley Quinn whom they have been teasing ever since Barbara was kidnapped a few seasons ago. Even more disappointing the lady villains would not let Poison Ivy play in their reindeer games; she was the most entertaining part of the second part of last season. Hopefully they find her something to do.
You can download Gotham on iTunes.

Marvel’s Inhumans: Very few things live up to the hype these days, and on the flip side, things tend not to be as bad as people say because they tend to just be piling on. Inhumans is one of the rare exceptions. Boy, was that a flaming pile of dog shirt. First off, the Royal Family has to have some of the lamest superpowers ever. The king can kill with his voice so he just does not talk. Instead he does a moron’s version of ASL. Then his wife, Medusa, can kill you with her hair which is a way too on the nose name. I guess it could be worse, since she had her hair cut off, they could have named her Samson. She has a hot sister, but they ruin her hair with weird symbols in it. I am not entirely sure what is up with her powers other than it looks like she can shoot something out of her fingers. More confusing was the Asian dude. He can turn back time? Then the head of the Royal Guard, who did not know his subordinates were part of a coup, just has hooves for feet. Even worse is the little brother who has nothing and is basically just Loki in a story we have seen before, done better with a bigger budget. Marvel was doing really well with their shows, SHIELD was improving, Daredevil and Luke Cage were solid, Jessica Jones was great, but since then Iron Fist was bad and Inhumans looks to be worth, and next month’s Runaways does not have a strong start either. Hopefully Squirrel Girl can save Marvel television shows.
Marvel's Inhumans on iTunes.