Around the Tubes: March 13, 2021

    

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 Genius: Aretha, Molly Burman, bülow, Emlyn, The Weeknd, Mother/Android, and Ripley.

- Following this week’s multi-city, drive-in premieres for National Geographic’s upcoming anthology series, Genius: Aretha, Rhino today released a new cover of the classic “Chain Of Fools” from the show’s cast as a digital single on all digital download and streaming services. Click HERE to listen now.  One of Aretha Franklin’s signature songs, this new version features the cast of Genius: Aretha, which stars Double Oscar® Nominee Cynthia Erivo as the Queen of Soul. The original version was released in November 1967 as a single and appeared a few months later on Franklin’s third album for Atlantic Records, 1968’s Lady Soul. The song won the 1969 Grammy® Award for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance and was inducted into Grammy® Hall of Fame in 2001.

- North London breakout talent Molly Burman has shared her debut proper single, "Fool Me With Flattery", an immediately melodic song that fleets between sharp, literate jangle-pop and the homespun, eclectic bedroom pop sound of the here and now. Listen and watch its accompanying video HERE.  Molly says about the themes behind the single: "I wrote the song after a long day of feeling overlooked and ignored by some of the guys in my life. I was fed up, angry and used the stereotype of a mansplaining misogynist to let it all out. This song is for anyone who feels belittled and like they’re being made to shrink themselves; be as big as you possibly can, and don’t let anyone fool you with flattery!"

- Alternative pop singer and songwriter bülow shares the official music video for new single “First Place.”  The bop is instantly stuck in your head, “we were never friends in the first place, so why you tryna be my friend now?” Watch the official music video HERE via Republic Records and Universal Music Canada.

- Los Angeles-based singer-songwriter Emlyn returns with her third single “a thousand parties,” co-written and produced by Mike Robinson who was nominated for a GRAMMY for co-producing Katie Pruitt's "Expectations." Emlyn’s “a thousand parties” is a pounding anthem of pure pop confection that is amped and ready to find love. However, with this song Emlyn admits that she herself has never been truly in love. Instead, the song is inspired by the glitz and excitement that come with the often fictionalized tales of love like that of “The Great Gatsby.”  LISTEN / SHARE “A THOUSAND PARTIES”  “Having never been in love and watched many relationships around me fall apart growing up, as I got older I always tried to be really in tune to the healthy and beautiful relationships around me. I would try to take notes or “study up” in hopes that I might find one myself some day,” says Emlyn. 

- Exceeding yet another impressive benchmark, diamond-selling Toronto artist The Weeknd’s smash single “Blinding Lights” has again broken chart records spending its 52^nd week in the top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100. It becomes the first song in the history of the chart (which began Aug. 4, 1958) to spend a full year's time in the top 10. 

- Hulu Acquires U.S. Rights to Miramax Sci-Fi Thriller Mother/Android.  The film, starring Chloë Grace Moretz and directed by Mattson Tomlin, will debut as a Hulu Original Film in 2021.  Set in the near future, MOTHER/ANDROID follows Georgia (Chloë Grace Moretz) and her boyfriend Sam (Algee Smith) through their treacherous journey of escape as their country is caught in an unexpected war with artificial intelligence. Days away from the arrival of their first child, they must face No Man’s Land – a stronghold of the android uprising, in hopes of reaching safety before giving birth.  

- SHOWTIME has announced that Dakota Fanning (Once Upon a Time in Hollywood) will join the new drama series RIPLEY, based on Patricia Highsmith’s bestselling quintet of Tom Ripley novels. Fanning will play Marge Sherwood, an American living in Italy who suspects darker motives underlie Tom's affability. She joins Emmy and Golden Globe nominee Andrew Scott (Fleabag, Sherlock) who stars in the title role of Tom Ripley, and Johnny Flynn (Beast) as Dickie Greenleaf. Oscar and Golden Globe^® winner and Emmy^® nominee Steven Zaillian (Schindler’s List, The Night Of) will write and direct the entire first season. Production will start later this year in Italy.  In the series, Tom Ripley, a grifter scraping by in early 1960s New York, is hired by a wealthy businessman to travel to Italy to try to convince his vagabond son to return home. Tom's acceptance of the job is the first step into a complex life of deceit.

57 Channels and Only This Is On: March 7, 2021

 

The Walking Dead:  So Maggie has just been traveling around the country the last couple years with a small child and now has someone named Pope stalking her whose own followers have no problem blowing things up?  They really could have done a much better job reintroducing her, like, how about some flashbacks?  I had to look up who that Georgie who Maggie kept referencing who turned out to be someone who appeared in one episode three years ago.  Was I really supposed to remember that?  I barely remember what happened in the last season.

 

Snowpiercer:  So we finally got to see the genesis of Snowpiercer.  Though it looks like we may have to wait a little longer for some of the pieces like how did Wilfred find Jennifer Connelly’s kid, what happened to the red of her family, and where did the other train come from?  Granted the biggest question from this episode is what does Connelly do now?  I guess go back to the station is the only option.  But then what?  There is only a limited amount of rats and she really does not have the time for them to procreate.  I do have a theory that Wilfred somehow sabotaged the communication (he did seem surprised that she even made it to the research center) and maybe next episode someone will fix it.  Really the only other option is for Snowpiercer to loop around and send a rescue team after her.  Just how mvny of those space suits do they have on board?

 

Debris:  The show seemed like someone watched that post-Avengers Marvel One Shot where Lizzy Caplain found the alien technology and SHIELD hunted her down and thought to themselves, how can we make a show like this but make it significantly less fun.  But I really enjoyed how these federal agents know that this stuff can make people fall through ten floors or float unconsciously one foot off the ground, but when they saw the big ball, both just stood next to it for a while and even touched some of the stuff floating around it. But I will be watching every episode.

 

The Challenge: Double Agents:  Well, I was wrong.  But in my defense, a Security Breach surely sounds like someone coming back into the game when they use the term to bring Smashley back.  Not sure how a double elimination is also breaching security.  But I did get the easiest prediction ever to make right, that CT was going to win and dump Big T, we were promised Big T admonishing CT for lying to her a coupe previews ago.  What I could not predict is just how childish CT would be about it.  Wow, where did that come from?  But hey, at least CT booted Josh who hopefully we will never have to see again, and that also lead to the unintentional comedy of Kyle going to go back to Nany with his tale between his legs.

The Real World Homecoming: New York:  With Eric coming down with COVID it became pretty clear that maybe it was not the best idea to do this during a pandemic (though I guess making sure everyone is stuck in the loft for the full six days may be a good side effect) especially if the thirtieth anniversary is next year.  It is weird seeing these people back like this after so long.  I do wonder if they will do reunions for other seasons.  But things could get sticky quick, David was kicked out of the Los Angeles season (and would later quit The Challenge) and Irene also left after getting married and both were replaced.  Do you just bring back the originals or all nine (that would go against the trademark "seven strangers").  Do you bring back David at all?  San Francisco is even trickier.  Pedro is dead and Puck was kicked out (and also quit The Challenge, but was not kicked off the show for spitting in David's face, the early 00's were a much less cancel happy time).  The next couple seasons then feature somewhat successful actress Jacina Barrett and former Congressman Sean Duffy who married San Francisco's Rachel whom he met on the an "all star" season of Road Rules which pretty much launched what is now called The Challenge.  Would they do a season i not everyone shows up (again, that would run afoul of the whole "seven strangers " thing)  I would certainly watch any future seasons...

Well, maybe.  I am not thrilled with Paramount Plus.  First off, that is a stupid name.  I will from here forth call it The Mount.  I am shocked beyond belief that there is nowhere you can save shows or movies.  That seems like the most obvious feature every streaming service should have.  Not that they have much of a selection to save anyway, I think I only earmark three shows and three movie I even have just a passing interest in.  But at least they have the NWSL.  Thanks to the half-off deal for a year, I am basically just paying $2.50 a month and I am not sure it is even worth that.  The Mount is at the bottom of my streaming services power rakings, even below Peacock, a services I just used the free version of.  The Mount will have to stick their game if they expect me to pay full price next year.  Seriously, at least give me a Beavis and/or Butt-Head avatar.

 

Wandavision:  So all the shock and theory of the X-Men version of Quicksilver showing up just ended up being a vehicle to make a Boner Stabone reference?  That was really cheap.  So was Kat Denning showing up for a minute, ramming evil S.W.O.R.D. dude and then being, peace out, I don’t do debriefs.  Kind of a meh of a finale that really pulls down what was a creative show for seven episode.   

 

The Blacklist:  I am glad they revealed fake Lizzy early because it is was pretty obvious they were hiding her face for a reason.  And fake Lizzie was pretty lucky that the FBI have not bothered to change their codes despite one of their agents going rouge.  But is there a reason why Lizzie has not been in the last couple episodes?  They have gone out of the way not having her on screen for a couple episodes now.