Around the Tubes: April 10, 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 Shameless, Ziwe, Through the Night, Zac Brown Band, Emily Kinney, Of Monsters and Men, and Sex Appeal. 

- SHOWTIME announced a virtual farewell event open to all fans of the hit comedy series SHAMELESS on Sunday, April 11 at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT, immediately following the show’s final episode. The two-part experience, which will take place at GallagherHouse.com, will begin with a cast reunion. From reminiscing about how they earned their now-iconic roles to discussing what it was like to end an 11-season story, this marks the first time the cast will look back together at the hit series. Fans will also have the opportunity to virtually explore the beloved Gallagher home, which will remain available beyond the finale event. In addition to executive producer and showrunner John Wells, cast members confirmed for the event include Oscar^® nominee and Emmy^® and SAG Award winner William H. Macy, Jeremy Allen White, Ethan Cutkosky, Shanola Hampton, Steve Howey, Emma Kenney, Cameron Monaghan, Christian Isaiah, Noel Fisher and Kate Miner.

- SHOWTIME has released a first look at ZIWE, the new variety series starring and executive produced by Ziwe (DESUS & MERO^®, OUR CARTOON PRESIDENT). The series features interviews, musical numbers, guest stars, sketches and more – including unscripted and unpredictable interactions with everyday people. ZIWE will premiere on SHOWTIME on Sunday, May 9 at 11 p.m. ET/PT.

- American Documentary is proud to announce the national broadcast premiere of PBS alumnus Loira Limbal’s (Estilo Hip Hop) second feature documentary, Through the Night, premiering Monday, May 10, 2021 on PBS at 10 p.m. ET (check local listings) and at pov.org as part of the program's 33rd season. The film will also be available to stream for free at pov.org until June 10, 2021.  An official selection at the 2020 Tribeca Film Festival as well as at DOC NYC and AFI DOCS, Through the Night is an intimate cinema verité portrait of three working mothers whose lives intersect at a 24-hour daycare center in New Rochelle, New York: a mother working the overnight shift as an essential worker at a pediatric hospital; another holding down three jobs in order to support her family, and a woman who, for over two decades, has cared for the children whose parents have nowhere else to turn.  Watch the Trailer.

- Multi-platinum, Grammy Award-winning Zac Brown Band announced their first-ever livestream performance event from the renowned Southern Ground Studio in Nashville, TN on Saturday, May 8, 2021 at 9 PM Eastern / 8 PM Central, in partnership with Sessions Live.  The virtual event will feature live performances from the full band, as they revisit some of their greatest hits from the past two decades. The band will also share some exciting news with fans who tune in. The livestream available exclusively through Sessions Live, will be followed up by a VIP encore set, featuring storytelling from the band and a fun-filled, fan-sourced Q&A. The livestream will take place from Southern Ground Studio, owned by Zac Brown and the birthplaces of Kris Kristofferson's first three albums, Neil Young's Prairie Wind album, and many more from the legendary artists spanning across multiple genres.

- Jullian Records and actress/singer-songwriter Emily Kinney (The Walking Dead, Showtime’s Masters of Sex, ABC’s Ten Days In The Valley) are excited to announce the release of Kinney’s brand new full-length album titled The Supporting Character (stream and purchase). Staying busy this past year, Kinney took advantage of 2020’s endless days of social distancing and time at home to finish up one of her most personal albums to date. Produced by Benjamin Greenspan, The Supporting Character touches on themes of heartbreak, loss & grief, family history, her childhood in Nebraska, creativity and personal growth, and finds Kinney tackling difficult subjects with her trademark lyrical honesty. Stream the album in full on Spotify HERE.

- Just as the winter begins to fade and spring begins, Of Monsters and Men announce the release of “Destroyer” out today via Republic Records.  Stream “Destroyer” Here and view the lyric video HERE. 

- Emmy nominated comedian Margaret Cho (30 Rock, Law & Order SVU), Fortune Feimster (Yes Day, The Netflix Afterparty), Skai Jackson (Jessie), Rebecca Henderson (Russian Doll) and Paris Jackson (Gringo, Lee Daniels’ “Star”) have joined the cast of Hulu’s latest collaboration with American High, Sex Appeal. They join previously announced leads Mika Abdalla (Project Mc2) and Jake Short (All Night).  Talia Osteen (The Shabbos Goy) is directing from a script by Tate Hanyok (Transparent, Superstore), who is also executive producing.  Sex Appeal Logline: Avery Hansen-White doesn’t do things she isn’t excellent at. So when her long-distance boyfriend hints at wanting to take their relationship to the next level at the upcoming STEM conference (“nerd prom”), she sets out to master her sexuality. In this hilarious teen comedy, Avery begins to study the mechanics of love and realizes that relationships require less science and more heart.

57 Channels and Only This Is On: April 4, 2021

 

Shameless:  So Kev and V are moving?  Maybe the Gallagher’s are going to sell the house and scatter to the wind.  But I was expecting a fight between Lip and Mickey would be more epic.  I will say Franny putting stickers all over a priceless painting gave me one of the bigger laughs of the season.

 

The Walking Dead:  I was wrong that this was the season finale as there is another episode next week.  But maybe they should have just skipped this episode because who could possibly want to watch Carol trying to catch a rat for half the episode.  The Darryl half was not much better.

 

Good Girls:  I am glad Rio called out that the Secret Service would not try to wack him.  Beth giving him the hitman not the Secret Service certainly raised my eyebrow.  I guess maybe that plan works if Rio gets him while he was selling houses.  But I guess that begs the question, just what information did she give Rio?  Did she give Rio the cover story and then followed him to the look out?  I guess now the biggest question, does Rio suspect that Beth hired the hitman and used him to make the hitman go away?

 

Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist:  Probably the strongest episode of the season but still a weak slate of songs aside from Tainted Love.

 

Snowpiercer:  Well that was an anticlimactic race to take control of Snowpiercer in enough time to save Melanie since we know it failed.  But did it really take at least three days to separate the front of the train to go back for her?  And did they really need to freeze all those fish to do it?  Maybe it did take a while, otherwise how did Alex go from Big Alice all the way up to the front to separate so fast?  Just how long does it take to go 1,000 cars? 

So Melanie is dead?  I do have the long standing belief that no one is really dead until we see the body and we did not see the body.  Layton even looked inside the rat hole.  Where else could she possibly go without food or heat?  Unless that rat hole goes deeper.

 

Debris:  Evil dude seemed to let himself get caught too easily.  I wonder how fine he is with this.

 

Supergirl:  I did not remember any of that from last season: Brainiac 5 almost dying, Lex getting super powers, they found the anti-life equation, Andrea being poor now, Supergirl had hideous bangs.  I even forgot that reporter even existed until he popped up at the end.  But now Supergirl is in the Phantom Zone.  I feel like they already did this storyline.  I just realizes how hideous her bangs are while she is there.

 

The Challenge: Double Agents:  Okay, Nany picking Kyle was hilarious.  I wonder if she did that thinking he was the best partner or just out of spite knowing whoever she picked was almost guaranteed to go into elimination next week.  Though with only five dudes left, CT safe as Rouge Agent, unless you win next week, you have a sixty-six percent chance of going into elimination.  So not only Kyle, Cory probably really needs to win too.  Or do all the people Fessy screwed over vote for him?  I hope so.

 

The Challenge: All-Stars:  Wow, I forgot how great the personalities were in the early days of the Challenge.  Now it is just Nany and a bunch of annoying or boring people.  Jissella was someone I completely forgot about but she just came back spitting fire.  But I do fear for these contestants, one challenge in and half needed medical attention.  Then in elimination, Ace just kept on getting picked up and slammed down like he was a wrestler.  Production needs to remember these are mostly people in their forties.  Someone is going to break a hip.  Maybe do some weird challenges like back in the day?

 

Made For Love:  I really did not need to see Ray Romano fork a sex doll.

 

Manifest:  Yet another show that I barely remember.  But I guess those guys at the end were the dudes who fell through the ice but their bodies were never found.

 

The Falcon and the Winter Soldier:  Sharon Carter cannot possibly be the power Broker, can she?  She defied her government to do the right things than five years later she is living lavishly, commissioning super soldier experiments?  There has to be more to this story and all that teasing is just a red herring.  But really, all I really needed from this episode was the two seconds of Zemo dancing.

 

The Blacklist:  You would think after Lizzie broke out that one criminal earlier this season, the task force would have instituted stronger security.  Yet Park was easily able to slip him the note without anyone noticing it.  She looks like a pretty small person, was she really able to block what she was doing, especially when he started waving the note around?  Do they not record sound?  Someone should really be fired for this lax security.