One of the main reasons Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip failed was too many complained that the fake Saturday Night Live show’s skits just were not funny. And that seems to hinder most shows focusing on the entertainment industry. Nashville in seasons years has yet to produce a hit in the real world as big as they pretend they are on the show. I thought Showtime solved this problem last year with Roadies where we never actually got to hear any new material from this stadium filling band, instead leaving the musical moments to their numerous real life opening acts. The only problem was that show was a rare one and done season for the premium network.
Roadies crossed my mind many times while watching Showtime’s latest offering I’m Dying Up Here. Granted this time the medium of the characters are stand up comedians and it takes place in the seventies. This new show also tries to solve the entertainment industry show problem by making these comic amateurs trying to make it in Los Angeles (when Johnny Carson moved The Tonight Show to Burbank in 1972, all the stand-up comics moved out there too). The title of this show even comes from the phrase acknowledging that the comic is not doing a good job.
So do not expect much from the stand up on the show, it is certainly not on the level of a Showtime stand up special. The first set we see even starts out with an abortion joke. And really the hardest I laughed in the first episode was when a hooker takes the wallet off an unconscious guy. And since this is the seventies and not the overly PC current day, there are plenty of sexist and racist joke helped that the cast includes a token woman comic (Ari Graynor, Bad Teacher), a token black comic (Erik Griffin, Workaholics), and a token Hispanic comic (Al Madrigal, Gary Unmarried). Homosexuals should probably happy they are not represented on the show. And that this is the seventies, the decades public hair grooming is on full display during the first two episodes.
Melissa Leo (Treme) is the club owner and kingmaker, you are not getting on Carson without here. There are even a couple of white guys in the cast including Andrew Santino (Mixology) and Stephen Guarino (Dr. Ken). Then there are the newbies who just moved to the city thinking it would be easy like Clark Duke (Hot Tub Time Machine 2), Michael Angarano (Will and Grace), and RJ Clyer (Power Rangers). It should also be noted that I’m Dying Up Here may have the single worse title sequence ever.
Since The Tonight Show is the pinnacle for these young comics, Johnny does show up a couple times (albeit in the form of Dylan Baker) as well as Richard Pryor while two character take a trip to the very seventies game show Let’s Make a Deal. But the eye winks to the time period are not overpowering, what the show really is is a sad look at what many think is a funny profession. These comics have wives, have gotten back from Vietnam, deal with the death of ex-boyfriends, go to AA meeting just to have a crowd, and have to slum it with some really bad day job just for that preverbal shot. Sure not every one of their jokes when they are on stage lands, some may not even supposed to, but it is when they walk out of the spotlight when the show really begins.
I‘m Dying Up Here airs Sundays at 10:00 on Showtime.
Gotham: Is it wrong that I found Evil Leigh with way too much eyeliner significantly more attractive? But anyway. Wow, they actually set off the bomb. That should provide even more supervillains than the escaped Indian Hill experiments. Of yeah, and Ra’s al Ghul is coming.
You can download Gotham on iTunes.
Lucifer: Meh, pretty bland ending to the mother storyline and not a very compelling cliffhanger either. Someone knocked out Lucifer and dropped him in the desert. I guess it is kind of interesting that he got his wings back after he set them aflame a while ago.
You can download Lucifer on iTunes.
The Challenge: Champs vs. Pros: Lolo is going to turn down Lindsey’s challenge right? When picking between Tia and Louis, Lolo picked the smaller girl so I am guessing she stick with it. Granted it would be funny if Tia ends up winning.
You can download The Challenge: Invasion of the Champions on iTunes.
The Americans: Wait, that was the season finale? Had I not seen a post mordum article about it, I may have looked for a new episode next week. Kind of anticlimactic. Usually each season build to something but all we had was the Jennings decide to stay and maybe Phillip will “retire” and just run their travel business. We do not even get confirmation of Stan’s new girl being a spy, but c’mon, she has tto be now, right? A pipe breaks? Either she is a spy or thiss is a Fatal Attraction situation.
The Handmaid’s Tale: So is this now Lost with each character getting its own flashback every episode. Well at least we got confirmation that Nick is part of the overseeing Eye. Interesting that The Eye did their recruiting from the unemployment line. Now that question is will Nick turn the Commander in who already had unsanctioned sex with his previous Handmaid who killed herself. Oh hey, and there is Offred’s black buddy who now is a Jezebel. I take her flashback will be next but I am still waiting to learn what happened to Rory Gilmore.
You can stream The Handmaid's Tale on Hulu.
Well y the lack of shows to talk about this week, that means Spring television is pretty much over. Looking at summer, there does not seem to be much on even though previous summer seemed to be where the best shows were (although, where is the Mr. Robot premiere date?). I may have t catch up on movies this year or finally burn my free first month of Netflix so I can binge G.L.O.W. But here are the few show I will watching while trying to beat the heat.
Mondays
8:00 – Shadowhunters (Freeform, June 5)
9:00 – Stitchers (Freeform, June 5)
10:00 – Midnight, Texas (NBC, July 24)
Tuesdays
Casual (Hulu, May 23)
8:00 - Downward Dog (ABC, May 23)
10:00 – Wrecked (TBS, June 20)
Wednesdays
9:00 – The Carmichael Show (NBC, May 31)
Thursdays
9:00 – Nashville (CMT, June 1)
9:00 - Saturday Night Live: Weekend Update (NBC, August 10)
Saturdays
10:00 – Orphan Black (June 10)
Sundays
9:00 – Fear the Walking Dead (June 4)
9:00 - Claws (TNT, June 11)
9:00 – Ray Donovan (Showtime, August 6)
9:00 – The Last Ship (TNT, August 20)
10:00 – I’m Dying Up Here (Showtime, June 4)
10:00 – Preacher (AMC, June 25)
10:00 – Episodes (Showtime, August 20)
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 The Putin Interviews, Joss Stone, Commodores, Anna of the North, and Vikings.
- Showtime Documentary Films has released the first extended clip and new trailer for The Putin Interviews, a revealing series of conversations between renowned filmmaker Oliver Stone and Russia president Vladimir Putin. The Putin Interviews will have its world television premiere on Showtime over four consecutive nights starting on Monday, June 12 at 9:00.
- Joscelyn Eve Stoker, better-known as Joss Stone, was born in Dover, Kent, England, and grew up listening to singers like Dusty Springfield and Aretha Franklin, emulating their gritty, soulful style on her groundbreaking 2003 debut album, The Soul Sessions, Volume 1, which proved a worldwide sensation and will now be released on vinyl by UMe on May 26.
- Commodores, the 1977 self-titled fifth studio album by the pop-funk-soul band known as the “Black Beatles,” will get a vinyl LP release from UMe, along with a special edition in blue vinyl for fans and collectors, June 16. Both releases were cut from the original, un-faded masters, delivering on vinyl for the first time longer versions of seven of the nine tracks.
- ‘Lovers’, the debut album from Anna Of The North, will see its worldwide release on Friday 8th September. An album deeply rooted in heartbreak, it’s a subject that courses through the veins of all ten tracks – through the turmoil, the guilt and the tentative joy of finally letting yourself move on.
- Since 2013, Vikings, from creator and sole writer Michael Hirst (Academy Award® winning film Elizabeth and the Emmy® and Golden Globe® nominated series The Tudors), has told the remarkable tales of the lives and epic adventures of the raiders and explores of the Dark Ages. Now fans will have the opportunity to enter the world of Vikings like never before, as Hugo Games A/S (OAX: HUGO), a mobile interactive entertainment developer and publisher of mobile games, today announced that it has partnered with MGM Interactive to release the first game based on the worldwide television hit drama series. Available for iOS, Android and Steam in 2018, Vikings: The Game, will be a player vs. player strategy game featuring characters from the TV series including Ragnar, Lagertha, Floki and Rollo. Providing an immersive gameplay experience combined with impressive graphics and a memorable soundtrack, Vikings: The Game will appeal to fans of the show and newcomers alike.
Fun fact: I grew up about fifteen miles away from Dan Auerbach around the same time. I am pretty sure we played soccer against each other, and let me say, that looked nothing like my teenage years, unlss you count watching Dazed and Confused which took place before me or Dan were even born. And wait, is that the chick from The Goldbergs? She just cannot do anything in present day can she?
Drink Up – Train
Well Train recruited the weirdest group to do a Wedding Crashers reboot.
Too Much to Think – 311
Oh hey, 311 are still a thing. It is weird these bands who were huge at one point just keep chugging along. Apparently this song has even charted on the Alternative Songs charts. Who knew there was still and Alternative chart? Oh yeah, that is a stupid name for a song.
I Was Born – Hanson
Speaking of relics from the nineties that never actually broke up and are still at it, Hanson is celebrating their twenty-fifth anniversary this year. Goodness that makes me feel old. Oh yeah, and all those kids in this video are the band members.
Into the Badlands: So The Widow did not actually kill her apprentice. But melancholy happy trails to Sunny’s wife and Quinn(?), maybe? I think I liked this show much better when it was just six episodes.
You can download Into the Badlands on iTunes.
Gotham: Oh wow, Barnes killed the head Owl. Or at least who I assumed was the head Owl. And when I say head Owl, I guess I should also say no pun intended. And so what is the main character trait that the Alice Tetch Virus going to bring out? She is a doctor so it cannot possible be that bad unless it turns out to be rage towards Detective Gordon for murdering her fiancé.
You can download Gotham on iTunes.
Supergirl: Good riddance Mon-El? Hopefully. One can assume that he is going to the 31st century to hand with the Legion of Super Heroes. The guy cannot come back to Earth at this time any time soon because of the anti-Daximite gas pumped into the atmosphere. But he was able to spend a couple minutes on Earth when his mother was turned to dust in just seconds. Then the other big cliffhanger is who was in the third pod from Kypton? (I could care less about the lesbian proposal.) When they called what was in the basket “it” I was thinking Brainiac but it looks like from people more knowledgeable of comics that “reign” was the key word in that segment.
You can download Supergirl on iTunes.
Lucifer: So when Lucifer’s mom gets stags she bleeds some death ray? Oh my.
You can download Lucifer on iTunes.
The Challenge: Champs vs. Pros: When Johnny and CM Punk were going at it I really was hoping that Johnny would troll Punk by name drop former Challenge alum The Miz.
You can download The Challenge: Invasion of the Champions on iTunes.
The Handmaid’s Tale: So Offred’s husband is really alive. I wondered if the Mexican delegation was really part of the resistance or was just trolling her. Although I am not sure his story really deserved a whole episode. Or at least spend more time with the resistance city. I am more interested how that place works.
You can stream The Handmaid's Tale on Hulu.
Survivor: Game Changers: Weeks ago someone mentioned that at six would could potentially have only one person not saved by an Idol if whoever wins Immunity did not already have an Idol and Tai gave one of his two Idols to someone else. I rolled my eyes at the absurdity and how there were too many advantages this season. But there were at the first Tribal Council of the finale and Tai for reasons unbeknownst to me actually does give his second Idol away to Aubrey (in true Tai fashion votes her off the very next Tribal) which sets off an Idol Train leaving Cirie the odd woman out despite no votes being cast against her. Not as lame as drawing rocks, but still pretty lame.
But not as lame as the final three of Sarah, Not-Dante Culpepper, and Troyzan, which may be the worst final three ever, even them or the trio that made it to the end of Worlds Apart. Here is what makes it worse, both Not-Dante and Troyzan were part of the Second Chance vote and they were two of the five guys not picked. Then we had one final lame twist to a lame season, questions were eliminated at Final Tribal in lieu of an open forum. I hate whenever a jury member tells their peers who the vote for and this just made it worse with Zeke starting things up by saying he was Sarah’s champion followed by Ozzie openly rooting for Not-Dante. Not surprisingly no one stood up for Troyzan who I believe only spoke once before the finale and that was when he found his Idol.
Then we got a sneak peak of next season: Heroes vs. Healers vs. Hustlers. Horrible name. When they did Blue Collar vs. White Collar vs. No Collar they trimmed it down to a more reasonable name Worlds Apart. It could have been an interesting concept when I thought the Hustlers were going to be morally corrupt individuals going the heroes (I was kind of hoping this theme was essentially going to be cops vs. ex-cons but knew they would never cast someone with a record) like gamblers are weed growers in a state where that is legal. Instead the Hustlers we saw in the preview were a personal assistant and a bell hop. What the fork? But I am still hoping for the return of Race Wars.
You can download Survivor: Game Changers on iTunes.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Once Upon a Time: So did they made the weeding episode a musical just to distract from how basically no one showed up? No Red Riding Hood, no Cinderella, really none of the Disney princesses. The Blue Fairy was in the episode yet did not make an appearance at the ceremony. It was basically just those in the main cast (except Belle and Gold were absent) then the Seven Dwarfs, Granny, and Pinocchio’s father. Even Pinocchio skipped the festivities. But really, this episode made me miss Galavant.
You can download Once Upon a Time on iTunes.
Billions: For two seasons I thought this show was about a game of cat and mouse. I was wrong, it is about mutual assured destructions. Chuck just lost his trust, lost millions of dollars for his father and childhood friend just to get Axe. Then when they met face to face, Axe said he would spend te times that to make sure Chuck goes down with him just for Chuck to basically respond, so be it. I just hope that season is a trail and not Axe get out from under his prosecution in the first episode and we are back to cat and mouse.
Gotham: Really, Ivy was going to make an army of freaks and all they could come up with is Mr. Fries and Firefly? Sure I enjoy the irony of fire and ice, but c’mon, there seemed to be hundreds of freaks that escaped from Indian Hill.
You can download Gotham on iTunes.
Supergirl: The N’SYNC reference just made me hate this show more. Can it please be promoted back to CBS please?
You can download Supergirl on iTunes.
Harlots: Charlotte may be in custody, but who is going to take the fall for the murder. The obvious answer is her new bot toy, but you know Mrs. Wells will try to get Mrs. Quigley to take the fall.
You can stream Harlots on Hulu.
The Challenge: Invasion of the Champions: Boring finale. But this show does have a format problem where it just loses steam halfway through. It did not help this season the pre-finale episode was just complete filler. They need to speed up the game at that point, not slow it down. Hopefully the six episode special fixes that problem.
You can download The Challenge: Invasion of the Champions on iTunes.
The Americans: Is it just me or was Elizabeth not that into that wedding? But it always has been Phillip who has been more the romantic while she has been more jobs oriented. And that was a rough scene at the end as Paige and her parents read the harsh assessment in Pastor Tim’s diary. Now I wonder if he will make it to his dream job.
Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: So Adia becomes a real boy and we learned how the Russian survived being crushed by a falling building in that he did not, she just turned him into a robot and mass produced him. Irony? So just how do you kill a former robot who can absorb bullets along with other Inhuman abilities. Chop off her head again? Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. on iTunes.
The Handmaid’s Tale: Interesting that Mrs. Waterford suggested the driver try to impregnate Offred. I guess once pregnant she no longer has to see her husband have sex with another woman. But the she would be raising a kid that is neither hers’ nor her husband. But still creepy she felt she had to stay in the room. At least she did not do the hand holding thing in her lap. And it was a little weird that she went and had sex with a guy who pretty much raped her earlier that day. Maybe that was taking back control. And Rory Gilmore is back. And even though Offred said she knew what happened to her (even though the Commander was vague) I am still not entirely sure. But Rory has got to be sent away after that.
Survivor: Game Changers: I have been watching this show since the beginning so I pick up on a few cues that usually tell you where things are going but they had me fooled twice this week. The second best way to tell if someone is not going home (after winning Immunity obviously) is if their name comes up in the post Immunity Challenge / pre commercial break confessional. So when Michael was talking about should she vote for Sierra or Andrea, the over thinker thought, oh this is a rare target two people situation, maybe Michaela is getting blindsided. Nope, it ended coming down to Sierra and Andrea. And when the votes are read with just two targets, Probst almost always reads just one name first (the one who is not getting voted out first) then the other in succession. Or he alternates back and forth as long as he can. So when he read two Andrea’s in a row after starting out alternating, I thought oh no!!! Andrea is in trouble. Except the rest of the votes ended up being for Sierra. Whew.
But now we are down to eight with only one episode until the finale. That is a lot. Usually only six go to the finale, so what happens next week? A double elimination next week? Will there be a medical elimination? There was no clue in the promo and you would think they would tease either, unless the latter actually happens in the finale. Interesting enough the last time Andrea played (she went out at seven), there was a medical elimination during the finale, even then, just five made that finale.
You can download Survivor: Game Changers on iTunes.
Blindplot: So just what is Sheppard’s end game? She was a soldier (or at least pretend to be) said she did not want to kill anyone at the FBI but would if she did not get the codes (granted she still killed the boss even after saying she would not kill him if anyone gave her the code; but at least after being mostly annoying he went out like a G). I get she is going after some sort of Deep State but I still feel like I am missing something.
You can download Blindspot on iTunes.
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 Twin Peaks, Guerrilla, Little Steven, Brian Wilson, Maggie Rogers, 45th AFI Life Achievement Award Tribute to Diane Keaton, and SMILF.
- Showtime has released a new video teaser from the limited event series Twin Peaks, which will debut with a two-part premiere on Sunday, May 21 at 9:00 on air, on demand and over the internet. To watch and share the new Twin Peaks promo, which reveals a glimpse at some new and returning faces.
- The critically acclaimed SHOWTIME limited event series Guerrilla will air its final two episodes back-to-back on Sunday, May 14 at 9 p.m. ET/PT on air, on demand and over the internet. As the series comes to a close, Marcus (Babou Ceesay) and Jas (Screen Actors Guild Award® winner Freida Pinto) are tested in the wake of tragic loss. Meanwhile, Kent’s (Golden Globe® winner Idris Elba) actions have a disastrous effect on the black community, while the Black Power Desk launches a reign of terror. Infighting threatens to split the radicals, throwing their final mission into jeopardy. Can they come together in time?
- Little Steven shares his new song "Love On The Wrong Side Of Town," co-written with Bruce Springsteen, from his eagerly anticipated new album, SOULFIRE (Wicked Cool/Big Machine/UMe). "Love On The Wrong Side Of Town" is the third song the Rock & Roll Hall of Famer has released from the album set to arrive everywhere on Friday, May 19th. Entertainment Weekly premiered the song last week. Pre-order SOULFIRE here.
- With one of the most in-demand concert outings the last year music legend Brian Wilson is once again extending the final performance run of his critically-acclaimed Pet Sounds 50TH Anniversary World Tour and announcing a slate of new UK, European and North American show dates for 2017 to celebrate the iconic Pet Sounds album for a final time. Currently on tour now in the US, additional performances will be added in Hawaii, UK and Europe this summer, and again in the summer with 22 new dates overseas and 20+ new fall dates added in the U.S. VIP ticket pre-sales begin today with general on-sale beginning Friday May 12. A full list of tour dates is below with up-to-date ticketing, show information and more at BrianWilson.com.
- Maggie Rogers: Alaska on Late Night with Seth Myers
- Following the 45th AFI Life Achievement Award Tribute to Diane Keaton on June 8 at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood, Turner's TNT will televise the celebration as a one-hour special, AFI Life Achievement Award: A Tribute to Diane Keaton, premiering Thursday, June 15, at 10:00. Sister network Turner Classic Movies (TCM) will then encore the special on Monday, July 31, during a night of programming dedicated to Keaton's work. This marks the fifth year the Emmy®-winning AFI special has aired on Turner networks.
- Showtime has announced the pick-up of the new half-hour comedy series SMILF from Frankie Shaw, based on her Sundance Film Festival Jury Award-winning short film of the same name. The series order will include 10 episodes that will begin airing this fall. Set in Boston, SMILF will take a raw and honest comedic look at a single, 20-something from Southie whose desires for relationships, sex, and a career collide with the realities of young, single motherhood. Shaw will star, write, produce and direct the semi-autobiographical comedy, with Oscar® nominee Michael London (Sideways) and Emmy® nominees Janice Williams (Confirmation), Lee Eisenberg and Gene Stupnitsky (The Office, Bad Teacher) executive producing. Multiple Emmy winner Rosie O’Donnell will co-star in her first series regular TV role as “Tutu”, Bridgette’s (Shaw) mother, who is completely oblivious to social convention. The series is produced by ABC Signature Studios as a co-production with Showtime.
Billions: “We didn’t have computers.” God bless Dollar Bill. But usually much of the money stuff goes over my head, but I think I actually followed what happened this week. Well mostly because it in involved old school sabotage with Axe bribing people to get sick on the new product Chuck invested in. But what I do not understand is does Chuck want Axe so bad he was willing to lose his entire trust (along with his father and buddy’s savings too) or does he have a plan for that? Did he know Wendy would bet against him? I am thinking she may go down with Axe on this. I do hope Axe does go down for this and we get a season on his trail because I am not sure if they can continue to do this cat and mouse game between Axe and Chuck for very much longer.
Into the Badlands: I hate dream sequences. The only thing worse than dream sequences are dream sequences with bad Japanese horror rip offs.
You can download Into the Badlands on iTunes.
Gotham: Wasn’t Poison Ivy a sex pot earlier this season? Now she is back to acting like a tn year old. Her scenes were just really weird.
You can download Gotham on iTunes.
Supergirl: Can we please get rid of the lady cop for next season please? She is ruining the show worse than Mon-El.
You can download Supergirl on iTunes.
Harlots: “You always tell mama the truth in the end.” Wait, was that literal? Or was that just an allusion what Mrs. Wells just used to work for her. But poor Lucy, she was just not made for this profession. When does she just run away?
You can stream Harlots on Hulu.
The Challenge: Invasion of the Champions: A two part finale after last week they basically just wasted an hour on nothing? Ugg, I have been waiting for the season to be over for about a month now.
You can download The Challenge: Invasion of the Champions on iTunes.
The Americans: Oh hey, Martha still exists. When they shipped her off to Russia I figured she would have a Nina type storyline but I do not think we have seen her since. And after kicking out Gabriel I wonder if we will ever see her again after this.
Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: So they just left Mac in the Framework? Um, how about forcing him into the back door? Or just lie to him that his daughter was still alive. If he forgot his daughter was no longer around in the framework, maybe he will not remember anything in the framework when he is out. Won’t he die when they shut down the framework, or is just going to be in a state of animation for the rest of his life? Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. on iTunes.
The Handmaid’s Tale: So now we know the reason behind the creepy Ceremony Night, granted it does not make it any less creepy. Also creepy, how these people do not even let the doctors see the faces of the patients when they treat them. Not that it stopped Donnie from Orphan Black from looking. Always a weido that guy. But what happened to Rory Gilmore? I thought maybe she would be back to great Offred at the end of the episode to great her like before. Is her storyline over or will she be back in her house eventually?
Survivor: Game Changers: Last week a calm came over me when Sierra said it was time for Andrea to go, but nothing is more calming than Andrea actually winning Immunity. Then I can just sit back and enjoy the show. And what a weird show. When they did not show Andrea vote for Zeke, giver her hope to see you never speech a second try, I figure, oh, Sarah won the argument and the six is voting for Sierra. Then Tai got a couple. Then Zeke got a couple. Then Probst told Zeke the tribe had spoken leaving me to wonder just how did that vote go down?
So the six minus Zeke voted for Zeke but the bizarre thing was the four (plus Zeke) voted for each other. Andrea has never gotten her just due, but that was just a masterclass of Survivor. She wins Immunity, gets her alliance to turn on the person who tried to turn on her two episodes ago, and got the opposing alliance to turn on each other.
It will be a shame if Brad, Sierra, Tai, or Troyzan win this season because that was just embarrassing this week; I am talking near ice crème scooper level of bad play. Seriously, you four have three Idols amongst you and at the very least think you know who the other alliance is voting for. If Brad, Sierra, and Troyzan just tell Tai he is being targeted, or Tai tells them he was told to vote for Sierra, they could have figured out how to ply their Idols correctly. I bet Tai would have played his Idol and maybe even given the other to Sierra just in case had they just talked to each other. Now Tai and his Idols may be a free agent for the other alliance. Now if only Andrea can convince Tai to give her one ice crème scooper style.
You can download Survivor: Game Changers on iTunes.
Blindplot: I understand going undercover, but I do not see why not letting the prison staff know what is up. Certainly that would have been beneficial during the breakout.
You can download Blindspot on iTunes.
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 Twin Peaks, Power, Emogenius, Becoming Carey Grant, The Putin Interviews, America's Secret Space Heroes, Tony Lucca, Alisan Porter, Karoondinha Music & Arts Festival, Freakish, and The Looming Tower.
- Showtime has released a new promo from the limited event series Twin Peaks, which will debut with a two-part premiere on Sunday, May 21 at 9:00 on air, on demand and over the internet.
- Starz announced the highly-anticipated Season Four return of the #1 hit STARZ Original series Power on Sunday, June 25, starting at 12:01 am on the STARZ app and On Demand. The network on-air premiere will be at its regularly scheduled time of 9:00 pm ET/PT. Season Four of “Power” will consist 10 one-hour episodes.
- 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 7 at 9:00pm ET/PT (8pm CT) with back-to-back episodes.
- Showtime Documentary Films will debut the new documentary Becoming Carey Grant, a definitive biography of the extraordinary Hollywood icon, at the Cannes Film Festival. Following the festival, the film will have its world television debut on Showtime on Friday, June 9 at 9:00 on air, on demand and over the internet. Directed by Mark Kidel (Elvis Costello: Mystery Dance, A Journey With Peter Sellars), the captivating biopic reveals Cary Grant’s inner search to find himself at the height of his fame.
- – Showtime Documentary Films will release The Putin Interviews, a revealing series of interviews between renowned filmmaker Oliver Stone and Vladimir Putin, the Russian president who has reemerged as the central antagonist and wild card to the United States on the world stage. The Putin Interviews will have its world television premiere on SHOWTIME over four consecutive nights starting on Monday, June 12 at 9:00.
- America’s conquest of space may be our nation’s finest moment. But behind the faces of fearless astronauts like John Glenn and Buzz Aldrin and a crusading president stood an army of unsung heroes and heroines: the engineers, mathematicians, designers and technicians who actually built the machines that put humanity in space. AMERICA’S SECRET SPACE HEROES unearths the untold stories of the space program – from the men and woman who created everything from the Saturn V moon rocket to the first successful Mars lander. America's Secret Space Heroes premieres on Smithsonian Channel on Sunday, May 14 at 9:00.
- Nashville-based singer-songwriter Tony Lucca has confirmed a residency in Nashville this summer with a series of four free shows at The Country (110 28th Avenue North, Nashville) on June 28th (8 p.m.), July 27th (6 p.m.), August 23rd (8 p.m.), and September 6th (8 p.m.). Billed as “Tony Lucca and Friends,” the residency is an opportunity for Lucca to work on some new material for a forthcoming album in a live setting. “I plan on getting into the studio at some point this year for a new record, so I will be utilizing the shows to work out some new material and putting songs up on their feet for the first time in front of an audience,” says Lucca. “That environment can be extremely helpful and constructive. And hopefully entertaining.”
- Los Angeles-based singer, songwriter, and history-making Season 10 victor of NBC's The Voice Alisan Porter released her brand new single "Deep Water" at all digital retailers, now trending on iTunes at number 18. Available now on iTunes and Spotify. On Tuesday May 2, she made her triumphant return to NBC's The Voice for the song's very first television performance. Watch her perform her new single HERE now.
- wk Eye Presents, LLC announces its full artist lineup for the first annual Karoondinha Music & Arts Festival {pronounced ka-roon-din-ha} to take place on Friday, July 21, Saturday, July 22, and Sunday, July 23, 2017, with a kick-off party on Thursday, July 20th at Penn’s Cave & Wildlife Park, America’s only all-water cavern and wildlife park in Centre Hall, PA. Set on 1,600 unspoiled acres of rolling hills and rich farmland, the festival site, the largest in the northeast, boasts acres of sunflowers, world-class trout fishing, off-road tours, native North American wildlife, including mountain lions, wolves, bison, bears, longhorn cattle, bighorn sheep and more.
- Hulu and AwesomenessTV announced this week that Freakish will be returning for a second season.
- Hulu announced this week that Alec Baldwin has been cast as a guest star in Hulu's original new drama series The Looming Tower.
Haim put out one of the best debut albums this decade, an indie pop band that was heavily influenced but nineties rock and RnB. So I have been eagerly anticipating the follow up but the first single is kind of boring. And why even get Paul Thomas Anderson to direct if you are just going to record a studio video? Hopefully there are better things to come.
Does that make me less racist that I did not know what DNA stands for? Though I do not understand how a lie detector can make Don Cheadle channel Kendrick Lamar. Art, I guess.
Paramore have always been a power-pop band but a lot of songs on their last album lost that “power” part of their sound. This just sounds like something that come out of the new wave eighties, and visuals to match. But much like their power pop days, this is mostly mediocre.
Total Entertainment Forever - John Mayer Misty
I know Father John Misty is making some comment on pop culture with his new album, but it is getting harder and harder to enjoy his stuff anymore. Mackuly Culkin as Kurt Cobain? Pass.
Once Upon a Time: Um, so what happened to the Tin Man? How about now that the Wicked Witch has drained her magic into that heart you give it to the Tin Man?
You can download Once Upon a Time on iTunes.
Billions: Oh yeah, Chuck is into kinky stuff. I thought it was finally going to catch up with him but he stole the laptop himself. And syncing up “My hands are tied” to him and Wendy reuniting was a little too on the nose. And I have a feeling Taylor with have a change of conscious before the end of the season.
Gotham: So the Riddler has finally gone full green. Um, yeah? But of course the Penguin did not die, the only question would be how he would return. Um, Poison Ivy fished him out of the river? Alright. I guess maybe they will finally give her something to do.
You can download Gotham on iTunes.
Supergirl: Thank goodness Kara got her job back, blogger just seemed like a horrible cover for a Superhero.
You can download Supergirl on iTunes.
The Voice: I hate Adam, sure Shakira and Gwen are worse coaches but Adam does plenty of head scratching things. One thing he does almost every season and every time he does it it backfires miserably is that he almost always gives a Battle Round pairing a song by the mentor and it always suck. Every time but twice since season four. That is seven times and never has any of these Battles ended in a Steal. So why the fork does he give Lilli Passero a Shania Twain song other than she was the mentor this week? And more importantly, why did he give Lilli that song? Maybe had he given her You’re Still the One or You’ve Got a Way that could have worked with Lilli’s style. Instead Adam’s inner dialogue said, “Lilli’s sassy, this song is sassy… gold!” Seriously I hate Adam. But by some miraculous event, America took pity on Lilli, be it the horrendous song choice or she was rushed to urgent care earlier that week and still seemed out of it after her performance. So hopefully Lilli is back at one hundred percent this week and Adam does not give her a G-Eazy song.
Bates Motel: Wait, what just happened? Did they really kill of Norman Bates well before he was supposed to? I believe in artistic licenses, but it is weird to build this as a prequel to the movie and then kill him before he gets there.
You can download Bates Motel on iTunes.
Harlots: Awesome, the goat is still around. But poor Emily, she just cannot find a place anywhere. But what actually does she do now, start her own house? Then you have Charlotte and her relationship just get weirder by the episode.
You can stream Harlots on Hulu.
The Challenge: Invasion of the Champions: So they finish the Men’s challenge in five minutes, announced these are your finalists, but did not actually start the Final Challenge until about five minutes before the credits. Then in between all we got was fifty minutes of filler. Why not run the final this week instead of wasting my time?
You can download The Challenge: Invasion of the Champions on iTunes.
Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: Oh snap! Daisy just tossed Aida out that window. Which begs the question; if a robot dies in the framework does it die in the real world? Real world Aida seemed fine after the fall. Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. on iTunes.
The Handmaid’s Tale: So what the fork did they do the Rory Gilmore?!? Is this the gental mutilation I hear from time to time but never bother to read the article to find out exactly what it is? That is the only thing I can think off.
You can stream The Handmaid's Tale on Hulu.
Survivor: Game Changers: When Zeke flipped last week and starting targeting Andrea I got worried she might actually go home. This week when Sierra said it time to get rid of Andrea in the post challenge confessional I had a sense of calm. The season premiere was the five hundredth episode of Survivor and probably of the five hundred and nine episodes in the history of the show, I would venture to guess whoever’s name is mentioned in the pre-commercial confessional does not actually go home. And in the end, Michaela was snacking while Andrea name was read except Debbie’s name was written down more often (really, how big must your stones be to have your name brought up only to have a snack while votes are read; she was sipping away when JT was blindsided too).
Though I am not sure if that was the right move for Sarah. In her old alliance, I would be worried sitting next to Brad or Sierra, but in the new one, I would be worried about everyone except for Michaela. And she may not know this but she just left an alliance with three Hidden Immunity Idols and the Legacy Advantage which make her Stolen Vote thing look worthless. Unless of course the deck shuffles next week. The promo looks like the deck will shuffle with all the females on one side (Sierra does approach Andrea and Cirie) and the male identifiers on the other (Zeke talks to Not-Dante and Troyzan). Of course the dudes may have the advantage despite being out numbered six to four with enough Idols to cover everyone if one of them wins Immunity. Still that would be enough to keep them around for another week and maybe the deck will reshuffle again after that.
You can download Survivor: Game Changers on iTunes.
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 American Race, Labyrinth, Diana Ross, Full Frontal with Samantha Bee's "Not the White House Correspondents' Dinner", Losing Sight of Shore, Site Unseen: An Emma Fielding Mystery, People of Earth, and The Detour.
- TNT has released a trailer for its new docu-series series American Race with host Charles Barkley:
- Extending the 30th anniversary celebration of the beloved film, Labyrinth, Jim Henson’s mesmerizing and enduring fantasy classic, David Bowie and Trevor Jones’ iconic soundtrack will be remastered and reissued on vinyl on May 12 for the first time since its original 1986 release. Long out of print, the album, which was remastered at Capitol Studios, will be available on high quality 120gm black vinyl and include the faithfully replicated original jacket and artwork, including the original EMI America logo and the printed inner sleeve featuring photos of Bowie from the film. Pre-order Labyrinth here.
- Sought after by collectors and considered the rarest of Motown’s rare grooves, Diana Ross’ diana – the original CHIC mix, will make its long-awaited debut on vinyl on April 21, on Motown/UMe/UMGI, with a twist: it will be a double-LP set on pink vinyl at 45rpm for maximum fidelity. This edition of diana includes alternate-mix versions of such classics as “Upside Down” and “I’m Coming Out,” as envisioned by Chic’s Rock and Roll Hall Of Fame member Nile Rodgers and the late Bernard Edwards.
- Turner's TBS is crying-with-joy-emoji to announce that Full Frontal with Samantha Bee's "Not the White House Correspondents' Dinner" will stream on Twitter following the special's premiere on TBS. Hosted by Samantha Bee, the event will take place at DAR Constitution Hall in Washington, D.C., on Saturday, April 29. It will then air that evening as a one-hour special on TBS at 10 p.m. (ET/PT), with an additional broadcast on Twitter at 11 p.m. (ET). Fans on Twitter in the United States will be able to access the stream by going to samanthabee.twitter.com, as well as via the @FullFrontalSamB Twitter handle.
- Elvis Costello will bring his legendary guitar licks and vocal stylings to Washington, D.C., this Saturday, April 29, when he performs at the official after-party for Full Frontal with Samantha Bee's first annual Not the White House Correspondents' Dinner, presented by TBS.
- Losing Sight of Shore follows the extraordinary journey of four brave women known as the Coxless Crew that set out to row the Pacific Ocean from America to Australia unsupported. As they row over 8,000 miles during their nine months at sea, they face extreme mental and physical challenges they must overcome in order to go down in history. Available on Netflix May 1.
- Site Unseen: An Emma Fielding Mystery; Stars: Courtney Thorne-Smith (“According to Jim,” “Melrose Place”) and James Tupper (“Revenge,” “Big Little Lies”). Emma (Thorne-Smith) is a brilliant, dedicated, and driven archaeologist who discovers artifacts that have been lost for hundreds of years--and she's very, very good at it. Emma has recently unearthed evidence of a possible 17th century coastal Maine settlement that predates Jamestown, one of the most significant archaeological finds in years. But the dead body she uncovers on the site pushes Emma into a different kind of exploration. Her dig site is suddenly in jeopardy of being shut down, due to the meddling of local treasure-hunters and a second suspicious murder. Emma must team with the handsome FBI Agent investigating the case to dig up dirt on the killer, before Emma and her excavation are ancient history. Premieres Sunday, June 4 (9 p.m. ET/PT) on Hallmark Movies & Mysteries.
- Saturday Night Live alum Nasim Pedrad (Scream Queens, New Girl) has joined TBS's hit comedy People of Earth as a series regular, beginning this summer with the show's second season. People of Earth centers on a group of alien abductees – or "experiencers" – living in the small town of Beacon, N.Y. The series is executive-produced by Emmy® winners Conan O'Brien and Greg Daniels, along with creator David Jenkins and showrunner Norm Hiscock.
- Turner's TBS has ordered a third season of its hit series The Detour, cable's most watched original comedy for the year-to-date. Created, written and executive-produced by Jason Jones and Samantha Bee, The Detour is an all-too-honest look at the family dynamic. Jones stars in the acclaimed comedy with Natalie Zea, Ashley Gerasimovich, Liam Carroll and Daniella Pineda.
“Better doesn’t mean better for everyone.” There are many striking things about The Handmaid’s Tale, but this quote sticks out more than them all. In our highly polarized society, it is surprising a politician has not come right out and said this while defending legislation like health care where there seems to be no good law that helps everyone in a fiscal way. Of course if any politician said that it would probably be a good way to not get reelected.
But that is a thing you can say in a totalitarian regime that is in control of the alternative timeline of The Handmaid’s Tale. It is a little unclear how he got here but flashbacks slowly put the puzzle pieces in place. At first this regime slaughtered Congress, blamed terrorists, and suspended the constitution temporary until it became permanent. Anchorage is now the capital and there are only two states left while there is still war going outside.
This unrest all started with a plague of infertility over the majority of women and much like the Biblical plagues, some religious types thought this was brought on by God punishing us for birth control and other immoral acts. And now this new world is being run by the Leaders of the Faithful who make the Westboro Baptist Church look like Sodom and Gomorrah in comparison. The abduct fertile women and turn them into sex slaves for Commanders whose wives cannot give birth resulting in maybe the creepiest sex scene you will ever see. But yet aside from being devotedly religious, these people seem to forget one of the Ten Commandments is Thou Shall Not Kill. And the whole thing about coveting your neighbor’s wife is mostly of broken by them too.
Elisabeth Moss (Mad Men) plays the titular character and narrator who is taken prisoner because she had just given birth so the Leaders of the Faithful know she is fertile. It is a little weird seeing Peggy Olsen in modern time except she is quickly outfitted in a handmaid’s garb which looks straight out of the Puritan’s collection, a muted red floor length dress with a “winged” white hat. The Leaders on the other hand are always dressed like they are heading to the opera. Moss’s Leaders are played by Joseph Fiennes (FlashForward), who utters that first line, and Yvonne Strahovski (Chuck) who is really good in this Stepfordian role.
But it is Moss who is great here. She always seems to have this dead behind the eyes stares as the life has been almost completely sucked out of her in the two short months she has been a Handmaid. And the camera always seems to be in a close up shot of that black stare. Juxtaposed her creepy blank stare to her very lively narration where she plots a way to get back to her son. Alexis Bledel (Sin City) shows up as a fellow Handmaid, they are not allowed to travel by themselves, with a secret which gets very dark by the third episode.
And just when the show starts getting too dark, there are moments of levity, a quick quip from Moss as narrator, a random game of Scrabble, and most notably a weird and random musical cue that closes out the second episode. Really, the weirder the show gets the more I enjoy it. It has been a rough start for Hulu since it has flipped over to their pay only tier, but The Handmaid’s Tale is finally a new show worth paying for their service.
The first three episodes of The Handmaid’s Tale are now able to stream on Hulu with new episodes premiering every Wednesday.
