Just last week I was talking about how Seth Rogan was the king of high concept and low brow comedy. But here I am reviewing another show he is a producer of (and also directed the Pilot episode with his producing partner Evan Goldberg) and Black Monday is actually a simple concept about the stock market crash of 1987. Okay, since the show focuses on predominately male stock brokers, there still is plenty low brow humor. Or as our present day grooming companies would call toxic masculinity masquerading as humor.
Being Black Monday, naturally the show starts with someone throwing themselves out a window crashing down on a Lamborghini limousine. Which is apparently a real thing. But this a story is about what caused the crash so we then flash back a year. Oh and we get to see the tie pin that was on the dead body on one of our main characters. Though that person is no longer in possession of that tie pin at the end of the second episode so we will get to debate all season (or more)just who jumped out the window. And le me go ahead and ask now, wait, did he jump or maybe was he pushed? After meeting the characters, I would not rule out murder.
Despite the setting and time period, this is not Wall Street or The Wolf of Wall Street or even Billions set in the eighties (though it may be a not white washed version of Working Girl). There is a meeting in the second episode that looks like a Benetton ad. There is a black man, a Hispanic, a Jew, a woman, an Arab, and a Polynesian, and even one of them is a closeted homosexual. The lone WASP at the Wall Street firm is actually a new guy and actually the mark for the group.
Don Cheadle (House of Lies) is head of this rag tag firm who wants to be a big player by any means necessary. Regina Hall (Support the Girls) is his right hand man and best mind on the team. Andrew Rannells (The New Normal) is the bright eyed newbie who has brought his new algorithm to Wall Street. Oh and Ken Marino shows up as both Leighman Brothers (someone is trying not to be sued) which makes it twice as fun.
Black Monday is reminiscent of Cheadle’s last Showtime show with him yet again playing the leader of a firm in a ruthless industry, though a little less successful this time around. And of course, a lot more eighties reference. Though closing out the first episode with a montage of New York Stock Exchange workers set to Don Henley’s New York Minute is a little on the nose. Still, thanks to all the eighties gags, the new show is a bit more funnier… and twice the Ken Marinos.
In the #MeToo era, plenty of men have been accused of impropriety, be it white men, black men, and even gay men. But if we have learned anything from Demi more in Disclosure, women can be inappropriate too. So things are going to be awkward on the upcoming season of SMILF. It has been reported that star Samara Weaving, who plays the new girlfriend of the lead character played by the show’s creator Frankie Shaw is leaving the show because of a few incidents during her time on the show.
Weaving is leaving because of two instances. The first being Weaving objected to appearing in a nude scene. Shaw responded by pulling up her own t-shirt and remarked how her body had altered after giving birth and she still did nude scenes when required. Then this season, Shaw instructed video monitors to be turned on during an intimate scene involving Weaving even though the set was supposed to be closed, with only limited crew present and with outside monitors off. Add to that, there have been multiple staffers have made complaints to the WGA about both credit issues and alleged race-based separation, though no formal grievances have been filed.
Despite all these allegations, Showtime is still going forward with season two. Though them bringing back the show for a third season will be a bit surprising. But then again, Bryan Singer just won a Golden Globe so you never know punishment in the #MeToo era have been fairly uneven. As the Commander in Chief has shown, just deny and wait it out and people will end up forgetting or caring eventually.
Unfortunately for me, the viewer, Weaving was the best part of the show in the first season. Shaw was just completely unlikeable as a mother who just cannot get her life together even though now is the moment she has to. Weaving was the complete opposite, a ray of sunshine that would not let anything get o her. Really, Showtime should just cancel SMILF and give Weaving her own show. Unfortunately it seems like Weaving was already halfway out the door as the second season happens because she does not even show up until episode four.
Those actually did the like the scattershot that was the first season, you are in luck because season two is just as jumbled and kind of incoherent. There is one episode that turned out to be just a dream sequence that means nothing. Another follows one of Connie Briton’s housekeepers for a reason that comes clear at the end but I stopped caring why we were spending the time with her much sooner. An episode where Shaw looks for her father is another episode that just ends in a thud. I think when Weaving is official gone from the show, I may too.
Last decade, Ryan Adams released an album every year except the last, as well as three in 2005 and one of those was even a double albym. So only putting out six albums this decade seems a little slow for the singer. And that includes a full Taylor Swift cover album in the vein of The Smiths and what he called "a fully-realized sci-fi metal concept album." I am not sure which one of those was more absurd. Adams is leaving this decade with a bang by claiming he will again be releasing three albums in a calendar year. There seems to be a few more notable albums being released early this year as the music industries is changing. Usually the winter was dead foe new music aside from some up and coming artists (this winter sees two debut albums I am looking forward to be Maggie Rogers and Jade Bird). They labels used to save all the big names for the fall to get that Black Friday money but I do wonder as we switch from buying to streaming if getting music out for the summer will become the bigger priority. Here are the albums I will at least give a spin to on Spotify. Click on the album title to pre-order on Amazon and click the artist name to be taken to their iTunes page.
Ray Donovan: Oh wow, the cop killed himself. A bit extreme considering he has a kid. But alrighty. So with one episode left, I take it Ray now takes down Susan Surandon.
Manifest: Welcome back you dumb, dumb show. That final scene was especially stupid.
You can download Manifest on iTunes.
Vikings: So just how many people are left in Loki’s camp because they keep on killing people off. It may just be Loki and Edge by the end of the season. Which may be for the best because those are the only two characters in Greenland that I actually remember. Although I guess the bigger question is who will rule Kattegard at the end of the season? Sure seems like a leadership change is coming soon.
You can download Vikings on iTunes.
The Good Place: When the accountant said no one had made it into The Good Place in five hundred years I figured it had to be The Bad Place sabotaging things or as a society it is just hard to be a good person. Apparently our carbon footprint in the industrial age is really hurting us. Though that still does not explain Doug Forcett who is walking to Vancouver to donate to a snail sanctuary. Unless my previously predicted that he falls under the category of Tahani of doing good for the wrong reasons. The Good Place on iTunes.
Gotham: So that is who they teased at the end of last season, some weird old chick? I wonder if that is all we will see of her.
You can download Gotham on iTunes.
Blindspot: This show likes to throw in these unordinary episodes and they usually work, but having much of the episode play out in Jane’s brain was a little too weird and really did not do much. And what a random ending. Shepard gets sprung from prison and she choose to use that freedom to hang out in the apartment of a federal agent then get killed by her “daughter?” Kind of an anticlimactic ending to what used to be the big bad on the show.
You can download Blindspot on iTunes.
The Blacklist: So Cooper is a stand up enough guy to not lie about the immunity agreement despite hi superiors telling him but he then lies about not knowing of Red committing any crime to violate the agreement. Alrighty.
You can download The Blacklist 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 Black Monday, Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival, The Circus, WOW – Women of Wrestling, Incredible Animal Moments, The 50th NAACP Image Awards, James Blake, Mark Diamond, Pavo Pavo, and Circa Waves.
- Showtime has released the series premiere of its new comedy Black Monday early across multiple platforms. The series stars and is executive produced by Emmy® nominee and Golden Globe Award winner Don Cheadle and stars two-time Tony Award nominee and Grammy® winner Andrew Rannells (Girls) and Regina Hall (Girls Trip). Screen Actors Guild® Award winner Paul Scheer (Veep) also stars. Black Monday was created by David Caspe (Happy Endings) and Jordan Cahan (My Best Friend’s Girl), who serve as executive producers and showrunners. Emmy nominees Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg (Preacher, Superbad, Future Man) are executive producers and directed the pilot. The premiere episode is available for free now on YouTube, Facebook and SHO.com. The 10-episode series will premiere on Sunday, January 20 at 10 p.m. ET/PT on Showtime.
- Superfly and A.C. Entertainment are excited to reveal the initial lineup for the 2019 Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival. The 18th annual four-day multi-stage camping festival will take place June 13 - 16, held as always at Great Stage Park, the spectacular 700-acre farm and event space located just 60 miles southeast of Nashville in Manchester, TN. Tickets - including General Admission (4 Day), VIP (4 Day), Platinum (4 Day) and more - will go on sale Thursday, January 10, at 12 noon ET/11 am CT, exclusively via bonnaroo.com/tickets. Bonnaroo has never been more accessible with GA ticket layaway plans available for just $47.
- The Circus returns for its highly-anticipated fourth season on Sunday, January 27 at 8 p.m. ET/PT on Showtime, as Democrats take control of the House of Representatives and 2020 hopefuls begin to plot their presidential bids. Hosted by John Heilemann, Mark McKinnon, and Alex Wagner, The Circus will venture behind the scenes in Washington and beyond, exploring the shifting power dynamics on Capitol Hill as Democrats take control of the House of Representatives, along with covering the escalating drama around President Donald Trump's White House as it grapples with mounting legal entanglements and continued scrutiny from Special Counsel Robert Mueller.
-From the Los Angeles Lakers Owner Jeanie Buss and founder of the original GLOW “Gorgeous Ladies Of Wrestling” David McLane, comes the groundbreaking all-female wrestling promotion WOW – Women of Wrestling to AXS TV on Friday, January 18 at 9pE/6pP. The season gets off to a roaring start as the phenom, The Beast looks to destroy fan-favorite Stephy Slays. Then, “The Governor’s Daughter,” Abilene Maverick, tries not to get burned when she elects to take on Fire in a sizzling singles match; and WOW bombshells “The All Natural” Khloe Hurtz and Eye Candy go toe-to-toe in a battle of beauty and brawn. It all leads up to the highly-anticipated main event, when WOW legend Jungle Grrrl gets her long-awaited shot at redemption, putting her legacy on the line as she faces off with WOW Champion Santana Garrett for the coveted WOW title in a high-stakes match to close the show.
- Smithsonian Channel prepares to captivate animal lovers of all kinds with astonishing revelations of the wild in three brand new films kicking off the network’s signature Wild Wednesdays for 2019. From some of the most incredible wildlife moments ever caught on camera to the amazing survival methods and abilities of pigs to revelations about the remarkable genetic secrets of the naked mole rat, each of these programs will take viewers on a fascinating and surprising journey. Follow these extraordinary, misunderstood animals on Smithsonian Channel in Incredible Animal Moments (February 6 at 8 PM ET/PT), Amazing Pigs (February 13 at 8 PM ET/PT) and Naked Mole Rats (February 20 at 8 PM ET/PT).
- The 50th NAACP Image Awards will air LIVE on TV One, a division of Urban One, Inc., on March 30, 2019. For the first time ever, the telecast will take place from the Dolby Theater in Hollywood, California. The announcement was made today by NAACP National Board of Directors Chairman Leon W. Russell, NAACP President and CEO Derrick Johnson, Chief Executive Officer, Urban One, Inc. & Chairman/CEO, TV One Alfred Liggins and TV One General Manager Michelle Rice.
- Following a series of projections in London, a billboard in Times Square, and a teaser video on his social media, multiple Grammy award-nominee and Mercury Prize winner James Blake reveals his highly anticipated fourth album, Assume Form, will be released January 18th via Republic Records. Constantly reinventing himself and defying genre, Blake captures a range of sonic influences throughout Assume Form, reuniting with Travis Scott and André 3000, and teaming up Metro Boomin, Moses Sumney and ROSALÍA (see full track listing below). Previously released track “Don’t Miss It,” declared “an absolute beauty of a ballad” by Noisey, is available instantly upon pre-ordering the album. Pre-order Assume Form here.
- Seattle-based singer and songwriter Mark Diamond makes his debut with his new single “Steady” out now via Stardog Records/Republic Records.
- Following the success of their critically-heralded debut album Young Narrator In The Breakers and just weeks away from the release of their forthcoming sophomore album Mystery Hour (out 1/25 through Bella Union), today Pavo Pavo are pleased to share brand new track "Close To Your Ego". Listen to it HERE.
- Circa Waves have unveiled their brilliantly-executed and highly entertaining video for latest single "Movies", which sees the band expertly act out scenes from a variety of blockbuster films, from American hit comedy Wayne's World, to academy-winning classics like A Clockwork Orange and Reservoir Dogs
Seth Rogan has been the poster boy of the Beta Male for over a decade now thanks to him creating movies that were high concept, and then filling that high concept with low-brow comedy. And really, for my money, it does not get much more entertaining than high concept and low comedy. Okay, that was movies, his first attempt at a television show, Preacher, was not, and continues to not be, well… good. Of course that, much like one of his worst movies, The Green Hornet, was an adaptation. Rogan’s second attempt at a television show, Future Man, was an original concept.
Oh, and how original it was. The show featured Josh Henderson (The Hunger Games) as the first person to beat the Biotic Wars video game which turned out to be sent from the future to recruit someone to help take down the Biotics which became a future scourge to humans. Except what these future warriors, Tiger and Wolf, do not realize, the people in our time do not play video games for training in the future. And their “savior” is someone who only plays video games when he is not at his janitorial job. Then the trio travels through time trying to stop the rise of the Biotics. Like I said, very high concept.
The first season ended with a nice bow after Henderson blew up the building with the Biotic creator and all the plans. Sure he is going to have to live the rest of his life in a maximum security prison and be known as one of the biggest terrorist of his time, but at least he can rest in the solace that his two future warriors can (presumably) go back to a better future. But since the show got a second season, of course the future that Tiger and Wolf go back to is not much better than the one that they left… and plenty of hilarity ensues. And I mean a lot, if you laughed during the first season, there will be plenty to laugh at in the second.
Though there is a bit of a sophomore slump. It is weird that for what was presented as a time travel show; there is actually very little time travel in the second season, actually none until the end of the season, though when they actually start traveling again, there is one of the funniest bits in the history of the show. And I was a bit disappointed that they kept the mail characters away from each other because how the play off each other is a highlight of the show. But where season one sputters to towards the end, season two has a much better build to something and pay off every dumb plot they set up. No seriously, Tiger’s doppelganger’s high pitched voice, though super annoying, is actually paid off brilliantly.
Then those of you who were excited to see producer Seth Rogan in the season two trailer, be warned, he does not actually show up until the season finale. But when he does shows up, it turns out to be maybe the best episode of the season sets up what will likely be a crazy season three premiere. Oh Hulu, please let there be a season three. And four. And five. And six. And a movie.
All episodes of Future Man season two premieres on Hulu tomorrow.
Last summer I finally caught up with Game of Thrones and no matter how good you are at avoiding spoilers; there was still one inadvertent way I still was spoiled on certain character death: when they would show up on another television program. So when watching Game of Thrones I would go, “oh hey, there is Iron Fist… I guess he is going to die eventually.” I think there were five different Game of Thrones characters I saw as main characters on other shows that pretty much spoiled their fate. So if you plan on catching up on Game of Thrones eventually, or are behind by one season, be warned, a main Game of Thrones character is the star of Project Blue Book and I will be talking Game of Thrones spoilers.
Project Blue Book was an actual government program that investigated unidentified flying objects throughout the United States. So, yeah, basically a real life X-Files. And there are plenty of cases for a television to plunder because there were 12,618 cases of UFO reported (and more than a few went unsolved). On the show two men are responsible to determine what exactly happened in a time before everyone had a video camera on their phone to document the strange occurrences.
Michael Malarkey (The Vampire Diaries) is an air force pilot tasked by the government to prove that UFO’s do not exist while Aidan Gillen (R.I.P. Littlefinger) is an OSU astrophysicist professor, and as a scientist he is convinced there is other life out there but doubt of intersteller space travel. He is also the kind of guy who would read the entire encyclopedia Britannica when sick as a child. Yes, kiddies, that is what people had to do before the Playstation was invented. Malarkey want to close these cases quickly while Gillen wants be through. So yeah, Gillen is the Mulder and Malarkey is the Scully.
Some of the cases the duo goes out on in the first season include a fighter pilot racing against weird lights in Fargo. There is what is believed to be a flaming alien that causes some ailment around the eyes in Birmingham. They go to Lubbock, Texas to investigate blackout and V-shaped lights. There are multiple episodes of green hovering lights that dig into a government conspiracy. And there is even a cold case about World War II Foo Fighters. For those who do not know where Dave Grohl got his band name, Foo Fighters were UFO that fighter pilots claimed to see.
Then instead of a smoking man, there are mysterious men in hats who are following the duo around. There is also a mysterious woman (Ksenia Solo, Lost Girl) who just so happens to befriend Gillen’s wife at a time he takes the government job. So yeah, since this is based on real events and you can rule out alien, she is probably, most definitely a Russian spy. But this makes me wonder just how real the show is. Sure, they say these cases are based on real reports that they got from the Freedom of Information Act, but I do wonder if it is safe to assume everything else is poetic license. But as one of the characters says, there is a difference between science fiction and informed speculation.
Project Blue Book airs Tuesdays at 10:00 on History.
1. Meant to Be - Bebe Rexha featuring Florida Georgia Line
2. (Expletive Deleted) I'm Belle Thorne - Bella Thorne
3. Gucci Gang - Lil' Pump
4. I Like It - Cardi B
5. Better Now - Post Malone
6. I'm Not a Racist - Joyner Lucas
7. No Excuses - Meghan Trainor
8. Chun Lee - Nicki Minaj
9. FEFE - 6ix9ine featuring Nicki Minaj and Murda Beatz
10. Stir Fry - Migos
11. Unforgettable - French Montana featurig Swae Lee
12. Wait - Maroon 5
13. Girls Like You - Maroon t featuring Cardi B
14. Die a Happy Man - Thomas Rhett
15. In My Blood - Shawn Mendes
16. Real Friends - Camila Cabello
17. Ric Flair Drip - Offset and Metro Boomin
18. Sad - XXXTentacion
19. Wake Up - Lil Xan
20. I'm a Mess - Bebe Rexha
21. Heaven - Julia Michaels
22. God's Plan - Drake
23. Freaky Friday - Lil Dicky featuring Chris Brown
24. Walk It Talk It - Migos featuring Drake
25. Taste - Tyga featuring Offset
26. Sick Boy - The Chainsmokers
27. Despacito (Remix) - Luis Fonsi, Daddy Yankee and Justin Biever
28. Tell Me You Love Me - Demi Lovato
29. Shallow - Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper
30. Level Up - Ciara
31. Lift Yourself - Kanye West
32. Outside Today - YoungBoy Never Broke Again
33. Plug Walk - Rich the Kid
34. High Hopes - Panic! At the Disco
35. Him and I - G-Eazy with Halsey
36. Filthy - Justin Timberlake
37. Choose - Why Don't We
38. For You (Fifty Shades Freed) - Liam Payne and Rita Ora
39. How Long - Charlie Puth
40. River - Eminem featuring Ed Sheeran
Ray Donovan: Well, it is apparently time for the one time per season where Ray and Micky stop trying to kill each other and actually help each other, usually because a family member is in trouble. I am really ready for Micky to die because this is getting old.
Vikings: Wait, weren’t Bjorn and King Herald fighting on different sides just last episode? I cannot imagine that alliance going well when (if) they eventually attack Kattergard.
You can download Vikings on iTunes.
Gotham: 10,000 rounds for anyone who kills Jim Gordon? Um, don’t these people need the bullets before they are able to kill him? But anyway. How very Arkham City of them to cut off the city and divide it into turfs. And R.I.P. Tabatha… maybe. Not many people stays dead for long on this show. So maybe when they resurrect Tabby, they can reanimate Butch for the second time and they can live happily ever after. I mean, The Riddler is back and didn’t he get stabbed by Leigh. They did not even explain what when on there.
You can download Gotham on iTunes.
The Blacklist: So while I was debating with myself on just who could have ratted out Not-Red and finally settled on the sister, it turns out that was not going to be a season long mystery, Elizabeth just outted herself. What fun is that?
You can download The Blacklist on iTunes.
9. Shaft (June 14): Shaft is one of our greatest cinematic heroes and it is a shame that we have only gotten one Shaft film in the last fourth-second year. They are finally dusting off the baddest mother… (I better shut my mouth) in a third reboot, this time with the son of the Sam Jackson Shaft and grandnephew of the Richard Roundtree original. And that is really all I know and really all I need to know.
8. Maggie Rogers – Heard it in a Past Life (January 18): Alaska was one of those songs that reignite your faith in music. It was something new but also feels old and timeless at the same time. Every song she has released since has been at the very least good (netting three songs of each of my last two best songs of the year lists) and Maggie Rogers is finally releasing her full length debut this year.
7. Wu-Tang: An American Saga (TBA): Netflix may have a massive every expanding library of original content, but I would much rather pay for Hulu because they ordered straight to series a show based on the origins of the Wu-Tang Clan. And this is not even the most anticipated Hulu show this year.
6. Captain Marvel (March 8): I have been a Brie Larson supporter going back to the days she was making crappy Avril Lagine knock-offs. Okay, it was her turn as Envy Adams in Scott Pilgrim vs. the World where I realized she could make it as an actress (what forking murderer’s row of actresses that movie launched: Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Ellen Wong, Anna Kendrick, and Aubrey Plaza). Half a decade later she was winning an Oscar. And now she is playing the strongest Avenger in the Marvel Universe who will get her own movie before (likely) taking down Thanos a month later. Ironically DC’s Captain Marvel (who now goes by Shazam) gets his movie in April. So we will get three Captain Marvel movies in seven weeks. And that does not even include the six other superhero movies this year and five new superhero television shows this year (and that does not include the Disney+ shows that may or may not launch this year).
5. Kingdom Hearts 3 (January 29): I joke whenever I do my music round up lists that maybe this is the year we get to hear Dr. Dre’s Detox. And before that I joked about the Chinese Democracy release. But the music industry is nothing compared to video game delays which are very frequent and sometimes very long. The second Kingdom Hearts came out in 2005 (just three years after the first). But fourteen years later, the Final Fantasy / Disney mash up is finally getting released. New areas include Kingdom of Corona (based on Tangled), San Fransokyo (Big Hero 6), Toy Box (Toy Story), Monstropolis (Monsters, Inc.), and Arendelle (Frozen).
4. Zombieland Too (October 11): Zombies have completely dominated this decade with The Walking Dead launching in 2010 and just way to many zombie themed movies and shows to count at this point. But there was one movie that predated the current trend: Zombieland. A wacky look at the zombie apocalypse with maybe the greatest cameo ever in the history of cinema. Such a great concept that it was one of Amazon’s first attempt at a scripted series. But the pilot was killed online so hard it did not get picked up to series. The big problem is they recast everyone instead of created new characters. Well that original cast is back and there is no movie I am more excited about.
3. Women’s World Cup (June 7-July 7): The greatest women soccer players are heading to France this year and the United States are not the slam dunk they have been in the past. The home squad will be tough and Germany and England will not have far to travel. Of course first up is the Knockout Round of which the US may have the easiest draw.
2. Game of Thrones (April, HBO): I finally caught up on the show last summer and now I am completely ready for the final season of the show. Very few things live up to the hype, but Game of Thrones is as good as people say it is. But I am a bit wary of the final season because of how uneven the last sixth season was. I have noticed a trend when shows based on books run out of written material as the Handmaid’s Tale second season was a bit of a disappointment too But c’mon how bad can a shoe with a forking ice dragon be?
1. Veronica Mars (Summer, Hulu): It feels like a lot of things coming this year got incepted from my brain: a Wu-Tang show, Brie Larson: Superhero, another Zombieland, and I did not even have room for the Deadwood movie. But there is one event that tops them all. This was almost like a fever dream, seeing this on Deadline and reading it a couple times to make sure I was reading it correctly. Wait, a Veronica Mars reboot? And it is going to be on Hulu. Oh hey, I have Hulu. The show was one of the most perfectly crafted shows ever about a spunky teenager who solves crime, but it is significantly better than that logline. The Kickstarter movie was fine in a fan service-y kind of way of having to cram in all the characters we loved. Creator Rob Thomas says the new show will be darker. But we will see some familiar faces like Dick Casablancas and Deputy Leo. Oh and Kareem Abdul Jabbar is a staff writer on the show. Seriously. For those that missed the show the first time around, or just want to watch again, all three seasons and the movie will be on Hulu this summer.
Ray Donovan: Seeing the montage of Terry shaking, Bunchy looking like he is enjoying taking a punch, and Ray getting beat down again, I began to wonder, is Ray brain damaged? Is that why he is seeing things and ended up under psychiatric watch? But this season is starting to get confusing. It started simple enough with Ray trying to secure the mayoral race. But now there have been so many twist and turns, and double, maybe triple crosses, I am not entirely sure what exactly what Ray is trying to accomplish.
Vikings: Oh wow, they killed the Bishop. And he just killed his replacement. And with an actor of his name recognition, I figured he would be around much longer than a season and would essentially replace Ragnar as the lead of the show. But then what exactly became of Lagatha? When Bjorn could not find her on the battlefield, I just assumed that King Herald captured her, but she was not on the boat with him at the end.
You can download Vikings on iTunes.
Angie Tribeca: Music artists have been air dropping their album with little to no notice for most of this decade but I do not remember a television show doing so with three days notice before. But hey, this is a show that launched with a twenty-six hour, ad-free marathon. And we get our first format change, gone is the police station and now the team is a clandestine government organization traveling around in a van. Sadly Deon Cole is also gone except for a cameo for the first five episode. Papa Giles is conspicuously absent. I have a feeling though he may show up with the french dude at some point. The show has also gone heavy on the parody this season and thankfully it is still forking hilarious.
You can download Angie Tribeca on iTunes.
- Adam Savage will return to television as host and executive producer of MythBusters Jr., when the new Science Channel series premieres next Wednesday, January 2 at 9:00. For the ten-episode series Savage has teamed-up with six of the nation’s leading young ‘makers’, robotics wizzes, builders, and inventors, all under the age of 16, who show off their amazing ingenuity and STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Math) skills.
- Further expanding its primetime lineup of entertaining and socially-relevant content that attracts a young, multicultural audience, Fuse Media has acquired the exclusive TV rights to WTF Baron Davis. At launch on January 20, 2019 (11pm/ET), the new, eight-episode comedy series starring two-time NBA All-Star Baron Davis and NBA impersonator and social media star Brandon Armstrong (bdotadot5), becomes the first scripted sitcom to have its first-run TV premiere on Fuse.
- Noticias Telemundo announced recently the development of its first-ever English-language daily newscast. The planned newscast will be distributed exclusively via YouTube, also becoming the first Noticias Telemundo production to live outside a Telemundo-owned platform. The Noticias Telemundo project obtained a Google News Innovation (GNI) YouTube grant, which is awarded to ventures that elevate quality journalism, evolve business models to drive sustainable growth, and empower news organizations through technological innovation.
- Today, REPUBLIC RECORDS releases the Bumblebee Motion Picture Soundtrack, in conjunction with the film’s arrival in theaters. Get the soundtrack HERE. In addition to featuring “Back To Life”—an original song co-written for the film by Bumblebee lead actress Hailee Steinfeld—the soundtrack also features classics from the eighties, the era of the film. Featured artists include Bon Jovi, The Smiths, Duran Duran, Tears For Fears, and more. What’s more, the soundtrack includes an 80’s Remix of Steinfeld’s “Back To Life.”
Into the Dark started as a novel idea, a new horror movie length episode even month based on a holiday that month. But I wonder how much they thought that threw because you have a couple months where that major holiday actually starts that month. So December actually gets two episodes so people can watch before the New Year themed episode before the start of the year. Or at least have four days to do so. I do wonder if March will get multiple episodes too, because April Fool’s Day seems like the most logical pick for April but that month also has Easter and Tax Day. Then in the final installment of the season, Labor Day is actually on the second of September.
I got really excited when I saw the trailer for New Year, New You as it featured Dalia Royce in all her mean girl glory, okay this time with a hundred percent less deadpan. Instead she plays a self-wellness vlogger who is about to hit the big time with her own television show. But before that, she accepts an invitation to a New Year’s Eve party with her high school friends at a house that will soon to be sold and has a dark history which led to the house being reinforced like a fortress.
The host is not as successful as her childhood best friend who is a babysitter who makes end meet as she never finished college or paying off those student loans. She also sports a scar that looks exactly like the integral symbol for no apparent reasons. This start off alright but clearly there is tension building and not just because Dalia Royce routinely goes back into her pretentious self-help speak saying things like she does not eat dairy anymore for no reasonable reason. And just when the clock is about to hit midnight, things finally start to get interesting.
Okay, only a little more interesting. Once the clock hits midnight, it start to get a bit predictable too. And really before midnight, it takes a while for the episode to finally get to the twisty they choreograph a little too much that it is coming. And it did have some chances to become fun like a TLC dance sequence which was way too short, but instead the episode stays a little to grounded in reality. Still, it is nice to see the old Dalia Royce grow up and help people for selfish reasons. Seems like a reasonable extension of Suburgatory. Too bad Tessa Altman was not invited to the reunion.
Into the Dark Power Ranking
1. The Body (October)
2. New Year, New You (January)
3. Pooka! (December)
4. Flesh and Bone (November)
Into the Dark: New Year, New You premieres tomorrow only on Hulu.
Ray Donovan: Wait, Bridget is old enough to drink? Wasn’t she banging her teacher two seasons ago? I was shocked she did not get carded. Maybe there was a time jump I am not remembering. But I see now why Bunchy was running after that car last week, I did not see who got in that car, I was thinking since they were at a church it was a priest. And you knew it would happen, too many punches are making Terry shake again. Back to Ray, I have no clue where this season is going now. I figured he would find a way to get the mayoral candidate he was forking elected but now I wonder if he would really help Susan Sarandon. Is there a way to do both? That if he gets out of the crazy house. And should I know who the bald person was at the end? Connor? A metaphor? Just a random patient singing?
Survivor: David vs. Goliath: As great as this season has been, probably the best in at least a decade, it is kind of disappointing and kind of clichéd that in a season that pitted David’s vs. Goliath’s, that a David was able to beat five Goliath’s in the end. But really all I want is Angelina in the next couple all-star season. Only she could make a clue that was so simple look so complicated.
Speaking of all-stars, we are getting four returning players next season. Meh. As great as this season was, whenever the show mixes returning players with new ones rank as the worst. Especially the ones where it is just one returning player per tribe.
You can download Survivor: David vs. Goliath on iTunes.
Vikings: I was wondering why they ended the last episode on a cliffhanger when it seems very much like Igar was threatening his brother. But the big reveal turn out to be a fake Lagatha. Kind of lame. I am a bit surprise that Ivar did not punish his brother for the insubordination at the feast. And that was a large family to expel from his settlement. That is probably a mistake for everyone. But a melancholy happy trails to the seer. I kind of missed why exactly Ivar killed him.
You can download Vikings on iTunes.
Timeless: So we get a movie to wrap everything up except it kind of felt like just two episodes strapped together. But it was kind of weird that Lucy never bothered to get her sister back. It is one thing to save someone from dying like Wyatt did with his wife, but the wife was fated to die, the sister should exist. And I wonder if that Asian chick from the end who had designed for a time machine was the granddaughter of the North Korean the team saved?
You can download You can download Timeless on iTunes.
Titans: There is nothing I hate more than dream sequences and what a complete waste of a finale to spend basically the whole time in Robin’s darkest timeline. And this felt like a penultimate episode and next week the Titans find a way to save Robin and defeat Trigon. Was that the original idea because his season was supposed to twelve episodes? Did the show just simply run out of money? But hey, we did get an end credit scene and… um, does anyone care about Super Boy? I was actually more excited to see Krypto.
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 Black Monday, Saoirse Ronan, Country Faith’s Country Faith Christmas Vol. 2, Billions, The Librarian, Howie Mandel Presents Howie Mandel at the Howie Mandel Comedy Club, Magnify, and Ray Donovan.
- Showtime has released the official poster and a new teaser for its upcoming comedy series Black Monday. The series stars and is executive produced by Emmy® nominee and Golden Globe Award winner Don Cheadle and stars two-time Tony Award nominee and Grammy® winner Andrew Rannells (Girls) and Regina Hall (Girls Trip). Screen Actors Guild® Award winner Paul Scheer (Veep) also stars. Black Monday was created by David Caspe (Happy Endings) and Jordan Cahan (My Best Friend’s Girl), who serve as executive producers and showrunners. Emmy nominees Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg (Preacher, Superbad, Future Man) are executive producers and directed the pilot. The 10-episode series will premiere on Sunday, January 20 at 10:00.
- The popular faith-based brand, Country Faith’s Country Faith Christmas Vol. 2 is proving to be equally as successful as the first edition in the series as it moves up the Billboard Top Christian Albums sales chart this holiday season. Top Country music stars including Carrie Underwood, Kelsea Ballerini, Dylan Scott, Kenny Rogers, Wynonna, Chris Young (featuring Alan Jackson), John Berry, Phil Vassar, Charlie Daniels, Rodney Atkins, Hank Williams, Jr., Darius Rucker, Brenda Lee The Bellamy Brothers and up and coming artists, Hannah Kerr and Liddy Clark all appear on this star-studded album covering their unique versions of some of the most popular Christmas classics ever. The heart-warming collection even features iconic Brenda Lee and her famous rendition of “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” which was first released back in 1958 when she was only twelve years old and still sits at the top of the Billboard Holiday Airplay charts (# 6 this week) and boasts nearly 700K downloads.
- Saoirse Ronan's Mary Queen of Scots Costume Physically Altered Her:
- Showtime has announced that the fourth season of the hit drama series Billions will premiere on Sunday, March 17 at 9:00. Starring Oscar® nominee and Emmy® and Golden Globe® winner Paul Giamatti and Emmy and Golden Globe winner Damian Lewis, Billions is one of the network’s top drama series, with season three averaging five million weekly viewers across platforms. The first three seasons of Billions are available on SHOWTIME on-air, on demand and over the internet.
- UPtv, the network that celebrates uplifting stories about families experiencing life’s biggest moments, is set to air The Librarian three-part movie series on New Year’s Day beginning at 10 a.m. ET. The franchise, produced by Dean Devlin’s Electric Entertainment and starring Noah Wyle (ER, Falling Skies), centers on an ancient organization hidden beneath the Metropolitan Public Library dedicated to protecting an unknowing world from the secret, magical reality hidden all around. The Librarian: Quest for the Spear – Airs Tuesday, Jan. 1 at 10 a.m. ET and 4 p.m. ET. The Librarian: Return to King Solomon's Mines – Airs Tuesday, Jan. 1 at 12 p.m. ET and 6 p.m. ET. The Librarian: The Curse of the Judas Chalice – Premieres Tuesday, Jan. 1 at 2 p.m. ET and 8 p.m. ET.
- Showtime will premiere Howie Mandel’s first solo comedy special in 20 years, Howie Mandel Presents Howie Mandel at the Howie Mandel Comedy Club, on Friday, January 18 at 10:00.
- Wrapping up 2018, FOX Sports Films will air a movie marathon on FS1 featuring the first four MAGNIFY documentaries. Whether you missed the premieres, or you’d like to rewatch the series, you can binge-watch from Sunday, Dec. 30 at 6 AM ET to Monday, Dec. 31 at 6 AM ET. MAGNIFY leverages sports as a lens for exploring important cultural stories and investigates the challenges, change, and unity they bring to communities. To amplify MAGNIFY’s connection to local communities through sports, FOX Sports Supports and 21st Century Fox partnered with Good Sports, a non-profit organization, to bolster youth sports in conjunction with the launch of SHOT IN THE DARK and THEY FIGHT.
- Showtime has ordered a seventh season of its hit drama series Ray Donovan, starring multiple Emmy® and Golden Globe® nominee Liev Schreiber and Jon Voight in his Golden Globe winning role. Production will begin in Spring 2019 in New York. The current season of Ray Donovan airs on Sundays at 9:00, with its season finale on January 13.
- Hulu's 2019 Winter Programing Slate (click the links for trailers): Marvel's Runaways: Season Two: All 13 episodes December 21 Into the Dark: New Year, New You: Premieres December 28 Future Man: Season One: All 13 episodes January 11
Into the Dark: Down: Premieres February 1
Pen15: Season One: All 10 episodes February 8
Into the Dark: Treehouse: Premieres March 1
Shrill: Season One: All 6 episodes March 15
The Act: Season One: Episodes weekly starting March 20
Big shake up in the Marvel Cinematic Universe: small screen addition this year with Netflix canceling three of its five Marvel shows with the other two likely to get the axe after their next seasons air (oh, and I guess something big happened on screen too this year, not that a bunch of teenagers in California notice or care). Of course that begs the question will Marvel resurrect those characters elsewhere even though it is reported there is a contractual two year waiting period. The upcoming Disney+ streaming channel (Disney owns Marvel Studios) is supposedly family friendly, so if we ever see Daredevil and the rest of The Defenders, it would most likely be on Hulu, which Disney will soon own sixty percent of.
Hulu being the current home of its own Marvel show Runaways. So could we see the Runaways team up with or battle The Defenders? Since they are on different coasts, unlikely. And Runaways first season was low on references to the larger universe it inhabits. That does change a little in season two where I caught a Black Panther reference as well as a Cloak and Dagger reference that they really want you to notice because it is in two episodes. The latter airs on Freeform, another Disney owned channel which makes a crossover a little like even though the shows again are on different coast, Cloak does have the ability to teleport.
The first season of Runaways was just one long tease. Given the show’s name, it was a huge shame the titular characters decided to wait until the last frame of the first season to actually run away. And that first season should have been great: a group of super power kids team up to take on their supervillain parent, each with their own tried and true super villain traits: the mad scientist, the witch, the alien, the time travelers, and the street thugs turned real estate tycoons. Then the kids take the traits of their parents, including a sixth teen with super strength whose parents died, to take them down. But the first season just came off as a bad The CW teen show with superpowers. It was created by the writing team that gave us The O.C., Gossip Girl, and The Carrie Diaries.
So has the show improved now that the Runaways have, you know, actually run away? Well, a little, but it was not the leap that other bottom of the Marvel heap show did in the second season of Iron Fist. Although where Iron Fist wisely went from thirteen to ten episodes, Runaways actually expanded from ten to thirteen episodes. The show is much better at answering question at time, both others they take to long to get to the point. But one of the biggest problems with that first season was none of the kids on the show were particularly good actors and I found much of that first season rooting for the evil murderous parents.
I found myself rooting for the parents less in season two but that is mostly because some of their motives were weird or unclear and after a major event in the middle of the season, they just start to become aimless. Sure, that unclear motive is explained for three of the parents, but I still wish they would just go full on supervillain just to make the lines clearer. When it comes to superheroes, you just really cannot have shades of grey that you need in more relationship drama.
As for the children, yes they ran away but they did not go far as they start the season on the streets of Los Angeles with no sense of direction until they find an underground mansion that they co-op. But they seem as aimless as their parents seemingly have six different plans among the six of them. They spend most of the season going off by themselves on side missions they do not seem to add to much. Sometimes the kids go back to their parents voluntarily and sometimes the parents just let them go even though they plot to reunite with their kids by any means necessary. This season really misses a common goal that actually builds to something and actual motivations that make sense and are consistent.
We do get a couple of potential Runaways this season; comic book readers should recognize both. There is a third person who is brought into the mansion and is called a Runaway, which just let me scratching my head as to anyone would do this. But I made a dent into my skull at the number of times I had to scratch my head watching this season of Runaways. With that said, I will likely still be back for season three. Hopefully the dent in my head has been repaired by then.
All episodes of Marvel’s Runaways are available tomorrow on Hulu.
Heard it in a Past Life - 
Don't Feed the Pop Monster - 
Wednesdays - Ryan Adams
