Best of the Week - 1/7/12

Quote of the Week: Shame is over rated, like Ke$ha. In fact they should rename shame Ke$hame. I just bought a Ke$ha album, I’m so ke$hamed. (Max, 2 Broke Girls)

Song of the Week: Nothing Else Matters – Lissie (Revenge)

Gratuitous Token Hot Chick Picture of the Week:



Scene of the Week:



Big News of the Week: Television Is Already Back: Forget about the caucus (who cares what Iowa thinks anyway; go Jon Huntsman!) networks are already bringing back their shows the first week into the new year. Here is what I will be watching this winter. Premiere dates in parentheses if it has not already returned.

Mondays
8:00 – How I Met Your Mother – CBS
8:00 – Pretty Little Liars – ABC Family
8:30 – 2 Broke Girls – CBS
9:00 – The Lying Game – ABC Family
10:00 – Castle – ABC (1/9)

Tuesdays
8:00 – Switched at Birth – ABC Family
8:00 – Last Man Standing – ABC
8:30 – Work It – ABC
9:00 – The River – ABC (2/7)
10:00 – Justified – FX (1/17)
10:00 – Parenthood – NBC

Wednesdays
8:00 – Survivor: One World – CBS (2/15)
8:00 – The Middle – ABC
8:30 – Suburgatory – ABC
9:00 – Modern Family – ABC
9:30 – Happy Endings – ABC
10:00 – Revenge – ABC
10:00 – The Challenge: Exes – MTV (1/24)

Thursdays
8:00 – The Big Bang Theory (1/12)

Fridays
8:00 – Chuck – NBC (Series Finale 1/27)
9:00 – Grimm (1/13)
10:00 – Real Time with Bill Maher (1/13)

Sundays
8:00 – Once Upon a Time – ABC (1/8)
9:00 – Shameless – Showtime (1/8)
9:00 – The Walking Dead – AMC (2/12)
10:00 – House of Lies – Showtime (1/8)
10:00 – Pan Am (1/8)
10:00 – Leverage (Season Finale 1/15)
10:00 – Mad Men – AMC (3/16)

Free Download of the Week: If you scrolled through my list of the 100 Best Songs of 2011 there are actually a couple songs that you can download for the low, low price of free.

#5 Helplessness Blues – Fleet Foxes (Rcrdlbl)
#25. Freak Out – Tapes n’ Tapes (Rcrdlbl)
#34. Freaks and Geeks – Childish Gambino (I Am Donald)
#36. Nylons in a Rip - Nikka Costa (Amazon MP3)
#62. Bonfire (Clean) - Childish Gambino (Amazon MP3)
#79. Get Some – Lykke Li (Rcrdlbl)
#88. Monster – Kanye West featuring Jay-Z, Rick Ross, Bon Iver and Nicki Minaj (Rcrdlbl)
#93. Make My – The Roots (Rcrdlbl)
#96. Little Lie – Lindi Ortega (Spinner)

For those who would like to listen to my list but are too lazy or lack the hard drive space to download the songs, I have created a Spotify playlist for you listening pleasure. And be sure to follow me because I’ll be uploading my entire yearly (and decade) lists over the next couple months and Best Songs of 1996 is already up.

Deal of the Week: Over 1000 Album for $5: Best of 2011: Amazon MP3 has over 1000 albums on sale for five dollars this month including a bunch that were released just last year including number one on my list of the 20 Best Albums of 2011, Helplessness Blues by the Fleet Foxes. Also making my list at that price include the latest from Raphael Saadiq (#2), Blitzen Trapper and Danger Mouse.



New Album Release of the Week: Fallen Empires - Snow Patrol

New DVD Release of the Week: Boardwalk Empire: The Complete First Season

Video of the Week: The movie The Firm is a little before my time (and since I am old, it makes me wonder who this show is for; apparently NBC is finally going for the anciently old CBS demographic). Now The Firm the television show has its two hour premiere Sunday at 9:00 and here is a sneak peak of the premiere. Please note that the show settles into its regular timeslot later this week on Thursday at 10:00.

Looking for the Truth


Next Week Pick of the Week: House of Lies, Sunday at 10:00 on Showtime: You can check out my preview here (Previewing House of Lies) and even if you do not subscribe to the premium channel, that are having a free preview weekend so check your cable provider and maybe you will be able to sample the return of Veronica Mars to the small screen.

Around the Tubes - 1/6/12

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 Dennis the Menace, Kojak, Pauly Shore, 30 Rock, Ghost Hunters, Face Off, The Used, Davis Cassidy, and CafePress.

- Classic television fans should be excited to learn of a couple shows coming to DVD soon. Next Tuesday, Dennis the Menace: Season Four, its final season hits shelves. The Jay North starring show features all 38 uncut episodes across 5 disks. For those looking for adult fair, Kojak: The Complete Movie Collection is being released January 24 and features all 8 mystery movies that were made between 1973 and 1990. The set even includes the previously unavailable pilot movie The Marcus Nelson Murders which was aired in 1973.



- Want to be on television with Pauly Shore? The comedian has teamed up with Youtoo TV and is encouraging you to upload 30 second videos, called Peoplemercials to air on the national cable network.

- 30 Rock returns next Thusday at 8:00 on NBC and Liz Lemon is already having flashbacks:

Liz Lemon’s Flashbacks



- How does a trip to Los Angles which would including a luxury hotel stay, private car service to and from the airport, a $1,000 reward card for whatever they want, a $250 spa card and a special concert experience sound to you? If that sounds good Lean Pockets is offering that up as a prize to one lucky winner (there’s also a chance to win thousands of daily prizes, such as retail gift cards for stylish clothing brands, department stores and online shopping). All you have to do to get a code is buy specially marked packages of Lean Pocket or fan their Facebook page to get a code to ender. Please note the grand page will also require you to hang out with Perez Hilton.

- Next Wednesday sees the return of two Syfy shows. Ghost Hunters kicks off the night at 9:00 and will be followed by Face Off at 10:00 with a men vs. women challenge with a Wizard of Oz theme. Check out a preview below:

Return to Oz


- Music fans may want to check out the new Freemake Music Box app that allows users worldwide search for music online, play tracks and create playlists with no registration, limits or geo-restrictions.

- The Used are back and you can head over to KROQ.com to listen to I Come Alive, the first single off of Vulnerable out March 27.

- In other new music news, David Cassidy has a new single UFO (U Fine One) that you can currently download on iTunes. The song was written for and is featuring in the new iSlinky Squashin Martians app just as the Slinky toy turns 50 years old.

- Mitt Romney may have narrowly won the Iowa Caucus but over at the CaféPress Election Meter Ron Paul has over fifty percent of merchandise sold. Mitt even still follows Barack Obama and Rick Perry.

Previewing House of Lies

Showtime has carved out a very specific niche for its sitcom (well, half hour shows because sitcom would insinuate that it was actually funny) with very unlikeable lead characters. It started with a drug dealing suburbanite and since then included a sex addicted writer and a pill popping nurse. Considering our current situation, the lead of their new show House of Lies may be the channel’s least likeable yet: a management consultant who helps those who destroyed our economy keep their yachts and high bonuses. But hey, on the flip side, Veronica Mars is back on the small screen.

To show you just how morally corrupt the character on the show are, it is based on a book whose full title is House of Lies: How Management Consultants Steal Your Watch and Then Tell You the Time. Don Cheadle (Boogie Nights) is the lead douchebag of the second ranked firm in the nation (naturally his ex-wife Dawn Olivieri (Veronica Mars) is the head of number one). Just do not ask me what his underling Kristen Bell (Reefer Madness - The Movie Musical), Ben Schwartz (Undercovers), Josh Lawson (The Wedding Party) do other than insult each other and waste client’s money (the crew makes it rain in a strip club in the first episode).

We also get to see Cheadle off the clock and he may actually be a worse person at home than when he is getting paid. He lives with his son with Olivieri, who is having some identity issues (he is trying out for the role of Sandy in the school’s production of Grease) and his father who did about as good a job raising his son as Cheadle did. In both worlds Cheadle has a penchant for breaking the fourth wall that gets annoying really early. But hey, Veronica Mars is back on the small screen where she can curse like a sailor (which I learned firsthand she does in real life) and remove more clothing (which unfortunately she does not utilize in the first episode).

House of Lies premieres Sunday at 10:00 on Showtime. For those that cannot wait and do not mind a little censorship, you can watch the first episode free on iTunes, Sho.com, you cable providers On Demand channel, or just watch it now on YouTube below:

House of Lies: Series Premiere Full Episode

Previewing The Dog Whisperer with Cesar Millan 8.x

I realized while watching The Dog Whisper that I need Caser Millan to come over to get my dogs to stop barking at the television while we watch The Dog Whisperer. Of course watching The Dog Whisperer makes me realize that even though they attack anyone who comes to the door and occasionally use the dining room as their own personal bathroom stall, they really do not come close to the dogs that Millan is tasked to rehabilitate.

The new season kicks off this Saturday on its new network, Nat Geo Wild with a very special episode dedicated to why dogs fight, thankfully a problem I rarely have to deal with unless one of them is hoarding bones (which begs the question, is there a doggie version of Hoarders?). The episode features two well mannered Jack Russell terriers that, when they get together, go all out on each other, leaving puddles over the house.

Later this season, much like Ernest P. Worrell before him Cesar goes into the army. Or at least he visits dogs at Fort Hood in Texas including an Australian shepherd who is scared of people in uniform. This of course cases problems on an Army base. Same for the Shetland shepherd who goes into a barking frenzy around loud noise, where there is a lot of with all the helicopters flying around the base. During his tour, Cesar also runs into a miniature bull terrier who needs to find a way to curb her uncontrollable excitement.

The on another very special episode, Cesar Millan will be celebrating his 150th episode over Valentine’s Weekend of course with Home-Wrecking Hounds. Cesar will be visiting two couples where their dogs have complicated their relationships. Will Cesar be able to play Cupid or will the dog days for these couples be over? We will have to wait until 2/11 to find out.

The Dog Whisperer airs Saturdays at 8:00 on Nat Geo Wild. You can stream select episodes on Hulu. You can also download Dog Whisperer on iTunes. Check out a clip from the season premiere below:

The 25 Best Movies of 2011

Due to my dislike of movie theaters, it should be noted my best movies list is compiled of movies released on DVD in 2011.

1. Crazy, Stupid, Love

2. The Social Network

3. The Help

4. Never Let Me Go

5. Black Swan

6. Let Me In

7. Thor

8. Morning Glory

9. True Grit

10. X-Men: First Class

11. Hanna

12. It's Kind of a Funny Story

13. Bridesmaids

14. Captain America: The First Avenger

15. Paul

16. Monsters

17. The Winning Season

18. Unknown

19. Tron: Legacy

20. Our Idiot Brother

21. Blue Valentine

22. Red

23. Salt

24. Winter's Bone

25. Source Code

Today I Finally Overcame Trying to Fit the World Inside a Picture Frame

A wise man once said music is the soundtrack to your life. Not only is it your soundtrack, but it is your yearbook; hearing certain songs will take you back to a high school dance, your first kiss or the time you drunkenly tried to steal a speed bump from a parking lot in college (No Diggity! No Doubt!). Listening to Room for Squares by John Mayer can take you back to the time to your early twenties when the world was at your fingertips when anything was possible. Back before you were stuck in a dead end job (and that is if you are lucky these days), had a mortgage that is not worth the paper it is printed on and long before John Mayer was writing crappy concept albums about having sex with Jennifer Aniston. But one thing Mayer got right on that crappy concept album is that it is a long time since twenty-three and listening to Room for Squares, this month’s induction into the Scooter Hall of Fame, will take you right back to that age.

John Mayer broke on the scene with No Such Thing, a one man acoustic version of the Dave Matthews Band delivering folksy pop with hope for the future. Even if the song starts off with the sarcasm of “Welcome to the real world she said condescendingly” he was still looking forward to running through the halls of his high school even if his ten year reunion was still a couple years away. The bright eyed optimist could be found all over Room for Squares like on the 3x5, a must for any road trip where Mayer himself takes to the road lamenting nothing but not having a camera to document his trip.

The name Room for Squares started up Mayer longstanding love of self deprecation and seeped into the songs on the album like on My Stupid Mouth (which he still has not cured a decade later) where his mouth resigns him to play a game of chess with the salt and pepper shaker by himself. And of course there is also the biggest song of his career: Your Body Is a Wonderland. Is it cheesy? Yes. Was it overplayed? Definitely. Did every guy who put it on when alone with a lady get some sweet lovin’ because it? Quite possibly. Wonderland was not the only chance on the album to make your move as there were a few other love songs on the album most notably St. Patrick’s Day. It is a shame the song did not become a winter standard, maybe because it spanned too many holidays, but it remains a great track on in the colder months when you want to be warmed up by that special someone.

The 100 Best Songs of 2011

1. Barton Hollow - The Civil Wars

2. Otis - Jay-Z & Kanye West featuring Otis Redding

3. Someone Like You - Adele

4. Good Man - Raphael Saadiq

5. Rolling in the Deep - Adele

6. Helplessness Blues - Fleet Foxes

7. Young Blood - The Naked and Famous

8. Poison & Wine - The Civil Wars

9. Pumped Up Kicks - Foster The People

10. Colder Weather - Zac Brown Band

11. Lonely Boy - The Black Keys

12. My Ugly Mouth - Meg & Dia

13. Black - Danger Mouse & Daniele Luppi featuring Norah Jones

14. Rumour Has It - Adele

15. Brighter Than the Sun - Colbie Caillat

16. Bring It On - The Gaslight Anthem

17. Children - V V Brown

18. Lost In My Mind - The Head and the Heart

19. L.I.F.E.G.O.E.S.O.N. - Noah and the Whale

20. Make Some Noise - Beastie Boys

21. Back Down South - Kings of Leon

22. Comeback Kid (That's My Dog) - Brett Dennen

23. Oh My Heart - R.E.M.

24. Tree By the River - Iron & Wine

25. Freak Out - Tapes 'n Tapes

26. Stay Young, Go Dancing - Death Cab For Cutie

27. Windows Are Rolled Down - Amos Lee

28. Just a Kiss - Lady Antebellum

29. The Show Goes On - Lupe Fiasco

30. I Need a Doctor - Dr. Dre featuring Eminem and Skylar Grey

31. Lucky Now - Ryan Adams

32. Battery Kinzie - Fleet Foxes

33. My Body - Young The Giant

34. Freaks and Geeks - Childish Gambino

35. Faster - Matt Nathanson

36. Nylons In a Rip - Nikka Costa

37. (Expletive Deleted) in Paris - Jay-Z & Kanye West

38. Up Up Up - Givers

39. Love the Way You Walk Away - Blitzen Trapper

40. Single Girls - Laura Jansen

41. Gonna Get Over You - Sara Bareilles

42. Ours - Taylor Swift

43. All of the Lights - Kanye West

44. The Lazy Song - Bruno Mars

45. Let the Rain - Sara Bareilles

46. Go Outside - Cults

47. Our Hearts Are Wrong - Jessica Lea Mayfield

48. Mean - Taylor Swift

49. When I'm Alone - Lissie

50. Stone Rollin' - Raphael Saadiq

51. Paradise - Coldplay

52. Hey Mama - Mat Kearney

53. Thinking About You - Frank Ocean

54. Time Spent in Los Angeles - Dawes

55. The Broken Ones - Dia Frampton

56. Hell On Heels - Pistol Annies

57. The Shrine / An Argument - Fleet Foxes

58. You Are a Tourist - Death Cab for Cutie

59. Flower - Amos Lee

60. Holdin On to Black Metal - My Morning Jacket

61. How Come You Never Go There - Feist

62. Bonfire - Childish Gambino

63. Back to December - Taylor Swift

64. Inventing Shadows - Dia Frampton

65. 'Til the End of Time - Timothy Bloom featuring V

66. ÜBerlin - R.E.M.

67. We Found Love - Rihanna featuring Calvin Harris

68. Lorelai - Fleet Foxes

69. Call Your Girlfriend - Robyn

70. The Story of Us - Taylor Swift

71. Invisible - Skylar Grey

72. Movin' Down the Line - Raphael Saadiq

73. Don't Kick the Chair - Dia Frampton featuring Kid Cudi

74. You've Got the Love - Florence + the Machine

75. Roll Away Your Stone - Mumford & Sons

76. Best Thing I Never Had - Beyoncé

77. Red Solo Cup - Toby Keith

78. Two Against One - Danger Mouse & Daniele Luppi featuring Jack Black

79. Get Some - Lykke Li

80. We All Go Back to Where We Belong - R.E.M.

81. Change The Sheets - Kathleen Edwards

82. Nasty - Nas

83. From the Clouds - Jack Johnson

84. Shanghai Cigarettes - Caitlin Rose

85. Radio Message - R. Kelly

86. Who Says - Selena Gomez & the Scene

87. Smarter - Eisley

88. Monster - Kanye West, Jay-Z, Rick Ross, Nicki Minaj and Bon Iver

89. Howlin' for You - The Black Keys

90. KMAG YOYO - Hayes Carll

91. If I Die Young - The Band Perry

92. Moves Like Jagger - Maroon 5 and Christina Aguilera

93. Make My - The Roots featuring Big K.R.I.T. & Dice Raw

94. Masquerade - Lelia Broussard

95. Calamity Song - The Decemberists

96. Little Lie - Lindi Ortega

97. Shake It Out - Florence + the Machine

98. The Scientist - Willie Nelson

99. Every Teardrop Is a Waterfall - Coldplay

100. Radio - Raphael Saadiq

The 9th Green’s Readers Favorite Songs of 2011

Before I get into my favorite songs of the year tomorrow, let’s look at some the songs that made up your soundtrack to 2011. If you didn’t send in your list year, hopefully next year you do so and you can see more of your favorite next year. Also congratulations are in order to Jay who won an Amazon MP3 gift card just contributing to this list. I should have that sent out to you by the end of the day. And thank you to everyone who participated

1. Rolling in the Deep - Adele

2. Video Games - Lana Del Ray

3. We Found Love - Rihanna featuring Calvin Harris

4. Countdown - Beyoncé

5. Midnight City - M83

6. (Expletive Deleted) in Paris - The Throne (including the Remix with T.I.)

7. Shake It Out - Florence and the Machine

8. Bonfire - Childish Gambino

9. Someone Like You - Adele

10. Pumped Up Kicks - Foster the People

11. Lotus Flower - Radiohead

12. Super Bass - Nicki Minaj

13. Yonkers - Tyler, the Creator

14. Look At Me Now - Chris Brown featuring Lil Wayne and Busta Rhymes

15. Schoolin’ Life - Beyoncé

16. Starlight - Matt Cardle

17. Lonely Boy - The Black Keys

18. Walk - Foo Fighters

19. Take Care - Drake featuring Rihanna

20. I Need a Doctor - Dr. Dre, Eminem and Skylar Gray

21. Till the World Ends - Britney Spears

22. Still Life - The Horrors

23. California - EMA

24. The Edge of Glory - Lady Gaga

25. Headlines - Drake

The 100 Most Entertaining People of 2011

1. Emma Stone

2. Adele

3. Kyle Chandler

4. Margo Martindale

5. The Civil Wars

6. Ryan Gosling

7. Timothy Olyphant

8. Mike Judge

9. The Black Keys

10. Dia Frampton

11. Michael B. Jordan

12. Kaitlyn Dever

13. Raphael Saadiq

14. Connie Britton

15. Norm Macdonald

16. Donald Glover

17. Jim Parsons

18. The Roots

19. Allison Brie

20. Emily Van Camp

21. Bryce Dallas Howard

22. Fleet Foxes

23. Kanye West

24. Michael Wilbon, Tony Kornheiser & Statboy

25. Jane Levy

26. Lana Parrilla

27. Ginnifer Goodwin

28. Jason Segal

29. Ariel Winter

30. Stephen Colbert

31. Joel Kinnaman

32. Kat Dennings

33. Mireille Enos

34. Viola Davis

35. Taylor Swift

36. Rosa Salazar

37. Octavia Spencer

38. Melissa McCarthy

39. Mae Whitman

40. Saoirse Ronan

41. Norman Reedus

42. Peter Krause

43. Rockmond Dunbar

44. Eric Stonestreet

45. Carly Chaikin

46. Kaley Cuoco

47. Bill Simmons

48. Jeremy Davies

49. Emmy Rossum

50. Erika Christensen

51. Jurnee Smollett

52. Michael Fassbender

53. Madison Burge

54. Sara Bareilles

55. Monica Potter

56. Walton Goggins

57. Eliza Coupe

58. Jason Gann

59. Brad Leland

60. Cee Lo Green

61. Ashley Benson

62. Madeleine Stowe

63. R.E.M.

64. Jesse Tyler Ferguson

65. Alexandra Chando

66. Ben Folds

67. Hugo Weaving

68. Ed O'Neill

69. Adam Baldwin

70. Katie LeClerc

71. Eddie Trunk

72. Foster the People

73. Seth Rogen

74. James McAvoy

75. Dartmouth Aires

76. Robert Carlyle

77. Nathan Fillion

78. Beyoncé

79. Lykke Li

80. Silas Weir Mitchell

81. Ryan Adams

82. Sofia Vergara

83. Neil Patrick Harris

84. Beastie Boys

85. Vanessa Bayer

86. Jessica Lea Mayfield

87. Stana Katic

88. Chris Evans

89. Reg E. Cathey

90. John Cochran

91. Simon Pegg

92. Kristen Wiig

93. Phillip Sheppard

94. Aldis Hodge

95. Sarah Ramos

96. Ellie Kemper

97. Liam Neeson

98. Benjamin "Coach" Wade

99. Afro Blue

100. Timothy Hutton