Saturday, July 22, 2023

Around the Tubes: July 22, 2023


I have gotten a plethora of cool press releases have been flooding my inbox recently that you may find interesting. This post includes blurbs on The ChiSecret InvasionSolar OppositesAll up in the BizYellowjackets, The Beach Boys, Taylor Swift, Babylon 5Rick and Morty, and POV.


In advance of the much-anticipated expanded season of THE CHI, SHOWTIME has released the official trailer for its hit drama series returning this summer. After reaching a series high in streaming last season, the first eight episodes of the extended 16-episode sixth season will stream weekly on the Paramount+ with SHOWTIME plan beginning Friday, August 4, with the season premiere debuting on linear Sunday, August 6 at 9 p.m. ET/PT on SHOWTIME. 



To celebrate the highly anticipated “Secret Invasion” finale on Disney+, The Walt Disney Company will offer viewers a special opportunity to watch the first three episodes of the hit series on its Hulu platform, starting tomorrow. Marking the occasion, a Skrull invasion is imminent at San Diego Comic-Con this weekend: fans attending the convention may bump into – or become – one of the menacing shapeshifters.  “Secret Invasion” episodes “Resurrection,” “Promises” and “Betrayed” will stream on Hulu from Friday, July 21, through Thursday, August 17.  Marvel Studios’ thrilling espionage series “Secret Invasion”  is streaming on Disney+, where subscribers currently have access to the first five episodes, with Episode 6, the finale, premiering next Wednesday, July 26.




Citizens of Earth, prepare yourselves for an epic new season of “Solar Opposites,” crash landing on Hulu on Monday, August 14 with 11 episodes, followed by a Valentine’s Day special coming in 2024.TRAILER: HERE  “Solar Opposites” centers around a team of four aliens who are evenly split on whether Earth is awful or awesome. Korvo (Dan Stevens) and Yumyulack (Sean Giambrone) only see the pollution, crass consumerism, and human frailty while Terry (Thomas Middleditch) and Jesse (Mary Mack) love TV, junk food and fun stuff. In Season 4, we pack up the sci-fi and get normal… for a second. Then it’s back to classic Solar chaos, mayhem in the Wall, and some all new Silvercops adventures!


SHOWTIME announced that ALL UP IN THE BIZ, directed by Sacha Jenkins (WU-TANG CLAN: OF MICS AND MEN, Louis Armstrong’s Black and Blues) will premiere Friday, August 11, streaming on Paramount+ with SHOWTIME before making its on-air debut that same day at 9 p.m. ET/PT on SHOWTIME. The documentary feature, which premiered at Tribeca Festival(R) last month, is the definitive story of late, great rapper Biz Markie, who is best known for his mega hit “Just a Friend.” Featuring never before seen footage, musical interludes, animation, puppetry, and interviews with Biz Markie and other prominent figures in hip hop  from Fat Joe to Nick Cannon to Tracy Morgan  ALL UP IN THE BIZ is a heartwarming portrait of how one underdog’s dreams  fortified by an unwavering determination and a wicked sense of humor  would  come true inside the world of hip hop and far beyond. The film traces how Markie created a lane for himself in hip hop while also helping his friends, many of whom (Rakim, Big Daddy Kane, De La Soul, E.P.M.D.) would become legends in their own right.  Crowned “The Clown Prince of Hip Hop,” Markie was a beatbox wiz who was known for his comical rhymes and generally whimsical ways. A native of Long Island, Markie’s gift swiftly propelled him through hip hop history; he would inspire rap icons like Rakim and Big Daddy Kane in the process. The ride had a few bumps (like the groundbreaking sampling lawsuit he was wrapped up in) but in the end, Biz Markie was recognized as the actual personification of hip hop. ALL UP IN THE BIZ chronicles Markie’s extraordinary tale, from humble beginnings, often living with a foster family after the death of his mother, to pop culture ubiquity, and ultimately speaks to how an individual can chart their own destiny and shape the future of a culture.


Universal Music Canada (UMC) and SHOWTIME announce Yellowjackets Season 2 Official Soundtrack: Music from the Original Series for release on September 1 in CD and digital formats. The official soundtrack from the SHOWTIME Emmy®-nominated drama series YELLOWJACKETS is available for pre-order now including instant grat access to the previously released Alanis Morrisette single, No Return (Extended Version) and new alternative version, “No Return (Lottie’s Dream Sequence).”  This past April, seven-time Grammy® Award-winning singer/songwriter Alanis Morissette released “No Return (Extended Version)” to critical acclaim. Billboard commended Morissette’s rendition of the track and the way in which it added, “an industrial gothic layer to the original while spiking it with her signature keening, mesmerizing vocals.” “No Return” (Main Title Theme) by YELLOWJACKETS composers, Craig Wedren and Anna Waronker, was originally released in January 2022.


 Summer isn’t quite summer without the sunshiny melodies and irresistible harmonies of The Beach Boys, and this summer is chock full of exciting activity from “America’s Band,” from new Dolby Atmos® mixes of iconic hits, the return of their highly popular SiriusXM channel, Good Vibrations: The Beach Boys Channel, a stunning and definitive official tome, a fun coloring book, a high octane EDM remix of “Fun, Fun, Fun” by multi-platinum artist, producer and DJ, Steve Aoki, and Barbie herself, Margot Robbie, sharing her love for The Beach Boys.  Starting yesterday, five of the group’s classic albums from 1963 and 1964, Surfin’ USASurfer GirlLittle Deuce CoupeShut Down Vol. 2 and All Summer Long, are available to stream in immersive Dolby Atmos audio at Apple MusicAmazon Music Unlimited and Tidal HiFi Plus. The albums were mixed by The Beach Boys’ longtime producer and engineer, three-time GRAMMY® award winner Mark Linett, from the original tapes, and follow the recently released, critically hailed Dolby Atmos mix of Pet Sounds mixed by producer Giles Martin. The new Dolby Atmos mixes retain the feel of the revered albums while offering a fresh perspective, putting listeners in the center of the music by revealing details with unparalleled clarity and depth.

Stream the albums in Dolby Atmos here:

Surfin’ USA

Surfer Girl

Little Deuce Coupe

Shut Down Vol 2

All Summer Long


Taylor Swift has made history by achieving “the biggest debut for an album this year” with Speak Now (Taylor’s Version), registering first-week sales of 716 thousand album equivalents in the US and over 1 million album equivalents worldwide, landing her at #1 on the Billboard 200. At the same time, it makes history by scoring “the biggest sales week for a re-recorded album ever, besting even the 1 million first-week global consumption of Red (Taylor’s Version) in 2021. Plus, it notched the “second biggest vinyl sales week in Nielsen history,” following Taylor Swift’s Midnights. In addition, Taylor is the first living artist in nearly 60 years with four of the top ten on the Billboard 200 with Speak Now (Taylor’s Version), Midnights, Lover, and Folklore.  Listen HERE.


In celebration of its 30th anniversary, Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment is releasing the groundbreaking original sci-fi TV series Babylon 5 on Blu-ray for the first time ever! On December 5, just in time for holiday gift giving, Babylon 5: The Complete Series will be available at online retailers with all 110 original episodes fully remastered in HD. The highly anticipated release is one fans don’t want to miss!  Babylon 5 is an American space opera television series created by writer and producer J. Michael Straczynski that ran for five seasons from 1994–1998. The critically acclaimed franchise debuted in 1993 with the pilot film The Gathering. The series then launched a year later and ran for five seasons and 110 additional episodes. A future-history story covering the years 2257–2262, with each year corresponding to one season, Babylon 5 was the first series to introduce viewers to the concept of a five-year arc, with a defined beginning, middle, and end, paving the way for a number of such later series.


OOH WEE! Go on an intergalactic adventure across the multi-verse with the epic release of the Rick and Morty: The Complete Seasons 1-6 boxed set on Blu-ray™ and DVD on September 12, 2023. Get Schwifty while you binge on one of cable’s #1 watched comedies that follows the sci-fi misadventures of genius scientist Rick and his family. Rick and Morty: The Complete Seasons 1-6 includes all 61 episodes from six seasons of the award-winning series, copious special features, audio commentary, deleted scenes, “Inside the Episode” segments, numerous featurettes, animatic sketches, and more. For a limited time, fans who purchase the set will also receive an exclusive Rick and Morty poster.


POV, America’s longest running non-fiction series, provides a balanced, in-depth look at Kathryn, a woman paralyzed by late-stage ALS in the wryly moving family portrait, Eat Your Catfish.  Reliant on round-the-clock care, she clings to a mordant wit while yearning to witness her daughter's wedding. Narrated by Kathryn and pictured entirely from her point of view, co-directors and producers Adam Isenberg, Senem Tüzen and Noah Amir Arjomand — who is Kathryn's son — deliver a brutally frank and darkly humorous portrait of a family teetering on the brink, grappling with the daily demands of disability and in-home caregiving.  Eat Your Catfish makes its national broadcast premiere on POV Monday, July 24, 2023 at 10pmET/9C (check local listings) and will be available to stream at pbs.org, and the PBS App until October 22, 2023. In addition to standard closed captioning for the film, POV, in partnership with audio description service DiCapta, provides real time audio interpretations.


Sunday, July 16, 2023

57 Channels and Only This Is On: July 16, 2023

 

 

The Walking Dead: Dead City:  So no one notice Negan dispose of a body and clean up the crime scene?  Lucky for him I guess.  But trying to humanize Negan by being upset that the Croat killed someone when dude went around at this time bashing people’s skulls in is a bit much.

 

Cruel Summer:  Well, the girls now have motive with him trying to mack on both girls.  I wonder if they try to entrap him in a threesome but them torture him, but one goes too far.  Crazy neighbor seems more and more like a red herring.

 

Secret Invasion:  Of course she was not actually dead; Emilia Clarke is too famous to be killed off halfway through a show.  But what a stupid plot twist.  If you have to explain your plot twist with a flashback, it probably is not good.  It was still stupid of her not to shapeshift to get out of there.  But are they really going to do the same silly plot twist this week, but with her father?

 

Full Circle:  I like the moral implications of what do you do if someone claims to have kidnapped your kid but it turns out to be the wrong kid.  What do you do?  Except so many comedy of errors, this may have been a better show if it were an actual comedy. Oof, how exactly do you competently explain why the other kid had the exact same hoodie and same shoes?  And did the other kid not have an sort of ID probing he was not who they thought they kidnapped?  And did the guy really not notice he shot a dummy?  Shouldn’t the lack of blood be a huge clue?  Then I do not understand calling for a ransom if you are not going to take it and were just going to kill him anyway.

 

The Blacklist:  Ten years, and over 200 episodes and it was almost worth it to watch the absolutely laughable stupid ending.  Seriously, Red gets gored by a bull and never explains to anyone why he shut down his criminal empire?  Rood riddance.


Saturday, July 15, 2023

Around the Tubes: July 15, 2023


I have gotten a plethora of cool press releases have been flooding my inbox recently that you may find interesting. This post includes blurbs on Beastie Boys, MisterWives, Chelsea Cutler, Lord Huron, Claire Rosinkranz, This FoolThe Hardy Boys, Goliath, and A House Made of Splinters.


Celebrating the 25th anniversary of Beastie Boys’ multi-platinum selling album ‘Hello Nasty,’ on September 8, 2023, UME will reissue the highly sought after and long out-of-print limited deluxe edition 4LP box set originally released as a limited run in 2009 featuring 21 bonus tracks including rarities, remixes, and b-sides. Pressed on 180g vinyl in an 8-panel gatefold package housed in a hardcover “coffee table book” slipcase with a removable sew-on patch, ‘Beastie Boys - Hello Nasty (4LP Deluxe Edition)’ is now available for pre-order at Beastie Boys’ official online store, HERE.  Preceded by the universal smash “Intergalactic,” Hello Nasty crashed into the #1 spots of charts worldwide upon its July 1998 release, with first week sales of nearly 700,000 in the U.S. alone. Buoyed by the launch of the 360 in the round tour, Hello Nasty would yield B Boys classics “Body Movin’,” “Three MCs and One DJ,” “Remote Control,” “Super Disco Breakin’” and more, win two Grammys, see the band presented with an MTV Video Vanguard lifetime achievement award, and ultimately sell some 7 million copies worldwide.


New York City/Los Angeles-based alt-pop group MisterWives share their fervent, highly anticipated fourth studio album Nosebleeds out everywhere now. Alongside the full album, the band share focus tracks "Dagger" and "Sideways" out now. Plus, The Don't Look Down Tour with Bishop Briggs will set out across North America this fall beginning September 8 with tickets on sale now via misterwives.com/tour.  Nosebleeds, the highly anticipated fourth studio album by MisterWives out today, propels the group into all new territory, this time, equipped with bravery, confidence and strength. Through a decade-long career, of tremendous highs and lows, the forthcoming project meets the band at their most evolved as they turn their pain into power. Over ten compelling tracks, the band digs deeper than they ever have before, capturing the nuances of life's highs and lows and re-defining what it means to succeed and to fail.


Following a fabulous plaque presentation by Hoda Kotb from TODAY at her sold-out Madison Square Garden show last night, Shania Twain announces the release of multiple expanded U.S. and International Diamond Editions of her all-time classic third studio album, November 1997’s Come On Over – due for release on August 25, 2023 via Mercury/UMe.  Come On Over is the record that confirmed Twain’s status as an international crossover-format superstar, having been certified as being both the top-selling country album and the highest-selling album by a female artist of all time. In celebration of this benchmark album’s 25th anniversary and its accumulation of over 40 million-plus in global album sales, both the U.S. and International versions of Come On Over have been remastered from the original tapes for the first time ever.  Come On Over will be released in the following formats: 3CD Super Deluxe, 3LP Super Deluxe, 3LP International Super Deluxe, 2LP Deluxe, 2CD Deluxe, and Digital.  2LP Deluxe Retail Exclusives will also be available in the U.S.  All versions of Come On Over can be pre-ordered HERE.


Platinum-Certified singer, songwriter, and producer Chelsea Cutler is back with her new single, “I Don’t Feel Alive”—listen HERE & watch the visualizer HERE. The song is the latest track from her anxiously awaited and soon-to-be-announced third studio album, set for release later this year.  “I Don’t Feel Alive” highlights Chelsea’s unfiltered honesty front-and-center. Written and produced in a burst of inspiration, breezy guitar coasts through handclaps as she confesses, “I’m writing feelings in a journal, ‘cause that’s what people who have their shit together seem to do.” Overwhelming self-doubt gives way to reflection on the refrain, “I swim against the current with two arms that can not fly, and I don’t feel alive.”  On the song, Chelsea openly shares, “‘I Don’t Feel Alive’ is a song about existing versus truly living. There is a crucial difference between going through the motions of your day and actually being present in your body to experience everything around you. While it’s a bit scary to put this one out, I’d like to be done with all of my beating around the bush. This song is the elephant in the room, the things I’ve been too afraid to talk about. It is my crippling fear of failure and my reluctance to take up more space. But now that I say these things aloud, I am free. I hope this song brings comfort and emboldens others to confront their biggest fears as well.” Read more about Chelsea’s statement on the song HERE.


Lord Huron and Ben Schneider present Music for The Starling Girlthe Original Soundtrack accompanying the acclaimed film The Starling Girl. The album consists of both the movie’s original score by Lord Huron vocalist/songwriter Ben Schneider and the new Lord Huron song “Ace Up My Sleeve.” Listen to Music for The Starling GirlHERE. Meanwhile, The Starling Girl is now available to stream on VOD.  Ace Up My Sleeve” has already collected over 1 million Spotify streams and counting. Beyond plugs from Stereogum and Under The Radar MagazineBrooklyn Vegan hailed the song as “lovely, tender alt-country.” Listen to “Ace Up My Sleeve” HERE.


Gearing up for a major moment, 19-year-old Southern California singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist Claire Rosinkranz serves up a new single and music video entitled “Screw Time” today. Listen to “Screw Time”— HERE.  Watch the music video—HERE.  Most importantly, it paves the way for her highly anticipated debut album Just Because, landing on October 6th via slowplay/Republic Records. Pre-order/Pre-save Just BecauseHERE. She further opened up the world of the record by sharing the Official Album Trailer too. Watch HERE.


Wake up and smell the coffee... "This Fool" is back! The critically-acclaimed series returns on Friday, July 28th with a whole lot of Mugs, Not Thugs. Trailer: HERE.  "This Fool" is an irreverent, cinematic half-hour comedy set in working class South Central Los Angeles. After Julio's job and love life blew up at the end of last season, this season, new roommates Julio and Luis embark on finding new careers and romances with the help of Minister Payne, Chef Percy and other former Huggers.


"The Hardy Boys" returns for its third and final season on July 26, and things are getting dangerous for our heroes. Getting in on the action is guest star Bailee Madison ("Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin"), who joins the mix as the mysterious Drew Darrow. Trailer: HERE.  When Frank (Rohan Campbell) and Joe Hardy (Alexander Elliot) receive mysterious posthumous instructions from their grandmother, they find themselves on the hunt for a third powerful relic — the same one their Great Grandfather was after. However, they aren’t the only ones looking it…so the race is on to stop a power from being unleashed on the world! Nothing is what it seems, as The Hardy Boys and their friends face their most dangerous and unpredictable case yet. The future is coming for our heroes, whether they’re ready or not. 


 SHOWTIME SPORTS has released a sneak peek from Episode One of GOLIATH, the three-part documentary series that examines the historic life, career and impact of Wilt Chamberlain, one of the greatest and most misunderstood athletes of all time. GOLIATH premieres on Friday, July 14 on demand and on streaming platforms for Paramount+ with SHOWTIME subscribers before making its on-air debut on SHOWTIME® on Sunday, July 16 at 10 p.m. ET/PT, with additional episodes premiering each Sunday.  To watch and share the clip, go to:  https://youtu.be/HRwQaW23X0A.  In the teaser clip, Chamberlain’s two living sisters, Selina Chamberlain Gross and Barbara Lewis, talk about their parents and childhoods together in West Philadelphia. Selina recalls how her parents, even though they were poor, had a big family and never finished school, were still proud homeowners, while Barbara reminisces on Wilt’s tremendous growth spurts and how his height surprised his mom after a summer away on a farm in the South.


Following its award winning festival run, the Oscar® nominated A House Made of Splinters directed by POV alum Simon Lemeng Wilmont (The Distant Barking of Dogs) and produced by Oscars® nominee Monica Hellström (Flee) will make its national broadcast premiere next Monday, July 17, 2023 (check local listings) and will be available to stream until October 15, 2023 at pbs.org, and the PBS App.  In addition to standard closed captioning for the film, POV, in partnership with audio description service DiCapta, provides real time audio interpretations for audiences with sensory disabilities.


Tuesday, July 11, 2023

The 19th Annual Scooter Television Awards


Welcome to the 19th Annual Scooter Television Awards honoring show that aired a majority of their season between July 2022 and June 2023. Without further ado, here are the winners of the 2023 STA's:

 

Best Drama: Tell Me Lies

 

Best Comedy: Only Murders in the Building

 

Best Sci-Fi/Fantasy Show: Star Wars: Andor

 

Best Comic Book Adaptation: Harley Quinn

 

Best Period Show: The Great

 

Best Animated Show: Harley Quinn

 

Best Reality Show: Selena + Chef

 

Best Remake, Reboot, or (non-comic book) Adaptation: Mike Judge’s Beavis and Butt-Head

 

Best Miniseries: Flieshman Is in Trouble

 

Best Talk Show: Pardon the Interruption

 

Best New Show: Extraordinary

  

Guiltiest Guilty Pleasure: The Watchful Eye

 

Worst Show I Made Though an Entire Season Of: Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin

 

Best Hour of TV: The Bullet or the Bear (The Great)

 

Best Half Hour of TV: I Know Who Did It (Only Murders in the Building)

 

Biggest Shocker: Peter falling through the ice (The Great)

 

Best Line: “Olimabel - It’s our ship name! The Charles is silent.”  (Oliver: Only Murders in the Building)

 

Worst Idea: Letting the guy who did an unnecessary gritty version of A Christmas Carol, to do another unnecessary gritty version of a Charles Dickens novel.  

 

Worst Moment: The reveal of “A” (Pretty Little Liars: Original Sin)

 

Biggest Disappointment: The Great kept killing off Nicholas Hoult

 

Best Musical Moment: Fork tha Police (Yellowjackets)

 

Best Karaoke: Angel in Flip-Flops (Only Murders in the Building)

 

Best New Title Sequence: House of the Dragon

 

Best GIF:

 

  

Best Character: Catherine the Great (The Great)

 

Best Recurring Character: Bunny Folger (Only Murders in the Building)

 

Best Guest Appearance: Sazz Pataki (Only Murders in the Building)

 

Best Cast Addition: Harper Spiller (The White Lotus)

 

Best Duo: Lucia and Mia (The White Lotus)

 

Best Trio:  Mabel Mora, Charles Hayden Savage, and Oliver Putnum (Only Murders in the Building)

 

Most Entertaining Male Reality “Star”:  Danny McCray (The Challenge)

 

Most Entertaining Female Reality “Star”:  Selena Gomez (Selena + Chef)

 

Most Annoying Reality:  Faysal (The Challenge)

 

Most Anticipated New Show of the Next Season: The Curse

 

Most Anticipated Reboot:  Justified: City Primeval

 

Show That Should Be Brought Back: Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies

 

Biggest Question for 2023-2024: When will the writer’s (and maybe actor’s) strike end?

 


Monday, July 10, 2023

The Twenty-Five Best Shows of 2022-23


1.  Only Murders in the Building

2.  The Great

3.  Tell Me Lies

4.  Extraordinary

5.  Star Wars: Andor

6.  Harley Quinn

7.  Ghosts

8.  The White Lotus

9.  Yellowjackets

10.  Ms. Marvel

11.  Single Drunk Female

12.  The Boys

13.  Mike Judge's Beavis and Butt-Head

14.  Abbott Elementary

15.  Wedding Season

16.  The Mandalorian

17.  The Last of Us

18.  The Capture

19.  Wreck

20.  Reboot

21.  She-Hulk: Attorney at Law

22.  The Head

23.  Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies

24.  History of the World, Part II

25.  House of the Dragon


To be eligible for this list, the show must have aired a majority of their season between July 2022 and June 2023.


Sunday, July 09, 2023

57 Channels and Only This Is On: July 9, 2023

  

The Walking Dead: Dead City:  Did Negan just kill that dude by cheese grater to the face?  Seems like that would just be painful, not actually kill you.

 

Cruel Summer:  I said after the second episode that Isabelle and Parker had some unspoken connection and not so surprising when the Landry’s kicked her out, it looks like she moved into Parker’s.  Then you had Parker stirring things up by pushing her towards Luke even though she was with Jeff.  And was that the crazy neighbor Megan was helping, I do wonder how he fits into all this.

 

Secret Invasion:  Why did the Skrull cared so much that Fury had the kid of the person he was impersonating? And is G'iah really dead? Kind of strange for a shape shifter to not shift her shape when trying to escape. But I guess if G'iah really is dead someone who looks like Emilia Clarke is chilling in one of those pods and will be rescued as soon as next week.

 

The Clearing:  So Freya killed Asha, except maybe not because someone else said Adrianne did.   So did Adrianne convince Freya she killed Asha, or was the guy just trying to comfort Freya by putting blame elsewhere?  Meh, what a meaningless show.

 

The Blacklist:  Finally we have gotten to the endgame, Red is on the outs and people think he is dead, except, he forgot to put decoy bodies in the plane.  Ooops.