Scooter McGavin's 9th Green

Ten Ways to Fix The Voice

2012-05-07T08:00:00.061-04:00

After doing almost everything right last season, almost everything went wrong this season. After a very strong Sweet Sixteen, the finalists tonight somehow managed to be significantly weaker than last season which was not that exciting itself. They are so weak, I will not even tune into tonight (I have to see the climatic conclusion of the first season finale of 2 Broke Girls instead) even just to see how weird the Jermaine / Blake duet is (or awesomely bad Juliet and Cee-Lo are). Chris Mann inexplicably advanced even though his iTunes sales are laughably bad ranking near the bottom of all contestants every week and never once this season outsold Lindsey Pavao, the person he beat last week. Here are all the people who charted higher than Chris Mann this season:

Juliet Simms
Lindsey Pavao (the person that Chris beat had four different songs chart higher than Chris’s best)
Jamar Rogers
Katrina Parker
Tony Lucca
Jermaine Paul
RaeLynn (yes even RaeLynn, who was booted in the quarterfinals charted two songs higher than Chris)
Not to mention all four finalist last season, Dia Frampton, Javier Colon, Vicci Martinez, and Beverly McClellan as well as Xenia and Casey Weston who did not make it to the finals

By Friday Chris was completely off the iTunes Top 200 Chart while Lindsey was still in the Top 100. Christina Aguilera somehow went into the Live Rounds with the strongest team but managed to find a worse finalist than Beverly last season. The Voice should be embarrassed to have him in the finals especially at the expense of the highest iTunes seller this season. Tony Lucca lost all his credibility after his Britney Spears cover, a mediocre one at that, and managed to lose the popular vote to someone who had never previous had been saved by America (sorry Katrina, you picked the wrong coach, except he was the only one to turn around for you so nevermind). I liked Jermaine, but he is only there because he was on a team with no standouts (he could have gone home the first Live Round if he were on Christina’s Team). Juliet is the most credible of the finalist but I do not care for her screaming singing style and her non-scream voice is very weak and I would have preferred Jamar in the slot. Looking at these finalists it is clear The Voice needs to do some more tinkering, which went from the most watched show on television this season to pulling in less viewers than last season, or it may be in danger of even being out-rated by X-Factor next fall or even the new Duets show launching later this month.

1. Change the Voting System: If The Voice changes one thing for next season, this is the one. The show should be embarrassed by Chris Mann’s inclusion in the finals being the second worst seller of any team on iTunes last week but somehow still make it into the finals. He was even outsold by all of his teammates in the quarterfinals and still managed to get the America’s Save that week. Let’s face it, anything that let’s internet voting is completely flawed because nothing can stop losers with too much time on their hands to create phony e-mail accounts to spam the voting process (and not only do these people brag about doing so them encourage other people to do so). People doing this it really hurts the show because people are tuning out when the most popular are booted out by fans of singers like Chris who think their vote is more important than everyone else. This phenomenon can help explain how the show went from the most watch show at the beginning of the season to having lower ratings than last season which did not have the help of being launched by the Super Bowl. And Chris Mann is not the only person that has benefited, in the first Live Round Charlotte Sometimes was just a few spots behind RaeLynn as the best seller on Team Blake, but when America’s Saves were announced, RaeLynn was joined by Jermaine and Erin Willett, the two worst sellers on the team that barely cracked the iTunes Top 200 chart that week.

The solution is pretty simple: give more weight to the iTunes chart. Sure, as conceived you can vote ten times on iTunes, but who besides maybe family members are buying a song ten times? And if the goal of the music business is to get people to buy your music, then this should be taken into account in the shows voting system. And they way votes should be tabulated so the music buyers have enough say as the fanatics who stuff the ballots by creating phony e-mail accounts is split the final vote four ways: %25 comes from iTunes downloads, %25 from phone votes, %25 from internet voting, and %25 from texting. Or if you want to give more control to the coaches, split it five ways with every way getting 20%. Could anyone be against this idea (aside from those internet spammers who think their vote is more important than everyone else)?

2. Shorten the Battle Rounds: I was all for the extended Blind Auditions, but eight hours of the Battle Rounds were painful to sit through and looking at the ratings I am not the only one who thought this as the show lost almost three million viewers between the last Blind Audition to the last Battle Round. Instead of four episodes of six battle each at least do eight battles across three episodes (they did do four per hour last year) or preferably go even more dramatic and cut it down to two episodes and blow by all of the mediocre battles (which there are plenty of) via montage. Also go back to just one adviser per team, it is unfair that someone gets to work with Lionel Richie while the other one gets Jewel, and also put them back on stage during the battle (as awkward as it looked during the first season) so the coaches could have someone in their ear before making a bad decision. I’m sure if he was there, Babyface would have been like, “no Cee-Lo, Erin Martin over Wayne’s World is a really bad idea. Think twice.” You can take the extra episodes and give them to the Blind Audition and actually show everyone (or at least everyone that gets a coach to turn around) and/or…

3. Expand the Live Rounds: I do appreciate how the show trims the fat quick and fast unlike other painfully slow shows that eliminate them one by one, but how about adding one more extra round and have teams go from 6 to 4 to 3 to 2 to the finalist.

4. Let Coach’s Poach other Team’s Castoffs: A lot of good talent went home sooner than they should have in the Live Shows, but we also lost a bunch of great talent during the Battle Round due to bad decisions (The Shields Brothers!), being at a disadvantage due to the song choice (Whitney Myer), or the coach put two strong competitors against each other (Jamie Lono, who had the second best selling song from the Blind Auditions vs. Jamar). So after all of the Battle Rounds, bring all the eliminated contestants back on stage and let each coach pick one contestant each (but coaches should not be allowed to pick someone they eliminated)

5. Bring in a Real Rock Judge: Blake Shelton is the country guy, Christina is the pop girl, Cee Lo Green is the RnB guy, and I assume Adam is supposed to be the rock guy except he is more of an RnB-pop hybrid than an actual rock singer, and the show already has those two genres covered. And without a real rocker on the panel some good rock singers were passed over in the Blind Auditions (what the heck happened to Ducky) and the one rock act to get someone to turn around, The Shield Brothers unceremoniously lost to the worst singer in the whole competition. The problem with having a real rock coach is there are not that many currently out there to choose from that are credible. There is Dave Grohl, Jack White or one of The Black Keys (or have both share a chair; actually, that would be awesome; make that happen Mark Burnett, both members of The Black Keys in the same chair) and that’s it. Maybe John Mayer but he is a much better guitarist than vocalist or maybe Kid Rock mostly for entertainment value (and you think Cee-Lo picks are weird, wait for Coach Rock). But if the best you can do for a rock judge is the dude from Nickelback, just don’t.

6. Ban Adele: No one is going to out-Adele Adele so spot letting these people think that they can just hurts the singer that tries. Naia Kete sang Turning Tables and was promptly eliminated. Kim Yarbrough sang Rolling in the Deep and was promptly eliminated. Erin sang Set Fire to the Rain and had to be saved by Blake and still almost lost to RaeLynn who bombed her Last Chance Performance.

7. Ban Anyone in the Audience Who Screams I Love You: It may seem like a cool thing when you are sitting in the crowd, but everyone sitting at home finds it annoying.

8. Get Carson to Stop the Coaches When they Ramble (or Find Someone Who Will): The pacing of the Results Shows were horrible this year and you have to blame Carson, or whoever is in his ear. There was an episode where Christina was rambling on and on leaving Blake literally a minute to make a decision which he did just in time for the show to fade to black. There was even the weird moment where Cee-Lo talked about his head told him Tony Vincent and his heart said Cheesa and then took a dramatic pause before what I assumed was to tell us if he was going with his head or his heart and Carson butted in and said Cheesa was the winner.

9. Get Rid of the Product Placement I Refuse to Acknowledge (unless they pay me) Lounge: Sure Christina Milian is easy on the eyes but the interviews are lame and who cares what @RandomPerson thought of the Gym Class Heroes performance. I understand the Product Placement I Refuse to Acknowledge pays you a lot of money to plaster their name on the show, but there has to be a better place to put it. How about the all the practices happen at the Product Placement I Refuse to Acknowledge Rehearsal Space?

10. Stop it with the Sob Stories: Yes I get it that America love a good recovery story but why does every contestant or their parent have to have or had some horrible disease that is brought up every time they are on screen?

The 100 Greatest Power Ballads of All Time

2012-05-08T08:00:00.004-04:00

1. Love Song - Tesla

2. Purple Rain - Prince & The Revolution

3. Heaven - Warrant

4. Every Rose Has Its Thorn - Poison

5. I Wish It Would Rain Down - Phil Collins

6. All I Want Is You - U2

7. I'll Be There for You - Bon Jovi

8. Home Sweet Home - Mötley Crüe

9. November Rain - Guns N' Roses

10. Without You - Harry Nilsson

11. Silver Springs - Fleetwood Mac

12. No More Drama - Mary J. Blige

13. Fake Plastic Trees - Radiohead

14. The Scientist - Coldplay

15. I Want to Know What Love Is - Foreigner

16. What It Takes - Aerosmith

17. Bright Lights - Matchbox Twenty

18. Under the Bridge - Red Hot Chili Peppers

19. Faithfully - Journey

20. I'd Do Anything for Love (But I Won't Do That) - Meat Loaf

21. Against All Odds - Phil Collins

22. How to Save a Life - The Fray

23. Never Tear Us Apart - INXS

24. Wind of Change - Scorpions

25. Everybody Hurts - R.E.M.

26. Set the Fire to the Third Bar - Snow Patrol and Martha Wainwright

27. Will You Be There - Michael Jackson

28. Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own - U2

29. My Immortal - Evanescence

30. You Can't Always Get What You Want - The Rolling Stones

31. Why - Annie Lennox

32. She Talks to Angels - The Black Crowes

33. Patience - Guns N' Roses

34. Ex-Factor - Lauryn Hill

35. Alone - Heart

36. Dreaming With a Broken Heart - John Mayer

37. Chasing Cars - Snow Patrol

38. Boston - Augustana

39. My Heart Will Go On - Céline Dion

40. Far Behind - Candlebox

41. Don't Cry - Guns N' Roses

42. Stop Crying Your Heart Out - Oasis

43. Fix You - Coldplay

44. Don't Know What You Got (Till It's Gone) - Cinderella

45. Waiting for a Girl Like You - Foreigner

46. With or Without You - U2

47. Tuckers Town - Hootie & the Blowfish

48. The Stairs - INXS

49. Better Man - Pearl Jam

50. Close My Eyes Forever - Lita Ford and Ozzy Osborne

51. Hey Jude - The Beatles

52. Total Eclipse Of The Heart - Bonnie Tyler

53. Poison & Wine - The Civil Wars

54. Don't Look Back In Anger - Oasis

55. Sister Christian - Night Ranger

56. Bridge Over Troubled Water - Simon and Garfunkel

57. We Don't Need Another Hero (Thunderdome) - Tina Turner

58. (Everything I Do) I Do It for You - Bryan Adams

59. Wake Me Up When September Ends - Green Day

60. Let Her Cry - Hootie & the Blowfish

61. Angel Eyes - The Jeff Healey Band

62. Hero - Enrique Iglesias

63. Creep - Radiohead

64. Run - Snow Patrol

65. Linger - The Cranberries

66. Falling Slowly - Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova

67. Free Bird - Lynyrd Skynyrd

68. Listen to Your Heart - Roxette

69. Don't Follow - Alice in Chains

70. One - U2

71. She's Gone - Hall & Oates

72. Keep On Loving You - REO Speedwagon

73. Take My Breath Away - Berlin

74. Boulevard of Broken Dreams - Green Day

75. Nothing Else Matters - Metallica

76. Silent Lucidity - Queensrÿche

77. When the Night Comes - Joe Cocker

78. Somebody to Love - Queen

79. The Cave - Mumford & Sons

80. I Remember You - Skid Row

81. Open Arms - Journey

82. Angel - Aerosmith

83. Mama, I'm Coming Home - Ozzy Osborne

84. It's All Coming Back to Me Now - Céline Dion

85. Don't Let the Sun Go Down On Me - George Michael & Elton John

86. A Long December - Counting Crows

87. When the Children Cry - White Lion

88. Glycerine - Bush

89. Big Empty - Stone Temple Pilots

90. Existentialism On Prom Night - Straylight Run

91. Lonely Road of Faith - Kid Rock

92. Strange Currencies - R.E.M.

93. Holding Out for a Hero - Bonnie Tyler

94. Colder Weather - Zac Brown Band

95. Trouble - Coldplay

96. Is This Love - Whitesnake

97. The Mountains Win Again - Blues Traveler

98. Sober - Kelly Clarkson

99. A Dustland Fairytale - The Killers

100. Something to Believe In - Poison

Amazon.com Widgets

Breaking Down the 100 Greatest Power Ballads of All Time

2012-05-09T08:00:00.021-04:00

When you say “Power Ballad” most people conjure up hair bands from the eighties usually with black and white videos with slow motion synchronized guitar moves. But if you flip the words and think powerful ballads that can encompass many different genres and time periods. And that expanded definition was the basis of my list of The 100 Greatest Power Ballads of All Time which I am sure many of the younins have heard lately in the middle of prom season. Many may not think there is a connection between White Lion, Lauyrn Hill, and Kelly Clarkson, but they have all recorded soft ballads that build to a crescendo of guitars, pianos, choirs, or a combination of the three. Here is a look at the list by the numbers.

Songs by Genre
Alternative Rock - 25
Adult Contemporary – 24
Hard Rock – 22
Rock - 21
R&B - 6
Country – 2

Songs by Decade
60’s – 2
70’s – 5
80’s – 30
90’s – 37
00’s – 23
10’s – 3

Artists with Multiple Songs
U2 - 4
Coldplay – 3
Guns N' Roses – 3
Snow Patrol - 3
Aerosmith – 2
Bonnie Tyler – 2
Foreigner – 2
Green Day – 2
Hootie & The Blowfish – 2
INXS – 2
Journey – 2
Oasis – 2
Ozzy Osbourne - 2
Phil Collins – 2
Poison – 2
R.E.M. – 2
Radiohead - 2

Year with Most Songs – 1988 (8)
Songs with Rain in the Title – 3 (All in the top 10)
“Love Theme” from a Movie – 3

The 25 Greatest Beastie Boys Music Videos of All Time

2012-05-10T08:00:00.030-04:00

We lost a true legend last week when Adam Yauch lost his battle with cancer. MCA along with his brothers in the Beastie Boys made the most innovative music over their three decade. The trio also made some of the most memorable music videos from the golden age of MTV even though they inexplicably only won two VMA’s: Best Hip Hop Video for Intergalactic and Best Director for last year’s Make Some Noise. They did pick up the Video Vanguard Award and some made up award from 2009 called Best Video (That Should Have Won a Moonman) for Sabotage (to save you a Google search, it lost to Cryin’ for Video of the Year, Viewer’s Choice and Best Group Video; you could not touch Alicia Silverstone in 1994). So to honor MCA I thought I would compile a list of the greatest Beastie Boys music videos, most of which were directed by Yauch’s alter ego Nathanial Hörnblowér, who is most famous for storming the stage when Spike Jones lost out to Everybody Hurts by R.E.M. for Best Director in 1994 (R.E.M. also blocked Sabotage for Breakthrough Video that year). I have marked the videos directed or co-directed by Nathanial Hörnblowér with a *.

1. Sabotage

2. Intergalactic *

3. Fight for Your Right (To Party)

4. Make Some Noise *

5. Ch-Check it Out *

6. Shadrach *

7. Hey Ladies

8. Body Movin’ *

9. No Sleep ‘till Brooklyn

10. Triple Trouble *

11. So What’cha Want *

12. Pass the Mic *

13. Right Right Now Now *

14. Alive *

15. Don’t Play No Game That I Can’t Win

16. Sure Shot *

17. Looking Down the Barrel of a Gun *

18. Jimmy James *

19. Shake Your Rump *

20. Shazam! *

21. Gratitude

22. Root Down

23. Three MC’s and One DJ *

24. An Open Letter to NYC *

25. Netty’s Girl

Around the Tubes - 5/11/12

2012-05-11T08:00:00.034-04:00

I have gotten a plethora of cool press releases have been flooding my inbox recently that you may find interesting. This post will include blurbs on the Cougar Town, Deon Cole's Black Box, Who Gets the Last Laugh, True Blood, America's Got Talent, NPR, Monday Mornings, Veep, Aim High, The Borgias, The Gramblers, Sister Wives, and Redbook.

- I have some bad news / good news for Cougar Town fans. The bad news is that the show will not be on the ABC schedule when the network announces its fall lineup next week. The good news is the show did get picked up by TBS who also secured the rights to the first three season of the show. The fourth season will air early in 2013 but no word on if the network change will come with a much needed title change.

- And TBS keeps on adding show because it also greenlit two other shows. Deon Cole’s Black Box featuring the Conan player. And Who Gets the Last Laugh where two comedians that are pitted against each other in the ultimate prank challenge from the guys that brought you Punk’d. Also look for both shows in early 2013.

- True Blood returns next month and HBO has recently released a bunch of posters hyping the return, one of which you can check out below:

- America’s Got Talent returns Monday and for those not already sick of all the Howard Stern commercials on NBC, here is another one:

A Whole New Level of Excitement

- Net Wednesday at 3:00 Buzz Bissinger (you know the guy who wrote the Friday Night Lights book) and Malcolm Gladwell will debate Tim Green and Jason Whitlock on whether or not to ban college football on NPR stations nationwide.

- TNT has greenlit Monday Mornings, a powerful new series from award-winning producer David E. Kelley (Ally McBeal, Chicago Hope) and practicing neurosurgeon and CNN chief medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta, M.D., on whose book the series is based. The medical drama stars Ving Rhames (Pulp Fiction), Alfred Molina (Spider-Man 2, TNT's The Company), Jamie Bamber (Battlestar Galactica), Jennifer Finnigan (Better with You), Bill Irwin (CSI: Crime Scene Investigation), Keong Sim (Glee), Sarayu Rao (Lions f or Lambs), and Emily Swallow (TNT's Southland).

- HBO released another deleted scene from the previous episode of Veep which you can check out below:

- Warner Bros. recently announced that its digital series Aim High starring Jackson Rathbone and produced by McG will be back for a second season. No word on when the season will hit the internets but you can watch the entire first season on its Facebook page.

- Fans of Showtime’s The Borgias rejoice because the show has been picked up for a third season.

- The Gramblers has been racking up some YouTube views recently with their Van Sessions and recently talked to The Daily about their covers like the recently uploaded Easy by The Commodores.

- Of course Sister Wives is returning on Mother’s Day. The show returns for its third season this Sunday at 9:00 on TLC.

- Bravo’s Andy Cohen is throwing a 80’s prom-themed special on SiriusXM Tuesday May 22 from 7:00-8:30 on SiriusXM Book Radio ch.80 to celebrate the release of his memoir Most Talkative.

- The stars of What to Expect When You’re Expecting, Jennifer Lopez, Elizabeth Banks, Brooklyn Decker, and Anna Kendrick are covering this month’s Redbook cover. And like most guys, I’m expecting to avoid this movie.

Best of the Week - 5/12/12

2012-05-12T08:00:00.024-04:00

Quote of the Week: That’s what you said about the Green Lantern movie. You were 114 minutes of wrong. (Sheldon, The Big Bang Theory)

Song of the Week: Tomorrow Never Knows - The Beatles (Mad Men)

Scene of the Week:

Big News of the Week: Britney Spears to Judge a Singing Competition: Excuse me until I stop laughing. Seriously, how can you fire Paula Abdul and one of The Pussycat Dolls and replace them with one of the few singers out there that is actually a worse singer. And calling Britney Spears a singer is a bit generous because no one has heard her sing live in probably over a decade so she is basically a lip-syncing dancer. And even that is a bit generous because her last public performance, the 2007 Video Music Awards, she did not even bother to lip-sync most of the time. Sure Spears will not be the first karaoke judge with nominal singing ability (I am looking at you Jennifer Lopez) but at least J-Lo can form full sentences, Spears does not even have the mental capacity to get through an entire interview unless it is scripted before hand, how is she going to handle live television? The X-Factor was a joke last season and managed to be a bigger joke in its second season with this announcement. If you wanted credibility, how about throwing the $15 million dollars at someone that can actually sing and still sell music (last year’s Femme Fatal has yet to even pass the million sold mark) like Adele? I’d tune in for that. The only people Britney Spears can attract these days are fans of train wreck television, but she will likely scare off more people than she attracts. The X-Factor is already third in the karaoke genre and with the premiere of Duets later this month, which like The Voice boasts actual credible singers, could be pushed to fourth even with the biggest prize and highest paid judge. Which may mean its final season unless they pick up viewiers.

Preview Picture of the Week:

Grant’s Last Day on Ghost Hunters

Free Download of the Week: Stay – Sara Bareilles (SaraBMusic.com): Get a song from the upcoming album for the low, low price of free, but there is a small catch that you have to share the offer on either Facebook or Twitter.

Deal of the Week: Save up to 55% on Movies & TV Shows (Justified, Game of Thrones, Midnight in Paris)

New Album Release of the Week: The Bright Side - Meiko

New DVD Release of the Week: The Grey

Video of the Week: After starting off as one of the guiltiest pleasures ever in the history of television, Pretty Little Liars got a bit tedious but starting picking up again when they announced A would be revealed at the end of last season. But everybody learning Mona was A was just the beginning. Mona hinted at a biggest conspiracy (I assuming when she told Spencer she could join “The A-Team” was not just a reference to the awesome show) and do not forget that Maya met her untimely demise in the finale too. The new season starts in less than a month and ABC has released its first promo.

Next Week Pick of the Week: Survivor, Sunday (tomorrow) at 8:00 on CBS: How apropos that Mother’s Day would feature an all female final five on Survivor. Sure it would have been even more apropos is any of them were actual mothers. Kim is in the driver’s seat playing both alliances remaining. Will she go with Alicia and Christina and the easier win, or her original alliance of Chelsea and Sabrina, both that could easily siphoned jury votes from her? Or will the four girls realize she is playing both sides and blind side her? Should make for an interesting finale. But not nearly as interesting as whatever Kat has install for the final three as the last Tribal Council.

Speaking of Kat. Once they get to the jury portion of the show, Survivor uploads a video every week of the latest jury member going to the Ponderosa, where Jury members hang out until it is Tribal Council time. Usually they are boring with the latest booted contestant weighing themselves, taking a shower and binge eating. If you are lucky you may get an uncomfortable reunion with someone who turned on their alliances like last season when Cochran had to face the former tribemates he got voted out. Then Kat got voted out last week. I cannot put into words how awesome it is but it is the first time I can remember them breaking out the Survivor Psychologist. Trust me, watch it below, this will be the best six minutes you spend today. And after you are done watching be sure to bug Jeff Probst until he lets Kat back for another season.

57 Channels and Only This Is On - 5/13/12

2012-05-13T08:00:00.013-04:00

Once Upon a Time: There was nothing more predictable this week than Emma not being the one that ate the apple. Although I did think maybe Mary Margret would be taking the bite over Henry as a juxtaposition of her eating it in the fairy tale land. But nothing was more entertaining than the fairies joining the battle to storm the castle.
You can stream current episodes on Hulu. You can also download Once Upon a Time on iTunes.

Mad Men: The show is supposedly the best written show but I it is so profoundly written, why is it when I sat down to write about the show the only thing that comes to my mind is what the frack was Mr. Belding, who apparently has been spending the last decade doing nothing but eating Cool Whip, doing there? (I vaguely remember Megan quitting or something and Don hating The Beatles). And if the former Bayside principal was not distracting enough, there was Pete Campbell nailing Rory Gilmore to increase the nineties nostalgia even more after Ken Cosgrove married Alex Mack (and her father Leland Palmer). Who’s next on the casting couch: Kimmy Gibler? The chick from My Two Dads?
You can download Mad Men on iTunes.

The Voice: After such a strong season it is head scratching that this was finals. With only Jermaine Paul being the only contestant that was better than any of the finalists last season I could not bring myself to watch either episodes this week. After America constantly got everything wrong (with some help from the coaches) this season, I was shocked to learn the voting for the finals went the way it should have: Jermaine, Juliet Simms, Tony Lucca with Chris Mann coming in dead last. I laugh at any notion that the Christina-Adam feud hurt Tony and Chris because they earned their finishing spots and should thank their coaches for taking them a lot further than they deserved. If Adam and Christina hurt anyone it was themselves because they were so focused on destroying each other they let people that may not have come in last place go like Lindsey Pavao, Jesse Campbell, Mathai, or Katrina Parker. So congratulations to Christina on her second straight last place finish even though she came out of the Blind Auditions with the strongest team. Maybe next season you do not take your ninth best team member to the finals with you. Even though I did not bother to watch the finale, there is one performance I checked out the next day:

You can stream recent episodes on Hulu.

Castle: It is inevitable for a show built around an antagonist relationship of two characters of different gender that they will eventually hook up if the show stays on the air long enough, but that was a horrible ending for the episode and season. Well almost ending as there was one last scene to remind us that Kate’s mom’s case is still wide open. They better solve it by the end of next season (preferably much earlier). They already hinted at some sort of conspiracy surrounding Castle’s dad, how about solve Mama Beckett’s murder and move onto the mystery of Papa Castle? Unless he is the mysterious boss behind Mama Beckett’s murder (which I suspected when they first brought him up).
You can stream recent episodes on Hulu. You can also download Castle on iTunes.

Survivor: One World: Oh Kat, you can take the girl out of the game but you just cannot keep her quite. I was surprised to learn that Christina turned out to be one of Alicia’s “minions.” Didn’t Alicia once suggest to Christina that she should jump in the fire so she did not have to wait an extra day before being voted out? Is this some sort of Stockholm Syndrome situation?
You can stream recent episodes over at cbs.com.

Modern Family: Holy Dylan sighting! As everyone has spent the last couple months complaining how the show isn’t funny anymore, I think it is clear what was missing this season was Dylan who has not been seen since the season premiere when the Dunfy family left him at the dude ranch. Hopefully he is the spark that can get the fourth season back on track. Maybe a Dylan-Hayley wedding is in order.
You can stream recent episodes on Hulu.

Revenge: I am a bit surprised that we had an origins story that did not feature the sensei. Maybe that is for the next flashback episode next season.
You can stream current episodes on Hulu. You can also download Revenge on iTunes.

Community: Didn’t they already do a clip show that wasn’t a real clip show before? Although I get a sense that we got a glimpse of the series finale with everyone being a part of a mental institute. You know the ending is going to be some sort of head trip (assuming they get a proper ending). And somehow insane Annie managed to be hotter than regular neurotic Annie.
You can stream current episodes on Hulu. You can also download Community on iTunes.

The Game Is Afoot Jeff

2012-05-14T08:00:00.022-04:00

Back during the first episode of Survivor: One World when the one chick broke her wrist and Probst gave the guys a choice to either take the win or continue the challenge with the girls short a player and I warned the guys, do not anger the Survivor Gods by taking the cheap win and lo and behold, three month later, the most despicable of the guys had to be medically evacuated, they voluntarily gave away immunity (strike two for the Survivor Gods), and all the guys that made the merge are sitting on the jury while the women made up the final five contestants.

If there was one dude who angered the Survivor Gods more than the other dudes it was Colton Cumbie. I never thought I would hate a contestant on the show more than I hated Russell Hantz but Colton managed to slither under the very low bar. He called the first little person on the show every offensive name you could think of, the called the lone black dude ghetto trash to hi face while telling another contestant she might as well jump into the fire so she did not have to wait to be voted off. That must have been the final straw for the Survivor Gods because he could vote off Christa Cha, he had to be air listed off the show with appendicitis like symptoms. Hopefully he never gets asked back (but I unfortunately would not put my money on never seeing him again).

But as horrible as Colton was, Kat Edorsson was oppositely awesome. Quite possibly the dumbest person ever to play Survivor, everything that came out her mouth was a gem (well expect for her constant burping) like the post-appendicitis discussion. And Kat just had to go out with a bang after giving a long winded speech in her signature hoodie about how awesome blindsides are, only to be blindsided a minute later leading to the single greatest Ponderosa episode ever. Everyone should bug Jeff Probst until he lets Kat back on the show.

Poor Greg “Tarzan” Smith, on any other season the plastic surgeon would have been the breakout star of the season but had to play second fiddle to Kat. He even went with they if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em philosophy by donning Kat’s tank top and bikini bottoms on his head right before his elimination. And that was not even his most entertaining moment. That had to be either when he confronted Chelsea Meissner who he thought harbored ill will against him because she did not think her plastic surgeon did a good job with her new breasts or when he told the tribe he had an affection that kept him from learning other people’s names just moments before having to jot down someone’s name at Tribal Council. Seriously, as much as I hated Redemption Island, I would not mind if they brought it back just so we had a Kat vs. Tarzan season. Or at least do an All Star season of Morons vs. Masterminds.

With all the colorful characters this season, it was the most even keel that ended up winning. Kim Spradlin rolled over everyone all season. I thought it would have been wiser to take Alicia and Christina to the end but in the end it did not really matter because she still won in a landslide. I was a bit surprised Sabrina got all the not-Kim votes instead of Chelsea. But that was not even close to being surprising as Kat being profound during the Final Tribal Council.

Survivor: One World gets a on my Terror Alert Scale. You can stream recent episodes over at cbs.com. You can also download Survivor on iTunes.

As mentioned above, with Kat and Tarzan this season it got me thinking that the next All-Star season of Survivor should be Morons vs. Masterminds. I even have suggestions of who should make up the cast:

Morons
Jamie Dugan (China)
James Clement (China)
Erik Reichenbach (Fans vs. Favorites)
Shannon “Shambo” Waters (Samoa)
Jane Bright (Nicaragua)
Philip Sheppard (Redemption Island)
Natalie Tenerelli (Redemption Island)
Brandon Hantz (South Pacific)
Kat Edorsson (One World)
Greg “Tarzan” Smith (One World)

Masterminds
Richard Hatch (Borneo)
Rob Cesternino (Amazon)
Sandra Diaz-Twine (Pearl Islands)
Cirie Fields (Panama)
Parviti Shallow (Cook Islands)
Todd Herzog (China)
Stephen Fishbach (Tocantins)
Sophie Clarke (South Pacific)
Colton Cumbie (One World)
Kim Spradlin (One World)

Lyrics Quiz: As Seen on TV 2012

2012-05-15T08:00:00.005-04:00

As we wind down the television season, I am going to run down the best music placement of the past twelve months and as an added twist, I am going to do it in Lyrics Quiz form so you have to guess to see the actual list. As usual, place your guesses in the comment (or e-mail me), both artist and song title, and if you are correct I will un-bold the lyric. For fun, feel free to also guess which television shows the song was used on, a couple of the ones on my list even have multiple answers. Please note in one case where the artist namedropped himself, I changed his name to my own as to not make the artist of the song obvious.

1. Smelling like Dolce and Gabbana. Shorty you the baddest and to meet you is an honor.
2. Dans les buissons sous le ciel du mois d'août. Les amoureux glissent à pas de loup. Comme les oiseaux ils ont rendez-vous. On l'entend partout.
3. There is so much a man can tell you so much he can say. You remain my power, my pleasure, my pain.
4. Even saw the lights of the Goodyear blimp and it read (Scooter McGavin) is a pimp.
5. I’ve loved you since I knew ya. I wouldn’t talk down to ya. I have to tell you just how I feel, I won’t share you with another boy.
6. I was last in my class. Barely passed at the institute. Now I’m trying to avoid, yeah I’m trying to avoid a malpractice suit.
7. Got the right to vote and will elect and other rappers can’t stand us but give us respect.
8. I’ll follow you down until the sound of my voice will haunt you. You’ll never get away from the sound of the woman that loves you.
9. There’s nothing where he used to lie. Conversation has gone dry. That’s what’s going on.
10. Never opened myself this way. Life is our, we live it our way. All these words I don’t just say.
11. Is this the real life. Is this just fantasy. Caught in a landslide no escape from reality.
12. I’ve been alone with you inside my mind. And in my dreams I kissed your lips a thousand times.
13. If you’re seeing things running through your head, who you gonna call?
14. You say go slow and I fall behind. The secondhand unwinds.
15. You’ll think you’re looking at Aquaman. I summon fish to the dish.
16. If you got a problem, yo I’ll solve it.
17. Plant a seed, plant a flower, plant a rose. Plant any one of those. Keep planting to see which one grows.
18. The first thing I met was a fly with no buzz and the sky with no clouds.
19. I’m sure I might be rude but it’s just your attitude it’s tearing me apart, its ruining me every day.
20. I will pray for you. I will sell my soul for something pure and true. For someone like you.
21. Sometimes everything is wrong. Now it’s time to sing-along. When your day is night alone, hold on.
22. You only know what I want you to. I know everything you don’t want me to.
23. Gotta have a celebration. Rock my soul.
24. When the rain is blowing in you face and the whole world is on your case. I could off you a warm embrace.
25. I am thinking it’s a sign that the freckles in our eyes are mirror images and when we kiss they’re perfectly aligned.

You See I Got a Plan, We’re Gonna See This Band

2012-05-16T08:00:00.012-04:00

Retro has made a big comeback over the past half decade ranging from the ultra polished soul singers like Amy Winehouse to the lo-fi rockers like Best Coast. El Paso garage band The Royalty sits somewhere in the middle, a garage rock band with Vampire Weekend style guitar flairs with a singer that sounds heavily influenced by the Motown girl groups of the sixties.

Their first album via Victory Records Lovers effortless transitions between power-pop songs like Bartender or Mr. Hyde and songs that sound like fuzzed out guitar versions of The Ronettes songs like How I Like ‘Em or Other Boys. The upbeat I Want You is just pure fun and should be added to every party you are planning on hosting this summer. Actually most of Lovers will take you back to your early summer days (even if you didn’t grow up in the sixties where a lot of the sounds on the album come from) like the sweet Bottle Breaker.

As the album goes on, the more adventurous the band gets. Every Little Bit starts off with a similar drum beat from Lykki Li’s Get Some and features a chant along chorus. If the youth of America listened to better music, Witchcraft would be a middle school slow dance staple for the next half a decade at least. The Royalty even pulls out an epic Saint Bowie which is the closest they get to a stadium anthem. The album then ends with the sweet piano-based Won’t Be Long which shows how the band could be even more versatile on future albums.

Song to Download – I Want You

Lovers gets a on my Terror Alert Scale.

Amazon.com Widgets

The Five Shows From Next Season that Will Suck the Least

2012-05-17T08:00:00.005-04:00

It is not a good sign for next season when the biggest news coming out of the Upfronts this year was Britney Spears judging a singing competition. And just when you thought The X-Factor could not be an even bigger joke, they hired a nineteen year old Demi Lovato, who is probably best known to the general public as someone who went to rehab to sit next to Britney. At least Britney is also known as a horrible singer in-between her rehab stints. Now let me go back to believing Fox does not exist.

But the most important news of the week did not even come from the networks, but instead from cable network TBS who announced during their Upfronts that they have hired a pilot presentation of a show called Norm MacDonald Is Trending. It is described as, “SNL alumnus and former "Weekend Update" anchor Norm MacDonald hosts as he and his team of correspondents sort through the churning mass of pop culture and social media to pull out the funniest, most bizarre and entertaining events so you don’t have to.” Just order that to series now TBS.

Usually around this time I take a look of all the promos for upcoming shows for next season and come up with my premature list of the best new shows of next season, except there were not really any shows that excited me that were announced (is it too late for ABC to pick up the Mandy Moore sitcom?). So this is an election year where I usually not vote for the best candidate but instead vote for the candidate I think sucks the least, here is my list of The Five Shows From Next Season that Will Suck the Least:

1. Last Resort (ABC): Want to know just how bad this year’s crop of shows is? The best one can best be described as a serious version of Gilligan's Island. But I do like creator Shawn Ryan (Terriers) and actors Andre Braugher (Men of a Certain Age), Autumn Reeser (No Ordinary Family), and Jessy Schram (Veronica Mars), features a recurring Robert Patrick (Terminator 2) it does have the coolest premise: a nuclear submarine the refuses an order to take out Pakistan and becomes a rogue nation with its own nuclear weapon to keep them safe. Of course because of all that and its Thursday at 8:00 timeslot (which has been the ABC death slot since Ugly Betty stated to tank about four years ago), Vegas will probably put the Over / Under of episodes at 5.

2. Animal Practice (NBC): For some reason I kept thinking that the show was a drama until I saw the trailer. A trailer that featured the monkey from The Hangover Part II as a doctor. I also give this show five episodes (it is going up against established comedy The Middle, Survivor and the trainwreck that will be Britney Spears), but I will enjoy all five of them.

3. The Neighbors (ABC): A sitcom starring Jami Gertz: pass. But it also stars aliens that named themselves Jackie Joyner Kersey, Reggie Jackson, Larry Bird and Dick Butkis: yes please. If ABC does not get the rights for an Alf cameo I will be severely disappointed.

4. Nashville (ABC): I have some good news and bad news about the show. The good news is that it stars Tami Taylor. The bad news is it stars the annoying cheerleader from Heroes. Is it too late to recast her with Julie Taylor?

5. Friend Me (CBS): McLovin on CBS? A premise so stupid it may work. But to work it definitely needs a name change before hitting airwaves because it is the worst titled new show of the season not named How to Live with Your Parents (for the Rest of Your Life).

And since there is an abundance of horrible looking shows that will be hitting the airways next season, here is a list of The Five Shows Networks Could Not Pay Me to Watch (for at least under $100).

1. Revolution (NBC): Since J.J. Abrams is a hack who only deals in high concept / low rewards I had no hopes that the show would be any good. Then I got a look at the trailer and it managed to slither under the bar of my low expectations. You should expect some major plot holes in a J.J. Abrams show, but there are huge ones already in the first trailer.

2. The New Normal (NBC): If J.J. Abrams is the biggest hack still working in Hollywood, Ryan Murphy is the second biggest hack. And as a straight dude I am a bit offended that a show called “The New Normal” does not feature a single heterosexual man (and to a lesser extend anyone of color). What are you trying to say, straight dudes (and to a lesser extent people of color) are no longer normal? Somebody get the ACLU on the phone.

3. Partners (CBS): I know it may look bad that both gay-centric shows are in my Horrible Show list, but in my defense, I am not homophobic because I would totally push my way through a bunch of chicks to make out with Shamar Moore. That and this sitcom features Brandon Routh and Sophia Bush who makes Elisha Cuthbert look like Kristin Wiig when it comes to comedic timing.

4. Next Caller (NBC): You would think after the Chelsea Handler debacle, you would think NBC would think twice about giving a polarizing comic their own show, but coming this midseason is a show staring Dane Cook. And it is becoming very clear that Jeffrey Tambor does not know how to say “no.” Let’s go over his post-Arrested Development career: Twenty Good Years (four episodes), Welcome to the Captain (five episodes), Bent (six episodes). But I have a felling Next Caller may not make it to seven episodes.

5. Guys with Kids (NBC): If it were not for Sophia Bush, Jamie Lynn Sigler would have easily won the Why the Frack Is Jack Bauer’s Daughter in a Comedy Award that goes to the most head scratching casting decision of the season. Also the promo for the show features three guys giving chest bumps with their babies. Seriously.

Enough of the crap, here is what I will be watching next season:

Mondays
8:00 – The Voice (NBC)
8:00 – How I Met Your Mother (CBS)
9:00 – 2 Broke Girls (CBS)
10:00 – Castle (ABC)

Tuesdays
8:00 – The Voice (NBC)
9:00 – Go On (NBC)
9:00 – Happy Endings (ABC)
9:30 – Don’t Trust the B---- in Apartment 23 (ABC)
10:00 – Parenthood (NBC)

Wednesdays
8:00 – Survivor (CBS)
8:00 – The Middle (ABC)
8:30 – Suburgatory (ABC)
9:00 – Modern Family (ABC)
9:30 – The Neighbors (ABC)
10:00 – Nashville (ABC)

Thursdays
8:00 – The Big Bang Theory (CBS)
8:00 - Last Resort (ABC)

Fridays (TGIF returns! Sort of)
8:00 – Last Man Standing (ABC)
8:30 – Community (NBC)
9:00 – Grimm (NBC)

Sundays
8:00 – Once Upon a Time (ABC)
9:00 – Revenge (ABC)
9:00 – Dexter (Showtime)
10:00 – Homeland (Showtime)

Around the Tubes - 5/18/12

2012-05-18T08:00:00.021-04:00

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 NBC, Veep, True Blood, The Geo Bee 2012, CMT Music Awards, Seventeen, The New Yorker, Oprah's Next Chapter, Forensic Firsts, Saturday Night Live, Mob Wives, and TNT:

- NBC unveiled its Fall schedule this week and here is a look of the new shows coming your way in about four to five months.

The Show, It’s the Thing

- Here is the latest deleted scene from the HBO show Veep:

- Last week HBO released its first posters for the new season of True Blood and this week they released a new poster created by you the fans of the show. Take a gander below:

- Spelling enthusiasts have had the Spelling Bee for a while now, and not there is a Bee for those of us that are a fan of geography. The Geo Bee 2012 premieres Thursday 8:00 on National Geographic channel and will be hosted by Alex Trebek.

- The first list of performers for this year’s CMT Music Awards was announced so look out for Kenny Chesney, Lady Antebellum, Little Big Town, Brad Paisley, Carrie Underwood and Zac Brown Band to take the stage Wednesday June 6 starting at 8:00.

- Modern Family‘s Sarah Hyland covers the June / July issue of Seventeen where she discusses a very serious illness where she has been battling kidney dysplasia and her life saving transplant she underwent in April.

- In the most recent issue of The New Yorker, Emily Nussbaum reviews ABC’s new series Scandal and more generally about race on television.

- Coming this Sunday on OWN, Carrie Underwood and her husband Mike Fisher talks to Oprah in their first joint interview on Oprah’s Next Chapter. Also coming to the shjow soon is Neil Patrick Harris (June 3) and Newark, New Jersey Mayor Cory Booker (June 10).

- New show alert! Forensic Firsts will premiere Sunday, June 17 at 9:00 on the Smithsonian Channel which will uncover the secrets behind the science of today’s criminal investigators.
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- For the first time ever, Saturday Night Live will be using new technology (the free Color app) to live broadcast backstage on their May 19th Season Finale featuring host Mick Jagger and special guests Foo Fighters and Arcade Fire. The cast and crew will be using Color, the new app that lets you instantly capture and share LIVE video broadcasts and photos with friends on Facebook. Essentially SNL will broadcast from their phone to yours, and fans will get a rare peek into what really happens backstage during the week of rehearsals and during the LIVE show and the commercial breaks.

- Mob Wives Season 2 Reunion – Part One hosted by Joy Behar airs this Sunday at 8:00. And you guessed it, Part 2 airs next Sunday. My sources tell me it will be intense and explosive.

- The major networks (and The CW) were not the only ones hold their upfronts this week, TNT and TBS both unveiled some projects they have in development, take a look at them below:

TNT Scripted Series in Development
King and Maxwell – Bestselling author David Baldacci's popular characters Sean King and Michelle Maxwell aren’t your typical pair of private investigators. Both are former secret service agents, and their unique skill set (not to mention their razor-sharp chemistry) often gives them a leg up on both suspects and conventional law enforcement. Baldacci serves as a consultant on the project. Executive Producer: Shane Brennan. Produce r: Karen Spiegel and Grant Anderson. Studio: CBS Television Studios.

The Last Ship – In this exciting action/adventure project based on the popular novel by William Brinkley, the crew of a naval destroyer is forced to confront the reality of a new existence when a pandemic decimates most of the earth's population. Michael Bay (Transformers) intends to direct the pilot if it is green lit. Executive Producers: Michael Bay, Brad Fuller, Andrew Form, Hank Steinberg (showrunner and writer) and Steve Kane (writer). Production Company: Platinum Dunes.

Legends – This suspenseful, action-packed drama is being developed by Howard Gordon, Jeffrey Nachmanoff and Mark Bomback from the novel Legends by Robert Littell. The story follows a deep-cover operative named Martin Odum, who has an uncanny ability to transform himself into a different person for each job. But his own identity comes into question when a mysterious stranger suggests that Martin isn’t who he thinks he is. Executive Producers: Howard Gordon, Jeffrey Nachmanoff, Alexander Cary and Jonathan Levin. Studio: Fox Television Studios.

Lew Archer – Based on the title character from Ross McDonald's popular novels, this project from The Closer creator James Duff and Close to Home creator Jim Leonard follows the sleuth many consider to be "the original P.I." Executive Producers: James Duff, Jim Leonard (writer) and Steve N. White. Studio: Warner Horizon Television.

Tom Clancy's Homeland Security – This event-based procedural written by Javier Grillo-Marxuach and set in Tom Clancy's world of espionage pits a select team of domestic intelligence operatives against enemies within and without, from narco-traffickers and nuclear terrorists to cyber-criminals and human smugglers. Executive Producers: Tom Clancy, Michael Ovitz, Javier Grillo-Marxuach and Chris George.

Untitled Steven Bochco Murder Mystery project – This suspenseful and intriguing crime drama will intimately dissect a single murder case over an entire season, from the commitment of the crime through the investigation, arrest and trial. Executive Producer: Steven Bochco (writer). Co-Executive Producer: Eric Lodal (writer).

Untitled Ron Shelton family drama – A disgraced football coach loses his high-profile job in Los Angeles and winds up moving his three kids and 70-year-old father to Louisiana. But this might just be the fresh start they need in this insightful drama from the writer/director of Bull Durham. Executive Producers: Ron Shelton (writer), Michele Weisler and Andrea Buchanan.

TNT Unscripted Series in Development
American Troubadours –From one of the executive producers of American Idol and film star Matthew McConaughey, this new reality competition series is on a mission to discover the best unsigned bar band in America, singer/songwriter bands that represent the greatest tradition of rock and roll. Executive Producers: Nigel Lythgoe, Matthew McConaughey and Anastasia Brown. Production Companies: Nigel Lythgoe Productions and J.K. Livin Foundation.

Cold Justice – This docu-drama, produced by EmmyÒ winners for such series as Law & Order, Project Runway and Top Chef, will follow former prosecutor Kelly Siegler and crime scene investigator Yolanda McClary as they crack cold cases. Executive Producers: Dick Wolf, Tom Thayer, Dan Cutforth and Jane Lipsitz. Production Companies: Wolf Films and Magical Elves.
Rivals – From the producers of Laguna Beach and Jockeys comes this riveting series set in the glamorous world of thoroughbred horse racing. Executive Producers: Gail Berman, Lloyd Braun and Gene Stein for BermanBraun; Gary Ravet for Promark Productions; and Gary Auerbach and Tina Gazzero for Go Go Luckey.

24/7: Los Angeles – OscarÒ-winning documentary filmmaker Robert Port crafted this gripping, all-access look at the men and women who protect the streets of Los Angeles. Executive Producers: Robert Port, Michael Goldstein and Michael Larkin. Production Company: Port Films.

TBS Scripted Series in Development
The Kid – To try and get his game back, a young and socially naïve golf prodigy named Quinn teams up with Joey, an unconventional new caddy. But much to the dismay of his father, Quinn learns more than just golf, as this new duo makes its way into the high-rolling, fast-moving big-time world of professional golf. The Kid is written by Donald Todd from a story by Sports Illustrated senior writer Michael Bamberger and writer Jay Hass, along with David Morse (Tremé) and professional golfer Phil Mickelson's longtime caddy, Jim "Bones" Mackay. Executive Producers: Donald Todd, Greer Shephard and Michael M. Robin. Production Company: The Shephard/Robin Company. Studio: Warner Horizon Television.

Most Likely – It has been ten years since high school, and the former “most likely to succeed” star student returns to his hometown after losing his job. He winds up working for the former (and still) “most popular” jock in this mismatched buddy comedy penned by Josh Heald (Hot Tub Time Machine). Executive Producers: Conan O’Brien, Jeff Ross and David Kissinger. Co-Executive Producer/Writer: Josh Heald. Production Company: Conaco LLC. Studio: Warner Horizon Television.

Zone Lord – Conan O'Brien serves as executive producer on this sitcom with an intergalactic twist. Three roommates awake one morning to discover an evil but very hip alien has moved into their building, along with his diminutive navigator. Executive Producers: Conan O'Brien, Jeff Ross and David Kissinger. Co-Executive Producer/Writer: Ross Venokur. Production Company: Conaco LLC. Studio: Warner Horizon Television.

TBS Unscripted Series in Development
Norm MacDonald is Trending – TBS has ordered a pilot presentation of this talk show from some of the executive producers behind Sports Show with Norm MacDonald and Real Time with Bill Maher. SNL alumnus and former "Weekend Update" anchor Norm MacDonald hosts as he and his team of correspondents sort through the churning mass of pop culture and social media to pull out the funniest, most bizarre and entertaining events so you don’t have to. Executive Producers: Norm MacDonald, Marc Gurvitz and Lori Jo Hoekstra.

Untitled Competition Game Show – This big, unique and physically challenging competition series is being developed by Jared Hoffman and produced by Alloy Digital's Generate Studios, which was co-founded by Jordan Levin and Pete Aronson. Executive Producer: Jared Hoffman. Production Company: Generate Studios.

Best of the Week - 5/19/12

2012-05-19T08:00:00.020-04:00

Quote of the Week: Being voted out I was really, really upset. All three of you hurt me very, very badly. And Kim, I am just destroyed by you. But what I kinda want to tell you is that I have a secret that I want to tell you. When I was little I went through two open heart surgeries when I was 12 years old and in order for me to have kids I had to have another open heart surgery in twelve years which means 22 baby. So I will be going in next year and I am doing it again. So I had to hide that from you guys, so I didn’t want to show you that weakness. But that’s why I don’t have time to be mad at you three. (Kat, Survivor)

Song of the Week: One Hundred Ways - James Ingram (Suburgatory)

Scene of the Week:

Big News of the Week: Network Upfronts: When the network announce their fall schedule, everyone naturally looks to see what is worth watching next season (check out my list of The Five New Shows of the Fall that Will Suck the Least). But also a fun game is trying to figure what will be canceled first, so fun that Grantland even created a Fall TV Cancelation Fantasy League last year. And since every draft needs its own Mel Kiper, I will go ahead and throw my hat in the ring with my first mock draft. Please note that the mock draft has absolutely nothing to do with quality (critical darling Lone Star took home the first canceled award two years ago), but what I think will be canceled first.

1. Guys with Kids (Wednesdays at 8:30 on NBC) – This has everything you look for in a potential cancelation: it looks horrible (Jamie Lynn Sigler doing comedy), in a killer timeslot (established comedy Suburagtory, Survivor, and the train wreck that will be Britney Spears), and a horrible lead in (fellow new show Animal Kingdom; it is clear one of these two show will get canceled early on, I am hoping for the crappier one). Really you could make a case for every new show NBC is premiering this fall, but they cannot possibly cancel everything, can they? Somehow Whitney and Up All Night even got second seasons.

2. Ben and Kate (Tuesdays at 8:30 on Fox) – Also a three tool show as above, but not to the same extent. Although also a tough timeslot (The Voice and Dancing with the Stars result shows and NCIS), it does not air against any other comedy at that hour so if you are against reality shows and are under sixty this may be your only option, and though not strong, Raising Hope does have a built in audience and people may tune into The New Girl early.

3. The Mob Doctor (Mondays at 9:00 on Fox) – The chick from My Boys is playing a doctor. A doctor for the mob. Seriously. Bonus points for airing in the former Lone Star timeslot. Poor Matt Saresen, maybe it is time to stop auditioning for doctor roles.

4. Last Resort (Thursdays at 8:00 on ABC) – Speaking of cursed timeslots, since Ugly Betty, scripted shows that have occupied this timeslot have included Flash Forward, My Generation (was only beaten out by Lone Star for first cancelation of 2010 because it started later), Charlie’s Angels, and Missing. I have a feeling a serialize show about a rouge submarine will not change the timeslot’s luck.

5. Partners (Mondays at 8:30 on CBS) – For the last couple seasons CBS has used The Big Bang Theory and 2 and a Half Men to launch new shows but strangely this season they paired up both shows on Thursdays leaving the aging How I Met Your Mother, that routinely got out-rated by the freshman show that followed it 2 Broke Girls, to launch its lone comedy this fall. Also, have I mentioned that Sophia Bush and Brandon Routh are cast in this supposed comedy? And isn’t Partners just How to Be a Gentleman from last season but instead of an ambiguously gay homosexual, there is an actual gay homosexual? But as Gentleman showed us, CBS has shown in the past a quick hand at pulling horrible comedies that would be the highest rated show not named Modern Family on any other network so expect the not quite canceled yet Rules of Engagement back in this timeslot by Thanksgiving.

Preview Picture of the Week: New show Bunheads about a Vegas showgirl turned small town dance instructor premieres June 11 and ABC Family has released its first pictures from the show, here is one:

Free Download of the Week: Good Vibrations – Beach Boys (Google Play)

New Album Release of the Week: Born and Raised - John Mayer

New DVD Release of the Week: Sherlock: Season Two

Video of the Week: History’s latest miniseries Hatfields and McCoys premieres this Memorial Day and here is a clip to get you prepared:

Hatfields and McCoys: The Beginnings

Next Week Pick of the Week: Revenge, Wednesday at 10:00 on ABC: The first season of Revenge asked the very important question of: when does a guilty pleasure stop being guilty and becomes just a pleasure? I am still on the fence because there is still some pretty bad acting (silly teenagers) and I still am not happy how they resolved what the set up in the premiere, but I am still really looking forward to the finale. Hopefully unlike the least episode, there better be blood. And not just of the canine version (R.I.P. Sam).

57 Channels and Only This Is On - 5/20/12

2012-05-20T08:00:00.008-04:00

Once Upon a Time: I call shenanigans. How it is after countless numbers of times that Emma has touched the book that this time is the time she touched it and all the saddened started to believe? Shenanigans. And why, at this point, does no one go with true love’s kiss to begin with? It popped in my mind last week when Henry first ate the turnover yet no one realized that it could cure him until after it happened. I am a bit surprised that the curse ended up breaking at the end of the first season finale. So are there going to be any fairytale flashbacks next season? It seems silly if there is going to be magic and everyone knows their past in the real world.
You can stream current episodes on Hulu. You can also download Once Upon a Time on iTunes.

Mad Men: Like last week when all I could think about was why is Rory Gilmore giving it up to the obnoxious Pete Campbell (and what the frack was Mr. Belding doing there), this week all I could think of after the episode was why was Rory Gilmore topless on Mad Men? I vaguely remember Betty eating whip cream out of a can and the Jewish alien throwing a hissy fit, but the stunt casting on the show this season is really getting distracting. Almost as distracting: titling the episode Dark Shadows the same week the movie reboot is released to theaters.
You can download Mad Men on iTunes.

How I Met Your Mother: The first half reminded me of the most recent Community clip show that was not an actual clip show where the writers complied all their half baked ideas into one show. The second half was pretty predictable as I saw Barney proposing to Quinn via magic trick only for the bride turning out to be Robin miles away, the same for Victoria showing up to the bar on her wedding day with Ted driving her back to the church. Granted I did not see him driving past it. Not that I really mind because much like Robin, I think Victoria is the best girlfriend Ted has had and certainly the only one I would like see ending up the mother. Though it would be hard to explain how she turns out to be the mother if Ted met the mother at Barney’s wedding as previously stated.
You can stream recent episodes over at cbs.com. You can also download How I Met Your Mother on iTunes.

Suburgatory: Holy James Ingram< sighting! I actually thought James was going to turn out to be Lisa’s real father but I guess her brother is still in play. You can stream recent episodes on Hulu. You can also download Suburgatory on iTunes.

Revenge: I am always against the “x amount of time early” cold open to an episode, but to promise a death early on only for it to turn out to be a dog is cruel and inhumane. Just how many death sequences can one show screw up?
You can stream current episodes on Hulu. You can also download Revenge on iTunes.

Community: For the second half the season, it has been fun watching each episode trying to figure out the exact moment where Chevy Chase really got fed up with the absurd storyline. I think we had a winner with the 8-bit episode. As much as I loved the old school Nintendo games, it was hard not to think that Scott Pilgrim vs. the World’s ode to the time period in gaming was much better with its live action homage. And it is odd that they ended the season not with the epic heist episode but the more low key (or as low key as an episode with an evil doppelganger trying to hack off someone’s arm can be) trail episode especially since they just did a Law and Order episode not too long ago. It was like the season Buffy the Vampire Slayer vanquished the Big Bad in the penultimate episode and spent the finale dreaming about cheese.
You can stream current episodes on Hulu. You can also download Community on iTunes.

You Give a Little Heart, Give a Little Soul

2012-05-21T08:00:00.010-04:00

On her first album, Meiko created some of the quirkiest indie, acoustic guitar based, snarky songs that it is surprising she was not featured in an iPod commercial. She was basically Sara Bareilles with a guitar that would take an extra step across the preverbal line. With her snark in full view four years later it is surprising how mature she sounds on her sophomore album The Bright Side and stays serious for the most part (a song titled Good Looking Loser notwithstanding).

Not just mature but she at times even sounds sexy and she clearly has the voice for it. This is no more evident than on the first single Leave the Lights On where she coos over a subtle electro beat about secrets and something between the sheets. It may take a few listens for fans of her first album to get used to the dancey beat, but the song pushes her places that no one could have thought of after her debut. When the Doors Close takes those sensibilities from the first single and slows them down to great effect.

For those that loved that first album, there is still plenty to draw you in. Stuck on You and Let it Go are as catchy as anything on her freshman outing and you probably won’t be able to wait until she comes to your hometown so you can sing them back to her. But the highlights of The Bright Side are where Meiko expands her sound. I’m in Love is Meiko’s Sgt. Pepper moment with an ultra-catchy sing-a-long with some new instrumentations. The growth culminates on the last track, the sultry New Orleans jazz of I Wonder. If Meiko can make a leap like this musically from her first album to her second, I personally cannot wait for what she has in store for the listeners on her third.

Song to Download – I'm In Love

The Bright Side gets a on my Terror Alert Scale.

Amazon.com Widgets

I’m a Good Man with a Good Heart, Had a Tough Time, Got a Rough Start

2012-05-22T08:00:00.020-04:00

It dawned on me while listening to the new John Mayer new album that all his previous albums had a musical theme. Room for Squares was his pop album. Heavier Things was his blues album. Continuum was his soul album. And Battle Studies was his crappy concept album about dating and breaking up with Jennifer Aniston. It is clear listening to Born and Raised that he has entered his folk phase. The album even features about as much harmonica as electric guitars. Most of the album is just him as part of a four piece band with an occasional guest like trumpeter Chris Botti, violinist Sara Watkins formerly of Nickel Creek, and David Crosby and Graham Nash (sans Stills or Young) doing backing vocals.

Of course one of the main reasons Mayer may have retreated to the frozen country of Montana was that his stupid mouth got him in trouble time and time again in the promotion of his last album when talking about his racist genitalia and sexual napalm. When first single Shadow Days hit, it sounding like the singer was apologizing for saying too much again when he opens the song with the lines, “Did you know that you could be wrong and swear you’re right” and adds in the chorus, “I’m a good man with a good heart. Had a tough time, got a rough start.”

It turns out repentance is a big theme of Born and Raised. On If I Ever Get Around to Living It is hard not to think he is talking to himself when he asks somebody, “When you gonna wise up boy?” And I may not be a shrink, but Whiskey, Whiskey, Whiskey (which is followed by water, water, water, sleep) kind of sounds like a lyrical excuse for his spoken words. Then in the verses, there are lines like “The only deal I ever signed, the old devil drew a dotted line. The stage was set, the words were mine, I’m not complaining” which is followed by “it’s just a phase, it’s not forever (but I still might have a ways to go).”

Mayer saves his biggest regrets for the title track, a heartbreaking tale of his parents dissolving marriage which is worthy of the country sound where he laments it is “such a waste to grow up lonely.” But it is not all doom and gloom because the album actually ends with the Born and Raised (Reprise) is a bit more optimistic in a sitting around the firepit and singing a song with your friends at the end of the day kind of way. Born and Raised was a nice diversion into folk, hopefully John Mayer’s rock opus is coming next.

Song to Download – Queen of California

Born and Raised gets a on my Terror Alert Scale.

Amazon.com Widgets

You Can’t Explain Away the Way I Feel

2012-05-23T08:00:00.023-04:00

After years of pop radio being filled with bland pop and watered down rap with an occasional adult contemporary or country crossover song, Foster the People crashed the Top 40 last year with the weirdest hit song since the alternative craze of the nineties when MTV was still pushing buzzworthy bands. Their success opened up the door for more weird pop songs by fun. and the xylophone heavy Somebody That I Used to Know by Gotye, both of which have kept more traditional pop songs from boy bands, Justin Bieber and the Call Me Maybe chick out of the number one spot on the Hot 100 since fun. topped the chart back on St. Patrick’s Day.

As good as the Goyte song is, let’s face it, Kimbra is what takes a good song and makes it great. We have all heard their fair share of kiss off songs, but rarely do we ever get to hear the other side of the story in the same song (I am sure the guy referenced in Since U Been Gone would have liked the chance to refute some of the claims in that song). I cannot remember it happening since Positive K’s I Got a Man. After two verses and a chorus of accusations of being coldhearted, Kimbra comes in and shoots back about how manipulative he is. Oh, snap.

They say you never get a second chance to make a first impression and Kimbra did a very good job with her first impression here in the States. Even with Somebody That I Used to Know still at number one, Kimbra is ready to make a name for herself with her debut album Vows being released this week in America. Vows is the left of center pop music that you would expect from the small sliver of Kimbra you heard on the Gotye track, but it is a little jarring with how angry that song was that her album is very happy and hopeful and filled with tales of a much healthier relationship.

Right off the bat, Kimbra is ready to Settle Down, and raise a family and even has names picked out (Nebraska Jones). Throughout the thirteen tracks she shows off a vocal charisma that rivals her flashy persona using her voice as an instrument and not just a vessel to deliver lyrics be it the peppy boom’s in Settle Down or the haunting ooo’s in Plain Gold Ring. Musically the songs on Vows are so diverse you are not going to confuse one song from another be it the RnB flavor of Something in the Way You Are, the disco feel of Cameo Lover, Good Intent is the catchiest pop song on the album, the horns infused rock of Come Into My Head, the techno beats of Sally I Can See You.

As good as the previous songs on the album are, none are as good as the bonus track of Warrior, the song Kimbra did with Mark Foster (of the People fame) and producer A-Trak is the best song on the album and none of the songs reach the high of Somebody I Used to Know. But Vows lays down the foundation of what could be a great sophomore album, the way Adele took the massive jump inbetween her first two albums.

Song to Download – Something in the Way You Are

You can also download for free from this album Warrior courtesy of Converse, Cameo Lover on iTunes, and Good Intent over at MTV.com.

Vows gets a on my Terror Alert Scale.

Amazon.com Widgets

Previewing Men at Work

2012-05-24T08:00:00.027-04:00

Last night’s Revenge essentially ended the Spring television season, but do not fret sun adverse people because the summer season starts tonight when TBS launches a new comedy Men at Work tonight at 10:00 (with a second episode premiering at 10:30). With the addition of Conan O’Brien, you would think the channel would have reinvested in its lineup but in the two years since signing the late night host, all they have show for it was a one and done eighties college show and a bunch of shows presented by Tyler Perry.

All that is about to change starting tonight when the first of two new sitcoms hit the channel that have nothing to do with Tyler Perry as well as the recently acquired Cougar Town which will premiere early next year (hopefully with a new name). They are also getting into the unscripted genre with four new shows also coming next year. And most importantly a show called Norm MacDonald Is Trending is currently in development and I am hoping for a pick up any second now.

Back to tonight. Men at Work does not exactly reinvent wheel or even copies the much hyped comedies of the day like Cougar Town, Men at Work is decisively old school. Just how old? The work referenced in the title is at a magazine. Nope, not even an online Zine, but a paper and ink kind. Not old enough for you? The secondary plot centers on a girlfriend trying to get one of the main characters to talk dirty to her just like the famous Seinfeld episode. Granted what Men at Work came up with was much dirty than asking if those were, “the panties your mother laid out for you.”

You have also seen these characters plenty of times before. James Lesure (Mr. Sunshine) is the horn dog, Adam Busch (The Jury) is the nerdy one, Michael Cassidy (Hidden Palms) is the douchebag with a heart of gold, while Danny Masterson (Joe’s Life) just got dumped and is living his own version of Swingers but without any new cool language (unless coining the word whorange counts) and instead of any swing music there is a song by The Avett Brothers (sorry, no Down Under usage, at least not yet).

Severely missing from the cast is anyone of the female persuasion. There is not even a sassy secretary at their place of business. Amy Smart (who apparently is doing a favor for Road Trip co-star Brekin Myers; oh yeah, did I forget to mention the show was created by that dude from Road Trip who also wrote the first three episodes? Hopefully he does not owe Tom Green any favors) shows up to break up with Masterson so there is always a chance she may show up again. But the only likely actress we will see more than once after the first episode is Busch’s girlfriend played by Meredith Hagner (Lights Out) because he really cannot break up with her because she is the boss’s daughter (who will show up in the form of J.K. Simmons in the second episode tonight and also gets the best laughs of the early season).

Sure Men at Work will probably get crushed by critics, and for the most part it will warranted, but I have to admit that I laughed more than once during the first episode. There is a sly Three's Company reference if you can catch it and it is hard to hate something that hard that makes fun of Dane Cook. The show may not reinvent the wheel but there are plenty of people who do not think it needs reinvented like all the people who were glad to see Tim Allen back on television last fall when he swapped three boys out for three girls and very little else.

Men at Work airs Thursdays at 10:00 on TBS.

Around the Tubes - 5/25/12

2012-05-25T08:00:00.029-04:00

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 CBS, History, Pretty Little Liars, Insane or Inspired, Veep, Anger Management, South Beach Tow, and PBS.

- CBS was once again the most watched network of the season and to thank its viewers for keeping them on top, CBS is giving everyone a “Good-eBag” where you can download select episodes of current hit series like How I Met Your Mother and Survivor. And that is nor all, the network is hitting the road to travel to 60 cities in 60 days that may include such as face-to-face encounters with CBS personalities, video chats with CBS stars, previews and screenings of new series, contests, giveaways and more. Head over to cbs.com/thanks for download links and cbs.com/buzz for city dates (which will be announced soon).

- Also going on tour this summer is History for a Cross-Country Cookout featuring the cast of Pawn Stars, Rick Dale of American Restoration and the 80-foot Ultimate Smoker and Grill that can cook up to 2,000 pounds of BBQ at once. Head over to history.com/cookout for dates and cities.

- We are a week and a half away from the new season of Pretty Little Liars, and to get you “A” fix until then, you can go on the Pretty Little Puzzle Hunt to unlock an exclusive clip from the new season.

- New show alert! Tonight on Syfy, new show Insane or Inspired, check out a promo below:

Heroes – Insane or Inspired – Launch promo

- Check out the video below for the latest deleted scene from HBO’s Veep. If that is not enough Veep for you, head over to Vulture for outtakes from Selina Myers’s Obesity PSA.

- We are a month away from Charlie Sheen’s return to television and here is the latest clip from Anger Management:

- South Beach Tow wrapped up its second season earlier this week, but do not fret, the show just got renewed for a third season set to air in the fall.

- After their successful Downton Abby series and the upcoming London Olympics, PBS is going even more British this summer with new British series and returning favorites to the channel that feature heavy accents. Here is the line up for the most recent British Invasion this summer:

Series Premieres:

QUEEN & COUNTRY,Sundays, July 1-22, 8:00-9:00 p.m. ET – This summer, all eyes are on Queen Elizabeth II, Britain’s second longest-reigning monarch, as she marks her Diamond Jubilee. PBS celebrates her 60 years on the throne with Trevor McDonald’s QUEEN & COUNTRY,offering viewers a look at the customs surrounding the monarchy – from Changing the Guard at Buckingham Palace to the Queen’s royal visits — and tours of historic royal places.

MICHAEL WOOD’S STORY OF ENGLAND,Tuesdays, July 3, 8:00-10:00 and July 10-17, 8:00-9:00 p.m. ET – Historian Michael Wood filters the 2,000-year history of England through the story of one small town located in the heart of the country: Kibworth, Leicestershire. From the Roman era to the Norman Conquest, the Black Death, the English Civil War, the Industrial Revolution and World War II, the four-part series intertwines the local and national narratives, marking the milestones that changed the town and country forever.

New Episodes of Popular Shows:

MASTERPIECE MYSTERY!presents new episodes of its best British mysteries. With the premiere of “Endeavour,”Sunday, July 1, 9:00-10:30 p.m. ET,viewers get the back story of famed detective Inspector Morse. Shaun Evans stars as the rookie constable who nearly resigns, until a murder turns up that only he could solve. Then Kevin WhatelyandLaurence Fox return as Inspector Lewis and DS Hathaway in “Inspector Lewis, Series V.” In four new episodes, airing Sundays, July 8-29, 9:00-10:30 p.m. ET,the two tackle murder and mayhem in seemingly perfect academic haven ofOxford.

British Favorites Return to PBS:

QUEEN VICTORIA’S EMPIRE,Tuesdays, June 19-26, 2012, 8:00-10:00 p.m. ET, takes a look at England’s transformation from a small island nation into an industrial superpower. With personal accounts and lush re-enactments, it is a story of influential men and a powerful queen who ruled over one-fifth of the world’s population for a remarkable 64 years.

MONARCHY: THE ROYAL FAMILY AT WORK, Mondays, June 11, 2012, 9:00-11:00 p.m. ET and June 18-July 9, 10:00-11:00 p.m. ET, provides an exclusive look inside the modern British monarchy. As she turned 80, Queen Elizabeth II allowed creation of this intimate series, which showsthe commonwealth’s most famous family as they travel abroad, work at the palace and meet people from all walks of life.

This Fall on PBS:

CALL THE MIDWIFE, Sundays, September 30 to November 4, 2012, 8:00-9:00 p.m. ET– Based on the best-selling trilogy by the late Jennifer Worth, CALL THE MIDWIFE is a fascinating portrayal of birth, life and death in a world drastically different from ours. This six-part series offers an unconventional twist to Sunday-night British dramas and brings mid-20th-century London to life, focusing on the joys and hardships of a group of midwives working in London’s East End.

MASTERPIECE CLASSIC “Upstairs Downstairs,” Season 2
Sundays, October 7 to November 11, 2012, 9:00-10:00 p.m. ET - The saga continues at 165 Eaton Place, with new characters upstairs and down, in a six-part sequel to the much-loved MASTERPIECE series from the 1970s. Set in 1936, the lives of masters and servants have never been so captivating, as two new arrivals make their mark and Lady Agnes reveals a dark secret. Alex Kingston (“ER,” “Doctor Who”) joins the cast. The six-part series follows MIDWIFE, starting October 7. Viewers can catch up on the first season with a three-hour marathon September 30.

57 Channels and Only This Is On - 5/26/12

2012-05-26T08:00:00.026-04:00

Quote of the Week: Yes my bad-boy prom date is gay. He just doesn’t know it yet, so I’m basically his beard. Pre-beard. His stubble. (Alex, Modern Family)

Song of the Week: Cocaine – Eric Clapton (Men At Work)

Scene of the Week:

Big News of the Week: Dan Harmon Fired: In true Hollywood fashion, the executives at Sony decided to not renew the contract of Community creator and executive producer Dan Harmon very late last Friday (it is where everyone likes to dump bad news in hopes it gets buried in the weekend). Even with its late release time, the internet still exploded the way only the internet can. Personally I could care less. Sure Harmon’s high concepts led to some great television, but he also had much more swings and huge misses. I really do not care who is behind the show as long as I continue to get my weekly dose of Alison Brie. And all the vitriol towards Song and NBC are pretty unwarranted. By all accounts Harmon is a douche who is hard to work with. You may be able to pull that off if you are Aaron Sorkin and are getting great rating (but even he got pushed out the door at The West Wing eventually) but you certainly cannot if you are pulling in The CW style ratings. And a note to the new showrunners: more Annie Edison please.

Preview Picture of the Week:

Mad Men: Just when I thought the show could not come up with anything more distracting than a topless Rory Gilmore, Kinsey reappears as a Hare Krishna / Star Trek fan-fic writer. Coolbeans and touché Mad Men writers.
You can download Mad Men on iTunes.

Modern Family: What a horrible tease. I thought next season we would get more Dylan next season with Haley moving in with him, but no, she had to go ahead and get into college. Booo. Maybe she will get knocked up by the time next season comes around (while Gloria somehow gets unpregnant). And I may have pinpointed what was wrong with this season (aside from a lack of Dylan), they try to shoehorn in too many emotional moments like after a very funny telenovela bit they had to go ahead and ruin it with Mitchell having a very unfunny breakdown.
You can stream recent episodes on Hulu.

Revenge: Just when I thought the show was heading for yet another disappointing payoff when Emily ended up not killing the Albino, but then just as Emily was going to tell Jack everything, Not-Amanda shows up all pregnant (oh snap!) and Victoria got blow up in a plane by the Albino (double snap!!). Sure anyone who has ever watched a soap opera know there is a 0.0% chance that Victoria is actually dead (unless it turns out Madeleine Stowe is even harder to work with than Dan Harmon), same with Charlotte’s overdose, but at least we get to spend the next four months trying to figure out just how she comes back from the dead. Oh yeah, and real-Amanda’s mother is not quite dead as they had us believe. Somebody get Stowe’s Bad Girls co-star Mary Stuart Masterson on the phone.
You can stream current episodes on Hulu. You can also download Revenge on iTunes.

Awake: When the series premiered I predicted that the series finale would reveal that Det. Britton was the one that died in the car crash and his wife and kid were alive and well. Well two out of three is not bad. But it turns out I was right that both worlds were not real, I think (unless the Asian doctor was right and Britton cracked again creating a third reality which is what we were seeing at the end and a potential second season would have been split between three different realities; just the thought of that kind of makes me glad that it stopped after one season).
You can stream current episodes on Hulu. You can also download Awake on iTunes.

Free Download of the Week: If you missed my review of the debut from Kimbra (see I Can’t Explain Away the Way I Feel) I pointed out ways you could download three of her songs for free: you can get Warrior courtesy of Converse, Cameo Lover on iTunes, and Good Intent over at MTV.com. And in addition to those three, you can also grab Settle Down for the same price on Amazon MP3. That is 30% of her album you can get for free.

New Album Release of the Week: What We Saw From The Cheap Seats - Regina Spektor

New DVD Release of the Week: Gone

Video of the Week: It is ironic that when I was forced to read The Great Gatsby back in high school I had visions of Jay-Z, Kanye West and Jack White singing U2 going around in my head even though none at that point in time had released any music let alone back in the twenties where the book was set. It also donned one me that the book would make possibly the greatest 3-D movie of all time. Thank you Baz Luhrmann for bringing all of this to fruition with his adaptation of the film.

Next Week Pick of the Week: Hatfields and McCoys, Monday at 9:00 on History: Kevin Costner and Paxton play the patriarchs of the most famous feud of all time in the History mini-series which airs over three straight days.