Billboard Hot 20 – Week of October 22, 2016

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Each week, I check out the Billboard Hot 100, and then I rearrange the top 20 based on my estimation of their quality.

Original Version
1. The Chainsmokers ft. Halsey – “Closer”
2. The Weeknd ft. Daft Punk – “Starboy”
3. twenty one pilots – “Heathens”
4. Major Lazer ft. Justin Bieber and MØ – “Cold Water”
5. 5. DJ Snake ft. Justin Bieber – “Let Me Love You”
6. D.R.A.M. ft Lil Yachty – “Broccoli”
7. Shawn Mendes – “Treat You Better”
8. Sia ft. Sean Paul – “Cheap Thrills”
9. The Chainsmokers ft. Daya – “Don’t Let Me Down”
10. gnash ft. Olivia O’Brien – “i hate u, i love you”
11. Calvin Harris ft. Rihanna – “This Is What You Came For”
12. Ariana Grande ft. Nicki Minaj – “Side to Side”
13. Kiiara – “Gold”
14. twenty one pilots – “Ride”
15. Rihanna – “Needed Me”
16. Drake ft. WizKid and Kyla – “One Dance”
17. Adele – “Send My Love (to Your New Lover)”
18. The Chainsmokers ft. Phoebe Ryan – “All We Know”
19. Drake ft. Rihanna – “Too Good”
20. Hailee Steinfeld and Grey ft. Zedd – “Starving”

Jmunney’s Revision
1. Gold
2. Starboy
3. Cheap Thrills
4. Side to Side
5. Needed Me
6. Cold Water
7. Ride
8. Broccoli
9. Closer
10. i hate u, i love u
11. Starving
12. Let Me Love You
13. Don’t Let Me Down
14. Send My Love (to Your New Lover)
15. Too Good
16. One Dance
17. This Is What You Came For
18. Heathens
19. All We Know
20. Treat You Better

Movie Review: Shin Godzilla

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shin-godzilla

This review was originally published on News Cult in October 2016.

Starring: Hiroki Hasegawa, Yutaka Takenouchi, Satomi Ishihara

Directors: Hideaki Anno and Shinji Higuchi

Running Time: 120 Minutes

Release Date: October 11, 2016

If you are in the mood for some giant reptile action but are a little wary of subtitles, it may be time to conquer your fears. Because if you waiting for the good ol’ U.S. of A. to get Godzilla right, it might be a while. The latest attempt barely even featured the title lizard and killed off its only interesting human character in the first ten minutes. Meanwhile, the franchise keeps stomping along in its native Japan, and the 31st entry, Shin Godzilla, is set for a limited Stateside release October 11-18.

Shin Godzilla wastes no time in setting the danger loose on Tokyo. A frenetically edited opening sequence of roadside carnage, government officials deliberating, and blood pouring into a tunnel paves the way for the big guy’s first appearance about 15 minutes in, and … it’s kind of disappointing. However, it eventually becomes clear that that is kind of the point, as Godzilla’s monstrousness starts out (relatively) silly but gradually grows more imposing. There is no such luck keeping up that go-for-broke pace indefinitely, but there is fun to be had beyond the destruction.

There are three main draws to Shin Godzilla: the aforementioned fast pace of Godzilla’s initial attack, the dark humor, and the (perhaps meta?) examination of political relations between Japan and the United States. The second and third points are tied up with each other: there is a defeatist tinge to much of the jokes in which the officials and scientists despair that so much is beyond their control. That also applies to their ally across the Pacific, which is a frequent source of frustration for forcing policy decisions upon them. These moments are too unmoored from any real situation to work as specific satire, but that lack of a clear analogue allows for a mythic quality that keeps these monster stories afloat as they are told over and over again.

Shin Godzilla is Recommended If You Like: Godzilla movies that actually feature Godzilla, a random joke about soggy noodles, and Japan-U.S. relations

Grade: 3 out of 5 Nuclear Fission Reactions

The Simpsons 28.3 Review: “The Town”

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THE SIMPSONS: After Homer catches Bart rooting for Springfield’s football rival, the Boston Americans, he plans a family “hate-cation” trip to Boston in an attempt to show Bart that Boston is a terrible city on the all-new “The Town” episode airing Sunday, Oct 9, (8:00-8:30 PM ET/PT). THE SIMPSONS ™ and  © 2016 TCFFC ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.  CR:FOX.

“Our problems are who we are, not where we are.” http://www.bubbleblabber.com/review-the-simpsons-the-town/

What Won TV? – October 2-October 8, 2016

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In this feature, I look back at each day of the past week and determine what shows “won TV” for the night. That is, I consider every episode of television I watched that aired on a particular day and declare which was the best.

david-alan-thicke

Sunday – Last Week Tonight with John Oliver
Monday – Milo Murphy’s Law
Tuesday – The Flash
Wednesday – The Goldbergs
Thursday – Better Things, and its gooey heartwarming ending (Honorable Mention: the classiest exit on Drag Race All Stars)
Friday – The Eric Andre Show, featuring David Alan Thicke
Saturday – Saturday Night Live, especially the power duo of Vanessa Bayer and Kyle Mooney

SNL Review October 8, 2016: Lin-Manuel Miranda/twenty one pilots

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lin-manuel-miranda-snl-monologue-backstage

This review was originally posted on News Cult in October 2016.

Love It
Pine Ridge Campground – You know you’ve got something special when the first post-monologue sketch has a nondescript setting. That is a promise of weirdness that you do not see coming. And boy, is that promise fulfilled, as the surprises just keeps piling up. Vanessa Bayer and Kyle Mooney are a pair of incestuous amateur singers with indefinable faux-European accents, and Lin-Manuel Miranda is the captive audience wise enough to stick around and see what happens next.

Michael and Colin just keep glorifying in all the material that Trump wraps up in a bow for them, and they really sell it with asides like Che’s quick take on the tic tac ad with the new Trump-inspired slogan…Netflix: Behind the Scenes reveals the one thing that Stranger Things was missing: racial consciousness! … LMM does a variation of “My Shot” in his monologue, but more importantly his love for SNL shines through in a way that clearly came from the heart as opposed to being written by committee.

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Billboard Hot Rock Songs – Week of October 15, 2016

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Each week, I check out the Billboard Hot Rock Songs chart, and then I rearrange that top 25 based on my estimation of their quality.

Original Version
1. twenty one pilots – “Heathens”
2. twenty one pilots – “Ride”
3. Lil Wayne, Wiz Khalifa, & Imagine Dragons with Logic, Ty Dolla $ign ft. X Ambassadors – “Sucker for Pain”
4. Coldplay – “Hymn for the Weekend”
5. X Ambassadors – “Unsteady”
6. Fitz and the Tantrums – “HandClap”
7. The Lumineers – “Ophelia”
8. Disturbed – “The Sound of Silence”
9. twenty one pilots – “Cancer”
10. Bastille – “Good Grief”
11. Kings of Leon – “Walls”
12. Green Day – “Still Breathing”
13. Red Hot Chili Peppers – “Dark Necessities”
14. Green Day – “Bang Bang”
15. Kings of Leon – “Waste a Moment”
16. blink-182 – “Bored to Death”
17. Zach Williams – “Chain Breaker”
18. Cage the Elephant – “Trouble”
19. The Head and the Heart – “All We Ever Knew”
20. Metallica – “Hardwired”
21. Panic! at the Disco – “Bohemian Rhapsody”
22. Skillet – “Feel Invincible”
23. Metallica – “Moth Into Flame”
24. Beck – “Wow”
25. Phantogram – “You Don’t Get Me High Anymore”

Jmunney’s Revision
1. You Don’t Get Me High Anymore
2. Wow
3. Unsteady
4. Dark Necessities
5. Ride
6. Trouble
7. Good Grief
8. Moth Into Flame
9. Ophelia
10. Waste a Moment
11. Walls
12. Cancer
13. Hymn for the Weekend
14. All We Ever Knew
15. Bang Bang
16. The Sound of Silence
17. Hardwired
18. Heathens
19. Feel Invincible
20. Still Breathing
21. Sucker for Pain
22. Bohemian Rhapsody
23. HandClap
24. Bored to Death
25. Chain Breaker

Billboard Hot 20 – Week of October 15, 2016

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Each week, I check out the Billboard Hot 100, and then I rearrange the top 20 based on my estimation of their quality.

Original Version
1. The Chainsmokers ft. Halsey – “Closer”
2. twenty one pilots – “Heathens”
3. The Weeknd ft. Daft Punk – “Starboy”
4. Major Lazer ft. Justin Bieber and MØ – “Cold Water”
5. DJ Snake ft. Justin Bieber – “Let Me Love You”
6. Shawn Mendes – “Treat You Better”
7. Sia ft. Sean Paul – “Cheap Thrills”
8. D.R.A.M. ft. Lil Yachty – “Broccoli”
9. The Chainsmokers ft. Daya – “Don’t Let Me Down”
10. Calvin Harris ft. Rihanna – “This Is What You Came For”
11. Charlie Puth ft. Selena Gomez – “We Don’t Talk Anymore”
12. twenty one pilots – “Ride”
13. gnash ft. Olivia O’Brien – “i hate u, i love u”
14. Drake ft. WizKid and Kyla – “One Dance”
15. Kiiara – “Gold”
16. Adele – “Send My Love (to Your New Lover)”
17. Rihanna – “Needed Me”
18. Drake ft. Rihanna – “Too Good”
19. Ariana Grande ft. Nicki Minaj – “Side to Side”
20. Justin Timberlake – “Can’t Stop the Feeling!”

Jmunney’s Revision
1. Gold
2. Starboy
3. Cheap Thrills
4. Side to Side
5. Needed Me
6. Cold Water
7. Ride
8. Broccoli
9. Closer
10. i hate u, i love u
11. Let Me Love You
12. Don’t Let Me Down
13. Send My Love (to Your New Lover)
14. Too Good
15. One Dance
16. Can’t Stop the Feeling!
17. This Is What You Came For
18. We Don’t Talk Anymore
19. Heathens
20. Treat You Better

Son of Zorn 1.3 Review: “The War of the Workplace”

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SON OF ZORN:  L-R:  Tim Meadows and Zorn (voiced by Jason Sudeikis) in the "Workplace Battles" episode of SON OF ZORN airing Sunday, Oct. 2 (8:30-9:00 PM ET/PT) on FOX.  ©2016 Fox Broadcasting Co.  Cr:  FOX

The New Yorker did a whole cartoon on Vulchazor! http://www.bubbleblabber.com/review-son-of-zorn-the-war-of-the-workplace/

The Simpsons 28.2 Review: “Friends and Family”

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THE SIMPSONS: Mr Burns hires the Simpson family to be his virtual reality family on the all-new “Friends And Family”  episode of THE SIMPSONS airing Sunday, Oct. 2. (8:00-8:30 PM ET/PT). THE SIMPSONS ™ and © 2016 TCFFC ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. Cr: FOX

“Is there a milkmaid skipping rope?” http://www.bubbleblabber.com/review-the-simpsons-friends-and-family/

SNL Review October 1, 2016: Margot Robbie/The Weeknd

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SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE -- "Margot Robbie" Episode 1705 -- Pictured: (l-r) Colin Jost, Michael Che, and Cecily Strong as Cathy Ann during Weekend Update on October 1, 2016 -- (Photo by: Will Heath/NBC)

SATURDAY NIGHT LIVE — “Margot Robbie” Episode 1705 — Pictured: (l-r) Colin Jost, Michael Che, and Cecily Strong as Cathy Ann during Weekend Update on October 1, 2016 — (Photo by: Will Heath/NBC)

This review was originally posted on News Cult in October 2016.

Love It

Season 42 starts off satisfying enough, but with only occasional moments of sustained hilarity. For the sketch of the night, I am going with Family Feud: Political Edition, on the strength of two of the best SNL impressions of all time. Darrell Hammond’s take on Bill Clinton as the ultimate hedonist will never get old, while Larry David’s Bernie Sanders takes the inanities of the Feud (he passes, because playing seems like a hassle) and SNL parodies of the Feud (the whole thing is just hello’s) to task.

Michael and Colin have weeks’ worth of election news and athletic protests to motivate them for an on-fire Weekend Update…Cecily Strong’s recurring Cathy Anne character benefits from her migration from sketches to Update, as she drops by to present her take as an illuminating but frequently incoherent (“predator of Obamacare”?) undecided voter.

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