November 9, 2015
jmunney
Music, Television, VH1 Top 20 Countdown, VH1's The 20
VH1's The 20
(Sorry for the late posting. I was on vacation over the weekend.)
Each week, I check out VH1′s The 20 (formerly Top 20 countdown), and then I rearrange the songs based on my estimation of their quality.
This week, “You Oughta Know” artists are featured.
Original Version
1. Sam Smith – “Writing’s on the Wall” (Class of 2014)
2. X Ambassadors – “Renegades” (Class of 2015)
3. Miguel – “Waves” (Class of 2015)
4. Elle King – “Ex’s & Oh’s” (Class of 2015)
5. Rachel Platten – “Fight Song” (Class of 2015)
6. Nate Ruess – “Great Big Storm” (Class of 2015)
7. James Bay – “Let It Go” (Class of 2015)
8. Tori Kelly – “Should’ve Been Us” (Class of 2015)
9. George Ezra – “Blame It on Me” (Class of 2015)
10. Ella Henderson – “Ghost” (Class of 2015)
11. Hozier – “Someone New” (Class of 2014)
12. Walk the Moon – “Shut Up and Dance” (Class of 2012)
13. Tove Lo – “Timebomb” (Class of 2014)
14. Disclosure ft. Lorde – “Magnets” (Class of 2013)
15. Echosmith – “Bright” (Class of 2014)
16. Adele – “Hello” (Class of 2008)
17. Ed Sheeran – “Photograph” (Class of 2012)
18. Sia – “Big Girls Cry” (Class of 2011)
19. Mark Ronson ft. Bruno Mars – “Uptown Funk” (Class of 2010)
20. Sara Bareilles – “She Used to Be Mine” (Class of 2007)
Jmunney’s Revision
1. Hello
2. Ex’s & oh’s
3. Renegades
4. Waves
5. Ghost
6. Magnets
7. Should’ve Been Us
8. Big Girls Cry
9. Blame It on Me
10. Someone New
11. Timebomb
12. Shut Up and Dance
13. Great Big Storm
14. Uptown Funk
15. Writing’s on the Wall
16. Fight Song
17. She Used to Be Mine
18. Let It Go
19. Photograph
20. Bright
November 8, 2015
jmunney
Saturday Night Live, SNL Weekly Recaps, Television
Donald Trump, Larry David, Mr. Crocker, Saturday Night Live, Saturday Night Live 4104, Saturday Night Live Season 41, Sia, SNL, SNL Season 41
SNL: Sia, Kate McKinnon (CREDIT: YouTube Screenshot)
It is hard to recommend this episode. Some of it was well-written, but Trump’s presence soured just about everything.
This review was originally posted on Starpulse in November 2015.
Donald Trump might be a bigot, or he might just be shamelessly aping the rhetoric of bigots to win over their support. Which is worse? Either way, one would assume he is a terrible fit to host a comedy show that many believe has the responsibility of holding the powerful accountable. Thus, the petitions to reverse the Trump booking or calls to disrupt the episode have made for one of the most controversial episodes in decades before it has even aired. In a way, Trump’s appearance actually turning out to be a funny episode would be troublesome, because of the fear that it could legitimize a rather objectionable person. Politics (or cynically misshapen facsimile of politics) aside, Trump is also a terrible actor. That issue can be overcome with strong writing, which this episode features plenty of, but it is hard to fully embrace it when Trump’s mere presence is so hard to digest.
Democratic Candidates Forum – The latest not-really-a-debate in the 2016 election cycle is used as fodder for a not-really-a-fully-formed-sketch. While it lacks in the inspired premise department, it does allow Kate McKinnon and Larry David plenty of room to mess around with their already beloved Hillary and Bernie impressions. They both find new notes in their expected beats. This is not an all-time high, but there is plenty left worth exploring in these roles. Structurally, good on this sketch for keeping up with the gag of uncomfortable close-ups of black people. B
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November 8, 2015
jmunney
Jeopardy!, Television
Alex Jacob, Jeopardy!, Matt Jackson, Tournament of Champions
The top Jeopardy! contestants from the past year are returning for the Tournament of Champions. Here are my estimations of everyone’s chances.
(1 and 2 are set. 3 and 4 are close to each other. 5-11 are more or less interchangeable. 12-15 are close to 5-11; one could possibly argue them up a few spots.)
1. Matt Jackson – Prone to occasional slow starts and recent pop culture is a weak spot; otherwise one of the best contestants of all time
2. Alex Jacob – Employs the most counterintuitively successful strategy ever
3. Dan Feitel – Strong all-around player given to unnecessarily large wagers in Final – may not matter in a Tournament, where there’s less incentive to do so
4. Greg Seroka – His 7 wins are the second most among this ToC group
5. Brennan Bushee – Mr. Creepy Smile was fairly dominant for a handful of games
6. John Schultz – Great contestant, but his facial hair skills currently outrank his Jeopardy! skills
7. Michael Bilow – Only a 3-game winner, but a bit of a wild card – excellent in his victories, but flamed out spectacularly in his loss
8. Vaughn Winchell – The OG of the Winchell-Yates-Schultz Streak
9. Kristin Sausville – Wife of a former ToC contestant pleasantly won five games
10. Scott Lord – His streak ended when Alex started losing his voice
11. Andrew Haringer – Won his 5th game on the 7000th Jeopardy! program
12. Kerry Greene – Led going into Final in only half of her wins – unlikely that she can maintain that luck in a tournament
13. Catherine Hardee – 4-game winner’s run actually preceded the last ToC
14. Jennifer Giles – Teachers Tournament champ needs to show some improvement if she wants to be on the level of Colby Burnett
15. Elliot Yates – The sweetheart of Season 31 won four games without too much spectacle
November 1, 2015
jmunney
Television, What Won TV?
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.
Sunday – The Good Wife
Monday – Jane the Virgin
Tuesday – A Fresh Off the Boat Halloween
Wednesday – A The Middle Halloween
Thursday – A Comedy Bang! Bang! Picture Show
Friday – A Jeopardy! Halloween
Saturday – Doctor Who
October 31, 2015
jmunney
Music, Television, VH1 Top 20 Countdown, VH1's The 20
VH1's The 20
Each week, I check out VH1′s The 20 (formerly Top 20 countdown), and then I rearrange the songs based on my estimation of their quality.
This week, the songs are holiday-themed.
Original Version
1. Ray Parker, Jr. – “Ghostbusters”
2. Rocky Horror Picture Show – “Time Warp”
3. Rihanna – “Disturbia”
4. Robbie Williams – “Rock DJ”
5. The Darkness – “I Believe in a Thing Called Love”
6. Delta Rae – “Bottom of the River”
7. Jason Derulo – “Cheyenne”
8. MC Hammer – “Addams Groove”
9. Beyoncé – “Haunted”
10. Marilyn Manson – “The Beautiful People”
11. Missy Elliott – “Get Ur Freak On”
12. Backstreet Boys – “Everybody”
13. Chris Brown – “Wall to Wall”
14. The Yeah Yeah Yeahs – “Heads Will Roll”
15. Nirvana – “Heart-Shaped Box”
16. 30 Seconds to Mars – “The Kill”
17. Christina Aguilera – “Fighter”
18. Panic! at the Disco – “I Write Sins Not Tragedies”
19. Rob Zombie – “Living Dead Girl”
20. Madonna – “Ghosttown”
Jmunney’s Revision
1. Ghostbusters
2. Heart-Shaped Box
3. Get Ur Freak On
4. Time Warp
5. Living Dead Girl
6. I Write Sins Not Tragedies
7. The Kill
8. Cheyenne
9. Disturbia
10. Heads Will Roll
11. Fighter
12. Bottom of the River
13. I Believe in a Thing Called Love
14. The Beautiful People
15. Haunted
16. Addams Groove
17. Rock DJ
18. Everybody
19. Ghosttown
20. Wall to Wall
October 25, 2015
jmunney
Television, What Won TV?
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.
Sunday – The Simpsons has had some good episodes the past few years, but it’s been a while since there’s been a good Homer-Lisa episode like this one.
Monday – Fargo
Tuesday – The Grinder
Wednesday – You’re the Worst at its best
Thursday – Billy on the Street, with Billy’s “sort of pet”
Friday – Jeopardy!
Saturday – SNL Vintage
October 24, 2015
jmunney
Music, Television, VH1 Top 20 Countdown, VH1's The 20
VH1's The 20
Each week, I check out VH1′s The 20 (formerly Top 20 countdown), and then I rearrange the songs based on my estimation of their quality.
Original Version
1. The Weeknd – “The Hills”
2. Justin Bieber – “What Do You Mean?”
3. R. City ft. Adam Levine – “Locked Away”
4. Taylor Swift – “Wildest Dreams”
5. Shawn Mendes – “Stitches”
6. One Direction – “Drag Me Down”
7. Elle King – “Ex’s & Oh’s”
8. Macklemore & Ryan Lewis ft. Eric Nally, Melle Mel, Kool Moe Dee, and Grandmaster Caz – “Downtown”
9. X Ambassadors – “Renegades”
10. Ed Sheeran – “Photograph”
11. Hailee Steinfeld – “Love Myself”
12. Demi Lovato – “Cool for the Summer”
13. Ellie Goulding – “On My Mind”
14. Nick Jonas – “Levels”
15. Alessia Cara – “Here”
16. Calvin Harris and Disciples – “How Deep is Your Love”
17. Meghan Trainor ft. John Legend – “Like I’m Gonna Lose You”
18. Hozier – “Someone New”
19. Selena Gomez – “Same Old Love”
20. Pentatonix – “Can’t Sleep Love”
Jmunney’s Revision
1. The Hills
2. Downtown
3. Same Old Love
4. Ex’s & Oh’s
5. Renegades
6. Here
7. Cool for the Summer
8. Levels
9. On My Mind
10. What Do You Mean?
11. Wildest Dreams
12. Someone New
13. Love Myself
14. How Deep is Your Love
15. Drag Me Down
16. Stitches
17. Can’t Sleep Love
18. Like I’m Gonna Lose You
19. Locked Away
20. Photograph
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