SNL Recap May 2, 2015: Scarlett Johansson/Wiz Khalifa

May 4, 2015

jmunney Saturday Night Live, SNL Weekly Recaps, Television , , , , , , , , Leave a comment

SNL: Wiz Khalifa, Scarlett Johansson, Cecily Strong (CREDIT: YouTube Screenshot)

This review was originally posted on Starpulse in May 2015.

In the time between her last and this (her fourth) hosting stint, Scarlett Johansson has had quite the career bump, carving out a niche of otherworldly, occasionally robotic, often kickass heroines. Still, she has never been that strong a fit for the demands of “SNL.” With this episode, she was more confident than ever, though not especially accomplished. But the cast and the concepts were better-than-average, with some routine-busting sketches providing the highlights.

Mayweather/Pacquiao Fight – The biggest match in decades has revealed the surprising number of people who are legitimate boxing fans. “SNL” cleverly latched onto that widespread fanaticism with this sketch that playfully conceded the show’s relevance on this particular night. Normally, admitting your own shortcomings is inadvisable, but that was overridden by such a strong commitment to the second-rate aesthetic. The narration acknowledging the obvious artifice here made the sketch fluid in a way unusual for “SNL.” B

More

What Won TV? – April 26-May 2, 2015

May 4, 2015

jmunney Television, What Won TV? Leave a comment

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 – Mad Men
Monday – RuPaul’s Drag Race
Tuesday – Community
Wednesday – Arrow
Thursday – Louie
Friday – Comedy Bang! Bang!/Childrens Hospital
Saturday – SNL was the best show on Saturday, and everyone was like, “Umm, okay.”

VH1’s The 20 – 5/2/15

May 2, 2015

jmunney Music, Television, VH1 Top 20 Countdown, VH1's The 20 Leave a comment

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. Ellie Goulding – “Love Me Like You Do”
2. Nick Jonas – “Chains”
3. Maroon 5 – “Sugar”
4. Jason Derulo – “Want to Want Me”
5. Zedd ft. Selena Gomez – “I Want You to Know”
6. Walk the Moon – “Shut Up and Dance”
7. Taylor Swift – “Style”
8. Tove Lo – “Talking Body”
9. Tori Kelly – “Nobody Love”
10. Sam Smith – “Lay Me Down”
11. Echosmith – “Bright”
12. Meghan Trainor – “Dear Future Husband”
13. George Ezra – “Budapest”
14. Wiz Khalifa ft. Charlie Puth – “See You Again”
15. Fifth Harmony ft. Kid Ink – “Worth It”
16. Calvin Harris ft. Ellie Goulding – “Outside”
17. Andy Grammer – “Honey, I’m Good.”
18. Nate Ruess – “Nothing Without Love”
19. Ryn Weaver – “Octahate”
20. Young Rising Suns – “High”

Jmunney’s Revision
1. Style
2. Outside
3. Talking Body
4. I Want You to Know
5. Nobody Love
6. Want to Want Me
7. Chains
8. See You Again
9. Lay Me Down
10. Shut Up and Dance
11 Love Me Like You Do
12. Nothing Without Love
13. Budapest
14. High
15. Octahate
16. Worth It
17. Sugar
18. Dear Future Husband
19. Honey, I’m Good.
20. Bright

The Middle 6.22: “While You Were Sleeping”

May 1, 2015

jmunney Television, The Middle, The Middle Episode Reviews Leave a comment

It’s the episode of The Middle we’ve all been waiting for: Mike and Frankie keep falling asleep! http://www.starpulse.com/news/Jeffrey_Malone/2015/04/30/the-middle-season-6-episode-22-recap-w

New Girl 4.21: “Panty Gate”

April 29, 2015

jmunney New Girl, New Girl Episode Reviews, Television , , , Leave a comment

Have you seen Winston’s white friends? http://www.starpulse.com/news/Jeffrey_Malone/2015/04/29/new-girl-season-4-episode-21-recap-pan

Community 6.8: “Intro to Recycled Cinema”

April 29, 2015

jmunney Community, Community Episode Reviews, Television , , , , , Leave a comment

Community_Intro-to-Recycled-Cinema

Community, “Intro to Recycled Cinema” (CREDIT: Yahoo! Screen)

This review was originally posted on Starpulse in April 2015.

Greendale is starting to feel a bit like purgatory. It is not impossible to escape from (Troy is sailing around the world, Shirley moved on to assist a butcher, even Pierce got to die), but the remaining members of the Greendale 7 are here longer than they originally meant to be. And most of them do not appear visibly conflicted over their lack of definitive academic endpoints. Greendale was never going to give Abed the artistic freedom he desired in the move to capitalize on Chang’s newfound fame, and it was unreasonable for him to expect it to. But it is a comfortable place, and it may be time for Abed to find a way out and not be so comfortable anymore.

More

Bob’s Burgers 5.17: “The Itty Bitty Ditty Committee”

April 27, 2015

jmunney Bob's Burgers, Bob's Burgers Episode Reviews, Television , , , Leave a comment

Who wants pizza with oatmeal, fish oil, and buttermilk? http://www.starpulse.com/news/Jeffrey_Malone/2015/04/27/bobs-burgers-season-5-episode-17-recap

What Won TV? – April 19-April 25, 2015

April 26, 2015

jmunney Television, What Won TV? Leave a comment

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 – Last Week Tonight with John Oliver
Monday – RuPaul’s Drag Race
Tuesday – Around the corner, Inside Amy Schumer
Wednesday – Arrow
Thursday – Louie
Friday – Umm, some help please … (childrens hospital) Childrens Hospital!
Saturday – Orphan Black

This Is a (Quickie) Movie Review: Ex Machina

April 25, 2015

jmunney Cinema, Movie Reviews , Leave a comment

EX-MACHINA

Ex Machina posits that A.I. is most convincing when you can see that it is a machine and yet it still registers as human consciousness. This is also the formula of a certain strain of great magic: the magician explains the trick to the audience, but the illusion still stands. Accordingly, Ex Machina is interested in magic, what with the main characters thoroughly expositing their ruses. But who will prove to be the master of misdirection: A.I. impresario Nathan, his employee/mark Caleb, or shiny new robot Ava? The twists are predictable, but the exploration upon getting to them is deeply fascinating.

Oscar Isaac has given the best performance of the year so far, and not just because of this:

VH1 Top 20 Countdown – 4/25/15

April 25, 2015

jmunney Music, Television, VH1 Top 20 Countdown 1 Comment

Each week, I check out VH1′s Top 20 countdown, and then I rearrange the songs based on my estimation of their quality.

Original Version
1. Ellie Goulding – “Love Me Like You Do”
2. Maroon 5 – “Sugar”
3. Nick Jonas – “Chains”
4. Taylor Swift – “Style”
5. Zedd ft. Selena Gomez – “I Want You to Know”
6. Tori Kelly – “Nobody Love”
7. Jason Derulo – “Want to Want Me”
8. Walk the Moon – “Shut Up and Dance”
9. Tove Lo – “Talking Body”
10. Sam Smith – “Lay Me Down”
11. Calvin Harris ft. Ellie Goulding – “Outside”
12. Echosmith – “Bright”
13. Rihanna and Kanye West and Paul McCartney – “FourFiveSeconds”
14. Meghan Trainor – “Dear Future Husband”
15. George Ezra – “Budapest”
16. Ed Sheeran – “Thinking Out Loud”
17. Andy Grammer – “Honey, I’m Good.”
18. Nate Ruess – “Nothing Without Love”
19. Wiz Khalifa ft. Charlie Puth – “See You Again”
20. Kelly Clarkson – “Heartbeat Song”

Jmunney’s Revision
1. Style
2. Outside
3. Talking Body
4. I Want You to Know
5. Nobody Love
6. Want to Want Me
7. Chains
8. FourFiveSeconds
9. See You Again
10. Lay Me Down
11. Shut Up and Dance
12. Love Me Like You Do
13. Nothing Without Love
14. Budapest
15. Sugar
16. Heartbeat
17. Dear Future Husband
18. Honey, I’m Good.
19. Thinking Out Loud
20. Bright

Older Entries Newer Entries