Jmunney's Blog

SNL Recap November 1, 2014: Chris Rock/Prince

November 3, 2014

jmunney Saturday Night Live, SNL Weekly Recaps, Television Chris Rock, Prince, Saturday Night Live, Saturday Night Live Season 40, SNL, SNL Season 40 Leave a comment

SNL: Chris Rock Monologue (CREDIT: YouTube Screenshot)

This review was originally posted on Starpulse in November 2014.

In the past year, “SNL” was widely criticized for its lack of diversity, hired a new black cast member following that public pressure, debuted its first black Weekend Update cast member, and from the writer’s room brought on another black cast member. So an episode hosted by Chris Rock seemed poised to be the most head-on examination of race on “SNL” in years, or even decades. While that element was present, it was not really any more so than it has been in the past couple of years. Overall, in fact, this edition ended up like most episodes of the past couple of years: consisting of mostly new material that was mostly more interesting than fully successful and at its best when it got weird. Let’s take a closer look at each of the sketches.

The Kelly File – There was no particular need for “SNL” to parody this particular Fox News talk show to cover the Kaci Hickox Ebola story. This sketch did not break apart the form of “The Kelly File,” nor did Cecily Strong offer that strong of an impression. Thus, the whole thing was rather formless. Bobby Moynihan continued to play Chris Christie as loud and obnoxious, which is fine, while Kate McKinnon played Kaci Hickox as a typical Kate McKinnon character who won’t take any guff from someone like Chris Christie, which is also fine. But ultimately, this sketch didn’t really say anything. C

What Won TV? – October 26-November 1, 2014

November 2, 2014

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 – Mr. Pickles
Monday – Gravity Falls
Tuesday – Benched
Wednesday – The Middle
Thursday – You give me a Tim and Eric’s Bedtime Stories taco, I’m gonna eat it!
Friday – I like to have my Comedy Bang! Bang!, not hear tubular bells clang clang.
Saturday – Doctor Who

VH1 Top 20 Countdown – 11/1/14

November 1, 2014

jmunney Music, Television, VH1 Top 20 Countdown Leave a 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. Iggy Azalea ft. Rita Ora – “Black Widow”
2. Jessie J, Ariana Grande, and Nicki Minaj – “Bang Bang”
3. Ed Sheeran – “Don’t”
4. Taylor Swift – “Shake It Off”
5. Echosmith – “Cool Kids”
6. Tove Lo – “Habits”
7. Calvin Harris ft. John Newman – “Blame”
8. Meghan Trainor – “All About That Bass”
9. Jason Derulo – “Trumpets”
10. Nick Jonas – “Jealous”
11. Mr. Probz – “Waves”
12. Coldplay – “A Sky Full of Stars”
13. Maroon 5 – “Animals”
14. Sam Smith – “I’m Not the Only One”
15. The Script – “Superheroes”
16. Mary Lambert – “Secrets”
17. Nico & Vinz – “In Your Arms”
18. Clean Bandit ft. Jess Glynne – “Rather Be”
19. Vance Joy – “Riptide”
20. The Madden Brothers – “We Are Done”

Jmunney’s Revision
1. Bang Bang
2. Black Widow
3. Blame
4. Jealous
5. Riptide
6. Shake It Off
7. Waves
8. Rather Be
9. Habits
10. Secrets
11. Cool Kids
12. Don’t
13. I’m Not the Only One
14. All About That Bass
15. Animals
16. We Are Done
17. In Your Arms
18. A Sky Full of Stars
19. Trumpets
20. Superheroes

What Won TV? – October 19-October 25, 2014

November 1, 2014

jmunney Television, What Won TV? Leave a comment

Sunday – The Simpsons, as scarifying and intimidato as ever
Monday – American Dad!
Tuesday – Selfie
Wednesday – The Middle/The Goldbergs/Modern Family
Thursday – Parenthood
Friday – Comedy Bang! Bang!
Saturday – This

The Middle 6.5: “Halloween V”

October 31, 2014

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

Courtney and Debbie returned. Brad had an incredible costume. And oh yeah, the Hecks were pretty amazing, too: http://www.starpulse.com/news/Jeffrey_Malone/2014/10/30/the_middle_season_6_episode_5_review_t

Fuse Top 20 Countdown – 10/28/14

October 29, 2014

jmunney Fuse Top 20 Countdown, Music, Television Leave a comment

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

Original Version
1. Meghan Trainor – “All About That Bass”
2. Taylor Swift – “Shake It Off”
3. Jessie J, Ariana Grande, and Nicki Minaj – “Bang Bang”
4. Iggy Azalea ft. Rita Ora – “Black Widow”
5. Nicki Minaj – “Anaconda”
6. Tove Lo – “Habits (Stay High)”
7. Ariana Grande – “Break Free”
8. Sam Smith – “Stay With Me”
9. Enrique Iglesias ft. Gente de Zona, Descemer Bueno, and Sean Paul – “Bailando”
10. Colplay – “A Sky Full of Stars”
11. Charli XCX – “Boom Clap”
12. Ed Sheeran – “Don’t”
13. Echosmith – “Cool Kids”
14. Maroon 5 – “Animals”
15. Calvin Harris ft. John Newman – “Blame”
16. Tinashe ft. Schoolboy Q – “2 On”
17. Chris Brown ft. Usher and Rick Ross – “New Flame”
18. Mr. Probz – “Waves”
19. Katy Perry – “This Is How We Do”
20. Nick Jonas – “Jealous”

Jmunney’s Revision
1. Break Free
2. Bang Bang
3. Black Widow
4. Boom Clap
5. Blame
6. Jealous
7. Shake It Off
8. Stay With Me
9. Waves
10. Habits (Stay High)
11. This Is How We Do
12. Cool Kids
13. Don’t
14. Anaconda
15. All About That Bass
16. Animals
17. A Sky Full of Stars
18. 2 On
19. Bailando
20. New Flame

SNL Recap October 25, 2014: Jim Carrey/Iggy Azalea

October 27, 2014

jmunney Saturday Night Live, SNL Weekly Recaps, Television Iggy Azalea, Jim Carrey, Saturday Night Live, Saturday Night Live Season, SNL, SNL Season 40 Leave a comment

SNL: Jim Carrey, Iggy Azalea (CREDIT: YouTube Screenshot)

This review was originally posted on Starpulse in October 2014.

When Jim Carrey first hosted “SNL” in 1996, it was one of the times when the host temporarily revamped the show according to his own performance style. That can be a good thing or a bad thing; in Jim’s case, it was very good. For his third hosting stint, he was not quite as unstoppable, but he was still quite the blast of energy. As he pointed out in his monologue, Halloween is the one day each year that he is able to blend in with everyone else, and with a plethora of mostly successful All Hallow’s Eve-themed sketches, he proved to be the most apt host for the occasion. There were a few clunkers that were too intense for their own good, but there were also several incredibly thrilling moments. Even though it was wildly uneven, this was probably the best episode of the season thus far. Meanwhile, Leslie Jones, after making memorable appearances in the first three weeks of the season, was promoted from writer to featured player. Let’s take a closer look at each segment of the show:

Ebola Press Conference – Kenan Thompson’s Al Sharpton impression is too silly to work for viewer, but there can be no doubt that his entrance instantly livened up this rather staid cold opening. Even though Ebola has rendered Ron Klain a timely public figure, most “SNL” viewers probably have no idea who he is. Thus, vote-baiting jokes in which Latinos have immunity to Ebola, though kind of clever, could be nothing more than cookie-cutter. So Sharpton sauntering on to call Klain the “Ebola Caesar” and talk about “pigeons, rats, and sewer monsters” was undoubtedly a welcome blast of energy. C+

VH1 Top 20 Countdown – 10/25/14

October 25, 2014

jmunney Music, Television, VH1 Top 20 Countdown Leave a 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. Taylor Swift – “Shake It Off”
2. Jessie J, Ariana Grande, and Nicki Minaj – “Bang Bang”
3. Iggy Azalea ft. Rita Ora – “Black Widow”
4. Ed Sheeran – “Don’t”
5. Meghan Trainor – “All About That Bass”
6. Echosmith – “Cool Kids”
7. Tove Lo – “Habits”
8. Coldplay – “A Sky Full of Stars”
9. Calvin Harris ft. John Newman – “Blame”
10. Jason Derulo – “Trumpets”
11. Clean Bandit ft. Jess Glynne – “Rather Be”
12. Nick Jonas – “Jealous”
13. Mr. Probz – “Waves”
14. The Script – “Superheroes”
15. Maroon 5 – “Animals”
16. Sam Smith – “I’m Not the Only One”
17. Mary Lambert – “Secrets”
18. Nico & Vinz – “In Your Arms”
19. Charli XCX – “Boom Clap”
20. Vance Joy – “Riptide”

Jmunney’s Revision
1. Bang Bang
2. Black Widow
3. Boom Clap
4. Blame
5. Jealous
6. Shake It Off
7. Riptide
8. Waves
9. Rather Be
10. Habits
11. Secrets
12. Cool Kids
13. Don’t
14. I’m Not the Only One
15. All About That Bass
16. Animals
17. In Your Arms
18. A Sky Full of Stars
19. Trumpets
20. Superheroes

My Ranking of The New Fall Shows I’m Watching

October 24, 2014

jmunney Television Leave a comment

1. The Affair – Fascinating narrative device and fascinating characters, and it still hasn’t shown its full hand.
2. Tim & Eric’s Bedtime Stories – Tim and Eric are finally fully operating in their natural habitat of horror-comedy. Or is it “horror”? Or is it just horror?
3. black-ish – A sitcom with a point of view that’s sticking to it.
4. Mr. Pickles – Truly avant-garde – important to pay attention to, though not necessarily always enjoyable.
5. The Flash – A lot of fun, but it needs to do some more work to distinguish itself.
6. Selfie – It’s moving away from the problematic elements of its premise and focusing on the strength of its cast.
7. Marry Me – This show has the parts, but it needs to settle down to prove itself.
8. Mulaney – If I weren’t reviewing this show, I … might still be watching, but it would be on notice.
9. Gotham – This started out mediocre but fascinating, then became bad but fascinating, and then the last episode was just boring.

Still to Come:
Mike Tyson Mysteries