Showing posts with label season. Show all posts
Showing posts with label season. Show all posts
Congress Is Asking For It
0 comments Tuesday, December 30, 2008

Jack Bauer knows how to talk to congressional committees. "Do not sit there with your smug face." I can't help but wonder how Jack would take care of the whole bailout fiasco. I think Obama needs to appoint him as a special assistant of kick-assery or something like that. Dispatch him to recover that $700 billion that's disappeared into the ether. Give him 24 hours. Send along a few camera crews. (You know, because lots of them would end up dead.) Broadcast it live on the web, even. I would pay to watch. I think those AIG execs would be having a lot less fun, what with the lead in their thighs and all. And make sure Chloe is overseeing it all. At the end, she could kick Secretary Paulson in the neck or something. That would be sheer fun. Mr. Obama, if you want me to love you, you have your orders.

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Posted byJustin Stahl
at10:30 AM

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Repost: 24
0 comments Saturday, November 22, 2008

Sunday night's coming fast, Jack Bauer finally returns.

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Posted byJustin Stahl
at12:05 AM

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NBC Has Come Home
0 comments Thursday, September 18, 2008

The news is a week or so old, but I've been remiss in pointing it out: NBC has returned to the iTunes store. The little spat didn't quite end on the day of the announcement though. Both parties were eager to claim the other had given in. Well, TV shows aren't more expensive (save for the new HD versions), and they now offer cheaper shows, too. I think Apple won this one. NBC doesn't storm out of Wal-Mart with their DVDs because Wal-Mart sets the price, do they? Well, iTunes is the new Wal-Mart when it comes to media content.


That's not really that important to you, what is important is that NBC is making some TV episodes FREE for you! Some premiere episodes, some good ones from previous seasons. Shows like 30 Rock, The Office, Psych and others in SD and HD. Just hit up iTunes and download them. Shows like 30 Rock and The Office are always good for a re-watch, so it's worth the lengthy HD download. They've also thrown in some special pricing for some seasons, and ABC is getting in on the action with HD TV shows and special pricing, too. Use caution, though. It's easy to blow a nice chunk of change (not to mention bandwidth) in the iTunes store. Impulse buying loves a comfy desk chair!

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Posted byJustin Stahl
at11:45 PM

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America's Game: The Missing Rings
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If you're an NFL fan, which is another way of saying, if you're an American, and you haven't checked out America's Game on NFL Network - go to iTunes right now and buy the series. Or, if you don't have $30 lying around in some dusty internet account, put it in your Netflix queue, or just watch for it on NFL Network. America's Game chronicls the Super Bowl Champions in NFL history in a very pointed, dramatic fashion. Several members of each winning team share their experience face-to-face with the audience. No interviewers, no graphics, no sets. Just a white background and film clips. And, of course, the gold-standard game music NFL Networks always nails.


Now, with The Missing Rings, NFL Network has set out to serve justice to all the great teams that never won. I assume team is a rather loose term, referring to a franchise during a specific era or general roster makeup. This isn't necessarily focused on teams that showed up, but lost the big one. The first episode aired tonight. The late '70s to 1981 San Diego Chargers were the team of choice. This team, Dan Fouts and company, never made it to the dance, but they present their case in a very compelling manner. "We changed the way defense is played, " they claim. And I'm inclined to believe them. Check it out on re-airs throughout the week, and be sure to watch for new episodes. Any time NFL Network churns out new content is a happy time.

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Posted byJustin Stahl
at11:45 PM

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Enough Said
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Posted byJustin Stahl
at2:58 PM

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Sunday Night Football Extra
0 comments Sunday, September 7, 2008


Football season has returned. Tom Brady might be out for the season, Willie Parker had a monster day (and lit up my Fantasy Football team as a result), and NBC has done a great service to sports fans. They debuted a broadband site during their Sunday Night Football broadcast that allows users to choose from five camera options: Main Broadcast, Sideline, End Zone, Star and Cable Cam. This mirrors what DirecTV does with NASCAR's HotPass feature - there you can follow a driver in his in-car, roof and bumper-cam through the whole race, complete with a separate show announcer and scanner audio. For NBC's iteration, the Madden/Michaels duo is your only audio choice, for better or worse. However, you do get to view the game unfiltered by the show's director.

My favorite is the Cable Cam (viewed above). This reminds of playing Madden a little bit, allowing a better picture of the formations, and strictly game action. Star Cam swivels around between QBs, RBs, and WRs, as well anyone else making big plays. This view will also swing to players who are being discussed by the announcers after a play. End Zone and Sideline Cams simply grab the action from their respective locations. Main Broadcast should need no explanation. One interesting feature occurs during commercials. Only on the main broadcast view do you see them. (Although you do hear them no matter what.) If you have the other views selected, you'll instead see a stat screen for the game. (Pictured Below)


Another nice touch is that no matter which image you have selected in the forefront, the others will continue playing in the background, allowing you to decide which view to switch to easily. There is also a 'Fullscreen' option; this isn't truly full-screen, but rather replaces the multi-view with a larger, single view. Aside from a few stutters and sometimes poor video (buffering, no doubt), this broadcast is a nice alternative if you're at your computer, or prefer to make the directing decisions yourself.

UPDATE: Another thing I just noticed during the broadcast: the main broadcast is tape-delayed online just as it is over the air by a few seconds. This is noticeable when you are viewing the other angles, which are not tape-delayed. So, you'll here some calls by Michaels a few seconds after it already happened.

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Posted byJustin Stahl
at9:35 PM

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September Only Comes 100 Times A Century
0 comments Thursday, September 4, 2008


Well, goodbye world! The September TV season is about to begin in full gear. Sure, Mythbusters has been rolling a few weeks now, but everyone else waits until Fall to guarantee that I don't see any leaves change color. Of course, The Show of Shows, 24, shows up in January for real. But, we get a special, long-awaited for two-hour special on November 23 to hold us over. Thanks WGA!


The Shows I'm Watching This Fall:
  • The Shield on FX. Being billed as "The Final Act" by FX, the shield plays out to it's sure-to-be thrillling conclusion. Vic Mackey goes after the establishment while getting dirty himself. If you've never watched an episode, you'll definitely have to start from Season 1.
  • Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles. This show's short 9-episode season was astounding for several reasons. One, I didn't expect it to be all that good. Two, it has focused tremendous effort on character development. Three, it has beautiful women kicking robotic ass. What's not to like?
  • Smallville on CW. Probably Clark Kent's last outing in Kansas, this season will see the introduction of a new villain (Doomsday), and the departure of much of the old cast. Only Allison Mack (Chloe) and Tom Welling (Clark) return among the primary members. Lex is gone. Lana is gone. Lois is gone. Pete's appearance last season? Just a tease. Will the Green Arrow and his crew be more central? Here's to hoping they transition to a Justice League series based on these bad boys.
  • The Unit on CBS. The fourth season promises to bring this show to my top favorites. You can pick up on this special-forces themed show anytime, but the backstory is good, and the characters are key. Produced and created by Shawn Ryan of The Shield, expect this show to get even better as his attention can focus here completely.
  • 30 Rock on NBC. One of the good sitcoms on the air right now, 30 Rock gets its laughs new-school. No laugh-tracks and lots of craziness. Alec Baldwin sells the package, and some great guests are going to appear, Jennifer Aniston among them.
  • Entourage on HBO, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia on FX. Two very different, very funny half-hours. Entourage plugs you into the life of an up-an-coming actor. Sunny, well, it's obscene and hilarious, and indescribable.
  • FOX Animation: The Simpsons, King of the Hill, Family Guy, American Dad. No description is really necessary here. Either you like them or you don't.
  • South Park on Comedy Central. Again, either you're outraged or you're laughing. These guys aren't afraid of anybody, and I laugh just as hard when they make fun of societal associations as anyone else. It's election season, so don't be surprised if the first episode is focused on that. Watching P. Diddy chase Kyle around town trying to kill him because he wasn't voting is a classic moment in the show's history. Vote or Die, Bitch!
  • Mythbusters on Discovery, American Chopper on TLC. These two great shows are an excellent trip into real, yet different worlds. Adam & Jamie keep blowing up myths (and other stuff), while the Teutuls keep fighting and turning out beautiful choppers.
  • The Office & My Name Is Earl on NBC. Again, these shows have become major hits for NBC, and if you haven't already gotten hooked, now's the time.
  • Bones on FOX. As a fan of procedural crime dramas, the CSI and Law & Order franchises were always favorites. During the dead of summer, I started watching Bones episodes at Hulu.com. I got hooked very quickly. A more comedic approach is perfect, and Emily Deschanel and David Boreanaz nail their parts. The disappearance of Zack Addy this season will be a letdown, but they'll still nail it.
That's just a summary. Some shows don't have air dates yet, and others I watch a little less religiously. As you can see, though, I need to get out more! I'll throw up some reviews when autumn gets here.

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Posted byJustin Stahl
at3:10 PM

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