Here's the latest news about TV that I read - or as it can be called for today, "The Star Trek: Discovery Digest edition" - and that you should read too:
■ The Family Matters house demolished.
The Lincoln Park home in Chicago that served as the exterior for the Winslow house on the sitcom Family Matters is being demolished on 19 September.
■ The filthy-mouth, belligerent MSNBC (StarSat 263) anchor Lawrence O'Donnell goes beserk in leaked behind-the-scenes footage.
8 minutes of the disgusting Lawrence O'Donnell showing how he spews venom when he's under pressure and something goes wrong. Was it leaked on purpose?
■ A brief history of hiding penis drawings and other inappropriate scribbles in cartoons.
After Netflix had to yank an episode of Maya the Bee this week due to a hidden phallus causing embarrassment and reputational damage, here is past examples - from The Little Mermaid's castle penis to An American Tail: Feivel Goes West.
■ Even Oprah Winfrey can't heal Donald Trump's America.
Her first insert for 60 Minutes shows how divided America is.
■ SABC3's Isidingo rips off a TV massacre scene in Friday's episode (watch from 21:16)
recreating Dynasty's infamous Massacre in Moldavia wedding scene - right down to some guests shooting back and producers dribbling blood over various characters to make viewers wonder who is dead and who's alive.
■ Emmy-winning John Oliver reminds viewers (watch from 11:40) that satellite pay-TV decoder may be one of the largest energy-consuming items in your house even when it's turned off
"Pay-TV companies have no real incentive to improve them," he says in Sunday's latest episode, and proceeds to blow a pay-TV decoder up in a talk about corporate consolidation.
■ Pretty Little Liars is getting a new spin-off entitled The Perfectionists.
The show from Freeform that was seen on VUZU AMP (DStv 103). The new teen drama series might end up on DStv in South Africa as well - or perhaps on Netflix like Freeform's The Shadowhunters.
The Perfectionists is set in Beacon Hills with Sasha Pieterse (playing Alison DiLaurentis) and Janel Parrish (who played Mona Vanderwaal and who was ultimately unmasked as the mysterious "A"), both reprising their roles.
■ It's a war behind the scenes of the reboot of American Idol
as the producers and the ABC network are fighting over race. ABC and FremantleMedia that's producing American Idol are fighting over the racial composition of the judges.
■ Transparent seen on M-Net (DStv 101) is doing TV's first transgender, full-frontal naked scene.
In the second episode of the upcoming 4th season of Transparent, actress Alexandra Billings will roll over and first reveal breasts and then for the first time for a transgender actress on television, also her penis.
MultiChoice and M-Net will very likely not show the new 4th season in Nigeria and other countries as part of the ongoing self-censorship not to offend Africa's DStv subscribers outside of South Africa.
■ The death of the video rental store in South Africa is overrated.
Largely because there's instances where MultiChoice literally don't want DStv subscribers' money - people who actually want to rent DStv BoxOffice movies but can't - and the video rental shop turns out to be cheaper.
Star Trek: Discovery
■ Star Trek: Discovery might be worthwhile if it keeps to the Star Trek values.
The latest Star Trek series is now available on Netflix in South Africa and across Africa from Monday 25 September and what will ultimately make it worthwhile "are not the inspirations it draws from elsewhere, but the historical Star Trek values it carries forward.
- Meanwhile legacy broadcasters like CBS discovers with Star Trek: Discovery that TV ain't easy anymore.
- TV critics were prevented from reviewing Star Trek: Discovery before its debut.
This is a highly unusual embargo with CBS that didn't send out screeners to critics - something highly unusual for America's TV biz that, unlike South Africa, very often previews shows to the media beforehand, to get as much coverage as possible for new shows.
■ Star Trek: Discovery was screened privately last week in Los Angeles for Star Trek alumni and selected guests.
Nichelle Nichols who was Uhura, told Sonequa Martin-Green who now is Michael "enjoy this moment. This is yours now".
- Oddly, Netflix that has Star Trek: Discovery internationally as the worldwide distributor couldn't be bothered with any international premiere launch events in key territories like the one in Los Angeles one, or any specific publicity for the show in various countries. Neither did Kwesé TV that announced 2 weeks ago that it's partnering with Netflix for Kwesé Play.
■ Instead of the few Klingon subtitles, Netflix allows you to watch the entire 15 episodes of the first season of Star Trek: Discovery with Klingon subtitles in tlhIngan Hol - just as if you're watching from the Klingon homeworld.
- Does Star Trek: Discovery feel like proper Star Trek? And where the show will go after the first 2 episodes of Star Trek: Discovery that's now available.
■ The new Star Trek: Discovery's illustrative and off-white, painterly opening title sequence is quite a bit of a blatant rip-off of the opening title sequence of the sci-fi drama The Expanse and Da Vinci's Demons, with a bit of Mad Men in there, and melody-wise a bit of Fringe.
■ Australian television has treated Star Trek as badly there as South African television did the past decades. Star Trek Discovery displays many flaws but provides just enough good old fashion Trek for viewers to stick around.
- Unspectacular Star Trek: Discovery described as "Star Trek Lite", "barely achieves lift-off" and is more interesting for its distribution model than its content.
- In America 10 million people watched; the cast also "takes the knee" in the American protest currently sweeping that nation.
■ The article leaves out the "We have engaged the ... Klingons" as a play on the "We have engaged the Borg" but here's 7 Easter eggs in Star Trek: Discovery.
- An idiot journalist pressed a button on the captain's chair during a press tour in Toronto as part of a set visit - and it worked. The media was surprised and the production staff alarmed. And there's a bottle of Picard wine.
■ A Q&A with executive producer Alex Kurtzman revealing post-production on episode 5 started only on Monday; Bryan Fuller bailed when he realised he can't give enough time to it and the show will go down if he doesn't relinquish control to people who can give it all their time; there will never be a 22-episode season, and even if renewed for a second season it won't be shown in 2018.
■ CBS has also created a special after show, After Trek for Star Trek: Discovery to discuss the episodes.
Of course it's too much to expect from Netflix to actually communicate, publicise and actually market this for, or in, South Africa and Africa (although Netflix paid to have this content) so let me give you the details:
- After Trek is a special 46-minute weekly discussion show done by CBS for the same CBS All Access subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) service in America. But yes, After Trek is available on Netflix for South African viewers.
So far there is only 1 After Trek episode to jointly discuss the double-barrel first two episodes together, "The Vulcan Hello and Battle at the Binary Stars".
Someone called Matt Mira is the bad presenter and this unbearable Tribble-trash sitting behind a desk and over-moting is really awful. In fact, After Trek looks amateurish trashy and unprofessional. Was the really great Wes Teasdale of The Pensky File not available??
- On YouTube Wes has immediately started doing a podcast/recap of The Pensky File - Star Trek Discovery (as well as the current DS9 run-through) that is much better, also doing 1 episode about both the first 2 episodes.
8 minutes of the disgusting Lawrence O'Donnell showing how he spews venom when he's under pressure and something goes wrong. Was it leaked on purpose?
■ A brief history of hiding penis drawings and other inappropriate scribbles in cartoons.
After Netflix had to yank an episode of Maya the Bee this week due to a hidden phallus causing embarrassment and reputational damage, here is past examples - from The Little Mermaid's castle penis to An American Tail: Feivel Goes West.
■ Even Oprah Winfrey can't heal Donald Trump's America.
Her first insert for 60 Minutes shows how divided America is.
■ SABC3's Isidingo rips off a TV massacre scene in Friday's episode (watch from 21:16)
recreating Dynasty's infamous Massacre in Moldavia wedding scene - right down to some guests shooting back and producers dribbling blood over various characters to make viewers wonder who is dead and who's alive.
■ Emmy-winning John Oliver reminds viewers (watch from 11:40) that satellite pay-TV decoder may be one of the largest energy-consuming items in your house even when it's turned off
"Pay-TV companies have no real incentive to improve them," he says in Sunday's latest episode, and proceeds to blow a pay-TV decoder up in a talk about corporate consolidation.
■ Pretty Little Liars is getting a new spin-off entitled The Perfectionists.
The show from Freeform that was seen on VUZU AMP (DStv 103). The new teen drama series might end up on DStv in South Africa as well - or perhaps on Netflix like Freeform's The Shadowhunters.
The Perfectionists is set in Beacon Hills with Sasha Pieterse (playing Alison DiLaurentis) and Janel Parrish (who played Mona Vanderwaal and who was ultimately unmasked as the mysterious "A"), both reprising their roles.
■ It's a war behind the scenes of the reboot of American Idol
as the producers and the ABC network are fighting over race. ABC and FremantleMedia that's producing American Idol are fighting over the racial composition of the judges.
■ Transparent seen on M-Net (DStv 101) is doing TV's first transgender, full-frontal naked scene.
In the second episode of the upcoming 4th season of Transparent, actress Alexandra Billings will roll over and first reveal breasts and then for the first time for a transgender actress on television, also her penis.
MultiChoice and M-Net will very likely not show the new 4th season in Nigeria and other countries as part of the ongoing self-censorship not to offend Africa's DStv subscribers outside of South Africa.
■ The death of the video rental store in South Africa is overrated.
Largely because there's instances where MultiChoice literally don't want DStv subscribers' money - people who actually want to rent DStv BoxOffice movies but can't - and the video rental shop turns out to be cheaper.
Star Trek: Discovery
■ Star Trek: Discovery might be worthwhile if it keeps to the Star Trek values.
The latest Star Trek series is now available on Netflix in South Africa and across Africa from Monday 25 September and what will ultimately make it worthwhile "are not the inspirations it draws from elsewhere, but the historical Star Trek values it carries forward.
- Meanwhile legacy broadcasters like CBS discovers with Star Trek: Discovery that TV ain't easy anymore.
- TV critics were prevented from reviewing Star Trek: Discovery before its debut.
This is a highly unusual embargo with CBS that didn't send out screeners to critics - something highly unusual for America's TV biz that, unlike South Africa, very often previews shows to the media beforehand, to get as much coverage as possible for new shows.
■ Star Trek: Discovery was screened privately last week in Los Angeles for Star Trek alumni and selected guests.
Nichelle Nichols who was Uhura, told Sonequa Martin-Green who now is Michael "enjoy this moment. This is yours now".
- Oddly, Netflix that has Star Trek: Discovery internationally as the worldwide distributor couldn't be bothered with any international premiere launch events in key territories like the one in Los Angeles one, or any specific publicity for the show in various countries. Neither did Kwesé TV that announced 2 weeks ago that it's partnering with Netflix for Kwesé Play.
■ Instead of the few Klingon subtitles, Netflix allows you to watch the entire 15 episodes of the first season of Star Trek: Discovery with Klingon subtitles in tlhIngan Hol - just as if you're watching from the Klingon homeworld.
- Does Star Trek: Discovery feel like proper Star Trek? And where the show will go after the first 2 episodes of Star Trek: Discovery that's now available.
■ The new Star Trek: Discovery's illustrative and off-white, painterly opening title sequence is quite a bit of a blatant rip-off of the opening title sequence of the sci-fi drama The Expanse and Da Vinci's Demons, with a bit of Mad Men in there, and melody-wise a bit of Fringe.
■ Australian television has treated Star Trek as badly there as South African television did the past decades. Star Trek Discovery displays many flaws but provides just enough good old fashion Trek for viewers to stick around.
- Unspectacular Star Trek: Discovery described as "Star Trek Lite", "barely achieves lift-off" and is more interesting for its distribution model than its content.
- In America 10 million people watched; the cast also "takes the knee" in the American protest currently sweeping that nation.
■ The article leaves out the "We have engaged the ... Klingons" as a play on the "We have engaged the Borg" but here's 7 Easter eggs in Star Trek: Discovery.
- An idiot journalist pressed a button on the captain's chair during a press tour in Toronto as part of a set visit - and it worked. The media was surprised and the production staff alarmed. And there's a bottle of Picard wine.
■ A Q&A with executive producer Alex Kurtzman revealing post-production on episode 5 started only on Monday; Bryan Fuller bailed when he realised he can't give enough time to it and the show will go down if he doesn't relinquish control to people who can give it all their time; there will never be a 22-episode season, and even if renewed for a second season it won't be shown in 2018.
Of course it's too much to expect from Netflix to actually communicate, publicise and actually market this for, or in, South Africa and Africa (although Netflix paid to have this content) so let me give you the details:
- After Trek is a special 46-minute weekly discussion show done by CBS for the same CBS All Access subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) service in America. But yes, After Trek is available on Netflix for South African viewers.
So far there is only 1 After Trek episode to jointly discuss the double-barrel first two episodes together, "The Vulcan Hello and Battle at the Binary Stars".
Someone called Matt Mira is the bad presenter and this unbearable Tribble-trash sitting behind a desk and over-moting is really awful. In fact, After Trek looks amateurish trashy and unprofessional. Was the really great Wes Teasdale of The Pensky File not available??
- On YouTube Wes has immediately started doing a podcast/recap of The Pensky File - Star Trek Discovery (as well as the current DS9 run-through) that is much better, also doing 1 episode about both the first 2 episodes.
