W♥M (Archive)

Comic Book Television Shows 2017

Read More Comic Books I really hate the title Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice. I can understand it, it tells us that Batman will be fighting Superman... and somehow it involves the Justice …

In celebration of Wizard World Minneapolis coming up on May 5-7th, 2017, and Free Comic Book Day on May 6th, here is a special roundup of comic book-related television shows that debut in 2017.

Wizard World Minneapolis’ confirmed celebrity guests are: Peter Capaldi & Jenna Coleman (Doctor Who), Charlie Sheen (Two and a Half Men), Charisma Carpenter (Buffy the Vampire Slayer), Nichelle Nichols (Star Trek), Lou Ferrigno (the Hulk), and Peter Tork & Micky Dolenz (the Monkees). Stay tuned, we will be providing additional details later this week.

LEGION
fxnetworks.com

Based on a character from Marvel Comics’ New Mutants, Legion proved to be one of the most inventive, interesting television show out there. I absolutely love everything about it, from the 70s/90s feel, the psychedelic music, and the mind-bending special effects.

I already knew the character and his relationship to a rather famous mutant... but for many viewers, they had no idea his powers or where he stands in the Marvel Universe. I feel the less you know about the character, the better, as it’s full of surprises. I don’t want to say too much about the story (or character appearances), as talking about it will spoil it for comic book fans.

The show is complicated. Take my advice and pay attention to the first few episodes, it will all make sense the more episodes you watch. By the end of the series, you’ll thank me.

IRON FIST
netflix.com

In a world where Tom Cruise is the Last Samurai, Scarlett Johansson as a cybernetic Asian cop, Tilda Swinton playing the Ancient One from the far east, and Matt Damon saving the great wall of China, we have Finn Jones as the greatest martial artist in the world. Asian fans are really vocal about this whole “white savior” and whitewashing, but I will defend (pun not intended) Iron Fist.

The original character from the comic book is a white character, changing it to an Asian character will not sit well with purists, like me. Yes, I’m also one of the few that would prefer Nick Fury be a white, cigar-chompin’ Sergeant. However, having said that, I also think it would work if Iron Fist was casted as an Asian-American kung-fu fighter. I could go with it, at least the fight scenes would be enjoyable (and believable).

Critics all agreed that this is the worst of the Netflix Marvel shows. We were expecting a great Kung Fu show, but instead it was a lot of corporate drama.

POWERLESS
nbc.com

Actually this is not based on a comic book, but the NBC comedy series takes place in the DC Universe. Sometime you see cameos for less famous characters like Crimson Fox or Green Fury (both from Justice League Europe).

Admittedly, fans aren’t clamoring for the show, but personally, I find it pretty funny. I love watching it for the various DC references... I just wish there were more of those in the series.

Also, I love seeing George Perez's artwork in the title sequence.

RIVERDALE
cwtv.com

I don’t think a lot of people understand that Riverdale is based on Archie Comics. Sure, I own a few Archie Digests and the random single issues, but it’s not a comic book series that I follow. Each story is self-contained, and all the art style are based on Bob Montana’s original cartoon, so personally I was never a big fan.

Anyway, I haven’t watched Riverdale, but based on trailers and advertisements, it’s typical CW teenage drama.

WYNONNA EARP
syfy.com

Wynonna Earp was originally published under Eclipse Comics... but after it went bankrupted, creator Beau Smith took the character to IDW Publishing and Image Comics.

The character is a present-day descendant of the famous lawman Wyatt Earp who fights demons with a special gun.

I honestly tried to watch the pilot in late 2016 and just could not get into it. Although I didn’t like it, it got enough viewers that a second series has been ordered for 2017.

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Christmas 2015: A Very Christmas Show

Read More Kat Perkins The Voice's Season 6 Top 5 contestant, Kat Perkins will be in Minneapolis as part of Pride 2015 week. She's scheduled to appear at the Saloon, right next to the Brave New Workshop Comedy …

Like previous years, I will be compiling some 2015 Christmas songs and Xmas-related news for you to enjoy!

Read more Christmas.

KAT PERKINS
katperkinsmusic.com

The Voice's Top 5 contestant Kat Perkins has a four night residency over at the Plymouth Playhouse on December 13 and 22. If you're not familiar with the area, Plymouth is west of Golden Valley and south of Maple Grove.

Also note that her new EP A Kat Perkins Christmas, featuring four Christmas classic and one original Perkins composition, is available now. Perkins released her debut album Drive earlier in July 2015.

Tour dates:

12/08/15 St Cloud, MN at Pioneer Place
12/09/15 Anoka, MN at Lyrics Arts
12/10/15 Hibbing, MN at HCC Concert Series
12/11/15 Fargo, ND at Fargo Theatre
12/12/15 Wilmar, MN at Willmar Education
12/13/15 Plymouth, MN Plymouth Playhouse
12/22/15 Plymouth, MN Plymouth Playhouse
02/13/16 Medina, MN Medina Entertainment Ctr

BONUS: Perkins' keyboardist Dan Musselman Holiday album A Modern Christmas is available now and proceeds goes to charity: Water Project.

Read More Mariah Carey So, Carey's Christmas album, Merry Christmas II You, the follow-up to her 1994 Merry Christmas, was released in 2010. Carey decided to re-release Merry Christmas II You this year - as far as I .....

MARIAH CAREY
mariahcarey.com

Global superstar Mariah Carey recently added three additional dates to her much-anticipated second annual "All I Want For Christmas Is You" residency at the The Beacon Theatre in New York City, due to popular demand.

Presented by Hallmark Channel, the shows will celebrate her iconic Christmas catalog, which includes 1994’s Merry Christmas and 2010’s Merry Christmas II You.

If you recall, Carey's Merry Christmas album is Lara's favorite Christmas album of all time.

Mariah Carey’s All I Want For Christmas Is You Concert Dates:

12/08 Beacon Theatre New York, NY
12/09 Beacon Theatre New York, NY
12/11 Beacon Theatre New York, NY
12/12 Beacon Theatre New York, NY
12/14 Beacon Theatre New York, NY
12/15 Beacon Theatre New York, NY
12/17 Beacon Theatre New York, NY
12/18 Beacon Theatre New York, NY

BONUS: Google Play is offering for FREE. You will need to setup payment information for the free item. It's worth it, I've gotten like 10 free albums so far.

Read More Pandora In a recent Edison's annual audio report "The Infinite Dial", Pandora is miles ahead of their competition for the most popular music streaming service in the United States. .....

PANDORA HOLIDAY
pandora.com

One of the most powerful music discovery platform Pandora is presenting their Pandora Holiday special concert on December 10th at 36 Basketball City in New York City.

The festive concert event will feature some of the most recognizable and popular rock bands of all time: Fall Out Boy and Panic! At the Disco. Best of all, you can RSVP for absolutely free.

Additionally, Oakland rapper G-Eazy and DJ Cash Cash will open and play between sets.

All Pandora listeners will be able to experience it through a special livestream.... Plus Pandora is offering two unique mixtapes celebrating the event. The first is curated by Fall Out Boy, featuring the band's favorite rock music, and the second features hip hop and was curated by G-Eazy. Both mixtapes are available now on Pandora.

"Pandora's partnerships with artists have risen to a new level over the past 12 months, so it's appropriate to wrap up 2015 with a show featuring dazzling talent with whom we have truly partnered with across the year. We're also elated to be extending our Holiday event to a broader audience for the first time via the livestream," said Lars Murray, SVP Music Makers Group, Pandora.

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Hellblazer on Constantine

Read More Comic Books Of all the comic book-related television shows that I follow, I'm most excited about Constantine. I know the source material very well, having own nearly all the 300 issues run of Hellblazer .…

We've already established that I am a fan of John Constantine, owning nearly a complete run of the original Hellblazer series. I've been fairly excited about the NBC live action television show, but I may be in the minority since it's not getting the same fanfare as Gotham or The Flash.

I'm going to break down the characters in the series tie to the comic books, since I'm familiar with the source material.

If you're watching for music, Episode 3 has a lot of music, from the delta-blues inspired story of Robert Johnson to referencing John Constantine used to be in a punk band called "Mucous Membrane". He is also seen listening to "I Wanna Be Sedated" by the Ramones and later "Anarchy in the UK" by the Sex Pistols.

Anyway, here are some characters who appeared in the comic books:

Episode 1: Non Est Asylum

John Constantine art by Glen Fabry

John Constantine: They got the character's look just right (British guy in a trench coat). He's into the dark arts and practice magic/slight-of-hand, but he does not have any supernatural abilities... He's just a con man, who regularly trick demons and devils. I also feel that the character is better set in London, but the way the show is going, it would seem they are following the Supernatural path by tackling a demon of the week and in random small-town USA.

Liv Aberdine: apparently only exists for the pilot, as her character is not in the books and she does not resurfaced (at least in the first three episodes).

Chas Martin art by John Ridgeway	Ritchie Simpson art by John Ridgeway
Astra art by Sean Phillips	Gabriel art by Steve Dillon

Chas Martin: in the TV show, they make it out like he has some powers to keep him alive.... but in the books, he's just a friend and cab driver.

Ritchie Simpson: I love seeing this character from the comic book, yes he's a computer hacker/computer guy who practice "Quantum Magic". I know his fate from the comics, so I hope Simpson shows up again in a future episode.

Astra Logue: The main difference is that she's white and missing an arm in the comics. We see her semi-regularly as a haunt for John and his sins from Newcastle. I'm going to assume she'll play a big part for the season finale, as it is a very important part of John's history.

Manny the Angel: Although angels and demons are not uncommon in Hellblazer universe, I don't recall the angel "Manny". I believe he was created specifically for the show. Perhaps his character is supposed to be Gabriel (who also appeared in the movie version of Constantine, magnificently played by Tilda Swinton).

Episode 2: The Darkness Beneath

Zed Martin art by John Ridgeway

Zed Martin: We finally get to meet her. In the show, they make her more like a psychic looking to help John. They made her an artist (which you can see that they've used Hellblazer covers by Dave McKean, Sean Phillips, Glen Fabry, and Tim Bradstreet - see screen grabs below, along with my corresponding comics), but I don't think she did art in the comics... but confession, I haven't read the comics in a while. I know they are on/off lovers.

Ellis McGee: I think this is a character created for this story... although John knows several priests in the comic, Ellis could potentially play a bigger part later in the series (especially because they made it seem like he knows the old Celtic magic spells.) Also, could be a nod to writer Warren Ellis, who took over Hellblazer near the end of the series.

Episode 3: The Devil's Vinyl

Papa Midnite art by Dave McKean

Willie Cole: This character is obviously inspired by the urban legend of Robert Johnson (who some people say he made a deal with the devil to become a famous musician). The Johnson story is actually pretty well known, even Supernatural series did a story on Johnson.

Anton: I don't remember the names from the comic book, but there was this demon who employed lesser demons as soul brokers. They would draft contracts and buy and sell and trade souls on this demonic stock exchange.

Papa Midnite: This is a voodoo priest from the comic book. Knowing that he plays a major role in the comics, expect to see Midnite in future episodes. I wish he would wear that white coat and hat that we first see him in Hellblazer #1.

Again, this is just on the first three episodes of Constantine. I love it, but I know that it's not a show that people are watching (or liking). As a fan of the comic book, I am looking forward to more familiar characters. Also, would love to see "Son of Man" brought to life (the original story was written by my favorite Hellblazer writer Garth Ennis).

Below are the Hellblazer comic covers from Episode 2.

Hellblazer covers, as seen on Constantine

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The 2012 London Summer Olympics Closing Ceremony

Read More Olympic Games With the Summer Olympic in London, fans flock Hyde Park to enjoy all sorts of sporting action on the giant screens and get a chance to catch some of our favorite British bands play live - for free!

Did you catch NBC's broadcast of the closing ceremonies of the 2012 London Olympic Games? We saw some of it last Sunday, and according to news reports, it was one of NBC's highest ratings (up 32% over the Beijing Games!)

Unlike NBC's clumsy attempt at censoring the opening ceremonies, it looks like they caved in to heavy criticisms and decided to air the closing music in its entirety.

The Closing Ceremony features a good wide range of British music. Personally, I was rather excited to see Pet Shop Boys doing their big hit song, "West End Girls," and the Spice Girls re-united again to do a medley of "Wannabe" and "Spice Up Your Life." Pop fans would note Take That and One Direction.

As much as I love Oasis, we got Beady Eye doing "Wonderwall." I got the impression that Liam didn't want to do a Noel Gallagher song, and they certainly made sure everyone knew they were 'Beady Eye,' not Oasis.

It was also a shame that Blur didn't make on the lineup (instead, they were playing over at BT London Hydepark), but Massed Bands of the Guards Division covered them with "Parklife." To me, "Parklife" is the quintessential Britpop song - that and Pulp's "Disco 2000" (which sadly no mention of Pulp or Jarvis Cocker.)

I also enjoyed the epic "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life," by Eric Idle - but couldn't they get the rest of Monty Python back together?

If you missed the Closing Ceremony, I'm certain you can buy the music compilation soon-ish. Already, you can pick up a double-disc of Isles Of Wonder: Music For The Opening Ceremony Of The London 2012 Olympic Games via Decca Recordings.

The compilation features Underworld, Dizzee Rascal, Emeli Sandé, Arctic Monkeys, Chemical Brothers, David Bowie, and more.

PET SHOP BOYS
www.petshopboys.co.uk

As I previously mentioned, I love Pet Shop Boys, and I have some news on them. They have a brand new album, Elysium, coming out on Astralwerks on September 11th.

If you can't wait that long, the first single, "Winner" is available on two digital bundles. The first will came out August 7th with three non-album b-sides (including a cover of the Bee Gees' "I Started A Joke") and the second is today (August 14th.)

Digital Bundle 1 1. Winner 2. A Certain "Je Ne Sais Quoi" 3. The Way Through The Woods (long version) 4. I Started A Joke

Digital Bundle 2 (Winner Remixed) 1. Winner (Andrew Dawson HappyHour Remix) 2. Winner (John Dahlback Remix) 3. Winner (Niki & The Dove Remix) 4. Winner (Andrew Dawson HappySad Remix)

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August Celebrations

Read More Emeli Sandé Some news on this Scottish-born singer/songwriter Sandé released her first U.S. single, "Next To Me" last week (April 17th), the same day that you can also pre-order for her debut…

EMELI SANDÉ
www.emelisande.com

The Summer Olympic Games 2012 started in late July and will continue to mid-August. In the USA, there's a huge backlash against NBC's coverage (or lack of). NBC's decision to delay broadcast and, in many cases, decided to not air certain events, like Emeli Sandé's performance of "Abide With Me" (written by the Scotsman Henry Francis Lyte.)

Ironically, Sandé will appear on NBC's The Tonight Show with Jay Leno on August 22nd. Let's hope they decide to air that show.

Anyway, after her appearance, I went to check out her tour dates - all the dates in November were sold out. How lucky were we to have caught an intimate set from Emeli Sandé at the Dakota in Minneapolis earlier this year. I believe that 250-capacity seating, by far, remains one of the smallest venues that Sandé will ever perform at.

Her debut album, Our Version of Events, was release June 5th via Capitol Records. She's currently selling out all her shows, so I suggest you buy tickets now if they haven't sold out in your area.

08/03 Izod Center Rutherford, NJ 08/04 Izod Center Rutherford, NJ 08/15 Olympia Theatre Dublin, Ireland 08/16 Custom House Square Belfast Belfast, UK 08/18 V Festival Chelmsford, UK 08/19 V Festival Chelmsford, UK 08/19 Weston Park Staffordshire, UK 09/05 iTunes Festival @ Roundhouse London, UK 09/07 Bestival Isle Of Wight, UK

10/08 Howard Theatre Washington, DC 10/09 Theatre of Living Arts Philadelphia, PA 10/10 Paradise Rock Club Boston, MA 10/13 Variety Playhouse Atlanta, GA 11/04 Olympia Theatre Dublin, Ireland 11/06 Clyde Auditorium Glasgow, UK 11/08 Symphony Hall Birmingham, UK 11/11 Royal Albert Hall London, UK 11/12 Manchester Bridgewater Hall, UK

ELLIOTT SMITH
killrockstars.com

One of my favorite record label, Kill Rock Stars, announced that August is Elliott Smith's month. This would have been the star's 43rd birthday, come this August 6th.

Each week, via Pitchfork, KRS will release a new version of an Elliott Smith song. This week, we hear "Alameda."

The compilation, An Introduction to … Elliott Smith, will be on sale for $4.99 on his birthday (Aug 6) all day. KRS will also give a present to everyone who signs up on their mailing list that day.

MENTOS
facebook.com/MentosSingapore

Mentos, the fresh-maker, is calling out to Singaporeans to "do their duties" on Singapore's National Day night (August 9th.) Apparently the country suffers from low birthrate.

I didn't know this, but every August 9th, there are fireworks and parades to celebrate Singapore's independence from Malaysia in 1965 (so this seems like a really recent national holiday to me.)

I have been to Singapore once, in 1999, and I have to say, I love it. At the time, I felt the small country was one of the most advance and diverse (and beautiful) country in the world. There are issues, of course, like the anti-bubblegum thing and their strict laws … I guess it's always greener looking in.

Anyway, Mentos Singapore put together this wordy/music-ish video to help you get into the mood. You can view it on youtube.com.

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US Television Guide 2012

Apologies to people outside of the USA, but here is a guide to some semi-current television shows (and their theme music). With the exception of "Justified" (which I only discovered recently), these shows debut in late 2011 or early 2012. They are also shows that I'm interested in, which are crime, science fiction or music-related.

ALCATRAZ
www.fox.com

It goes without saying that since Lost and Fringe, I’ve been hooked on JJ Abrahams television shows. The man is a true genius, not only able to create and juggle and produce some of the best TV programming, but did you know he is also a music composer? He wrote the Alcatraz theme song.

So, Alcatraz’s premise is in its start narrative:

On March 21, 1963, Alcatraz officially closed. All the prisoners were transferred off the island. Only that's not what happened. Not at all.

The prisoners (and guards) all disappeared on that date and they suddenly started appearing in 2012, at the same age that they vanished. Although that sounds like there are some supernatural forces - the show suggests there is actually some sort of weird science behind the disappearance.

The show is about a cop, an FBI agent, and a comic book writer, and they go after a “prisoner of the week”.

Several things I have issues with the show: 1) Why do these ex-prisoners, once freed, go back to a life of crime? and 2) If they disappeared originally with prison outfits, wouldn’t it make sense that they reappear in the same garments ? and 3) How come these returning prisoners don’t have 1963 slangs and why aren’t they in awe of today’s technology - like an iPhone? If I were a time traveler, seeing a device like that would just blow my mind.

Anyway, I’m loving the show so far, mostly excited to see Sam Neill back in action, the man is a bit of a legend, having played Damiem in The Omen 3, Dr Alan Grant in Jurassic Park, and the scientist who created the Event Horizon spaceship.

Alcatraz is playing on Monday evenings on Fox, check your local time and listing.

SMASH nbc.com/smash Let’s be frank, "Smash" is NBC’s answer to the highly successful Fox’s Glee series. Unlike Glee’s cover-lover songs every week, Smash’s music is of the Broadway musical big band numbers - no covers. It's strictly original music by composers Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman. The most interesting thing is that it’s a win-win situation for Columbia Record, who has rights to distribute both Glee and Smash music. I did end up watching the pilot episode of Smash and can't say that I was impress. The show is basically about the birth of a Broadway musical about Marilyn Monroe and its two lead singers. Glee, on the other hand, continues to be quite popular with music fans. What's interesting to note is that they have a good mixture of music genre in their covers this week: alternative rock (Young The Giant's "Cough Syrup"), British/Irish boy band (The Wanted's "Glad You Came"), hip-hop (Nicki Minaj's "Fly"), R&B (R.Kelly's "I Believe I Can Fly"), funk (Lenny Kravitz's "Stand"), hard-rock (Halestorm's "Here's To Us") and countrypop (Kelly Clarkson's "What Doesn't Kill You"). Music from the "On My Way" episode will be available tomorrow on iTunes.

TOUCH fox.com Did you miss the premiere pilot episode of Touch? Well, you can catch it again as a free download on Amazon and PS3 and iTunes and Hulu and Xbox, under the “Free TV” section. Fox really want to get the pilot on people’s television, which, personally, I believe is the best way of promoting a new show (instead of spending thousands of dollars to buy advertisements). If you were expecting the main character, played by Kiefer Southerland, to be as aggressive and in your face as 24, you may be in for a disappointment. That’s not a bad thing; Southerland is a solid actor, playing a concern father trying to understand his mute-math-child. It is a great pilot, start, middle and end, and everything wrapped up neatly. The biggest problem I have is: where does the show go from here? It seems like everything is solved at the end of the pilot, do I need to come back for more? Music, as credited on the show, is by Wendy Melvoin and Lisa Coleman, or better known as Wendy and Lisa. We reviewed their White Flags of Winter Chimneys: "you can hear the growth of two artists who have been making music together for over twenty years and who are very comfortable in who they are and the kind of music they create."

PRIME SUSPECT nbc.com Okay, here’s an odd one. The premise is taken from the UK’s cop drama of the same name. I have not seen the UK Prime Suspect (on account that BBC’s iPlayer still won’t let people outside of the UK to view its programming), but I think I get the gist of it - a “tough as nail” girl homicide detective in a male police environment. Again, I haven’t seen the UK version, but the US version, taking place in a large metropolitan area (presumably New York) and it works really well in this setting. One thing is for sure, everyone, cops and robbers, are all jerks! It’s what makes them human, and I personally like (and hate) all the characters. Only 13 episodes were ordered, NBC hasn’t announced that they will be renewing it, but seeing as the show hasn’t exactly taken off... I don’t think there will be a season two. And it’s really too bad, because I was starting to warm up to the other homicide detectives. Even in their dumb ways, they manage to solve the crime in the end. Theme song for the show is by Extreme Music, a music production company. I believe the song is entitled "Glorious". It sounds like a cross between U2 and Nickleback with violins.

JUSTIFIED fxnetworks.com Let me tell you: I love Westerns, particularly Italian Westerns, so I was blown away at this very modern take on the classic Western genre in a serialized television program. Justified is on its third season and brings back the same convicts and Marshalls from the previous seasons; even though I could have sworn some of them should have died with multiple gun shots! In its third season, the main gunslinger, Raylan, finds himself wounded from the previous finale. He can’t shoot straight - yet somehow manages to outsmart and outshoot criminals! I love it. Apparently Justified was based on Elmore Leonard’s western novels, so if you’re not into cowboys and outlaws, this really isn’t the show for you. The theme song is the most colorful and memorable of all these new shows - it’s a bit like rap music set to a bluegrass folky music. That probably best describe the band Gangstagrass, who was nominated for 2010 Emmy Award for Outstanding Original Best Title Theme song for the Justified theme song, “Long Hard Times To Come”.

RINGER cwtv.com Don’t you miss Buffy? I missed Faith, then I saw Dollhouse, and boy, I didn’t miss five-by-five after that disaster of a show. So, Ringer is the new show starring ex-Buffy star Michelle Sarah Gellar. She plays both Bridget and Siobhan (pronounced "sho-van"). Bridget is running away from the mob, so she takes over her sister's rich/successful life after she finds out that Siobhan committed suicide. The show isn't that good; I find it hard to believe that the FBI (and all the characters, including her BFF) can’t figure out that it is Bridget, not Siobhan. The drama really is about a cat and mouse game of Gellar trying to conceal her big secret. Theme music for Ringer is by Gabriel Mann, who also plays in a band called The Rescues.

PERSON OF INTEREST cbs.com Again, another JJ production. This show had a great start, but as the show goes on and you find out more about the two main characters, it got a bit stale. I guess sometime you just want it to be a mystery, you know? If you don’t know, the show is about a smart man, Mr. Finch, who built a computer that tracks and predicts terrorists. Finch hires Reese to help him prevent crimes based on the computer’s output. As I mentioned before, I got kind of bored of this show - there just wasn’t any real “threat” to the duo. However, things are starting to get better, on the latest episode; we’re introduced to a hacker Root, who is giving them a hard time. Once again, main theme is written by JJ Abrahams.

vu () ♥ weheartmusic.com ♥ podcast.weheartmusic.com ♥ twitter.com/weheartmusic ♥ +W♥M