• As Letterman Moves On, Late-Night Success Is Unmoored From TV>
• Funny Business: The Misunderstood Genius of Amy Schumer
• ‘Revenge’ dies: An obituary for a once-great show that quickly went downhill
• Why Some Low-Rated TV Shows Keep Getting Renewed: Media blitzes and social engagement help endangered series avoid cancellation
• UpFront Preview: Broadcast TV’s Big 4 Review Their Wins and Losses
• Woo-Hoo! Last Man Standing renewed for season 5
• We Love British Accents: BBC’s star shows are eclipsed at the Bafta Television awards 2015
• ‘Revenge’ Exit Interview: Emily VanCamp, Nick Wechsler Giggle A Lot, Josh Bowman Is a Prankster and Most Beloved Actor Revealed
• Upfronts: NBC Hits Reset, CBS Goes Younger, Fox Bets On Genre & Big Names, ABC Ramps Up Diverse Comedies
• NBC Fall 2015 Schedule: ‘Blindspot’ Gets Monday 10 PM Slot, ‘Heroes Reborn’ On Thursday, Comedies On Friday
• Must See TV: The Evolution of Late Night
• Music To Our Ears: NBC Sets ‘Coat of Many Colors’ Movie From Dolly Parton
• Smart: Bryan Cranston & David Shore Pilot ‘Sneaky Pete’ Eyes Potential Cable Move
• Video: Chelsea Handler Reveals How She Lost Respect for E!, and Quit
• TV Upfronts: Who’s Up, Who’s Down, Who’s Desperate
• Class Act: Kevin Bacon Thanks ‘The Following’ Fans After Fox Cancels Series
• Showrunner Switcheroo: Castle Sets New Showrunners for Season 8
• They Say the Darndest Things! NBC Orders Kids’ Variety Show From Ellen DeGeneres and Steve Harvey
• Inside the Shocking, Abrupt Divorce of Bill Simmons and ESPN
• Spin: Your TV x Twitter guide to the Upfronts
• Q&A: ‘True Detective’ Creator and Showrunner Nic Pizzolatto
• Rumor Patrol: ‘New Girl’ Eyes Move To Midseason
• Why NBC Is Airing a Live Sitcom Next Season Undateable will be the first series to be broadcast all-live since Roc in 1992-93
• CSI may end with 2-hour movie (and a big star could return)
• Kleenex Alert: Ray Romano recalls heartfelt story about how David Letterman changed his life
• Seconded: With CW’s ‘Legends of Tomorrow’ Comes the First Signs of Super Hero Fatigue
Archives for May 2015
On TV Tonight: Monday May 11, 2015
BONES Redux: Our Top 5 Moments From “The Lost in the Found” and “The Verdict in the Victims”
Hey Bones fans. We’ve got two episodes for the price of one tonight, and it looks like Aubrey and Booth are ornery about putting in the overtime. Aubrey because he’s hungry (always), and Booth because SECRETS. Also, don’t eat a pot brownie while you’re searching for a dead body. Here are your Bones Top Five Moments, supersized!
Pregnancy Talk!
Nothing like some women getting together for yoga and discussing babies. Daisy is there and is dismayed by her limited flexibility since she had one, while Brennan has chosen this time to have a snack and be totally laidback about not going to a crime scene. Oh, Brennan, I have a feeling this one is going to take after Booth. Be prepared. Angela thinks Brennan is further along than she thinks she is.
And oh! The smoking hot yoga instructor totally hits on Daisy! If this was Daisy 1.0, I’d tell the dude to run, but Daisy 2.0 is great. Angela is being all mother hen about the whole thing and thinks Daisy isn’t ready, while Brennan thinks she should get back in the saddle. Yep. That is a euphemism. Though Daisy bringing it up every five minutes throughout the episode does get a bit annoying.
Even Booth and Aubrey have noticed Brennan is further along than she thinks. The victim’s mom, in her distraught state, also thinks Brennan is a mere few months away from giving birth, while Brennan is adamant she has six months. Something funky is going on here. Has she not been to a doctor?
Yes, she has, but for some reason the doctor couldn’t verify how far along she was? How is it possible that everyone and their brother told Brennan she was six months along except for her doctor? Am I the only one confused here? But instead of going back to her doctor, Brennan just finally realizes it on her own and calls Angela at ten o’clock at night to come to the lab, so Brennan could say she was right.
To add to the confusion, after all of this time, Brennan is just realizing that what she and Booth do is dangerous, what with getting shot at, and does she really want her kids orphaned? This seems kind of from left field for me.
Corpse of the Week!
It’s Molly Delson, the girl everyone was searching for at the top of the show. She’s a only fourteen years old. Since there were signs of early abuse, Booth comes right out and accuses mom and dad, who are offended. Brennan fixates on an early picture of Molly from when she was a little girl and more pudgy. Now Brennan is reevaluating her original diagnosis to the fractures coming from childhood obesity. After Brennan admonishes the parents for letting their kid eat that much, and mom gives it right back to Brennan for being the biggest three-month preggers woman ever, they talk about what an overachiever Molly was.
Before she died, Molly was attending a hoity-toity school that spits out ivy leaguers. Molly was top of her class except for music. I’m sure Miss Overachiever was fine with that. After headmistress Amelia assures Booth her good little students would never think of going past that yellow tape, they find two girls, Cayla and Arianna, in Molly’s room going through her stuff. They say they were protecting Molly by looking for her diary in case anything incriminating was in there. Everyone is properly shocked it’s not digital, and Aubrey finds it in two seconds in a tissue box.
But it’s quickly surmised the two snotty girls were not her friends, what with Molly’s overachieving books and lack of homey decorations. It’s clear her social life consisted of sitting in her room studying. This is confirmed by a box full of hate notes about Molly that she must have kept in the same way others put up inspirational messages all over their house. Only this is the opposite. The proof is in her diary. “I hate them. I hate them. I hate them,” and all kinds of nice things they said to her, like that she’d die alone. Ah, brings back memories of the good ol’ days.
Brennan is feeling a little sad. Seems Molly owned every book Brennan ever wrote, and not the ones Angela writes the steamy sex scenes for. The “real” ones. Molly even scribbled notes in them that Brennan finds astute, so you know they were over the top. Brennan reminisces about when she was Molly, and the isolated life she led.
Molly’s efforts to fit in centered around Kathryn, whose necklace was found on Molly’s body. Through her diary, it’s discovered Molly was going to report Kathryn for having drinking parties.
Headmistress Amelia is the most inept headmistress ever. Kathryn was having drinking parties and found Molly stealing her necklace. The girls drinking with Kathryn the night Molly died were Cayla and Arianna. Also, Molly wasn’t kidnapped. She climbed out of the window on her own. This is the worst high falutin’, overpriced school ever.
But wait! Angela has uncovered that Molly’s nude photo was posted on the internet with her phone number, and whose IP did it come from? Why none other than Tyler, the pot-brownie-eating dude who found her body. Apparently he already has one statutory r*pe charge, and he was gearing up for another.
He says Molly told him she was eighteen, but he’s got a nice child p0rnography charge headed his way for taking and distributing the picture. Tyler is an idiot. He was distributing pills like Ritalin to the rich girls, so they could stay up and study. Molly figured she’d pay him for some pills by posing nude for him. But she wanted Benzo, which is a sedative. She does sound high-strung, but I don’t think that’s it….
My suspicions are confirmed when Arianna, Cayla, and Kathryn are called in to be questioned. Molly’s hair and blood were found in the trunk of Arianna’s car, and Cayla’s scissors were the murder weapon. But they all claim Molly joined their drinking party with a partial bottle of vodka which they shared and then passed out. No mention is made of the Benzo, and Booth arrests all three girls as Headmistress Amelia makes huffy noises. Did I miss the part where they had any evidence against Kathryn other than the diary?
But B&B agree that there’s no way these girls killed Molly. They may be bullies, but they’re not stupid, and their story was totally lame. It turns out, Molly had lidocaine in her system, which is a nerve blocker. After surmising three sixteen-year-old girls couldn’t have come up with something that creepy and sophisticated, Brennan realizes Molly killed herself and framed the three girls who pushed her over the edge. So, it was actually one overachieving fourteen-year-old who came up with this meticulous, diabolical plan.
She got the lidocaine from her dentist parents and stabbed herself twelve times? This whole episode was really convoluted and weird. Brennan has a rough time understanding how someone as intelligent as Molly could have committed suicide.
In the end, Brennan confesses her fears to Booth about the baby thing, but Booth gives her the “Love is all you need” speech, and that does the trick.
PART TWO:
Back to the Bakery!
Holy smokes. All of the previews have to do with that episode with the bakery run by the do-gooder Flender who only hired ex-cons, because his dad was one. Remember how I said it made no sense Rockwell was a ritualistic serial killer, when he seemed like a garden-variety criminal? It looks like I’ll get a lot of answers tonight.
It’s seven months later. Really? Arastoo has been gone for SEVEN months? I think they’re playing fast and loose with the timeline here. Anyway, Rockwell is about to be executed for his crimes. He doesn’t want his last meal or his chaplain. He also waived his appeals and requested the execution express lane.
Aubrey has been invited to Sunday dinner at the B&B manse, but it seems Brennan is at work going over the Rockwell case. Standard procedure for her, I guess, before all executions. While Booth goes to retrieve her, Aubrey plays babysitter and sneaks gummy bears to Christine.
Brennan discovers Rockwell had shoulder injuries, so he couldn’t have killed Leonard Barnes, but he wasn’t tried for Barnes’ death. Only the three others—Connor and two of the guys whose tattoos were hanging on hooks. Barnes was the third tattoo and first victim. They only tried Rockwell for the ones connected to him and disregarded Barnes altogether, even though he was killed the same way?
Oh, my gosh! Booth is in the lab. He must be really concerned. He (and his counterpart DB) hate the lab. He’s trying to get Brennan to come home, but she’s freaking out and now has Cam agreeing with her. All of the victims were killed the same way, so if Rockwell couldn’t have killed Barnes, he couldn’t have killed the others he was convicted of. They have forty-eight hours to prove it before Rockwell gets the needle? You got that? Good.
Judge Linda Lavin isn’t buying any of it, even though she has the entire team who put Rockwell away saying they were totally wrong, including Caroline. But she does give the okay for Brennan to exhume all four victims.
Aubrey and Booth bring in Saltz, Rockwell’s former co-worker at the bakery, and sweat him. They say he’s the real culprit, what with all of the borrowing he did of Rockwell’s car. His alibi is his NA meetings, and Booth, the GAMBLING ADDICT, gets on his high horse and seems to judge Saltz about that, even though Saltz is clean and going to meetings, while Booth is about to leave the interrogation and call his bookie, so, ya know, pot-kettle. And I guess all of that stuff he was saying about how prisoners are just misunderstood and can turn their lives around is out the window at this point.
Booth goes to see Rockwell who isn’t interested in clearing his name. He’s through with believing in the justice system and wants to put himself in God’s hands.
Oh, good. I wanted to interrupt the show for Cam and Hodgins to have a death penalty discussion. I’ll let you guess who is on which side. Fuentes breaks it up to remind everyone they only have twenty-seven hours left.
Booth goes to see Rockwell’s ex-girlfriend. She says her only concern is Zeke, Rockwell’s son. Pastor Evans is there. He grew up with Rockwell. They were altar boys together, and he talks about the different paths they took. And because Evans answered one question at the trial about how Rockwell was still angry at the murdered priest for kicking him out of the altar program, Booth is ready to lock him up for all of the murders. Yes, the pastor going on a serial-killing rampage for no reason makes total sense.
Oh, hey Flender. Isn’t that nice of you to throw your hat into the suspect pool. And not at all suspicious. But it doesn’t really help anything, since to overturn a conviction they need something called evidence.
Angela remembers how Sweets said serial killers usually have a personal connection to their first victim. Before Barnes died, he sent a bunch of flowers to a funeral for his driver.
Bones wakes up in a cold sweat as he realizes the serial killer does his thing every three or four months. Rockwell has been in prison for seven. Sigh. They’re still going with this seven months thing? Okay..
Angela’s magical computer tells her that the ironworks factory where the original victims were found was originally on holy land, so they just need to look for different holy land for the new tattoo museum. Of course they find the exact location in two minutes. After Judge Linda rolls her eyes, she grants them a search warrant, and yes, that water purification plant does have a body in it plus the tattoo with the skin attached. The victim is a woman, which is a bit of a changeup.
Judge Linda is unimpressed and thinks it’s a copycat. Caroline yells at her about politics, which doesn’t help her case. Caroline, you’re slipping. At another time, you would have sweet-talked Judge Linda into handing you that key to Rockwell’s cell within two minutes.
Down to the Wire!
Oh, no! It’s that time. Rockwell pens a letter to Zeke and is being led to the holding room.
Tracy Taylor is the name of the latest victim, and she’s ripe for purification. Her rap sheet includes prostitution, but her parole officer says she was turning her life around. Booth should be on board for this, right? No, this Booth is seven months older and no longer has time for rehabilitation stories. Also, Tracy went to the same NA meetings as Saltz, so now Booth has got a bug up his butt about him again. But it turns out Tracy was trying to get Saltz to use again.
But wait! That driver Barnes sent all of the flowers to for his funeral was Kyle Martin, who died of a drug overdose. And maybe Barnes supplied him with said drugs. And who was Kyle’s mom? Well, her last name is Flender. Does that name ring any bells? She was Flender’s sister. Kyle was his nephew.
So, they’ve finally figured it out about Flender’s messiah complex and how the people he killed were the ones who tried to lead his little goslings down the wrong path. It turns out all of the victims had the Masonic mark for deity.
I’m serious. It’s down to the wire. Rockwell is in the chamber all strapped down. Will he be saved??? I’m on the edge of my seat.
So, the mark was made with a Masonic compass. Flender, who’s come across as Mr. Nice Guy is all of a sudden Mr. Smarmy as they look for evidence in his house. Once Booth finds out the whole Masonic connection and remembers they’re builders, he notices a brick wall and figures the evidence is behind there. Yeah, that’s a big leap, but let’s go with it. Rockwell has less than fifteen minutes.
They must not be very good builders, because Booth is pulling out the bricks with no effort at all. And nobody is helping him do it, as Aubrey and Caroline just stand there with their mouths open. There’s a houseful of people, and he calls over nobody. Like he has all of the time in the world. Fortunately he only had to remove a few before he reaches in and finds the knife and the compass, so all is well.
Flender talks about his suffering, his death, and his resurrection as I pat myself on the back for seeing through his sanctimonious crap the first go-round. This makes way more sense than a criminal just suddenly becoming a ritualistic serial killer.
Judge Linda calls it in with less than a minute to go. Also, Booth no longer believes in the death penalty.
We’ll always have Paris?
It seems this is the night for everyone to remember in what field they work. How many years has it been? So now Angela wants to move to Paris, because she just remembered B&B’s house was shot up. And all of that icky death stuff they see every day. Never mind that Hodgins is still giddy and excited every time he pulls bugs off a body.
But Hodgins comes to Angela at the end saying she was thinking too small. Now that he’s got his riches back, they should live in a mansion or something. I can kinda buy Angela wanting this, because she’s an artist, but it doesn’t seem like Hodgins’ bag. What’s going on here?
And so our two-hour extravaganza comes to an end with nary a mention of Booth’s gambling. I’m sure this reprieve is short-lived.
Morning Static: Special Pre-UPFRONTS Edition
• Green is the New Black! The Muppets to return to TV
• Grace and Frankie, Netflix, review: ‘a gift’
• Awwwww Alert: More ABC Pilots Not Going Forward
• Jimmy Kimmel Won’t Air New Episode Opposite David Letterman’s Finale: ‘I Have Too Much Respect For Dave’
• ‘Studio City’ Creator & Star Confirm Pilot Is Dead At Fox, Hint It Will Be Shopped
• Not So Super News: ‘Agents Of S.H.I.E.L.D.’ Spinoff Featuring Hunter & Mockingbird Not Happening
• Woo-Hoo! Once, Castle, SHIELD, Goldbergs among renewals
• D’OH! ABC cancels Forever, Cristela, Resurrection
• Cable Ace: Amy Schumer to Film HBO Special Directed by Chris Rock
• Duh of the Day: ABC Picks Up A Fourth Shonda Rhimes Series
• Fox Picks Up Four Series, Including Comedies Starring Rob Lowe and John Stamos
• Pilot Watch: CW Orders Arrow/Flash Spin-off, New Drama from Vampire Diaries Boss
• Nostalgia Alert: NBC Picks Up Comedy Series Starring Mark-Paul Gosselaar and America Ferrera
• This Week in Tech: HBO Now streaming rival from Showtime to launch ‘in the coming months’
• Trailer Park: Netflix’s Sense8
• Clonetastic News: ‘Orphan Black’ Renewed for Fourth Season
• Don’t Shoot the Messengers: The CW Cancels Hart of Dixie After Four Seasons, Axes The Messengers, Too
• Class Act: Stephen Colbert Funds $800,000 Worth of Education Projects Using ‘Colbert Report’ Set
• Cool Dude: Joey’s Back! Dave Coulier Joins Fuller House
• LOVE HIM: NBC orders Patrick Warburton comedy to series
• Q&A: Emily VanCamp’s sweet Revenge
• How the “The Good Wife” went bad: Your comprehensive guide to the many recent fails of a previously-great show
• Where’s Perry? Disney Ends Phineas and Ferb’s Run; Finale to Air in June
• Q&A: CW President Mark Pedowitz Gets Guys How the network’s fortunes changed in a Flash
• Upfront 2015: Major TV Networks Face Severe Pressure on Ad Prices
• Class Act: ‘Forever’ Star Ioan Gruffudd On Surprise Cancellation, Playing ‘Role of My Dreams’
• Reality: This New Dancing With the Stars Twist Will Blow Your Mind!
• Funny Business: Matthew Weiner shows a clip from the MAD MEN finale!
On TV Tonight: Friday May 8, 2015
AMERICAN IDOL Recap: 4 Contestants! 12 Performances! 4 Hometown visits!
4 contestants. 12 performances. 4 hometown visits. A lot went down last night. Let’s not waste any time. On to the recap!
Rayvon Owen Sang “Want to Want Me” by Jason Derulo
Keith Said: That was a perfect song for you.
J-Lo Said: It felt real superstar-ish for me.
Harry Said: By far your best performance on an uptempo song.
The Verdict::
Rayvon came out like an absolute pop star on this performance. Whatever nerves had been holding him back and turning him into a statue singing at the camera seemed to melt away during his hometown visit as he was as loose and easily charismatic as anybody since Justin Guarini on this performance.
And, for once, his falsetto was actually on point. Normally, I think it lacks so much power as to just feel airy. Here, it was every bit as big as his always spectacular chest voice and gave him a gear beyond what he’s flashed so far.
This was a ton of fun from Rayvon and one of his best vocal performances..
Grade: A-
Clark Beckham Sang “Beautiful Day” by U2
Keith Said: You should have risen up to the band.
J-Lo Said: That was really suited to your voice. You channeled your inner rock star.
Harry Said: Don’t disregard the verses.
The Verdict::
Strange choice here for Clark as the song doesn’t allow him to inject any of his funky AM Gold vibe into it really at all. Instead, he had to go anthemic, and it didn’t quite work. A totally unnatural feeling abounded as it became Clark singing a song he wouldn’t normally sing rather than something that felt like it was off his record – his trademark.
Sure, the vocals were solid and his voice soared about as high as it ever has, but it just didn’t have that awesome Clark vibe.
Grade: B-
Nick Fradiani Sang “Because the Night” by Bruce Springsteen
Keith Said: When I hear your tone, I’m excited.
J-Lo Said: You need to connect with the words more.
Harry Said: I thought it was fantastic.
The Verdict::
OK. It’s official. After Nick’s grappled with taking on the persona of every lame rock frontman in the history of the medium, he’s now definitively Rob Thomas. He can be nobody else.
This is a perfect song. An absolute firestorm of sexual anguish and ferocity. He made it sound like a freaking lullaby of mid-90s crap rock, pulling the teeth right out of it in a way that seemed almost like desecration.
Normal, bland, mid-level rock music from a song that commands something much more.
Grade: C-
Jax Sang “My Generation” by The Who
Keith Said: That was friggin’ awesome.
J-Lo Said: It was perfect for you. You killed that.
Harry Said: You absolutely made the most of your opportunity.
The Verdict::
This had the makings of total karaoke performance. Right on the record, Jax draped in a Union Jack. Lame backup singers. It was all there.
But Jax managed to transcend that just enough to tilt this towards good. Her interactions with the band were spot on. Her crowd work made her feel like a rock star. Her energy blew the roof off higher than it should have from this performance and arrangement.
Jax has that indefinable quality that makes the best out of even the worst musical situations.
Grade: B
Nick Fradiani Sang “Back Home” by Andy Grammer
Keith Said: I’m glad your dad is here?
J-Lo Said: That was another great song by you.
Harry Said: That was very strong.
The Verdict::
Oh no. I’m really starting to hate Nick. He is just becoming the total embodiment of the Imagine Dragons-ing of rock where it’s all about being so middle-of-the-road that it’s like the radio isn’t playing musical at all.
I have to give it to him. He’s definitely a rock start if that’s what you want to call it at this point. If you swapped him out with the front man of any of those lame rock bands, they wouldn’t miss a beat.
That’s kind of a compliment, but not really.
Grade: C
Clark Beckham Sang “(Sittin’ On) the Dock of the Bay” by Otis Redding
Keith Said: I’m missing a bit of struggle.
J-Lo Said: This type of song is who you are.
Harry Said: I felt like I got to know you a little bit more.
The Verdict::
Here’s the Clark we were waiting for. Total AM Gold on a soul song. The perfect amount of watering down to make it a smoothly pleasant experience. Huge hooks in the chorus that let the song soar. This kid was born to dominate 70s radio forty years too late.
Vintage Clark. I can scarcely say anything more.
Grade: A-
Rayvon Owen Sang “As (Always)” by Stevie Wonder
Keith Said: Great great song choice.
J-Lo Said: It all felt right to me.
Harry Said: What a great night. It was strong.
The Verdict::
Before we get to the performance, it must be discussed that Rayvon was essentially wearing a graduation gown turned into a suit jacket turned into a pair of pajamas turned into a tuxedo costume on this performance. We’ve covered that? Good.
As the first performance exemplified good Rayvon, this exemplified bad Rayvon. Too many runs. Too much false soul. Too much of a wannabe soul singer rather than a guy singing soul music.
The whole thing felt too polished and made him sing like something of a poseur rather than a true star.
Grade: C-
Jax Sang “My Immortal” by Evanescence
Keith Said: (Nod of approval)
J-Lo Said: It’s all about humility. I think you’re amazing.
Harry Said: Fantastic.
The Verdict::
From the moment she announced her song choice, I knew exactly what was going to happen. She was sitting at the piano and it was very clear what was about to occur. The lights dimmed and it couldn’t be denied. Jax was going to go Tori Amos on an Evanescence song and it was going to be glorious.
Surprisingly, it was even better than I expected in those five seconds from song announcement to performance. Her emotion, her tone, her star quality cut through the delicate performance like a razor as she did the goddamned definitive version of this song with a fragility nobody ever shows on this show.
Her best yet easily.
Grade: A+
Clark Beckham Sang “Earned It (Fifty Shades of Grey)” by The Weeknd
Keith Said: I saw and heard and felt things I’ve never heard from you before.
J-Lo Said: It got electric. I got the goosies.
Harry Said: Find a way to find quiet intensity.
The Verdict::
I don’t know this song. I know it’s a big hit right now. I know people are digging The Weeknd. But I don’t know much more than that.
I do know that Clark Beckham put on a suit, absolutely destroyed this song, and suddenly I’d let him go all Christian Grey on me and I’m totally straight.
I’m sure I’m not the only one. Good God what a vocal. Best pure vocal of the entire season from anybody.
Grade: A
Rayvon Owen Sang “You Are So Beautiful” by Joe Cocker
Keith Said: Beautiful song and beautiful arrangement.
J-Lo Said: You needed to show more emotion and connection.
Harry Said: That was really smart. Good job.
The Verdict::
This song was an easy win for Rayvon. With his ability to sing ballads and milk the emotion of a love song out through his voice, an easy home run.
Rayvon, however, totally sabotaged himself by slowing the song down so much that it almost became a funeral dirge and singing a run on just about every single note. Like Jamie Foxx singing The National Anthem or something.
His falsetto was astonishing again, and his voice its typical on-point self. But he over complicated what should have been a simple and brilliant performance.
Grade: C+
Jax Sang “Misery Business” by Paramore
Keith Said: You sang phenomenally, but it was an odd arrangement.
J-Lo Said: To pull it back that far it was like, “What happened?”
Harry Said: It seemed like you were using the guitar as a crutch.
The Verdict::
Ugh. Spanish guitar on a hard rock song that Jax would kill in its original version? Why? Why oh why?
Jax did okay with it all things considering. I can’t understand the half-assed acoustic arrangement of it though. Especially as she basically sang the original vocal line.
It simply didn’t make sense and became four things at once while ending up as nothing.
Grade: C-
Nick Fradiani Sang “I’ll Be” by Edwin McCain
Keith Said: If you had cut that, it would be a hit.
J-Lo Said: It was perfect.
Harry Said: It sounded like you were singing the underbelly of what those lyrics mean.
The Verdict::
Congrats, Nick. The judges just handed you a craptastic perfectly-soft late-90s rock ballad so you can fulfill your destiny as the ultimate lightweight rocker. I swear, it’s like the guy has turned into a jukebox from 1998 at this point. He’s just so damn good at being awful it’s something to behold.
Sadly, I think the dude’s got a future.
Grade: B-
Prediction:
Well, we’re down to the finale. There can be only one to win it all next week. Here’s a mini power rankings of who’s got the inside track going into next week’s final shows.
1 – Nick Fradiani
Everything I’ve said about his craptastism (new word) is exactly what’s going to see him ultimately triumph on this show. His middle-of-the-road rock is exactly what voters on this show crave and he does it really well.
2 – Jax
Jax is super cool and super talented but other than the year when the producers rigged it for Candice Glover to win, a female hasn’t taken the title since Jordin Sparks beat a beatboxer in Season Six. She’ll make the top two for reasons I’ll explain in a bit, but she’ll get steamrolled by Nick.
3 – Clark Beckham
Ah. My favorite. This should be a walkover for Clark. He should have the other contestants just give him the title and then swear their fealty to him like a conquering king. But he’s my favorite, so there’s no way he’s going to win. He’s also the most talented, which means he’ll finish third. Just ask Alex Preston, Angie Miller and Joshua Ledet.
Morning Static: THE MINDY PROJECT, CRIMINAL MINDS, SUPERGIRL & More!
• Super News! Supergirl Officially Takes Flight at CBS
• Criminal Minds: Jennifer Love Hewitt Not Returning for Season 11
• Funny Business: Max Greenfield on the New Girl Finale, Being Too Schmidt-y, and Sia
• Fox Cancels The Mindy Project; Hulu Might Save It
• Cool Beans: ‘Breaking Bad’ Star RJ Mitte to Be Honored at 2015 Heller Awards
• Why? Last Man Standing replaces showrunner
• Vampire Diaries boss: How to make the perfect finale
• Duh of the Day: The ‘Supergirl’ Series Is Officially Coming To CBS
• The Business of Show: TNT Delays Legends and Moves Up a 1960s Cop Drama
• Survivor Twist: Viewer Votes Will Decide Next Season’s Castaways
• Behind-the-Scenes: The Last Man on Earth names Dan Sterling as new showrunner
• Woo-Hoo! CW gives ‘iZombie’ renewed life for Season 2
• The Good Wife Finale: EPs Preview a ‘Satisfying’ Last Call for Kalinda, Tease Alicia’s ‘Next Chapter’
• More Funny Business: NBC Revives Variety Show Talks With Maya Rudolph in Live Programming Push
• Scoop: ‘Powers’ Renewed for Second Season at PlayStation
• Shadowhunters: Katherine McNamara Tapped to Star as Clary Fray
• Fuller House Just Got Fuller! Check Out Who Signed On
• Meet Jessi Klein, the Other Brain Behind Inside Amy Schumer
• Pilot and Pickup Buzz: ‘Agent Carter,’ ‘Battle Creek,’ ‘Mysteries of Laura’ Await Decisions
• This Week in Tech: CraveTV Becomes the First Canadian Streaming Service to Offer Chromecast Capability
On TV Tonight: Thursday May 7, 2015
The Broadcast Television Journalists Association Announce Their 5th Annual Critics’ Choice Television Award Nominations
Press Release: The Broadcast Television Journalists Association (BTJA) today announced nominations for the 5th annual Critics’ Choice Television Awards, which will be broadcast live on A&E from the Beverly Hilton Hotel on Sunday, May 31, 2015 (8:00pm ET/5:00pm PT), with a one-hour Red Carpet Special preceding the awards show.
HBO leads the networks in nominations with 27, followed by FX which garnered 16. Topping the list of nominated series are Justified (FX) and Olive Kitteridge (HBO), both with five nominations. The Americans (FX), Bessie (HBO), The Good Wife (CBS), Transparent (Amazon) and Wolf Hall (PBS) followed close behind with four nominations each. Other top series with multiple nominations include American Crime (ABC), American Horror Story: Freak Show (FX), The Big Bang Theory (CBS), Broad City (Comedy Central), The Honorable Woman (Sundance), Jane the Virgin (The CW), Silicon Valley (HBO), Stockholm, Pennsylvania (Lifetime) and Veep (HBO), all with three nominations. Walton Goggins is nominated for his performance in two different shows: Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series for Justified (FX) and Best Guest Performer in a Drama for Sons of Anarchy (FX).
“From streaming television to broadcast and cable, single-camera to multi-camera productions, inventive reality shows to high-end drama series, this year’s Critics’ Choice Television Awards contenders really span the gamut,” said BTJA President Joey Berlin. “It’s thrilling to continue to see such creativity and diversity in television programming, and as television journalists, it’s exciting to be able to share our favorites with viewers.”
Nominations for the 5th annual Critics’ Choice Television Awards include: [Read more…]
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