I haven’t RedBoxed or Netflixed in weeks, so I don’t really have anything to discuss on that front. I did catch a new standup special on Comedy Central, though – Tracy Morgan: Bona Fide. And it was HORRIBLE. I think I laughed once. I know he used to be a funny guy, so I’m not sure what happened. Maybe he’s just not good at standup? That was what people were saying when he got in trouble for his homophobic rant in his last standup. Maybe he was playing it safe so he didn’t get in trouble again. Either way, it was not an enjoyable hour.
It’s currently “Stand Up Month” for Comedy Central and Comedy Central Radio, which is an odd concept. I mean, shouldn’t every month be Stand Up Month? It’s like if MTV christened Music Month or something. Anyway, as part of Stand Up Month, they’ve premiered a new one hour special every Sunday night. I watched Morgan’s, but I listened to Jim Gaffigan: Obsessed and Hannibal Buress: Live From Chicago. Both were what you’d expect from their respective stars. Gaffigan did the whole “subliminal voice” thing that he does, while Buress wasn’t as funny as he’d been in past specials. Still, both specials were WAY funnier than Tracy Morgan. If you’ve got Spotify, you can listen to them there.
Speaking of TV, History Channel is creating Pawnography, which is basically Pawn Stars: The Game Show. In the show, contestants will answer trivia from the Pawn Stars cast in order to win items from Rick Harrison’s personal collection. This would be interesting if Rick actually knew a damn thing about most of his items. Instead, they should focus on Rick’s “experts” that he calls on when he needs information on an item. I haven’t watched Pawn Stars in about a year, as it just got too formulaic for me, but I’ll check out a few episodes of this game show.
We FINALLY have a premiere date for Girl Meets World – Friday, June 27th!
They announced the Star Wars Episode VII cast this week, and I’ve got nothing. I don’t know any of these people except Adam Driver, and he’s got the kind of face that you just wanna punch. It’s pretty cool that a black guy is the lead this time around, but I’ve yet to see Attack The Block, so I can’t say anything about his acting chops. The one thing I noticed about that released pic, however, is Harrison Ford’s pit stain. Once you see it, you’ll never not see it.
It’s no secret that I love every episode of American Dad where Steve sings. Luckily, the Boyz 12 episode is one of the best examples of this, and it aired on Adult Swim this week. In fact, it’s the second time it’s aired in the past month, but I’m not complaining! The episode led me to directly tweet Seth MacFarlane, asking him to put all of Steve’s songs on iTunes. I don’t even use iTunes, but you bet I would if I could get those tracks! I wish I could show you that I got a reply from him, but it apparently fell on deaf ears. Or deaf keyboard. Whatever you’re supposed to say in a digital society. Anyway, there doesn’t seem to be a high quality video of the song, but here’s what it sounds like:
This week, it was announced that Nick Carter of the Backstreet Boys and Jordan Knight of NKOTB have formed a duo, called Nick & Knight. I’m not making this up. I’m not sure what to think of it. On the one hand, Jordan’s “Give It To You” was one of the best pop songs of the late 90s. On the other hand, Nick didn’t even make a splash when he attempted a solo career. As a boyband fiend, I can’t say that I’m “excited”, per se, but I’m am intrigued. Not only are they releasing an album in September, but they’re also going on tour. If you wanna hear their first single, “Just The Two Of Us”, Perez Hilton has the clip. I’m not blown away by it, but it could be a lot worse.
The “Death of Wolverine” storyline was announced this week from Marvel Comics. I haven’t read a single article about it, so I can’t speak with any real authority on it. I’ve got no interest in it whatsoever. “Death” has become such a commonplace gimmick in comics that it doesn’t mean a thing anymore. What it equates to is a really long nap until the character is needed again. I’d be more inclined to read these stories if they’d just call them that, like “Wolverine’s Yearlong Nap”. I’m already filled with a ton of questions. How is he sleeping for so long? Is anyone cutting his hair? Are they feeding him through tubes? That angle is kinda interesting. Wolverine’s “death”, however, means nothing to me. It also doesn’t help that there was a “The Death of Wolverine” storyline only 5 years ago. Have fun with that, Marvel.
I don’t talk a lot about sports ’cause I really don’t know what I’m talking about. I do, however, know my TMZ. Over the past week, TMZ acquired recorded phone conversations between LA Clippers owner Donald Sterling and his alleged girlfriend. In those conversations, he told her that he didn’t know why she broadcasts the fact that she hangs around with black people. This was the result of her posting a picture of herself on Instagram with Magic Johnson (btw, follow me on Instagram! @williambrucewest). This resulted in a lifetime ban by the NBA, as well as a $2.5M fine. I guess they needed to make an example of him to show that those sorts of attitudes won’t be tolerated. It’s an interesting contrast to the Marge Schott situation. Schott owned the Cincinnati Reds back when I was still collecting baseball cards (Upper Deck had cool holograms!), and she was known for saying “nigger” left and right. She was only banned for 2 seasons. It wasn’t until she said that Hitler was a good leader that things started to go downhill for her. Facing a third suspension and failing health, she sold her majority stake in the team. At the moment, Sterling insists he won’t sell, while the NBA says they’ll do everything in their power to force a sale. So, comparing the two events, it makes me wonder if Major League Baseball didn’t do enough to Schott, or if the NBA went too far with Sterling. A lot of energy went towards getting him ousted this week, and it worked. It’s dangerous to have people with those views in positions of power. That said, this is only one rich racist. They’re like hydra, and I’m not sure this really makes a dent in the problem. If anything, it’ll just make those people more careful with whom they share their views, but it won’t stop them from having the views. I find the whole thing fascinating, but I’m not sure if I’m satisfied.
Links I Loved
The Secret History Of Britney Spears’ Lost Album – Buzzfeed
33 Amazingly Useful Websites You Never Knew Existed – Buzzfeed
The 10 Worst Slime Toys – The Robot’s Pajamas
Power Ranking the Plentiful Pop Culture Acronyms of the 80s – UnderScoopFire!
This has quickly turned into Will’s Black Person of the Week. I swear that wasn’t the original intent, but blacks folks be blowin’ up! I may not know who dude is, but I’m not alone. That said, everyone will know who he is for a LONG, LONG time once Star Wars Episode VII comes out. Unless, of course, he ends up like Jake Lloyd. Still, his name was on everyone’s lips this week, and he’s helping a galaxy far, far away to become more diverse. Sure, there are folks who might ask “Wasn’t Mace Windu enough?” or “Where’s the female diversity?”, but I’ve got nothing to really say about that. After all, I’m a Trekker at heart, so it’s amazing I’m even going all out for a Star Wars casting announcement. Yet, here we are. So, for being the guy most likely to have his TIE Fighter pulled over by the space cops, John Boyega is having the West Week Ever.
Attack the block is so good.
and when Steve sings, it’s like the heavens open and God is welcoming us all.
The boyband ep of American Dad is hilarious! Such a better use of their singing talent than Family Guy. Anyway – on Don Sterling: I find it ridiculous that the NBA has gone to such great public lengths to make it safe for young Black men to dedicate their youth and physical prowess to entertaining educated suburban audiences with basketball acrobatics. Eliminating Don Sterling from basketball does nothing to combat the systemic racism in education, housing and criminal justice that retards generational Black wealth and impedes Black voting strength.
When Sterling openly opposed renting to Black and Latino families, the NBA did nothing. Now TMZ acquires secretly taped audio of Sterling’s repugnant views and that alone is deemed enough to divest this man from his property? Even as we recall that private organizations like the NBA can set their own rules, it’s difficult to regard the NBA’s move here as much more than necessary public relations to maintain profitability, completely unmoored from any ethical logic whatsoever. At this point, I wonder how much profit Sterling stands to gain from this public outcry.
And V.Stiviano is the Millennial Generation’s Sally Hemings. Just saying.