Wednesday, April 17, 2013

TV notes: THIS AMERICAN WIFE video #2; ZOMBIELAND doesn't debut; BORGEN Season 1 on Disc, Seasons 1 & 2 streaming; BURNING LOVE Season 3; Carnegie Medals in Literature Ceremony Live Coverage; MHz Worldview International Crime Drama and more...

Borgen
Some quick notes, while seeking time to do some more extensive ones:

Salon has a review up touting the virtues, and quite impressive virtues they are, of the Danish tv drama Borgen, which I have repeatedly recommended to anyone who holds still long enough to allow me to. Or doesn't run away fast enough. The English and Danish folks behind the original, Danish version of The Killing do the best political drama series on tv today I've seen (given that The Good Wife is less completely a political drama), like the current CBS series much more sophisticated and probing than anything Aaron Sorkin has managed in this arena. You as Americans (if you are such) can now buy the first season in MHz Worldview's dvd set, and watch the first and second seasons for free (the first season only till April 20th) on Link TV's streaming page. MHz Worldview, of course, runs more than its share of European crime-drama series, and streams almost all of them, though unlike the Link TV links only along with the broadcast feed, not on-demand. 

The most passive-aggressive kids' show title so far: TV Ontario's Guess How Much I Love You...

Burning Love is still the funniest web series I'm familiar with, as a deservedly savage parody of such "reality" series as The Bachelor, and (I believe) Yahoo's greatest success in web series so far (repeats of the first season are now running on cable channel E!), though This American Wife, when the second video episode comes down (which it has! see below), will be in serious contention for that...can't have a one-episode series, after all (though the audio podcast remains vital). And then there's Harry Shearer's MyDamnChannel feed...and...and...
Burning Love. You'll be amused by who's in the panda suit, I suspect.


Amazon has, in its attempt to become a major player in web video services, commissioned a series based on that fine horror/comedy Zombieland, but, despite a lot of noisemaking around the web today the pilot of the tv series is not yet up, at least for now...apparently it will be free to view even for non Amazon Prime members.  And WIGS continues to add content, some too soapy, some pretty damned good...meanwhile, I keep meaning to take advantage of my HBO subscription to check out their HBO Go and Max Go series...but time, as noted, is tight...and surfaces are only lightly scratched, here...

And since this tv notes installment seems all but all devoted to web video, I'll mention I've (in my dilatory way) just managed to catch up with the following web-video series: The Merriam-Webster Dictionary's Ask the Editor, and The Guardian Film Show.

But, first, another upaid advert: for the American Library Association:

Booklist, in partnership with RUSA, is announcing the finalists for the
Andrew Carnegie Medals for Excellence in Fiction and Nonfiction Finalists
live online with Nancy Pearl and ALA President Maureen Sullivan!
=========================================================
Listen in to the live announcement of the 2013 finalists for the Andrew Carnegie Medals for Excellence. Join Nancy Pearl, selection committee chair, and Maureen Sullivan, ALA President, as they divulge this year's three best adult books in both fiction and nonfiction.

Don't miss this exciting 15 minutes of book award history!
Sign up for this FREE event: https://alapublishing.webex.com/alapublishing/onstage/g.php?t=a&d=660212357
Can't attend live? Register to get a link to the recording and play it back later at your convenience.
EVENT DETAILS:
Monday, April 22
12:00 PM Eastern // 11:00 AM Central // 10:00 AM Mountain // 9:00 AM Pacific


And in further celebration of literacy in a video age, there is this: Hysterical Literature
 









And, indeed, here's episode 2 of the video version of This American Wife:

2 comments:

George said...

I've ordered BORGEN (Season One) on DVD (I didn't see any Blu-ray format). I'm really looking forward to this! Hopefully, the other seasons will show up on DVD, too. And, June 2 can't show up fast enough for me with THE KILLING Season Three premiere.

Todd Mason said...

Glad you're taking the plunge, George! MHz can use the support...and, of course, I hope you enjoy the series even nearly as much as I do.