America's Got Talent 6 - 6/29/11 Auditions

My recap/review of Wednesday's audition episode of America's Got Talent is now up at OMGWire.com. Below is an excerpt of my commentary.

Click HERE to read the entire article.

The judges, apparently, have a hard time finding their way through the theatre building. Howie ends up getting lost in what seems to be the basement (the bowels of the theatre). A cheesy, staged incident like this fits in well with the cheesiness of “America’s Got Talent,” don’t you think? I love it.

Eric and Christlo – Singers
Song: “Don’t Go Chasing Waterfalls”
The two members of this singing duo have cheesy choreography, and do not sing any note in tune. Both Piers and Sharon X them. And all three judges vote no.

Combined American Idol & X Factor News Page

You may have noticed that whenever any major X Factor news articles come in, I have put them on the American Idol News page. And starting today, I have decided to make it official, and rename that page 'American Idol & X Factor News.' (It still retains the same URL). On that page, you can find all the latest news on both American Idol and The X Factor. I am doing this because I have not yet decided if I will give X Factor its own page to chronicle the competition over the course of each season (but I very well may). I also did this because it makes it easier for you all to clearly see that that page covers news on two shows, and not just on Idol.

America's Got Talent 6 - New York Auditions (Pt2)

My recap/review of Tuesday's audition episode of America's Got Talent is now up at OMGWire.com. Below are excerpts of my commentary.

Click HERE to read the entire article.

Rak and Tak – Singers
Song: Heart’s “Alone”
The two members of this duo are not only husband and wife, but doctors as well. In their intro video, they go on about how good a voice the other one has. I already have a bad feeling about this. And what do you know, they’re completely tone-deaf. The worst part is her high notes, which hurt my ears. But unbelievably, they receive no X’s from the judges. Fortunately, though, Howie and Sharon vote no; I don’t have any idea why Piers votes yes. But during their comments on the performance, Rak and Tak don’t pick up on the judges hints that they’re bad.

Michael Jackson's Death: 2 Years Later...

On June 25, 2009, I sat down to my laptop to search the Internet for the most recent entertainment news to put up on TV Watch Online. I saw a headline that said Michael Jackson was rushed to a hospital and was in a coma. Upon seeing this, I immediately opened up this L.A. Times article. It was an article that was continuously being updated with the latest on this breaking news item. A few moments later, I refreshed the page, and this was the new headline I read: "Michael Jackson is dead." My jaw opened in shock and my heart beat furiously. I wasn't a diehard MJ fan or anything, but this came out of nowhere, and anybody would be shocked by this. Once I got out of my daze, I immediately ran upstairs to ask if the news was on. We turned on CNN, and were glued to the TV for quite a while.

As I mentioned above, I wasn't necessarily a Michael Jackson fan, per say, and I'll tell you why. I am 22 years old, which means I grew up in the '90's and '00's. I didn't grow up with Michael Jackson's music. If I heard his name on TV or elsewhere, I did not think of "Thriller" or "Billie Jean" or "Bad." I thought of the child molestation allegations, the plastic surgery (seeing bandages over his shrinking nose), the court proceedings, seeing him arrive to court in his pajamas, and being found not guilty on all counts. Those were the thoughts I had of him, because that's all I ever saw surrounding him my entire life.

But even though June 25, 2009 was a day of mourning, something amazing also happened starting on that day. During the 24/7 news coverage that followed his death in the hours, days and weeks to come, his personal life was not the overshadowing analysis by the talking heads or America. His music, rightly, came back to the forefront (his music dominated iTunes and Amazon). And as a result, I became a fan of Michael Jackson - the artist, the performer, the singer, the entertainer. In the days that followed, I spent my time pouring YouTube to listen to all of his singles and other well-known songs, and watched all of his music videos (including the genius that is "Thriller").

Even though the music overpowered all, there was still the soap opera drama that followed, trying to figure out why he died, what drugs he might have taken, and if Doctor Conrad Murray was at fault. Then the cash cow began. Everyone tried to get their hands on making some money from his death. Rehearsal footage from what would have been his comeback tour was released as the concert/documentary This Is It. And then Sony released MJ's first posthumous album, Michael.

But when it came to Michael Jackson himself (putting aside all other persons involved), the music reined supreme, and that is a good thing, indeed.

Today, on the two-year anniversary of Michael Jackson's death, let us not focus on his death. Rather, let us look back on his contributions to the world of music...

"If you enter this world knowing you are loved and you leave this world knowing the same, then everything that happens in between can be dealt with."
-- Michael Jackson

"And my goal in life is to give to the world what I was lucky to receive: the ecstasy of divine union through my music and my dance."
-- Michael Jackson

"In a world filled with hate, we must still dare to hope. In a world filled with anger, we must still dare to comfort. In a world filled with despair, we must still dare to dream. And in a world filled with distrust, we must still dare to believe."
-- Michael Jackson

America's Got Talent 6 - New York Auditions

My recap/review of last night's (Wednesday) audition episode of America's Got Talent is now up at OMGWire.com. Below are excerpts of my commentary.

Click HERE to read the entire article.

When host Nick Cannon introduces the judges, Howie comes out in a large, clear ball. Hilarious! If you watch The ‘Ellen DeGeneres Show,’ you know that Ellen at one time gave Howie one of those clear balls to walk around in (though I can tell it’s not the same as this one). Seeing something like this, how can you not love Howie?

Triple Threat – Broadway Act
They call themselves ‘Triple Threat’ because in the world of Broadway, a triple threat is someone who can sing, act and dance, and this act can supposedly do all three. The singing is not good at all. And the dancing is amateurish and basic. The judges all X’s them, so we don’t get to see any acting.

America's Got Talent 6 - Atlanta Auditions

My recap/review of Tuesday night's audition episode of America's Got Talent is now up on OMGWire.com. Below is an excerpt of my write-up. Click HERE to read the entire article.

Hershae Chocolatae – Drag Queen
Hershae does impersonations with some dancing added in. He starts out performing as Macy Gray. His voice is very flat. Even though we can tell it’s Macy he’s impersonating, the tone and pitch of the voice should be better than what he’s offering. Then “Last Dance” begins and he does some dancing for the remainder of his time. Piers votes no. But both Sharon and Howie vote yes. Now, I’m all for having impersonators on the show, but you have to be great at it, not just good.

Jennifer Lawrence: From Winter's Bone to The Hunger Games

Recently, I sat down to watch the Oscar Best Picture-nominated film Winter's Bone on DVD. Winter's Bone has never been on my radar of movies to watch, even during the high of Oscar season. So why, you might ask, did I decide to finally watch it? The answer is because of Jennifer Lawrence, who has been cast in the role of Katniss Everdeen in next year's highly-anticipated The Hunger Games, based on the first book in the bestselling Young Adult trilogy by Suzanne Collins.

When Ms. Lawrence was first cast as Katniss, there was an uproar among fans of the book series that she was too old, too blonde, not thin enough, etc. etc. Even during Oscar season, I didn't pay any attention to her, because everyone said she had no chance at winning Best Actress. When her name popped up as the frontrunner for this role, I'm not lying when I say I had no opinion either way on if she was the right person to play Katniss. I was willing to give her a chance at this, and not make harsh judgments when we hadn't even seen any images or video clips of her in the film yet. I didn't really understand why fans were so upset by this casting decision. Somehow, they overlooked the fact that you can change a person's hair color, you can use makeup and other effects to darken skin. You can do all sorts of things to make her look like Katniss. I mean, look at the Harry Potter films or The Lord of the Rings trilogy; hair and makeup, prosthetics, and special effects can go a long way (Tom Felton? Yeah, not a natural blonde).

Then Entertainment Weekly released the first promotional photo shoot of Jennifer in full makeup and costume with brunette hair. Suddenly, the fandom breathed a big sigh of relief, and thus there was a sense of calm and order in the world again. And, by the way, I love the promo shot and immediately got excited for her to play this role.

But back to Winter's Bone now. As far as I'm aware, I have never seen her act in anything before. And since a huge part of why Jennifer was cast in The Hunger Games was because of her moving and powerful role in Winter's Bone, I felt compelled to actually watch it. Jennifer plays Ree, whose father is out on bond and has put the house and property up as his bond. If he doesn't show up for court, Ree and her family will lose the house. So Ree sets out to find him.

There is a scene where Ree's uncle grabs her by the neck/face. Here is where we see Jennifer displaying a great sense of fear and vulnerability, whereas in the scenes before that, we see her defiant and trying to act tough and strong (putting on a front, perhaps?). The character of Katniss in The Hunger Games is not this hugely tough, Lara Croft-type heroine. She does have vulnerability. She does have fear. She is human and has flaws. And Jennifer perfectly captured all of that when playing Ree. And in a scene near the end which takes place in a boat (for those who don't want to be spoiled, I won't say what actually happens in that scene), Ree is very overwrought with emotion. Jennifer's acting in these types of scenes are breathtaking to watch. She is a brilliant actress. And after watching her Oscar-nominated performance in Winter's Bone, I don't have any worries about her taking on the role of Katniss.

When a million names were flying all over the Internet on who should play Katniss Everdeen, one of the front-runners at one point was Kaya Scodelario, who played Effy Stonem in the hit British drama, Skins. I am a fan of that show and thought she should play Katniss after seeing her on that TV show. One of the reasons why other fans thought she would be perfect as well was because she is pretty thin, since Katniss is supposed to have a starved appearance over the course of the games. And many are not happy with the fact that Jennifer is not thin. I'm not sure how they will deal with this aspect, but I'm sure they'll come up with something. This is the only area where I can understand why fans would be upset.

I have faith in Gary Ross, Suzanne Collins and all the filmmakers to create an excellent film that lives up to our expectations. People are saying this new movie franchise could be the next Twilight, not in terms of the story, but in terms of the anticipation, buzz, hype, and box office draw. I believe it does have a chance at that; it's already started. Harry Potter is ending next month. Twilight ends next year. We need a new Young Adult/fantasy franchise to take over, and I am confident that The Hunger Games can fill that role. And with Jennifer Lawrence as the face of these movies, we the fans should have nothing to worry about. I'm not making any judgments about any of the casting choices until I see them in their roles. And I hope others can do that as well. I'm not saying I won't make criticisms about certain elements of the movie; I'm sure I will, but for now, I'm staying out of that department. There is a reason we love the books. So let's support the filmmakers in this journey of translating the story to the big screen.

For all the latest news, rumors and filming updates, visit TV Watch Online's The Hunger Games page.

America's Got Talent 6 - Seattle Auditions Pt2

My recap/review of Tuesday night's audition episode of America's Got Talent is now up on OMGWire.com. Below is an excerpt of my write-up. Click HERE to read the entire article.

Brian Jackson - Blowing up hot water bottles
This man blows up hot water bottles until they explode. He has broken bones before doing what he does. He wants to break a world record, which I think he said was blowing up three in 90 seconds. Howie times him for 90 seconds. Piers X’s him right away. When time is up, Howie X’s him as well. He can’t even manage to get through one. His excuse is that he hasn’t used this brand before. Uh huh, ’cause that’s the reason why. Does he really think this is something we all would want to see done again and again and again each and every week, the same thing over and over? Three no’s from the judges and he’s eliminated.

America's Got Talent 6 - Houston/Minneapolis Auditions

My recap/commentary on Wednesday's audition episode of America's Got Talent is now up at OMGWire.com. Below is an excerpt of my write-up. Click HERE to read the entire article.

Rhinestone Ropers – Knife Thrower
Dan throws knives at Melanie. We all know the drill here: everyone freaks out and the “victim” is fine. Then he spins her on a sort of wheel and continues throwing knives. And they also shoot guns at balloons. I can’t see them going much further than what we just saw on stage, but they’re definitely great at what they do. All three judges send them to Vegas.

Mona Lisa –  Female Singing Duo
Three yeses.

Charles Peachock – Glow-in-the-Dark Juggler
The glow-in-the-dark aspect brings a unique take on the usually predictable juggling act. Three yeses from the judges.

America's Got Talent 6 - Seattle Auditions

As I announced earlier this week, I am now a writer for OMGWire.com. This summer, I am doing recaps/reviews of America's Got Talent. Below is an excerpt of my write-up of Tuesday night's episode. Click HERE to read the entire article.

We’re in my home state of Washington for this audition stop! And of course it’s raining when the judges come to town. Our stereotypical Pacific Northwest weather shines through (or rather, doesn’t shine). Howie Mandel is driving around Seattle, looking for the Paramount Theatre; at one point, he drives down the wrong way of a one-way road. And we see a shot of Lincoln’s Toe Truck. If you’re from the area, that’s typical to see in Seattle. If you didn’t catch the truck on the show or didn’t know exactly what you were seeing, click HERE to see a picture of it.

Melissa Villasenor - Comedian/Impressionist
The judges ask her what she does. She says, “I work at a retail store,” in a sad voice. Melissa begins by doing an impression of Barbara Walters interviewing Natalie Portman. I’ve seen better Babs impressions, but her Portman sounded spot on. And of course she does Miley Cyrus. Now, that’s a voice that anybody would recognize. But then, out of nowhere, she does an absolutely perfect and spot-on Kathy Griffin. Wow! I’ve never heard anybody do her voice before, but it sounded exactly like her. And I’m a huge fan of Kathy Griffin, so I loved this. Finally, Melissa closes out her set with Christina Aguilera (and an perfect plug-in for Christina’s show, ‘The Voice,’ airing right after AGT!). All the judges vote yes and she’s sent through to the Vegas round.