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Regular viewers and followers will know that despite my love of serial killers and general sci fi, I am a sucker for a great musical episode! Come to a live and just ask Greg (general hater of the sing and dance shenanigans in non song and dance shows) about it. From Bollywood in Legends of Tomorrow, to 80's remixes in The Magicians, ever since Buffy did theirs, I am more than on board for musical interludes.
The one thing better than random musical numbers or episodes? WHOLE SHOWS that bring the music, and NBC has been doing just that with one just ending, and one about to start!
Perfect Harmony is a quirkly little half hour comedy that just finished its 13 episode run on NBC (if you missed it you can catch it on Hulu or NBC on Demand. Featuring Bradley Whitford and Anna Camp you find an unlikely blend of a Harvard professor helping a southern church. It is 100% feel good TV - like a mini Hallmark movie with feel good songs. Be sure to watch for the hilarious alternate tv and movie titles from Reverand Jax (Rizwan Manji) whose missionary parents felt moral lessons were needed. My favorites include Glee - "Being Gay Makes High School Hard" .... And Heathers - "Girls Named Heather Go to Hell Together." As of the time of writing the future for Perfect Harmony is still up in the air. From everything I have seen I am not expecting news until probably mid season and at this point I am sticking with no news is good news. With staple half hour comedies like the Good Place coming to and end - there is a perfect slot just waiting for it. ***Trailer from the official NBC Youtube Channel - All Rights Reserved - No ownership implied from posting***
The second show has aired the pilot, but now we have to wait until February for epsiode 2 (which is a little weird - but hey it looks like it is going to be worth it!)
Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist follows Zoey (Jane Levy) after a strange incident involving music and an MRI machine. Basically, she can now hear people's thought process and true emotions expressed in a song and dance routine that only she can see. Yes there are things that you could dissect (Greg), and explain why this wouldn't work in the way it does (I mean I will give you that everyone joining in the song and dance routine with the SAME song in their head is a bit of a stretch), but I didn't care. This was amazingly heartwarming, and definitely fun! The pilot episode is now streaming on NBC on demand, Hulu, and even YouTube (as part of the official Zoey's Extrordinary Playlist channel). Check out the trailer below and get some music in you, and as with everything I would LOVE to hear your thoughts on either or both of the shows. ***Trailer via the official TV Promo 360 Youtube Channel - All Rights Reserved - No ownership implied from posting*** Star Trek TNG was MY Star Trek. Yes, I watched the originals, and the odd one of the sequels, but none came close to my love for Captain Picard and his crew! I mean we are talking about a girl who a few years ago thought she hit the jackpot when she was able to snag the complete set of VHS copies at a garage sale for FREE!  So when I heard that they were making Star Trek: Picard, after an initial burst of horror that this might actually be the thing to force me to sit through the awful Star Trek: Discovery episodes, (Side note - it was NOT required - Picard is a force all on its own!), I was excited. My captain was coming back, and I couldn't wait! The first trailer popped, and it looked promising. Focussed on an older, retired Jean Luc in France, snippits of Number 1 that implies he will be a guest but not part of the crew, and Data .... wait what? He's dead ....... OK Panic over - it's a dream sequence. I mean that would have completely been a no-go for me! For those that might have been living in a bubble, or just not really care but want to know what I am talking about, here is the trailer, and then below my almost spoiler free review of Episode 1. **Video courtesy of the official CBS All Access YouTube site - all rights reserved and content owned by them. ** Finally the wait was over, at least for the premiere, and it was SO worth it! Epsiode 1 gave me everything I hoped for and it looks like it is setting up for an amazing season. We get to see a different side of Jean Luc than the one we are used to. It's been almost 30 years, this life is nothing like it used to be, and as he himself states, he hasn't been living, rather waiting to die. But all that is about to change! A connection to the past is about to allow a new journey that I am excited to be a part of. Glancing around the interwebs yesterday I saw a plethora of naysayers, who have already decided this is not what they want, and after reading a few of their comments, I have to question if they even watched the original series, and I definitely question their comprehension of the pilot in general. My advice is if you were a TNG fan, then this is for you! If you weren't, I don't see this being the breakthrough that will change your mind. I feel it is very heavily geared towards the original fans, maybe dragging back the ones like me that have been lost along the way with the new seasons that they can't stand so have switched to The Orville. Well it worked! I can't WAIT for next Thursday and episode 2. It IS different, but in the ways it needs to be. This is less "space adventure of the week" and more "Picard", and considering the title, doesn't that make sense? Before I leave I do just want to give the production team huge kudos for their dog selection! Picard has a loyal, devoted, pit bull (called Number 1!), who he trusts for character judgment, and it is SO nice to see this picked upon breed featured in such a positive light. Maybe it will take moving that far into the future for it to actually happen, but I love the idea. As always I would love to read your thoughts in the comments, whether you are a fan or not, and with that I will leave you with one of my favorite autographs from when I was lucky enough to meet Brent Spiner himself at RocCon. (For the record he is charming, and hilarious!) 
New for 2020 Netflix has added a reality show that makes Big Brother look Old School in comparison!
Yes, yes, reality TV is terrible and we shouldn't encourage it *eye roll* but Big Brother has been a summer staple in this house for years but I think The Circle just became our new reality #MustWatch.
Just like Big Brother these "guests" are on Camera 24/7 (although there are no live feeds - this is all pre-recorded and obviously edited for viewing entertainment), but the big twist here is that The Circle is basically played in a Social Media app! There are no actual conversations, no seeing who you are talking to, everything is done via "The Circle" leaving text messages, status updates, and profile pictures to be interpreted - and we all know how THAT can go!
Just like with real social media, the guests get to choose what they want to represent to the other players, and they can be as honest, or as fake as they want! Some players are literally in there deliberately catfishing all in the hope that they will become the ultimate influencer and win $100K. There are group chats, private messages, and my favorite - The Circle Games! "Shooby will take random Blue Eyed stars for the win!" I think what makes this so addicting is that you KNOW that there are people on Facebook playing this exact game in real life RIGHT NOW! So many communications are just messages in an app that being real has almost become an optional commodity.
With new episodes dropping weekly, unlike regularly scheduled Netflixing, not all episodes are available yet. We don't know who will eventually be crowned the "Ultimate Influencer", but this journey is one that is way more entertaining than I expected.
If you like Big Brother, you will LOVE this! If you aren't a reality show fan I would still say check this out anyway JUST because if you are on Social Media - which if you are reading this you must be - It's like a dose of Facebook on the big screen - with all the drama that comes with it! The Circle is currently streaming on Netflix (US). New epsiodes every Wednesday. Let me know if you are watching - or going to watch - You know this is going to be a topic on the next Facebook Live!
The Masked Singer has been a surprise hit for Fox, already having had 2 exciting seasons, and a UK Spin-Off which aired last week, but now reportedly we are going to be getting The Masked Dancer.
Based on a segment from The Ellen Degeneres show last year, it is reported that Fox has greenlit the new show with Ellen signing on as a producer. Although no date has been officially set, it is expected to release as part of the 2020/2021 season.
Whilst I personally have my doubts about how this would be successful for more than a quick novelty act, a scan of Ellen's official YouTube account shows that the videos there are extremely popular, with views in the millions, so I am sure Fox is hoping it will have another hit on its hands. Let me know what you think in the comments. Will you be watching? I know Musers are huge Masked Singer fans - will we be needingMasked Dancer notebooks too? I guess time will tell. In the meantime here is one of the official EllenTube Masked Dancer Videos.
***Video is linked from Ellen's Official YouTube Channel - Melanie's Muses is sharing official content for fan amusement***
The new Dracula series from Sherlock creators Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss dropped all 3 episodes on Netflix in the US today, having previously aired January 1st, 2nd, and 3rd in the UK to mixed reviews.
Being the avid vampire addict that I am, this is something I have been waiting for since the original announcement, but as always my question was "could it live up to the hype"? Scroll down for my review of Episode 1 - with very limited spoilers!
The story of Dracula is so well known to vampire lovers, and has already seen so many incarnations, I was intrigued to see what approach Moffat and Gatiss would take. They had already confirmed that the series would not be a modern day piece (unlike their Sherlock adaptation), and they promised a show that focussed on Dracula being the main focus, rather than the normal casting of him as the antagonist with much of the story focussing on Mina's story.
As I start writing this, avoiding major spoilers is harder than I expected, but I can tell you that this is definitely a new take on the story. I haven't read or seen anything using this version of story, although you can tell they have pulled heavily from Coppola's version for their early introduction of Dracula scenes. There is definitely an onlgoing thread of dark humor running through that you would expect from these creators, but the big surprise for me was Sister Agatha (Dolly Well)! She is definitely a welcome surprise addition and she steals the scenes with her dry commentary and no-nonsense attitude! Dracula himself (Claes Bang) does an admirable job (for the most part) in this first episode of bringing the expected Dracula feel, although the English accent that develops (although being explained), does at certain times when mixed with the dry one liners, remind me of an episode of Downton Abbey. (Watch for the scene where he is sitting in the convent as a prime example). Over all I give the first episode a solid 4 out of 5. I will definitely be watching the remaining parts, but it didn't quite have that immediate #MustWatch feeling that other shows have had for me. I wasn't disappointed - but I am not obsessing either. Are you going to watch? Have you already watched? I'd love to hear your spoiler free thoughts. Check out the official trailer below - and then below that check out the 2 possible Easter Eggs I noticed on the first watch through! (There may be more - let me know if you see any).
**Official Netflix Trailer - Shared From The Official Netflix YouTube Channel - No Content Included Is Owned Or Represented by Melanie's Muses**
Possible Easter Eggs I Noticed In Episode 1 Not sure if these are officially counted as Easter Eggs but mention is made of the barmaid at the Rose and Crown (Clara Oswold from Doctor Who was a barmaid at the Rose and Crown.
Mention of consulting with a detective in London. Although Moffat and Gatiss have their Sherlock set in present day - I have to believe that was deliberate!
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