2021 MLB Preview:

 

AL Central:

The White Sox added the best closer on the market in Liam Hendricks, a solid #3 starter in Lance Lynn, OF Adam Eaton(2^nd time with team) and a new manager in Hall of Famer Tony La Russa (who last managed them 35 years ago) in hopes they do not collapse when leading the division in the last month. Those moves solidify the young bullpen in the backend led by Aaron Bummer and Garrett Crochet by getting a lock down veteran closer and making the rotation deep that already has Lucas Giolito, Dallas Keuchel and Dylan Cease. Their lineup is still the main reason they will win the division since they still have reigning AL MVP 1B Jose Abreu, Silver Slugger LF Eloy Jimenez, batting champ SS Tim Anderson, a full season by gold glover CF Luis Robert, a full healthy season by 3B Yoan Moncada, C Yasmani Grandal, full seasons for rookies DH Andrew Vaughn and Nick Madrigal, plus Eaton will solidify the top of the lineup. With La Russa the hope is they make better decisions with the bullpen and the batting lineup which were questions the last few seasons under the previous manager that held them back. 

The Twins will still be a playoff contender but with the departures in the pitching staff of Trevor May, Homer Bailey, Jake Odorizzi, Tyler Clippard, Rich Hill and Sergio Romo it will be hard to compete for the division, plus they non-tendered their starting LF of the last six years in Eddie Rosario. They still do not know who will play LF and signed 4x gold glove winner Andrelton Simmons to play SS which pushes Jorge Polanco to 2B and Luis Arraez to the bench which makes no sense. Their lineup will be the reason they stay in contention due to having 3B Josh Donaldson, RF Max Kepler, DH Nelson Cruz (who resigned) CF Byron Buxton, Polanco and C Mitch Garver. Their rotation will be good at the front with Jose Berrios and Kenta Maeda but the question will be how good is the back end of JA Happ, Matt Shoemaker and Michael Pineda that might hold them back. 

The Indians have done it again three straight offseasons/trade deadlines unloading talent right and left this time as they traded SP Carlos Carrasco, SS Francisco Lindor, let 1B Carlos Santana closer Brad Hand, RP Adam Cimber, OFers Tyler Naquin, and Delino DeShields leave in free agency, plus they traded Mike Clevinger at the deadline last year. They will only be competitive as it looks like they can keep churning out young pitchers in the rotation since they still have Shane Bieber, Zach Plesac, Aaron Civale and Triston McKenzie but have question marks in the bullpen. Their lineup also still has 3B Jose Ramirez, DH Franmil Reyes, signed LF Eddie Rosario for the middle of the lineup, but still have questions on who will play CF, RF, SS and 1B which will be the reason they will not be a playoff team this year. 

The Royals will be better this year than they were the last two years where they might finish 3^rd due to their stacked lineup that has Whit Merrifield, RF Jorge Soler, 3B Hunter Dozier, SS Adalberto Mondesi, C Salvador Perez, 2B Nick Lopez and 1B Ryan O’Hearn, plus they traded for LF Andrew Benintendi and signed 1B Carlos Santana. The issue will be their entire pitching staff as ace Danny Duffy can’t stay healthy, are relying on young inexperienced pitchers Brady Singer, Kyle Zimmer, Kris Bubic and Mike Minor who they signed for a second time also has an big injury history. Their bullpen is hinging on a rebound season of Wade Davis who is back for a second time, Greg Holland building on his small success last season and a bunch of nobodies unless Brad Brach makes the team. As good as their lineup is they will be one of the worst outfield defenses in all of baseball with Merrifled in CF and Soler in RF because of the additions of Benintendi and Santana, which also helps in holding them back. 

The Tigers are at least selling to their fans they are trying since they signed two veteran outfielders in Nomar Mazara, Robbie Grossman (which did not make sense for two years) to flank CF Jacoby Jones, resigned 2B Jonathan Schoop, signed C Wilson Ramos, 1B Renato Nunez, pitchers Jose Urena, Derek Holland, Julio Teheran, Erasmo Ramirez, Wily Peralta and Ian Krol to compete for spots in the rotation/bullpen. Their future is actually bright with C Jake Rogers, outfielders Daz Cameron, Victor Reyes, SS Willi Castro and SP Casey Mize on the team or going to be soon, plus have a solid rotation going forward with Matthew Boyd, Michael Fulmer and Spencer Turnbull. Their bullpen is still something that needs to be fixed and they are still not sure if Jeimer Candelario is going to play 3B or 1B and if Jones can stay healthy. Also how much longer will future hall of famer Miguel Cabrera play once he gets his milestones of 500 home runs (13 away) and 3000 hits (134 away) after this season since they have a log jam of corner outfielders which would be resolved if the DH spot was open.

AL East:

The Rays again will win the division because of their position player and bullpen depth. They still have outfielders Austin Meadows, Randy Arozarena, Manuel Margot, Kevin Kiermaier, Yoshi Tsutsugo, Brett Phillips, infielders Brandon Lowe, Mike Brosseau, Willy Adames, Ji-Man Choi, Yandy Diaz, Joey Wendle, catchers Mike Zunino and Francisco Mejia. They still spot a deep bullpen of Nick Anderson, Diego Castillo, Peter Fairbanks, Chaz Roe and Hunter Strickland. The issue will be can the deep bullpen/position players support the weakened starting rotation that lost Blake Snell via trade, Charlie Morton in free agency, and Yonny Chrinos to Tommy John surgery with the likes of Rich Hill, Collin McHugh, Michael Wacha and Chris Archer(for a second time) to support Tyler Glasnow. All of them have a history of injuries with Archer missing all of last year and McHugh opting out for covid19. The only way they combat rotation issues is the opener strategy or the tag teaming starts option that Kevin Cash has been good at doing. 

The Yankees are still the “Bronx Bombers” and that will be their calling card again with a lineup of outfielders Aaron Judge,  Aaron Hicks, Clint Frazier, DH Giancarlo Stanton, SS Gleyber Torres, 2B DJ LeMahieu, 1B Luke Voit, C Gary Sanchez and 3B Gio Urshela powering them to the playoffs. They also still have a deep bullpen of Aroldis Chapman, Zack Britton, Darren O’Day, Justin Wilson and Chad Green plus the veterans on minor league deals. The issue will be their starting rotation that loss, JA Happ, James Paxton to other teams, Masahiro Tanaka going back home to Japan, and Luis Severino probably missing a good chunk of the season as he returns from Tommy John surgery. They still have one of the best pitchers in MLB in Gerrit Cole but he can only pitch once every 5 days so they signed two question marks in Corey Kluber who only pitched in one game last year and Jameson Taillon who has not pitched in two seasons due to surgery, so their position players and bullpen will have to carry them if they want to make the playoffs again. 

The Blue Jays were a surprise playoff team last year (expanded playoffs) and with their gluttony of position players they have a good chance at a wildcard spot. They still have outfielders Teoscar Hernandez, Randal Grichuk, Lourdes Gurriel Jr, infielders Cavan Biggio, Bo Bichette, Vlad Gurrerro Jr, Rowdy Tellez, and they added to that mix of players with outfielder George Springer and infielder Marcus Semien. The issue here is guys playing out of position as Semien pushes Biggio to 3B, Gurrero to 1B, Tellez to DH, and pushes Grichuck to the bench. The rotation has depth to it by keeping Robbie Ray, trading for Steven Matz, bringing in Tyler Chatwood, Tommy Milone to what they already have in Hyun Jin Ryu, Tanner Roark, Nate Pearson and Ross Stripling. They also revamped their bullpen bringing in Kirby Yates to replace Ken Giles, David Phelps for a second time and Francisco Liriano on a minor league deal. 

The Red Sox will not finish in last place this year due to Alex Cora coming back to manage the team after his one year away from the game, the healthy seasons from their starters and bringing in utility players Marwin Gonzalez, Kike Hernandez and OF Hunter Renfroe to add to their lineup. That lineup will still have DH JD Martinez, OF Alex Verdugo, 3B Rafael Devers, SS Xander Bogaerts, C Christian Vazquez and a full season of Bobby Dalbec one of their top prospects. That rotation will get back Eduardo Rodriguez who had heart related problems from Covid19, Chris Sale will be back in the second half, will get a full season of Nick Pivetta, signed Garret Richards, Matt Andriese and resigned Martin Perez plus they still got Nathan Eovaldi. The issue will be they have not for the third straight offseason done anything to fix the bullpen to help Matt Barnes since Craig Kimbrel left and made it worse by trading Heath Hembree and Brandon Workman at the deadline last year. 

The Orioles will go back to being a last place team once again as they made some desperation moves in signing Matt Harvey, Felix Hernandez minor league deals, signing Maikel Franco, Freddy Galvis and Yolmer Sanchez to lineup in their infield. The only good news is they get back their best player 1B Trey Mancini healthy after his battle with colon cancer and will hopefully keep him out of the outfield. They can’t say that for Ryan Mountcastle one of their top prospects as they plan on using him in the outfield as they did with many other first basemen like Mancini. Their second best player really broke out last year in RF Anthony Santander but only he and two of their starters John Means and Dean Kremer are any good as their bullpen, center field and catcher situation are not good. 

AL West:

The Astros did lose outfielders George Springer, Josh Reddick, SP Brad Peacock, relievers Chris Devinski, Roberto Osuna and Joe Bigini but still have a good offensive core to offset it by making the playoffs with 2B Jose Altuve, SS Carlos Correa, 3B Alex Bregman, 1B Yuli Gurriel, DH Yordan Alvarez, RF Kyle Tucker, resigned LF Michael Brantleyand brought C Jason Castro in for a second time. Their rotation still has Zach Greinke, Lance McCullers Jr, Framber Valdez and brought in Jake Odorizzi due to Justin Verlander being out for the year due to Tommy John. They also brought in relievers Ryne Stanek and Pedro Baez to help out Ryan Pressly in the bullpen. Some of the losses were guys who were hurt recently or struggled last year plus with Springer gone, they can play Myles Straw in CF and improve their outfield defense as well. 

The Athletics will be getting 3B Matt Chapman back healthy this season to pair with 1B Matt Olson, LF Mark Cahana, RF Stephen Piscotty but the issue is they loss infielders Marcus Semien, Tommy La Stella and DH Kris Davis between the deadline last year and the offseason to their lineup. They replaced Semien with Elvis Andrus who isn’t the best hitter, and still do not know between three guys which does include Jed Lowrie who hasn’t played in a few years for second base, and DH Mitch Moreland who is a great defender/not biggest power guy to replace them in the lineup. Their other two regulars are great defensively but questions about their offensive production exist between CF Ramon Laureano and C Sean Murphy plus they lost their closer and setup man but replaced them with two question marks in Trevor Rosenthal and Sergio Romo. Their rotation on paper looks good but every single one of their pitchers has had a history with injuries and Tommy John surgeries like Sean Manaea, Frankie Montas, Jesus Luzardo and AJ Puk. 

The Angels keep making their lineup better every year with their big time offseason moves like 1B Albert Pujols, Shohei Ohtani, 3B Antony Rendon, LF Justin Upton, and this offseason they added C Kurt Suzuki, SS Jose Iglesias, outfielders Dexter Fowler, Scott Schebler and Juan Lagaras, instead of their pitching staff for the most part with Jose Quintana, Alex Cobb and Rasiel Iglesias. The question is they can they trust Ohtani’s health as a pitcher, Quintana and Cobb who both have an injury history plus new closer Iglesias does too. The top two starters Andrew Heaney and Dylan Bundy are more like mid-back end starters plus their going with a six-man rotation to accommodate Othani.  We have to question something if the Reds gave up on a young, cheap and successful closer for no reason do they know something that we don’t? 

The Mariners have some promise with their young players like CF Kyle Lewis, 2B Shed Long, 1B Evan White, SS JP Crawford, outfielders Jake Farley, Taylor Trammell and infielder Ty France. The best news is that RF Mitch Hangier is back from multiple surgeries that kept him out of the lineup the last two seasons to help 3B Kyle Seager anchor this lineup. Their rotation also has some depth to it with Marco Gonzalez, Yusei Kikuchi, youngsters Justus Sheffield, Justin Dunn and bringing in James Paxton for a second time. One of the questions will be their bullpen with Rafael Montero not really being a closer who they traded for and resigning Kendall Gravemen to relieve not start, but they will have to wait for Ken Giles to come back next year after he had Tommy John surgery in the offseason to make this bullpen good. The other issue is they have too many outfielders to play at one time and France does not have a permanent position with both corner infield spots spoken for. 

The Rangers will again be a last place team as their team’s pitching staff is not much to brag about and they have many questions about their position players. They did not get much from Corey Kluber last year (had surgery & has left for free agency) traded away Mike Minor at last year’s deadline, their closer Jose Leclerc missed most of last year due to a shoulder injury, and traded away Lance Lynn this season leading them to only have three starters to pencil in plus have questions at closer. Kyle Gibson, Jordan Lyles and Kolby Allard are more like back end guys plus Mike Foltynewicz doesn’t exude confidence the last few years. They still do not have a full time centerfielder or first basemen, they moved their starting third basemen Isiah Kiner-Falefa to shortstop, 2B Rougned Odor is moving to third base because of that, Nick Solak who played all over the infield/outfield is now the second basemen not the centerfielder and they will most likely play David Dahl in centerfield which is the best place for him. They think they can slug their way to victories with RF Joey Gallo, DH Khris Davis, LF Willie Calhoun and the guys I mentioned previously and to hell with defense whatsoever. 

NL Central:

The Cardinals will win this division and even compete for the pennant due to their lineup’s potential that has 1B Paul Goldschmidt, C Yadier Molina, SS Paul DeJong, outfielders Tyler O’Neil, Dylan Carlson, INF Matt Carpenter, 2B Tommy Edman and they traded for 3B Nolan Arenado. They also get a full rotation this year with Jack Flahterty, Miles Mikolas, Adam Wainwright, Carlos Martinez and Dakota Hudson.  Their bullpen is also deep with the many multi-inning pitchers in Jordan Hicks, Jon Gant, Daniel Ponce De Leon, Alex Reyes, Giovanny Gallegos, Kwang Hyun Kim and veteran Andrew Miller as well. 

The Cubs will be competitive this year with the additions they have made by adding outfielders Joc Pederson, Jake Marisnick, catcher Austin Romine, infielders Eric Sogard, Matt Duffy, pitchers Jake Arrieta back for his second time, Brandon Workman, Trevor Williams, Pedro Strop for a second time, Adam Morgan, Joe Biagini and resigned Ryan Tepera. This is not a rebuild yet since this is the last time they will have their core four of 3B Kris Bryant, 1B Anthony Rizzo, SS Javy Baez and C Willson Contreras with three of them that could leave in free agency, which is why they plugged some holes like leftfield with Kyle Schwaber’s exit with Pederson and Marisinick. With the exits of Jon Lester, Tyler Chatwood, Jose Quinatna, Jeremy Jeffress and the trade of Yu Darvish they will turn to Kyle Hendricks Arrieta, Williams and youngsters Alec Mills and Adbert Alzolay in the rotation. With how shaky closer Craig Kimbrel has been since he has gotten there that is why they signed Workman, Strop and others on minor league deals to provide some depth just in case. 

The Brewers did not make the playoffs last year in the shortened season and had their season upended when leadoff hitter/center fielder Lorenzo Cain opted out early causing them to shuffle up the outfield/lineup which is why they signed gold glove CF Jackie Bradley Jr. They hopefully align everything up in the outfield with one in CF and the other in LF. Their offense again will be the reason they are competitive since they still have former MVP Christian Yelich who will hopefully play RF, they brought back Travis Shaw to play 3B, signed 2B Kolten Wong to upgrade the defense which shifts Keston Hiura to 1B, and C Omar Navarrez. Their pitching staff will again be the issue after Brandon Woodruff as the rest is more like back end starters in Brett Anderson, Josh Lindbloom, Corbin Burnes and Eric Lauer. They even signed Jordan Zimmermann to a minor league deal, plus after Josh Hader there isn’t much in bullpen depth either. The other issue they have too many position players for eight spots as they still have outfielders Avisail Garcia, Billy McKinney, Derrek Fisher, 1B Daniel Vogelbach, infielders Tim Lopes and Luis Urias vying for at bats. 

The Reds made the playoffs (expanded playoffs) due to their pitching staff carrying them but they lost Trevor Bauer, Anthony DeSchlafani, Pedro Strop, Nate Jones, Archie Bradley and their closer Raisel Iglesias, who they stupidly traded. They still have Sonny Gray, Luis Castillo and Wade Miley but might use the logical closer option in Michael Lorenzen in the rotation which weakens the bullpen that only has Amir Garrett and Sean Doolittle you can rely on. Their lineup has great offensive potential but they are playing guys out of position like Nick Castellanos in RF, Mike Moustakas at 2B, Nick Senzel in CF, and a backup catcher in Kyle Farmer at SS instead of one of their top prospects Jose Garcia or resigning Freddy Galvis. The lineup does have 3B Eugenio Suarez one of the most underrated players in baseball. and 1B Joey Votto also in the middle of the lineup. 

The Pirates will again be in last place as they traded away Jameson Tailon, Jose Musgrove, lost Chris Archer, Trevor Williams and closer Keone Kela in free agency, leaving their pitching staff with mostly question marks outside of Mitch Keller, Steven Brault and Chad Kuhl in the rotation. They still have too many shortstops in Kevin Newman, Erik Gonzalez, Cole Tucker, Kevin Kramer, Wilmer Difo, 2B Adam Fraizer and 3B Phillip Evans that some have to play in the outfield. They traded 1B Josh Bell to help some of the infield clutter so Colin Moran can play 1B and Ke'Bryan Hayes can play 3B every day but look for Moran or RF Gregory Polanco to be traded. Lastly they do not know who will play CF or start at catcher all year. 

NL East:

The Braves will win their fourth straight division title due to their lineup depth that has RF Ronald Acuna who will play RF finally, MVP 1B Freddie Freeman, C Travis d’Arnaud, SS Dansby Swanson, 2B Ozzie Albies, they resigned LF Marcell Ozuna, signed Jake Lamb, not to mention one of their top prospects CF Christian Pache, and have Austin Riley and Ender Inciarte to mix in as well. They get Mike Soroka back from season ending injury to pair with Max Fried, Ian Anderson, free agent signings Charlie Morton and Drew Smyly, plus the bullpen still has Will Smith and Chris Martin at the back end. They even signed Nate Jones, for bullpen depth, and infielders Jason Kipnis and Pablo Sandoval for infield depth. 

The Mets made many additions to their team like getting SS Francisco Lindor, pitchers Carlos Carrasco, Taijuan Walker, Joey Lucchesi, Marcus Stroman accepting the qualifying offer, Aaron Loup, Jerry Blevins, Trevor May, C James McCann, OF-1B Jose Martinez, infielder Jonathan Villar, outfielders Kevin Pillar and Albert Almora Jr. They still have one of the best pitchers in Jacob DeGrom leading the rotation, Noah Syndergaard coming back from Tommy John Surgery, Edwin Diaz, Dellin Betances, Jeruys Familla to lead the bullpen. Their lineup is also very deep with 1B Pete Alonzo, 2B Jeff McNeil, RF Michael Conforto, LF Dominic Smith, 3B JD Davis and CF Brandon Nimmo. They also made a good amount of minor league signings for depth that will definitely come into play in this full season as they will capture one of the wild card spots. 

The Nationals will not finish in last place because their pitching staff will be better as they still have Max Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg who was hurt last year, Patrick Corbin, they signed Jon Lester and Joe Ross is back after opting out last year. They also added Brad Hand to the back end of the bullpen that still has Will Harris and Daniel Hudson. Their offense was the problem last year too as they got no production out of RF, 3B, 2B and 1B despite the career years for SS Trea Turner and OF Juan Soto who led the NL in many categories including winning the batting title. They traded for 1B Josh Bell to fix one spot, signed Kyle Schwarber which will shift Soto to RF a position he has not played much and 2B Starlin Castro is back from injury. 

The Phillies will definitely be competitive due to their lineup that still has outfielders Bryce Harper, Andrew McCutchen, 1B Rhys Hoskins, 2B Jean Segura, 3BAlec Bohm, resigned both C JT Realmuto and SS Didi Gregorious. The issue is CF with Adam Halsey, Roman Quinn, UTL Scott Kingrey, maybe their former CF Odubel Herrera and top prospect Mickey Moniak vying for at bats. Their rotation is very top heavy with Aaron Nola, Zack Wheeler and Zach Eflin as they have many guys vying for the last spots that don’t have the same upside like Matt Moore (who was overseas last year), Chase Anderson and Vincent Velazquez. Their bullpen has been disastrous the last few seasons as the David Robertson, Tommy Hunter and Pat Neshek did not work out due to health so they signed Archie Bradley, Neftali Feliz and Brandon Kintzler hoping something works out. 

The Marlins did make the playoffs (expanded playoffs) last year but are in the toughest division and do not have the pitching depth required to compete since they only have one reliable pitcher in Sandy Alcantara and no bullpen. They also are sacrificing offense for defense with the veteran laden outfield of Corey Dickerson, Starling Marte and now Adam Duvall. They also are not giving Jazz Chisholm the opportunity at SS with them wasting time with Miguel Rojas who is more like a backup but they will at least keep Brian Anderson full time at 3B instead of the outfield experiment since he is their best player. 

NL West:       

         

The Dodgers are the reigning World Series champions who definitely have a chance to repeat as they only got better pitching wise by adding Trevor Bauer, Corey Knebel, Tommy Kahnle, and David Price is back after opting out last season. The rotation is now seven deep with those moves as they still have Walker Buehler, Clayton Kershaw, Julio Urias, Tony Gonsolin and Dustin May, plus the bullpen still has Kenley Jansen, Blake Treinen, Joe Kelly and Brusdar Graterol. The lineup is also one of the best in baseball with outfielders Mookie Betts, AJ Pollack, Cody Bellinger, SS Corey Seager, C Will Smith, 1B Max Muncy, a full season of 2B Gavin Lux, and they resigned 3B Justin Turner. They also have utility players Chris Taylor, Matt Beaty and Edwin Rios who will get at bats as well but could start for other teams. 

The Padres made the playoffs for the first time in fourteen seasons and will make it again as a wild card since they added to an already good team with the pitching moves they made in trading for Blake Snell, Yu Darvish and Joe Musgrove for the rotation. They also added Keone Kela and Mark Melancon to their bullpen that still has Craig Stammen, Matt Strahm and closer Drew Pomeranz. Their lineup still has SS Fernando Tatis Jr, 3B Manny Machado, 1B Eric Hosmer, LF Tommy Pham and RF Wil Myers. They also have the reigning gold glove winner in CF in Trent Grisham, and got Victor Caratini to backup Austin Nola at catcher. The head scratcher was signing Jurickson Profar to a three deal, signing Ha-Seong Kim one of the best Korean players to a four year deal when they still have Jorge Mateo and Jake Croenworth who almost won rookie of the year to play 2B. 

The Diamondbacks will not finish in last place as they will get back to be competitive this year as they still have a good lineup with 2B Ketel Marte, 3B Eduardo Escobar, catchers Carson Kelly, Stephen Vogt, outfielders David Peralta and Kole Calhoun. The issue is they have no idea who will play CF between Tim Locastro, a top prospect in catcher Daulton Varsho or even putting Marte back in CF which is not the best idea. Their bullpen is also a work in progress with the signings of Joakim Soria, Tyler Clippard, Chris Devenski, Anthony Swarzak and Ryan Butcher among others. Their rotation is still solid with Madison Bumgarner, Luke Weaver, Zac Gallen, and Merrill Kelly leading the way. 

The Giants still have veterans SS Brandon Crawford, 1B Brandon Belt, 3B Evan Longoria and C Buster Posey back after opting out to lead this lineup, plus still have Wilmer Flores, 2B Donovan Solano, 1B Darin Ruf, Mauricio Dubon and even signed Tommy La Stella to get at bats. The issue will be the rotation after Johnny Cueto since every other guy is a question mark like Kevin Gausman, Anthony DeSclafani, Aaron Sanchez (who hasn’t pitched in two years), Alex Wood and Scott Kazmir(who hasn’t pitched in the big leagues in four seasons). They have Jake McGee to close but have question marks all over the bullpen as the relievers with the most experience are all on minor league deals. 

The Rockies traded away their franchise player for a minimal prospect return with $50 million dollars to help pay for his contract in 3B Nolan Arrenado. The clock is ticking when they trade SS Trevor Story who is a pending free agent and even RF Charlie Blackmon, plus relievers Daniel Bard, Mychal Givens and closer Scott Oberg who missed all of last season. They still do not have an answer to 2B, 3B with the Arrenado trade, catcher, even one outfield spot as Ian Desmond has opted out a second straight year and 1B. Despite how talented their lineup has been over the years their rotation has not done much to help them out even with Jon Gray, German Marquez, Antonio Senzatela and Kyle Freeland, the pressure is now on them without a talented lineup which will cause them to be a last place team for awhile.

The Makarrata Project-Midnight Oil Album Review:

 

Midnight Oil has not made an album since 2002 and after the huge success of a tour of small venues a few years ago they thought a new album would be the best way to build off that success. “The Makarrata Project” is their 12th studio album but they essentially tricked their fans into anticipation of new material with the potential of touring the huge stadiums with Covid19  behind us, with an album they did not need to make in the first place.

Every single song has other people on it that take away from the songs itself with either rapping, people speaking in other languages or other people singing including two whole songs that is someone else-but not them. The last song is people speaking the Uluru Statement from the Heart and only four minutes into it do you get a short song.

If you are going to make a point about injustices in the world like with songs “Blue Sky Mine” and “Beds are Burning” about what their own Australian government was doing to their own people that is fine. Those songs can make a point but also can be great music as they are two of their greatest songs.

If you are going to shed light on the disenfranchised/disrespected people then you can still be the philanthropist that lead singer Peter Garrett has been, doing charity work/charity concerts. This album is making a point to shed light on Indigenous people’s adversities and to uplift them by having them on the album but that is not what the fans of Midnight Oil have been waiting almost twenty years for. It is a waste that this was bassist/backing vocalist Bones Hillman last album before we lost him to cancer.

Some of the songs are good but if every single one gets constantly interrupted by others that aren’t in the band then it takes away from enjoying any of the songs. As “First Nation” and “Gadigal Land” do have their moments where they rock out and “Change the Date” and “Wind in my Hand” are nice quiet songs but they just get ruined by other elements. Hopefully Garrett and company try again with an even an EP of sorts of their unique style of rock music and if so the fans will again run to listen to it like myself. 

Medicine at Midnight-Foo Fighters Album Review:

Foo Fighters are back with their 10^th studio album in “Medicine at Midnight” their first album in four years (Concrete and Gold) with a more upbeat happier album that was recorded very quickly just before Covid19 times in 2020 as it only has nine tracks. In David Grohl’s own words “David Bowie's Let's Dance album, but not like a EDM, disco, modern dance record but rather this really up, fun record" that is filled with anthemic, huge, sing-along rock songs.” In drummer Courtney Hawkins’s words “more pop oriented than their usual post-grunge sound.” Grohl adds that the album was inspired by "Our love of rock bands that makeup these upbeat, up-tempo, almost danceable records”. ‘

In their 25 years they are one of the more steady rock bands at consistently making good music as they evolve over the years, that it might not be a great album as a whole but has plenty of good songs. This album as a whole is solid to great like the ones that came before it. Pretty much every song is either catchy or rocks out as Grohl is at his best when he cuts loose and rocks out.

“Making a Fire”, “Medicine at Midnight” “Holding Poison” and “Love Dies Young” stick out due to their really rocking out on them. While tracks “Chasing Birds” is a beautiful quiet song that eventually picks up like “Waiting on a War” which also starts off quiet before erupting into an all out rocker with many different instruments. He is explaining war to his young daughter and it would be a great song to do live in an arena as it is one of my favorites.

In “No Son of Mine” which he does his usually rocking out has some of his usual screaming elements where he is calling out “the hypocrisy of self-righteous leaders, people that are guilty of committing the crimes they’re supposedly against”. “Cloudspotter” is the only song that is ‘eh’ to ok with some odd other vocals in the background but does rock out. While “Shame Shame” which was performed on SNL is a good catchy song it seems out of place with the rest of the album that is upbeat with this being a little sad.

We have to be thankful Grohl & Company still continues to actually care enough about their craft to continue to make good music because any band that has been around for that long could get bored or complacent. During these tough Covid19 times we all could use a little Medicine at Midnight to lift our spirits. 

McCartney III-Paul McCartney Album Review:

 

Paul McCartney is back with a new album McCartney III his first in two years and his 18^th total for solo albums, as it’s a continuation of his previous self titled albums I & II where he plays all the instruments. He plays both guitars, basses, piano, synthesizer, drums and percussions etc. It proves that is he is singlehandedly one of the greatest musicians ever but also one of the greatest song writers as he continues to write any kind of song from serious to silly, as he is always a great song writer.

He has songs on the album that range from quiet acoustic guitar/piano songs that are serious/quiet to songs that he rocks out with loud electric guitar/drums where it is sometime a jam session plus his usual amount of silly songs.

The opening track “Long Tailed Winter Bird” has the acoustic guitar for most of it but it does rock out as it’s mostly an instrumental with barely any words. “Pretty Boys” is another acoustic guitar song about taking pictures of famous good looking people to not touch which could be about “Beatlemania” craze. “The Kiss of Venus” is an acoustic guitar song about romance and sounds like an updated version of his previous song “Mother Nature’s Son”. The song “Women and Wives” is a nice, beautiful quiet song on the piano where he gives advice to families about passing down good morals. The last track of the album “Winter Bird/When Winter Comes” is very similar with acoustic guitar/same tone that has some emotional power that could be a flip side to “When I’m 64”, as he is looking back at age 78. It is also a song that was supposed to be a bonus track from his “Flaming Pie” album that he wanted to be an actual song on an album not just an extra song for a rerelease.

The songs where he rocks out on electric guitar like “Find my Way” and “Slidin” which is a jam session sound check song that he makes on the spot during tours. He wanted it on the last album “Egypt Station” but didn’t make the cut so he wanted it on this album, so he finished it as it was half written for the last album. In “Seize the Day” he plays the piano and it rocks out plus it’s catchy. He goes all out on rocking out in “Deep Down” as it has shades of “Hey Jude” or '"Helter Skelter” in repeating the chorus a lot. While he gets silly in “Lavatory Lil” as he rocks out about someone who has screwed him over. The song “Deep Deep Feeling” is his longest song that is over eight minutes as he plays so many different instruments it’s hard to keep track. It is a very emotional song but it rocks out.

McCartney is one of the only living members of the Beatles but the only one who continues to make music across decades keeps coming out with high quality music. He just goes out there to have fun and do what he does best which is make good music as it is a laidback album. This is just another addition to one of the greatest discographies ever between his Beatles, Wings and solo work. The world is a better place thanks to Paul being in it and continuing to make music for all generations to hear.

Broadcast Spring 2021 TV Review:

 CBS:

Clarice: This is the untold personal story of FBI Agent Clarice Starling as she returns to the field in 1993, one year after the events of "The Silence of the Lambs”. Her job with the Violent Criminal Apprehension program is to pursue serial murderers and sexual predators while navigating the high-stakes political world of DC while dealing with her own personal demons. 

Verdict: Cancelled. I first have to say I have not seen the movie, read the books or seen the show “Hannibal” so I am not here to compare it to any of those. I do like the idea of someone using science as profiler for the FBI like in “Criminal Minds” or current Fox show “Prodigal son” but with the latter the person has their own personal trauma or demons that helped shaped them to understand killers. It also is different because it takes place in the past so it’s interesting to see how the FBI worked back then but also how a smart competent woman is trying to making it in a male dominant world. The issue is her boss played by Michael Cudlitz (of Band of Brothers & The Walking Dead) is way too hard on her with not trusting her, and her therapist is also doing everything to prevent her from going back to what she does best. Then you add the US attorney general (played by Jayne Atkinson of 24 & House of Cards) with her own political gains with putting Clarice on the team, dictating how this unit works, and the fact that her daughter is the girl that was saved from the serial killer Buffalo Bill which wastes time from the show by showing her. One of her co-workers is also not a fan of her even being in the FBI as he is from the old regime whom doesn’t think her antics help but actually hurts the team, but at least two of her coworkers actually support her. They are interesting characters which I hope they continue to develop for the show but also their relationship with her as I am a fan of Kal Penn (of Harold & Kumar & Designated Survivor). I was glad he has a new show after his last show got cancelled and Lucca De Oliveira(of Seal Team) being a former military turned FBI. Her friend who helps out with forensics and other stuff is more helpful than some of the guys on her team hopefully they use more of her. I get the sense CBS really wants this show to do very well with the over the top production, the huge amount of promotions and getting well known TV actors, as they fast tracked it to series without a pilot to be screened first.  But if it is supposed to be a spinoff from a popular movie with this one character but they cannot mention “Hannibal Lecter” I do not get the point of the show and hope the writing improves over the course of the show. I am afraid it will lose its appeal/quirkiness quickly and turn into another typical procedural-crime solving show despite it taking place in the past/female lead which might get CBS to cancel it with their quick trigger finger. 

The Equalizer: Queen Latiah(of Star & Living Single) stars at Robyn McCall a woman with a mysterious background who uses her extensive skills to help those with nowhere else to turn. She comes across to most people as a regular single mom raising a teenage daughter but to only a trusted few she is an anonymous guardian angel and defender of the downtrodden.  She is also trying to work on her personal redemption and works with a team to help the people that come to her when in need. Verdict: Cancelled. I am a huge fan of her work as a musician and an actress over the years but this role does not seem to fit her or seem believable plus you can’t save a bad show even if you are talented. It seems very over the top and the production value is way over the top too, it just doesn’t all click together. It is bogged down by her own demons, her raising her teenage daughter that takes up time and the people she works with seem over the top. It is nice to see Adam Goldberg (of the Jim Gaffigan show & Fargo) but his role as a master hacker who happens to be married to her friend from the service is over the top coincidence. The fact she did a favor for him so he owes her, and they overdo it with his nerdy outfit with these nerdy glasses too. He has done this masterhacker role before in NBC’s Taken very well but it wasn’t over the top. His wife (played by Liza Lapira) who as I mentioned worked with McCall in the Air Force does not seem believable with her skills and her demeanor based on her acting credits that include many sitcoms. Then you have to assume her ex husband/father of her kid is not in the picture whatsoever despite her working as an asset for the US government, that’s the reason for Lorriane Toussaint(of Rosewood & Saving Grace) to play her aunt. She then has detractors of two kinds her former boss (played by Chris Noth of Law & Order & Sex in the City) the ex CIA director telling her she can’t do her job since the CIA wants her back/for her to stop, and the hot shot detective who is not keen on her form of justice trying to arrest her. CBS has two “M.O.”s one is they cancel shows very quickly compared to other channels, and are the leaders in remakes, reboots and spinoffs. The fact that a huge amount of their channel lineup is one of those three things like they do with SWAT, Macgyver, Magnum PI, and Hawaii Five-O to name some. Then NCIS is a spinoff with spinoffs and have rebooted “Training Day” & “Rush Hour”, for example, to not much success plus tried revivals but failed. They have heavily promoted this show with countless ads especially during the Super Bowl that they are fully invested in seeing where this goes. They usually do cut bait early but with the huge commitment that has been made with the casting/dynamics/advertising-promoting they will probably wait till a full season’s worth of episodes air before making their verdict, and with Covid19 affecting when it was supposed to be released earlier they can’t afford to cut programming too early as well. The original Equalizer was one of the best crime solving shows from the 80’s there was no need to remake it let alone remake it after it was rebooted as a movie with Denzel Washington less than 6 years ago with two volumes. 

United States of Al: Al (played by Adhir Kaylan of Rules of Engagement) an interpreter from Afghanistan for the US Marine Corps moves to Columbus, Ohio to help his former brother in arms Marine combat veteran Riley (played by Parker Young of Enlisted & Arrow) adjust to home life dealing with PTSD, help him deal with the potential divorce, a potential custody battle and deal with the overbearing father Art played by Dean Norris (of Breaking Bad & Claws). 

Verdict: Cancelled. The forced laughter with the laugh track and the cliché jokes about American and Afghanistan culture- it is hard to know when to laugh. I applaud Chuck Lorre for trying to make a sitcom more diverse with a character from the Middle East but next time maybe use an actor from the actual region because the internet is crucifying you for picking a South-African Indian decent actor for the role with a fake accent. They also are forcing you to like him with the over the top attempt to make him adorable/lovable but he is not a main character for a sitcom- he is better off as a supporting cast member. It is nice Young is given another chance to be a lead in a show but he also is not good enough to be leading a show. His wife doesn’t seem to be well written or thought out besides from him being away in the military which caused them to become estranged, plus she is not old enough to have a high school kid. The two characters who seem to have the most to offer are the sister Lizzie (played by Elizabeth Alderfer of AP Bio & Disjointed) with her antics, and the father Al which Norris does a great job in playing his eccentric character. It is also a coincidence they have you believe she dated someone in the military who is friends with her brother. This the same issue with two other new Lorre sitcoms where the two-three main characters are either not funny or believable as a leading person, while the parts of the supporting cast are the only good ones which isn’t a recipe for success. Maybe it will get better over time but it can only go in so many directions like he gets back with his wife/gets to be around his daughter more or he does not. They should explore more of what Norris’ character’s background is, that would help but I do like the flashback element at the end of each episode. 

NBC:

Mr. Mayor: Ted Danson stars as Neil Bremer a retired wealthy businessman who runs for mayor of Los Angeles for the all the wrong reasons. He sets out to shake up City Hall but he quickly discovers navigating politics is not business as usual. When he wins he has to figure out what he stands for, gain the respect of his staff, and connect with his teenage daughter, all while controlling the coyote population. 

Verdict: Renewed. When you can laugh multiple times during an episode and it isn’t childish humor it is definitely a show that should stay on the air for awhile. I can trust Tina Fey who created the show, produces and writes for it to stay clean for the most part and have well written episodes over the course of the season. Danson is always great on camera especially with the physical humor that he has done in this show. He is giving off the vibes of someone you can really get behind even though he was a rich spoiled guy. We all want to see how far he can go in changing the city along with all the hijinks that ensues. It is also nice that Bobby Monihan of SNL who had his own sitcom wrongfully cancelled too early get a chance to be a regular on a show and he plays the loveable goofball amazingly as Danson’s communications director. His character makes me laugh more than the mayor and Danson’s relationship with his teen daughter (played by Kyla Kenedy) isn’t just filler it has a clever dynamic, plus she is from ABC’s Speechless so she has played the daughter role well before. His chief of staff and chief strategist are typical “straight men” in a comedy as they have to play off Danson and Moniyhan in every episode while trying to do their jobs but are there also for diversity. They are often background characters so they aren’t that important, the real issue is Holly Hunter playing a former councilwoman who becomes his chief of staff.  She looks like a crazy-homeless person that is trying to sabotage the mayor but maybe there is some genius to hire a person who is your enemy because it can be an interesting dynamic where she might grow on you. The biggest concern is NBC has cancelled every new sitcom over the past two television years and ended two of their longer running shows as well. They also have limited the amount of episodes of another sitcom so I don’t think NBC cares about having sitcoms let alone good ones, as they vacated one hour of sitcoms on Thursday night for another Law & Order spinoff show as well. The only saving grace is NBC loves Fey and Danson so they might leave it alone and let it run its course. 

Young Rock: A comedic look back at Dwayne the Rock Johnson’s life through the outrageous stories of about his family and youth that shaped him into the man he is today. It explores his childhood years living amid influential wrestling icons while his dad rose to fame in the business, his rebellious teenage years attending high school in Pennsylvania, and his football years teamed up with powerhouse players at the University of Miami. 

Verdict: Cancelled. It looked like it was setting up to be like “Everybody hates Chris” where it would go in chronological order episode to episode where we would grow along with the character. It would teach us lessons and educate about his childhood from a little kid to his life as a professional wrestler. It does have Johnson in every episode but it’s a mixture of him narrating and actually being in the show. The issue is they think we care he is running for President and wants to relate to the average person so he is telling stories about his childhood/upbringing. I also do not get the whole Randal Park former actor turned journalist interviewing him that is stupid. Just do it like Chris Rock and Jim Parsons and just narrate and not show him whatsoever. It seems to skip through three different time periods just to fit the specific questions asked by Park which isn’t as seamless as they think. If you’re not a fan or familiar with the professional wresting world you are not going to know these people Johnson grew up around/his father as only “Andre the Giant” will be easy to recognize. It is nice nostalgia to see recreated wrestling scenes with “Ric Flair” and “Randy Macho Man Savage” but it will always be a niche sport. Also is this a comedy or a drama? I have not laughed once no matter when the show takes place. Plus with the way NBC has been cancelling every new sitcom to debut the last few TV seasons I do not see this being renewed even with Covid19 giving them sparse programming. 

Kenan: Kenan Thompson(of SNL & Kenan & Kel) stars in his own sitcom playing a widower father raising two grade school girls while trying to balance his work and personal life. He is a local Atlanta TV personality hosting “Waking up with Kenan” a popular morning show. He has to deal with his overbearing producer (played by Kimrie Lewis of Single Parents & Scandal), his father in law (played by Don Johnson of Miami Vice & Nash Bridges) and his brother (played by Chris Redd of SNL & Popstar) who is also his manager plus everyone else trying to help make his life easier despite it really making it harder on him. 

Verdict: Renewed. It is a good sign when you are watching a sitcom and can laugh multiple times during the episode plus it has no silly laugh track to tell you when to laugh- just natural laughter. Whoever is writing this show is doing a good job with the jokes, how clever it is, how it does not have to make crude/inappropriate jokes to get a laugh, and the chemistry between the characters. I think many people are happy it finally happened that he got his own sitcom as an adult since it has been rumored for a few a years now, and of course he does a great job. He uses his acting, comedy and musical skills throughout.  Plus he does a good a job playing the straight man as other personalities can come out during the show. Johnson and Redd do a good job in their roles as mostly clueless relatives trying to do their best to help but do it in a great way comedically. The actresses playing the girls do a good job in their roles being adorable and it is nice to see Lewis on TV after they cancelled her show. It is also nice to see Fortune Feimster in another sitcom as she is a really funny person and it will be funny to keep seeing what Johnson/Redd can get into comedy wise all season long. The writing, the chemistry between the cast, the acting and Kenan himself make it good on all levels for a successful sitcom. With NBC cancelling all the sitcoms the last few TV seasons plus the two most popular ones ending, there is definitely room in the lineup for this show. 

Debris: Two agents from two different continents (one from England and one from the United States) and two different mindsets must work together to investigate when wreckage starts falling from the sky which is from a destroyed alien spacecraft that has mysterious effects on humankind. They have no choice but to trust each other as they track down the hundreds of pieces of debris scattered across the Western Hemisphere. Every discovery is also a race against time, because shadowy outside forces want these powerful objects for their own nefarious purposes. 

Verdict: Cancelled. We have been here, done that with sci-fi events with mysterious things happening to people or the world itself. This time it is this “debris” that these agents are looking into that has scattered all around globe. Each episode they investigate different spots on in the US that are having scientific anomalies as they try to collect more of the “debris”  before other mysterious groups take them for their own purposes. I will say this I like watching sci-fi shows where they investigate the same thing all season or a different thing each week but so far there is no emotional attachment to the mystery or the main characters. It feels dry, bland, an ”ehh” feeling when watching every episode. They do make it full of sci-fi stuff to keep you interested in watching with the mystery of figuring it all out but nothing so far is keeping me gripped to the scenes unfolding. I am unsure if it is because the main cast is mostly unknown (theater, British TV or musicians) or they assume we already care about the two leads where we want them to succeed personally and professionally, that isn’t clicking for me. The bigger issue is the pilot/other episodes seems to be like a few episodes into the story telling of the show where we have to accept these two as partners from different agencies that it is months into the investigation not the at the start like most sci-fi shows. It would have been better to be from the starting point of when the “debris” first came to earth and how these two partnered up. It also takes away from the show with the drama going on behind the scene with their respective bosses from MI6 & the CIA on how they are a joint adventure, but are keeping things from each other in the episodes which some of the scenes are mostly a waste of time. Agent Finola Jones’s own personal drama (played by Riann Steele of Magicians & Lovesick) takes away from show and her acting along with her partner agent Bryan Beneventi (played by Jonathan Tucker of Kingdom & Justified) seems stale and dry where they are not believable as leads too. With all the negatives outweighing the positives and with how very major network has pulled the plug on all of these over the top sci-fi event/investigative programs I would be surprised if this show gets renewed as it will get a full season to unpack everything though. 

ABC:

Call Your Mom:  Kyra Sedgwick plays Jean an empty nester widow mom who wonders how she ended up all alone while her children live their lives thousands miles away. She sets out to reinsert herself into their lives by moving closer to them. 

Verdict: Cancelled. I do not know why a critically acclaimed actress like Sedgwick (The Closer & Brooklyn 99) would do a show like this show where they make fun of an older woman who feels alone without her kids, has issues with technology and meddles in their lives even if they are adults. I can’t stand the laugh track, the horrible transitions on the screen and how there is no redeeming qualities in her two kids. The daughter is rude and uptight while the son seems dumb and clueless where he still needs help from his mother. The only good thing is they actually look like siblings when they did casting. The son’s girlfriend has an annoying voice and is so ditsy that it’s hard to stand her in the scenes where her job is a social media influencer, while the daughter’s roommate is gay but he actually seems to get the funny lines. The whole foreign landlord who is married but not married thing is not needed if you’re going to keep hinting will they won’t they, but his dog is the best character in the show which is saying something. It is nice to see Sherri Shepherd in the show but they cop out by having her over video chat in most episodes that it’s barely in the show. ABC cancelled two quality shows last year while two long running shows ended, plus they cancelled a spinoff so you would think they would want to fill the open holes with quality programs. Instead they are doing a boatload of game shows and if this is the one sitcom they can come up with this spring, I don’t have confidence in the future for them at making shows going forward. The show is so bad that even with covid19 restrictions on upcoming shows potentially being on the air down the line this show will not make it pass the standard of 8-10 episodes that most shows that get picked up receive.  

Home Economics: Inspired by the life of co-creator Michael Colton it takes a look at the relationship among three adult siblings in different wealth classes, the one percent, middle class and the one barely hanging on. Topher Grace (of That 70’s Show & Spiderman 3) plays Tom the oldest sibling married with kids and is a struggling writer in the middle class. Caitlin McGee (of Bluff City Law & and Grey’s Anatomy) is the middle sibling a child therapist who is barely making ends meet and is also married with kids. Jimmy Tatro(of The Mighty ones & Modern Family) is the youngest sibling who runs his own equity firm, is divorced and has a daughter. 

Verdict: Renewed. I do like the fresh take on a family sitcom with the children as adults who are married with kids and how they all have different lives/economic backgrounds that intersect into a delightful comedy. It has also made me laugh a few times as well. I do like that Grace is one of the leads of a sitcom since it has been years since his last show and that McGee is getting another attempt to be a lead in a show after her show got only 10 episodes. I also think the PC police will be happy with the mixed race couples in the show, that there will be no outcry of diversity because they write it so smoothly that you do not even care or notice. It also has a good supporting cast of two SNL alums in Nora Dunn as the mom and Sasheer Zamata who make you laugh too. We should want to see how one sibling deals with his divorce, one deals with trying to finish his novel, and the other deals with unemployment throughout the course of the show. It is also interesting that Grace is narrating the show since he is playing an author and how he gets the brunt of the jokes/bad luck, and that the younger sibling is the most successful but seems like the idiot. When it comes to sitcoms on ABC two of their longer running shows and three others were cancelled in the last two TV seasons so there is room for a quality show that isn’t inappropriate as well. 

 

Rebel: Inspired by the life of Erin Brockovich, Annie "Rebel" Bello (played by Katy Segal of Married with Children & Futurama) is a blue-collar legal advocate without a law degree. She is someone who cares desperately about the causes she fights for and the people she loves. When Rebel applies herself to a fight she believes in, she will win at almost any cost. 

Verdict: Cancelled. They have done this kind of premise (also a movie with Julia Roberts) before like this year with CBS’s remake of Equalizer, CW’s remake of Kung Fu and last year’s Stumptown on this network. When a non lawyer/person not in law enforcement is there to help the people who have nowhere to turn/can’t go to the cops/afford a lawyer they turn to this person. It is only different because it is based off a real person’s life which is nice they can come up with an original idea but the premise is still been there done that. This is more of a soap-opera with too many coincidences like all three of her ex husbands are still around with the first one helping her since he is a cop which doesn’t seem to be plausible for him to use his job to help her. Her second ex being a corporate lawyer who seems to  be an important part to the show as he will take on cases just to spite her, and their daughter was working for Rebel’s boss but now works for her father. She then uses her son from her first marriage who is a doctor to help with medical inquires as well. Plus her youngest daughter is interning at her job as well, which are too many coincidences. You also have her ex-sister in law being her closest friend and confidant who also works for Rebel’s boss as an investigator. Lastly her boss is her former best friend’s husband played by Andy Garcia(of The Godfather Part II & The Ocean’s Franchise) who is an esteemed actor but he is playing an uptight and thick headed lawyer who runs the firm Rebel that her daughters and ex-sister in law work for. The only actors with any upside is Mo McRae (of Pitch & Empire) who is playing one of the lawyers working for Garcia and this doctor who works with Rebel’s son Abigail Spencer(of Timeless & Suits). I only think ABC might renew this show is because it comes from the creators of Grey’s Anatomy, so they can have one night all the shows join together along with Station 19, since other shows have either ended or been cancelled from that creator.

CW:

Walker: A remake of the original Walker, Texas Ranger that stared Chuck Norris. This one stars Jared Padalecki playing the same character named Cordell Walker, a Texas Ranger. A widower and father of two with his own moral code he returns home to Austin after being under cover for a while, only to discover there's harder work to be done at home. He has to attempt to reconnect with both of his kids, his brother who is the ADA and his parents, while trying to connect with a new partner. He also is struggling with the circumstances surrounding his wife’s death. 

Verdict: Renewed: It gives you a nice wholesome feeling when watching it as they are making it a family-centric show with the grandparents, the uncle and his former partner all looking out for him and his kids, plus the town as a whole all know him well. Now the original show was a reboot/spinoff of a Chuck Norris character from a movie he was in and they made a movie afterwards. In that show he did not have kids to worry about and it was more wholesome that no one actually died/did hard drugs in it as they arrested all the bad guys. He also used his martial arts training to take down bad guys. It is nice that Coby Bell (of Third Watch & the Gifted) is on a show after his show was cancelled too early but instead of him being Walker’s partner he is his boss when he returns. In the original his partner is black but this time his actual partner is a rookie Ranger who is a Latina woman but so far she has proven to be that she can handle the job and taken down bad guys just as well as him. I do also like seeing Mitchell Pileggi (of X-Files & Stargate Atlantis) as a series regular again in a show as his father who owns a ranch and seems to be the person he goes to for real advice, and his mother (played by Molly Hagan of Herman’s Head & Code of Silence) is also a nice addition for support as they have been raising his kids while he has been gone. I could do without the background hints that is ADA brother is gay but his character is good for Walker to have as well since he helped watched the kids. The kids are not bad characters as the oldest daughter is a typical teenager rebelling since her parents haven’t been around and the son is more of a quiet recluse keeping him to himself for the same reasons. The issue is they are detractors from the point of the show which is him taking down bad guys as a Ranger he has to worry about their problems and split time between his job and kids.  The flashbacks/PTSD he seems to be suffering from are not from his time in the military as they are him dealing with the death of his wife (played by his real wife) years ago where things don’t add up. He can’t move forward so he is wrestling with that mentally besides from his kids aspect which again takes away from the job.  The hope is the writers find balance between raising his kids, his family, his own demons and the job since I think the kids/family are here to stay in the premise. I know it’s going to be renewed since the CW renews everything(expect one show in the last five years), but also they bypassed a pilot to make a direct to series which means they really wanted to put the show on the air and to make it work. They also added an additional five episodes as well which is always a good sign for a show to be renewed in TV history trends. The reason they did that is because they are trying to capitalize on the success of their longest running show Supernatural which Padalecki co-starred in which ended last year, by having him on a new project for them hence the good rating so far. People will tune in just to see him regardless of the show’s quality which is why this show is going to get renewed quickly. 

Superman & Lois: After years of facing supervillains, monsters and alien invaders Superman aka Clark Kent and famed journalist Lois Lane are in the midst of living their lives in Metropolis raising their two sons Jonathan and Jordan. They have to deal with being working parents in today's society as their kids could inherit their father's Kryptonian superpowers as they grow older. Despite being in the midst of his living his life in Metropolis he has to go back to Smallville to the Kent farm to take care of things and has to deal with Lois' father, Gen. Samuel Lane who always comes looking for him to vanquish a villain or save the day at a moment's notice as there is never a dull moment in the life of Superman. 

Verdict: Renewed. Pretty much every show about Superman is the start of his career or in the midst of it while this is well into the future. He is happily married with two teenage kids who could potentially have powers so it is interesting to see him balance his newspaper job, superhero job, marriage and raising teens. He could pass on the all the lessons he learned from his parents and to help guide the kids with their emerging powers. I also like the idea of him getting thrown a curveball with his life that has to bring him back home to Smallville and deal with all of his past coming forward when there. Lois is actually important to the show and stays in her lane unlike Iris on Flash she actually serves a purpose hence her name in the show. Since we have seen both Superman (played by Tyler Hoechlin of Teen Wolf & 7^th heaven) and Lois (played by Elizabeth Tulloch of Grimm & Quaterlife) in previous episodes of the Arrowverse we already are comfortable with them in their roles which they do a good job at. It will be interesting to see how the child actors who play the Kent kids do through the season. I understand with Supergirl ending this year this is the perfect replacement as this show has hope and is very uplifting to watch that it makes you feel good/happy when watching it. I also understand why it takes place when the kids are teenagers and not when they are born as the CW is trying to avoid crossovers/having Supergirl appear. We have to wonder when Lex Luthor and other villains will appear but how they deal with them as it’s later into the future plus which allies they will have besides Lois’s father. CW also has the MO of renewing every show so it was no surprise they already renewed it. 

Kung Fu: Nicky Shen is a Chinese-American young woman who has a quarter-life crisis where she drops out of college and goes on a life-changing journey to an isolated monastery in China. She then returns to her hometown in San Francisco three years later to find its overrun with crime and corruption, and her own parents are at the mercy of the triad. She has to deal with her estranged family, her ex-boyfriend, the assassin who killed her mentor and who is after her. She decides to fight crime and corruption to protect her community with her martial arts skills, with the help of her tech-savvy sister, her ex-boyfriend who is a detective, her new friend and pre-med brother. 

Verdict: Renewed. The first thing that has to be said is the CW essentially is at a 99% rate of renewing every show on their network even before the season starts or if the new show has only had a few episodes. They are on the wave of remakes like Roswell, New Mexico, Walker and Dynasty (has been on for five years) so with all the effort they are putting into promoting it and hyping it up there is no way they cancel it after one season. Plus it has Greg Berlanti producing it (the man behind the Arrowverse) as CW likes him so they will want the show to grow over time. With him running it he will put his best effort into it since this is the third time he tried to get the show going. It is also a very forward thinking idea to make a show very Asian-centric with every main character including the bad guy be Chinese with their speaking Chinese in the episodes. It also has a relatively unknown cast which can be good so you do not have to separate them from their previous works and can judge them solely on this, as the lead is done a great job so far. It also is very different from the original version with them having a female lead and it is taking place in present times while the original is about a half Chinese man who flees China after killing the emperor’s nephew who killed his lover. They both have been trained in Kung Fu but it takes place in the 1880’s where he is looking for his half brother and dealing with Chinese bigotry, while he fights of the bounty hunters trying to kill him. It has the same feel of every show on the CW- a teenage-soap opera feel making some parts boring but the target audience is mostly teens/young adults. The positives are that there is Kung Fu fighting in each episode as she takes down bad guys and her goal is to help those in need who need help but can’t get it. I also like the search for the killer of her master and her commitment into stopping her if that is the theme of the season, sprinkled in with her helping people every episode. The things that make it get bogged down are her ex being a detective she goes to for info/help when she is helping people/searching for the killer, and this new guy who is helping her for the killer search but could be her new boyfriend. They also have to add the sister’s upcoming wedding, the parents’ tension with their daughter finally coming home, being a failure in their eyes, and her brother’s dating life. I do like the father (played by Tzi Ma of Rush Hour & 24) as he has the most credits as a character actor and he is the most likable character in the show. 

FOX: 

Call Me Kat: Based on a British show Miyiam Bialik (of Blossom & the Big Bang Theory) stars as a 39 year-old single woman named Kat who sets out to prove her mother wrong that you cannot have everything you want yet still be happy. She leaves her job as a professor at the University of Louisville and spends her mother’s money that was set aside for a wedding on a Cat Café in her town of Louisville. 

Verdict: Cancelled. It is nice that she has her own show as an adult post TBBT but this show is too odd/quirky for broadcast TV. It feels more like a cable or streaming show and I don’t mean in terms of how appropriate the show is because it hasn’t gone down the crude humor/childish humor, it’s just too far out there for the average person watching broadcast TV to get behind. She constantly breaks the 4^th wall and is talking to us which would be fine if she was narrating, but she does it mid scene and everyone else pauses. She also goes on tangents and imagines things that aren’t there as well which might be part of the character’s issues, but I haven’t laughed much except for when Phil her baker played by Leslie Jordan does something funny but he isn’t the main character. Fox was nice to bring him back since they wrongfully cancelled his previous show “The Cool Kids” after one season, and are giving Swoosie Kurtz work after the show she was on got cancelled as well last year(Man with a Plan). Kurtz plays the overbearing mom role well but feels more like a distraction then a key element to the show. It is also nice to see Kyla Pratt in another TV show after her biggest role was lending her voice in the Proud Family. Despite the good supporting cast who play her employees, best friend, mom and her former college crush (played by Cheyenne Jackson of 30 Rock & American Horror story) it just doesn’t flow in storytelling. It’s also too convenient her college crush is back home and working across the street from her, as its too cliché that they keep hinting they could be together but you have to wait all season to find out. I also do not trust Fox to renew a half hour sitcom since they have cancelled every new half hour sitcom the past few TV seasons, after they cancelled all of them in order to show football on Thursday nights and wrestling on Friday nights. It doesn’t lead much room for sitcoms to be on the air if it’s only a few months during the year.

The Great North: It follows the adventures of the Tobin family in Alaska with a single dad named Beef (voiced by Nick Offerman of Parks & Rec & Fargo) who has to juggle his job as a fisherman and raise four unique kids name Judy (voiced by Jenny Slate of SNL & Big Mouth), Ham, Wolf (voiced by Will Forte of SNL & Last man on earth) and Moon. Oldest son Wolf has a fiancée and Judy has an imaginary friend voiced by Alanis Morrissette. 

Verdict: Renewed. This is what people want from an animated sitcom thank you Fox’s Animation Domination. We all want to laugh a bunch during a show and watch something that isn’t hateful, disgusting or inappropriate but something that is good natured. It also helps that Forte, Slate and Offerman supply the main voices and have all done comedy/voiced cartoons before. Forte makes you laugh all the time in everything including this character of how innocent he is- a dumb adult. It is also nice Fox gave him a new show after they cancelled his last show on a cliffhanger. If the rest of the characters did not exist it wouldn’t be missed like the second oldest and the fiancé. The youngest Moon is so adorable in that outfit he wears and is so interesting as a character I want more adventures of him, which reminds me of Louise from Bob’s Burgers as this is from the same creators. I notice the good chemistry between the voice actors which is good and that they have a theme song that all the characters sing which is a dying art in TV. It has been awhile since Fox actually churned out good animated shows until last TV year (2019-2020) with “Bless the Harts” & “Duncanville”, so hopefully it will be two years straight they can keep the trend by letting this show grow over a season and renew it. There was a reason they did not renew anything for a decade- there wasn’t anything new that was good until those two and now this. In a perfect world Fox goes back to two and half hours of programming on Sunday nights all year round. 

Song Machine-Gorillaz Album Review:

 

Gorillaz is back with a new album “Song Machine, Season one Strange Timez” their 7^th studio album (their 20^th anniversary) which is a part of a web series consisting of a collection of singles and music videos, dubbed "episodes" each featuring different guest artists. For those who do not know about this band they are an animated band created by British musician Damon Albarn who is the lead singer and songwriter of the band. It consists of four animated members: 2-D, Murdoc Niccals, Noodle, and Russel Hobbs. They blend many genres from punk/alternative rock, R&B, Hip Hop and electronica music into a unique style of music that also is famous for having many guest artists on their tracks. This album has fifteen of them like Sir Elton John, Beck and Robert Smith of the Cure to name some. You get the feeling the various artists are there for what they can bring to the song, rather than who they are, which means they meld into a fluent whole.

This album has two main themes: getting over a long-term relationship since the last album (with drugs and alcohol), and the current state the world is in politically and socially. The opening track “Strange Timez” has an eerie sound to it talking about the economic and political world is in 2020 with the lead singer of the “Cure” singing the lead. In “Valley of the Pagans” which is a catchy-funky song that Beck is on touches on how the world hides behind the fakeness of Hollywood while ignoring the real problems we face, and how everything is shallow or plastic in that world. “The Last Cord” is about feeling lost in the times we are facing that we need something or someone but the song actually makes you feel safe when listening to it. While “Pac-man” has sounds from the iconic game it is about feeling stuck in a place during these times and wanting to “Level up”, where he is trying to fill a void with the wrong things which could be destructive. 

The song “Chalk Tablet Towers” he is escaping from stress which could be due to the pandemic or about getting over that ex. While “Friday the 13^th” is how he is dealing with getting over the ex with drugs or alcohol or the strip scene in Vegas. The song that is really beautiful is “Pink Phantom” which features two artists including Sir Elton John, which is about getting over an ex during the summer. The other two songs have artists singing in French and Spanish in “Dead Butterflies” and “Desloe” (Sorry). The first one is about a failed relationship and how he was left alone in a time of need, and believes he is now a “dead butterfly”. The latter is about moving on from a bad relationship.

The final two songs “Aries” and “Momentary Bliss” aren’t part of the two main themes, just good songs maybe about the astrological sign and maybe hoping to have some bliss when the pandemic is over. They have many times taken inspiration from the Beatles and this song mentions a girl name Rita which is an interesting choice.

Overall Gorillaz never makes bad music. It might make music far out there in the confines of what people think Rock or Pop should be, but they also do a good job blending many genres and guests artist to many hits. They aren’t a band that makes great albums as a whole but they are ones that make great songs as they are just a song machine.