Here's everything you need to know about the world of television for Tuesday, October 8th, 2024:
PRODUCTION NOTES
This will be a shorter newsletter than normal. I'm still recovering from whatever bug my family caught, although my son returned to school today for the first time in a week, so that's definitely a win.
AN INTERVIEW WITH THE HOSTS OF BARGAIN BLOCK NEW ORLEANS
My favorite HGTV show right now is Bargain Block, which follows Keith Bynum and Evan Thomas as they buy the cheapest, skankiest houses they can find and then turn them into affordable housing. The duo are also real-life partners and they have a humor and charm that sets the show apart from much of what you'll see on the network.
They have a new show premiering on Wednesday in which they decide to spend the winter months in a more renovation-friendly climate. I've seen the premiere episode of Bargain Block New Orleans, and it is as delightful as the mother show. I recently had the opportunity to speak with them ahead of the premiere and will post the entire interview in the morning. But here is a quick excerpt:
One of the things I personally enjoy about the show is that Keith, you will come up with this seemingly insane design idea and you'll try and explain it to Evan. "It's going to be the Monkey Claw House and we'll have all sorts of jungle colors, and ceramic monkeys." And Evan will give you this kinda resigned look along the lines of "You know, if I didn't love you, I don't know if I could deal with this." And then you both move on.
Keith: Well, thank you.
Evan: I guess it is really odd to see it played back to you. If we watch an episode and you see yourself from that perspective, it is so much more.
It's humbling, especially from certain angles. But also, most people will never have an opportunity to have that level of self-reflection or self-awareness. There's a literal screen showing it back to you. And if you are acting like a jackass, oh boy.
That's the thing with the TV side. People always ask us, "What has changed about you with TV?" And I just am so much more aware of everything that comes out of my mouth or how I say it. And it's probably for the best. Because people kind of just float through life without a lot of awareness and you're kind of forced to be aware when you're on TV.
Keith: I can get lost in art and all that kind of stuff for, you know, most of my daytime could be just completely consumed, but it is good to have that. Like who would say TV is a grounding thing? But for me, it's like grounding.
AN INTERVIEW WITH BRITTANY BARBIERI OF LOST MONSTER FILES
I am the first to admit that I am not a big believer in Bigfoot or most of the mysteries being investigated in Cryptozoology. But I enjoy interviewing people from shows such as Discovery's upcoming Lost Monster Files because I'm honestly interested in hearing their point of view. Not only is it possible I could change my mind, but also treating the interviews seriously can lead to some really fascinating conversations.
I recently spoke with cryptozoologist Brittany Barbieri, who is one of the investigators on Lost Monster Files, which premieres on Wednesday. I'll post the complete interview tomorrow, but here's a taste of what to expect:
Cryptozoology, like a lot of professions, is male-dominated in a lot of ways. So what are the challenges of working in the field as a woman? Are there some advantages as well?
That's a great question, actually. Thank you. It's a very – it has been challenging.
I would say in the last probably 10 years, it's been a little bit easier for women to make a mark in this field. However, it is still a little bit challenging. I think the majority of men kind of see women with more of an emotional attachment and that we're more sensitive to a lot of things. Which I think is also an advancement for us in this field because we can get maybe a little bit more out of our eyewitness because we don't come off so harsh or very matter-of-fact.
We come off a little bit more empathetic and understanding to our eyewitness. And I think that helps. And I think that is why we're getting a lot more eyewitnesses coming forward.
That's why they're feeling that there is a safe space and more comfortable rooms to speak their truth in. And for a woman, it's a tough place because even though you have opinions and you've done your research and you've had your own field work, it's almost as if in some places the guys still think that they can do it better. And it's hard.
THE HACKIEST WAY TO TALK ABOUT NETFLIX
There are plenty of things to criticize about Netflix. But for some reason, when journalists sit down to write their epic takedown of the streamer, they feel the need to make sure you know that they don't actually watch any of the stuff you do.
Willy Staley has a piece in the NY Times headlined "How Everyone Got Lost In Netflix's Endless Library," and while there are some nuggets of insight in the exceptionally long piece, he never quite manages to get to point of his argument. And of course, he made sure to include the prerequisite "Do you know anyone who watches this crap?" paragraph:
Netflix has continued to release these reports, and I have continued to look at the top of them, mystified. “The Night Agent,” “Outer Banks,” “ONE PIECE,” “Dear Child,” “Who Is Erin Carter?” “The Gentlemen” — these are all Top 5 shows on Netflix from the three spreadsheets released so far. I don’t know anyone who watches these, and I don’t think I’d ever read a word about them until I sat down to write this. They seem to be relics from another timeline where none of this ever happened, evidence of the commercial wisdom of doing things the old way. And it makes you wonder about the Talmudic discourse that surrounds every episode of buzzy television shows, trying to use them to make sense of the zeitgeist. What if the geist of our zeit mostly involves bingeing some British murder mystery based on a Harlan Coben (?!) novel called “Fool Me Once”? That was the most-watched show on Netflix in the first half of this year.
Honestly, I don't see how you could have spent any time on Netflix in the past couple of years and not have at least heard of some of those shows. Which makes this piece feel a lot like one of those "Oh, Netflix is popular with the riff-raff" pieces that pop up every so often.
INTERVIEWS, INTERVIEWS AND SOME MORE INTERVIEWS
It's been a busy week, so I wanted to highlight a couple of recently-posted full interviews that I had mentioned here in recent days.
I recently had the opportunity to speak with rapper Fat Joe about his new Starz 30-minute talk show Fat Joe Talks and it was a really fascinating conversation that covered everything from how getting older changes the music you make to his quite touching discussion of his autistic son Joey. You can read (or watch) the entire interview here.
I also recently spoke with PBS Chief Digital and Marketing Officer Ira Rubenstein and here is the complete interview. We touched on a wide range of topics from the challenges of branding PBS across a wide and varied network to the success of PBS Kids and the ins-and-outs of the PBS streaming platform Passport.
WHAT'S NEW TONIGHT AND TOMORROW
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 8TH, 2024:
Accused Season Two (Fox)
Ali Wong: Single Lady (Netflix)
An Oprah Special: The Presleys - Elvis, Lisa Marie And Riley (CBS)
A Terrified Teacher At Ghoul School! Series Premiere (Crunchyroll)
Citizen Nation (PBS)
Dinner Time Live With David Chang Season Two Premiere (Netflix)
Killer Cakes (Prime Video)
Life Below Zero Season Premiere (NatGeo)
Money Electric: The Bitcoin Mystery (HBO)
1000-LB Sisters Season Premiere (TLC)
The Graham Norton Show Season Premiere (BBC America)
The Irrational Season Two Premiere (NBC)
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 9TH, 2024:
Abbott Elementary Season Four Premiere (ABC)
American Pickers Season Premiere (History)
Bad Monkey Season One Finale (Apple TV+)
Bargain Block New Orleans Series Premiere (HGTV)
Deceitful Love (Netflix)
Expedition Unknown Season Premiere (Discovery)
House Of Villains Season Premiere (E!)
La Máquina Series Premiere (Hulu)
Lost Monster Files Series Premiere (Discovery)
Scamanda (ABC)
Starting 5 (Netflix)
The Do-Over Damsel Conquers the Dragon Emperor Series Premiere (Crunchyroll)
The Inheritance Series Premiere (BritBox)
The Secret Of The River Series Premiere (Netflix)
SEE YOU ON WEDNESDAY!