Disney, musicals and fairy tales. A match as perfect as peanut butter and jelly or wine and cheese. Add some Stephen Sondheim into the mix, and you have a very curious combination. Of course the new Disney cinematic musical Into the Woods started out life on Broadway and as far from Disney as one could imagine … and seven years before Disney even hit Broadway with its own musical fairy tale, Beauty and the Beast.

Sondheim’s take on some well-known fairy tale characters, like Cinderella, Rapunzel and Jack (of beanstalk fame), was more Grimm than Disney. Not many people realize that the tales we all know and love today, courtesy of Disney, are much darker and violent, and they don’t always end happily ever after. In Sondheim’s musical fantasia, our beloved fairy tales are close to what we know but with a little bit of a twist: a wicked witch is brought into the mix to stir things up after placing a curse on the home of the Baker and his wife (James Corden and Emily Blunt). Because of the misdeeds of Baker’s father (he stole vegetables and magic beans from the Witch’s garden), the house would forever be childless.

It’s up to the Baker to bring the Witch four items: a cape as red as blood, hair as yellow as corn, a cow as white as milk, and a slipper as pure as gold. You can pretty much figure out which characters the Baker and his wife will run into in the woods.

As we meet each character, their stories are certainly familiar enough and the film seems to reach its climax with the “happily ever after” wedding of Cinderella (Anna Kendrick) and Prince Charming (Chris Pine). But young Jack’s misdeeds at the top of the beanstalk have brought giants to the land below, turning the happy day into tragedy as the land is destroyed, people are homeless and hopeless, and only the resilient spirit of the Baker seems to make the others want to make peace with the giants by returning the stolen items. But the giants want more than their golden egg and magic harp back … they want Jack.

With the arrival of the giants, the film’s bright, colorful palette turns dark and muted, as if dark clouds have come to cover the land. The characters become more human as well, and sadly, death will take some of them. It’s here that you have to wonder what the folks at Disney were thinking. Is it such a good idea for them to produce a film that treats many of its most beloved characters so badly? Parents should be warned that Into the Woods is not a children’s movie.

That being said, it’s nice that Disney has produced a fairy tale movie aimed at adults, and cast it with a who’s who of amazing stars. Blunt has already been nominated for a Golden Globe as Lead Actress in a Musical or Comedy and she is quite good. James Corden’s Baker my be the film’s true lead (and he acquits himself well, particularly with some of Sondheim’s more complicated lyrics), but Blunt’s Baker’s Wife is the film’s true heart and soul. She brings so much warmth and patience to her character that you can’t help but to fall in love with her. And Blunt also has a lovely singing voice, bringing tears to the eyes as she closes out the film with “Children Will Listen.”

Anna Kendrick can sing, for sure, but I really didn’t feel much for her Cinderella until she had a heartfelt moment later in the film at the ruined grave of her mother. She was much too flighty, but I did enjoy Christine Baranski as her Wicked Stepmother and Tammy Blanchard and Lucy Punch in the more broadly drawn roles of the stepsisters. Daniel Huttleston (Jack) and Lilla Crawford (Little Red Riding Hood) are major finds, giving great performances and tackling those lyrics with true professionalism. Pine and Billy Magnussen (Rapunzel’s Prince) deliver the film’s showstopping moment as they sing and try to outdo each other’s proclamations of love with the song “Agony.” The audience loved both actors’ hamminess, showing us what total douchebags these two princes really are. Mackenzie Mauzy is, unfortunately, locked away a bit too much in Rapunzel’s tower, and Johnny Depp shows up briefly as the Big Bad Wolf to leer lasciviously at Red Riding Hood. The role can come off as a bit creepy as he sings about the lusciousness of the young girl, but it’s all in quest of a meal and nothing else.

Of course, the biggest star of the movie is Meryl Streep (Golden Globe nominee for Best Supporting Actress in a Motion Picture) and she can really belt out those songs. She also seems to be having great fun playing the haggard, old witch (breaking her own rule of never playing a witch after she was offered three witch roles when she turned 40) and then gets to glam it up as the curse on her is lifted. Whenever she’s on screen, you just can’t take your eyes off of her.

The film, which was shot on location in England, sometimes feels and looks a bit too stage-bound instead of opened up for the screen, but it also adds more intimacy to the story than you can get watching actors on a stage. I suspect the minuscule budget Disney gave Oscar nominated director Rob Marshall played a big part in the almost claustrophobic feel of the woods (there are very few interior sets). Colleen Atwood’s costumes are also pretty amazing, appropriately regal and tattered, befitting the station of the character wearing them.

Is Into the Woods a perfect movie musical? That all depends on your taste in musicals. I’ve seen the stage version and I enjoyed the film much more. I think it was the music and the singing which drew me into the world more than it did with either stage production. I don’t think it rivals Marshall’s own Oscar-winning Chicago, but I enjoyed the movie very much. The only real negative impact the film may face is the downer of an ending. If you know going in that it’s not going to end happily ever after for some, you may not come out of it feeling so negatively about the rest of the movie. You have been warned.

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It’s a big week for TV on home video as the new fall season starts to roll out. This week, you have the opportunity to catch up on several of last season’s shows before the new season starts, including Arrow, About a Boy, Awkward, The Big Bang Theory, Bones, Castle, Grimm, Hannibal, Hawaii Five-O, Sleepy Hollow and South Park. For those whose cable systems don’t yet carry Robert Rodriguez’s El Rey channel, the first season of From Dusk Till Dawn makes its home video debut, while streaming series Alpha House and Burning Love also get home video releases. Classic TV fans can now get The Carol Burnett Show Ultimate Edition from retailers other than Time Life, and Highway to Heaven and Tour of Duty also get new season releases. For kids and families, there’s Ben 10 Omniverse, Denver the Last Dinosaur, Dragon Ball Z, Marvel Knights, Slugterra and more. For a look at the September 16 highlights, check out our alphabetical shopper’s guide after the jump. Click on a link to make a purchase or to get more information.

Combined, the first three days of San Diego Comic-Con – including preview night – rarely add up to the crammed schedule that is Saturday. If you’re a movie lover – and willing to camp out at least 15 hours in advance (according to my Twitter research on the last person I could find who got in and was sharing) – then Hall H is usually filled with awesomeness from Marvel, Warner Bros. and some of the other studio heavyweights. For those of us covering TV, Saturday is generally as easily congested as many of the shows that have just started production wait until the weekend to make the trip.

For Team CliqueClack, that meant a fun 12 hours hopping from Press Room to Press Room, chatting about the upcoming seasons and new projects with actors and creators. As late as a night as Saturday generally becomes, we’ve held off until Sunday evening to include the half-day or so we spent at the Convention in one post. Here are the highlights:

• While I spent a lot of time at NerdHQ this weekend (more on that to come) Michael attended his first Conversations for a Cause panel featuring the cast of The Walking Dead.
• I spent the first part of day with what we could call Team Berlanti at SDCC: The casts and crew of The CW’s The Flash and Arrow. One thing that particularly stood out was how much Stephen Amell was excited for The Flash in general and Grant Gustin experiencing his first SDCC as the fastest man alive (see that hat?).
• My schedule did a bit of a backflip, but it allowed for an opportunity I didn’t think I was going to get at this Con, talking to the cast and crew of the show I’m probably most looking forward to this calendar year, Starz’ Outlander. This was great because I’m a big fan of the show and am really looking forward to the series, but also because it was the first time I’d ever sat down with Ronald D. Moore … and I even found a way to ask a (relevant to Outlander) question about Battlestar Galatica, which is the series that was in the impetus that lead to me writing about television in the first place.

• First a NerdHQ panel, then a press room with The Walking Dead … it was a zombie kind of day for Michael. The cast was pretty secretive – sadly, though understandably, a theme this year with everyone we spoke too – up to and including running across the room to check in with a producer with what they could and could not say.
• My last press room of the day was for SyFy’s upcoming event mini-series Ascension. This was one of those odd experience where we knew very little about the series, set for six episodes in November. Fortuately the cast didn’t have to be entirely obtuse … they had just finished filming the first episode the day before!
• One of the highlights of the trip historically has been the NBC New Media party, and while the party isn’t what it once was – though considering NBC’s decreasing presence at the Con it is understandable – Michael and I did get to spend a couple of minutes with Grimm’s Reggie Lee, who has been an incredible friend to this website for several years now (Though it seems that our editor Keith McDuffee has been much more generous with the homemade honey his household produces with Mr. Lee than he’s been with the rest of us).

• We finished the night by attending the premiere screening of Prelude to Axanar, a Kickstarer-funded teaser/prequel to an upcoming Star Trek based fan film. The short had a surprising solid cast including Richard Hatch (Starbuck plays a Klingon!), the always lovely Kate Vernon and Gary Graham, though it was Tony Todd who stole the show. The first of two campaigns to fund the main film is underway and is at 84% as of this writing.
• Sunday is always a little melancholy as the week comes to an end. Michael and I had a quick breakfast at our new favorite spot The Broken Yolk with our good buddy Tom Gardiner from Three if By Space.
• At that point, Team CliqueClack went our separate ways. Michael headed to the Convention Center with his two daughters in tow. I spent most of my Sunday at NerdHQ, catching panels for Wil Wheaton & Felicia Day and Stephen Amell. I also experienced my first Nathan Fillion (with Alan Tudyk joining in) “Auction my crap” Panel. If you want to see just how much money those two can raise by signing things they brought with them, you have to check out this video (Especially watch the first two items auctioned … when the final bid came in – out of nowhere – it set a tone for just how generous people would have to be).
• The final press room I had on my docket didn’t work out particularly well due to a variety of scheduling snafus; sadly we’re at the mercy of the insane timeline the talent has to follow while they are in town (and the unfortunate chaos that those press rooms can be).

It’s hard not to look back at SDCC 2014 as a success. While it was the first year I’ve attended without our Editor Keith McDuffee, Mr. Noble and I still managed to have a productive – and fun – couple of days. The highs were high (Ron Moore, a picture on the Iron Throne, Reggie Lee) and the lows were low (San Diego isn’t supposed to be that humid, and it actually rained. Twice!). Team CliqueClack acquired a great deal of content that we’ll be sharing with you over the coming months. And it’s already time to start thinking about what SDCC 2015 might look like.

Look … I admit:

Year in and year out no matter how many times I venture to San Diego (“America’s Finest City”) for Comic-Con, it’s always a thrill. Always. I’ve equated the weeks leading up to it with a child’s anticipation of a trip to Disneyland.

Truly, it’s that exciting.

The planning. The scheduling. The approach of the event does nothing but ramp everything up to a frothy, effervescent headiness. And then? The head-spinning, giddy feeling of being right smack dab in the middle of it all with thousands of others (tens of thousands, truth be told), all vying for that collectible or that panel or that photo opportunity with “Holy crap! Did you see who that was?!? It’s (insert any popular personality here) from (insert any popular or cult television program or film here) … !!!”

Here’s a little taste of what’s in store this year:

• I get to sit face to face with Mohandas Gandhi! (Well … Ben Kingsley who played Gandhi in the titular film and who is featured in the upcoming The Boxtrolls.)
• Fellow Clacker Ivey West and I will be taking in a brand new Star Trek film. (Details to follow.)
• I get to angle for position in a press room announcing the highly-anticipated release of television’s 1960s Batman series. Adam West and Burt Ward will be there in the flesh.
• I’ll be grilling the cast of Falling Skies about their thoughts on the current season as well as their just-announced 5th and final season.

And that’s just the tip of the iceberg where The Con is concerned. (Yes, I’m bragging. Wouldn’t you be if you were on the receiving end of all that? Yeah … that’s what I thought.)

Add partying, hobnobbing, joking with and sharing cocktails with cast members from lots of television shows and films, picking up exclusive collectibles available only at Comic-Con (which will inevitably show up on eBay, etc. at obscenely inflated rates), bumping into old friends and acquaintances (and making new ones) and my personal Con tradition of smoking a cigar in public in a luchador mask. (I know. “What a freak.”) Add it all up and that will fill anyone’s Con experience quickly. *whew*

Cryptic stuff from last year’s Godzilla Experience

But! You have to dig deep, take a breath and dive right back in because, as stated, that’s only the beginning. Unexpected stuff comes up. Four days of Comic-Con simply isn’t enough to take everything in. But you hunker down and you do your darnedest.

Some of you out there might be wondering: “Michael … is it all worth it? The crowds and the lines and the long-assed days and the rude people and the $9.00 pizza slices and, holy guacamole, all those NERDS. Is it really worth it?!?”

First of all, I don’t like pizza, let alone pay nine bucks for a slice of the stuff. So no problem there. As to the question at hand:

• When you can walk down a vacant hallway off the main drag, realize someone in a white suit is pacing you at your left shoulder, glance over and realize it’s Bruce Campbell (The Evil Dead, Army Of Darkness, Bubba Ho-Tep) and carry on a 3 minute conversation with him while he’s on his way to a panel despite body guards being in tow? (Bonus: He was amiable as all get out.) Damned straight it’s worth it.
• When, of a sudden, the opportunity arises to meet some of your heroes such as Marvel Comics and film storyboard artist Mike Ploog, animator / stop-motion master Ray Harryhausen (RIP), Forrest J. Ackerman (“Famous Monsters Of Filmland” magazine, RIP), voice over actor extraordinaire Chuck McCann (Sonny the Cuckoo Bird, Cool McCool, various Powerpuff Girls characters, voice of cartoon’s Oliver Hardy and hundreds more), actor/writer/director/voice over artist Stan Freberg? And one on one? Face to face? Damned straight it’s worth it.
• When you’re waiting in line for an autograph from the yummy Princess Leia/Carrie Fisher of Star Wars legend (hokay, this was years ago … but I still have a thing for her) and she keeps eying you the entire 45 minutes you’re inching along with the others to where she sits and you’re getting more and more uncomfortable as you reach your goal? Then, once there, she asks what you’re doing at Comic-Con because she thinks you’re an old boyfriend of hers she hasn’t seen in ages, the reason she’s been staring at you all this time? Well … you do what I did. You respond: “No, I’m not him. But, if you like, I can certainly fake it …” and you make her blush several shades of red? Yeah … damned straight it’s worth it.
• When you’re standing at a men’s urinal minding your own business and Jason Gann (Wilfred from Wilfred) unzips next to you and strikes up a conversation? Damned straight. And when critic Leonard Maltin does same at the Hard Rock Cafe the next evening? Ditto.
• When you get called on to meet, say, Reggie Lee of Grimm (as Keith and I did last year) in a casual restaurant/bar and chat about anything you want (television, family, favorite vacation spots) for a few hours while nursing beers and munching french fries? Yeah. Damned straight it’s worth it.
• When you’re as close to Gillian Anderson (The X-Files) as the picture featured above? Damned. Straight. It’s. Worth. It. Period. *swoon*

But let’s get grounded for a moment. I want to explain why my geekdorknerdness has become a little more respectable. (Kinda. Somewhat. A little bit. Oh, shut up.)

Relatively speaking, it wasn’t that long ago when Hollyweird shoved its big, fat, greedy paws into the Comic-Con pie with all its high-falutin’ media and “WowZah!” sneak peeks and premieres and events and spectacles, forcing The Con into what it is today: A “must-attend-at-all-costs” event for many. The “suits” … they know how to jump on a bandwagon when opportunity rears its head.

And what, pray tell, set all this hoo-hah in motion? Well … because of those little things called “comic books” and the creators who create them, of course. At its core, comics have always been the backbone of Comic-Con. And they always will be. Want proof? (Really? You need proof? *sigh*) Ever hear of a little film called The Avengers? How about Iron Man? Or Thor? Captain America? Batman? Superman? Each and every one had humble beginnings in the once-lowly comic book format. Hollywood caught on and realized they could promote the bejeebers out of new properties and programs and more. And maybe — just maybe — with some experimentation comics could be turned into celluloid gold. They could directly feed the “audience” they were shooting for in one fell swoop. An audience who had the power to “word of mouth” an up-and-coming something or other and propel it into the stratosphere.

That audience? Nerds, of course. And that’s a major reason you can’t walk up to The Con as previous, say 10 years ago, and plop down $50 and get in to all four days of the event effortlessly. Today? Because of Hollywood Comic-Con tickets sell out in a few hours of going on sale. (We’ll see what happens next year when The San Diego Convention Center puts the finishing touches on a major expansion. Stay tuned.)

CliqueClack’s big wheel Keith McDuffee (right, as “The Blue Demon”) won’t be attending this year.
So, sadly, this sort of monkey business won’t be taking place. *sniff*

Regardless of the changes that have taken place over the last decade, overall, is it still worth it? Absolutely. If you can get in.

And if you can’t, the cool thing is this: Over the last few years, tons of events have been added outside the confines of The Con itself. Exhibits and interactive experiences and programming and parties and concerts and more. Many things you don’t need a Comic-Con ticket for in order to attend. It’s become that massive and popular.

This year? As in year’s past, my friend and colleague Mr. Ivey West and I will be scouring the convention floors, planting our asses in seats at numerous panels, maneuvering through the crowds, jockeying for position in press rooms, venturing to parties, giving blood (I do it every year) and participating in clean, close shaves (Really! Details for follow) as well as other things sure to come as a surprise not only to our readers but to us, too. We’ll be reporting live from The Con via Twitter (CliqueClack: @CliqueClack / Ivey: @Dorv / Michael: @RuprechtReal) and posting highlights to CliqueClack.com as often as possible. (I’m swiping a page out of Ivey’s book and following his lead from last year.) In addition, Ivey and I will log in-depth interviews, video, wrap-ups and more during the week following Comic-Con.

In the event you can’t attend The Con? Well … you can. Through us.

And no one will call you a geekdorknerd. We’ll take the brunt of that for you. We’re giving that way.

There’s nothing like a good old fashioned science fiction tale of a not-too-distant dystopian future to get the juices flowing. (I have leanings toward hopeless, oppressive, dire story lines. Some might consider it more a curse than anything else.)

News Flash (or “spoiler” if you haven’t watched the premiere yet): Those juices won’t be flowing courtesy of The Lottery.

So what kind of future is played out in this new sci-fi series? Well, a rather wishy-washy, trope-filled one if the first episode has anything to do with it.

Some dystopian futures? They don’t translate into standards we readily understand. Their ideologies can often be so over the top in approach or function we lose out on any sort of correlation. Our everyday applications don’t jive with what we see. In other instances they go even further — they’re so foreign or left-of-center we can’t begin to wrap our heads around them. They completely alienate us. Result? Zero audience engagement. You don’t want that.

What you want is something that’s going to grab you from the get-go. And that’s exactly what happens in The Lottery. You are immediately drawn in by the opening introductory statements:

The Lottery bills itself as dystopian (often characterized by human misery, oppression, disease, overcrowding) but this future isn’t any of those things. It’s just got one big, fat, 800 pound gorilla of a problem: Human extinction due to world-wide infertility. And, though it stretches the definition of dystopian, I’m still okay with it.

But … just when you settle in to see what unfolds? That’s the moment things begin sliding southward.

Story-wise things seem to move in the right direction at the start — women are continually tested for viability, men are urged to “donate” (the bikini-clad Uncle Sam print campaigns are a nice touch) and the sense of urgency feels desperate and real. But the players in the game and the situations they inhabit are ludicrous. They pull you in directions (I’d like to think) the producers don’t want you treading. You want to feel this world is possible and realistic but, instead, you’re led along a path of skepticism and unbelievability.

The biggest culprit is the very person working for the hope of all mankind: Dr. Alison Lennon (Marley Shelton). She might be a brilliant and dedicated scientist, her efforts (and that of her staff) may have finally come up with viable human embryos but her actions outside the workplace shout otherwise. Patronizing a bar in order to scope out the best possible (translation: potent) males to “get the job done” (translation: propagate)? Talk about irresponsibility personified. Stupidly pilfering a colleague’s passkey to get back into the facility she just got fired from? It’s a plan that comes right out of “Dumb Criminals Handbook.” Swiping human embryos she herself worked on after things go sour? Think about it: Who are the most likely suspects to get a finger pointed at them given a secure facility charged with saving the human race from extinction? Duh. The employees of said facility, the only people who know what the hell they’re doing and where said embryos are stored. *sigh*

U.S. President Thomas Westwood (Yul Vázquez) is no better. “Hey! Let’s have a cabinet meeting to determine the fate of the human race now that a possible solution to mankind’s existence is within reach!” << BOOM >> Done. (But … with a mere three members of his staff? Really?) “Hey! Let’s throw all logic out the window and jump head first into a lottery system for nurturing those usable human eggs! What a great ‘let’s-rally-the-nation’ call to action!” << BOOM >> Done. (Not that re-election considerations have anything to do with it. Let’s see: Fate of the world? Another four years in office? No conflict of interest there, nope. ) “Hey! Let’s put out an announcement about this lottery thing! What? You mean … right now? Sure! Let’s do it!” << BOOM >> Done.  (Because possession is nine tenths of the law. Screw the women whose eggs those are! They’re not the best candidates for maturation or saving our sorry asses! And, while we’re at it, screw the rest of the world! We got ‘em! We’ll do whatever the hell we please with ‘em!)

(Understand: I’m not so much against the concept of the show’s lottery as I am with the path leading to it. The best descriptor of what takes place would be “doofus.”)

But wait! There’s more!

Let’s throw in a seemingly attentive father (Michael Graziadei, American Horror Story, Grimm) who has one of the last kids on Earth. And let’s write in his proclivity to earn money by sleeping with every Tomasina, Dianne and Mary willing to get jiggy with him because, you know, he’s proven himself as one of the last virile men on the planet. << BOOM >> Done.

U. S. Chief Of Staff Vanessa Keller (Athena Karkanis)? Let’s mix it up and give her an unscrupulous brother whose only aim is to make a quick buck dealing counterfeit fertility drugs. Oh … and make him a complete douche bag, too. << BOOM >> Done.

*sigh*

There’s plenty more where those came from, too. Gads of television tropes you’ve seen time and again. Tune in and keep count if you can.

And there you go … a taste of The Lottery. More “dys-dopeyian” than dystopian if you ask me.

The $10,000 question is where do you go with it? I plan on setting my furrowed brow to neutral and playing out a few more episodes to see how it plays out short term. You can judge a show from the start — if it intrigues you, great. But if it starts-stops-fumbles out the gate with the silly things listed above, a concentrated effort is going to be needed to stick around in the hope it will improve.

Me? I’ll role the dice and take that chance. What’s life all about (or television, for that matter) if you don’t take a few chances every now and again?

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Update: Check the bottom of the post for the updated iTunes chart positions at the close of voting.

First, an apology: I’m sorry I missed last week’s post … my (delayed) flight didn’t have WIFI or – more of a challenge – live television. In fact, I never got around to watching last week’s performances (though I did check out the tracks on iTunes). I can’t say that I was particularly surprised that Kristen Merlin or Kat Perkins were sent home (though Merlin’s “Foolish Games” might have been her best performance of the entire season). The competition was at the point the week before where everyone has the talent to win, now it is simply (and perhaps sadly) just a popularity context.

The final three this season do make for interesting television. As Blake pointed out in the intro, the group consists of a returnee from a previous season (Jake), a player who was Stolen after being sent home (Josh) and a player who was the beneficiary of an Instant Save (Christina). Each is a great performer and each is insanely popular. I think that it’s going to come down to song choice: what singer/song choice is going to chart best on iTunes and get those fans voting like crazy.

Christina Grimmie: “Wrecking Ball” (Miley Cyrus) – Team Adam

I’m a little surprised this was the song that fans choose to bring back from Grimmie’s performances this season. I would have assumed that some of her more recent covers – specifically the cool takes on R&B tracks – would have been more popular. More over, I don’t think it is a song that really allows Grimmie to show off. Until the end of the song, it isn’t nearly as demanding – as you want a song in a competition like this. Blake, however, wasn’t surprised at all (basically because there’s enough of those big notes … I disagree).

Josh Kaufman & Usher: “Every Breath You Take” (The Police)

These coach/contestant duets have always been mixed bag for me over the years. As much money as I’ve been sucked into spending on iTunes, I think I’ve only purchased one of them in the past (Javier and Adam, in case you were wondering). I have a feeling that this is going to be an exception to that rule. This is a song I love to hear covered, and Josh and Usher did wonderful job. Their vocals were great, but more importantly they matched incredibly well.

Jake Worthington: “Don’t Close Your Eyes” (Keith Whitley)
Jake has been his best when he pulls from Country’s yesteryear (a statement that doesn’t always hold true for Blake’s Country singers – I’m looking at you Swon Brothers). His Blind Audition performance of one of Keith Whitley’s classic “Don’t Close Your Eyes” was second only to his cover of Travis Tritt’s “Anymore.” After watching his Final performance here, however, I barely remember the first. Jake owned this performance. Shakira says that Jake has “gained credibility” this season, a spot on assessment. He’s also gained confidence, something that I think could lead to Jake being one of the The Voice’s success stories even if he doesn’t win.

Josh Kaufman: “Signed, Sealed, Delivered, I’m Yours” (Steve Wonder) – Team Usher

At first, I thought this was another surprising choice by the audience – though we were reminded in the intro that this was the song Josh sung that lead to his Steal by Usher. But once the song really got going, I was reminded once again just how talented Josh is. I loved how Josh admitted to borrowing one of the vocal cues his opponent in the Battle Round, Delvin Choice, used against him. Josh is probably the most talented contestant left in the show (where as Christina might have more upside and Jake is so perfectly tuned into the type of artist he is going to be).

Christina Grimmie & Adam Levine: “Somebody That I Used to Know” (Gotye)

So far tonight, the coaches have nailed their duet song choices. Christina and Adam blended their voices wonderful here. This is a song that has shown up on The Voice three times before, but this performance will hopefully define the song one that needs more than one artist to do it justice.

Jake Worthington: “Right Here Waiting” (Richard Marx) – Team Blake

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If you follow CliqueClack on Facebook or Google+, you’ve been kept up to date on all of the networks’ axings, renewals and pickups for the coming season. It was a bloodbath for fans of some beloved shows, like ABC’s The Neighbors (which the network never properly promoted, but seems to have a huge fan base if you follow the show and the actors on Twitter) and NBC’s Community which will never live up to the hashtag #sixseasonsandamovie … unless some other network (or streaming service, ahem, Hulu Plus) steps in to save it.

On Sunday, May 11, NBC was the first of the networks to announce its fall lineup ahead of its official upfront presentation on May 12. Did your favorite shows make the cut? NBC has officially canned Community (but Sony is expected to shop it around), Revolution, Dracula (which was intended to be a limited series unless ratings dictated a second season), Believe, Crisis, Growing Up Fisher, Ironside (I believe the first cancellation of the season), Welcome to the Family, The Michael J. Fox Show (which gives him the opportunity to return to The Good Wife), Sean Saves the World, The Million Second Quiz, and Camp.

So what does the fall schedule look like? NBC has six new series premiering in the fall, has confirmed final seasons for some long-running shows, and is shifting it biggest 2013-2014 hit to a new night. On top of that, say goodbye to the Must See TV comedy block on Thursday … which honestly hasn’t had many “must see” comedies in that two hour block for years. NBC’s biggest hit, The Blacklist, will debut in its normal Monday timeslot in the fall, but will shift to Thursdays at 9:00 PM in February which NBC hopes will help to rebuild its beleaguered Thursday ratings. Of prime concern to the net’s Thursday woes is CBS’ acquisition of Thursday Night Football, which consists of sixteen games between September and December. “The multi-pronged strategy behind moving The Blacklist, which has shown enormous linear ratings and record time-shifting, is to not only enliven our Thursday night lineup but also create two desirable timeslots — lead-outs from The Voice (on Monday) and The Blacklist (on Thursday),” said NBC Entertainment chairman Bob Greenblatt.

NBC is still committed to comedy though, but will be holding most of their big guns for mid-season. NBC Entertainment president Jennifer Salke did confirm that season seven will be the last for Parks and Recreation, and Tina Fey and Robert Carlock’s Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt, the Ellen DeGeneres-produced One Big Happy, Mission Control from Will Farrell and Adam McKay, and Mr. Robinson starring Craig Robinson will join the schedule in 2015. Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt was originally intended for the fall when the network order the initial 13 episodes. New comedy Marry Me gets the post The Voice Tuesday slot at 9:00 PM followed by returning fave About a Boy, which shifts to 9:30 PM.

NBC also has more big event series planned to debut in the second half of the season including Mark Burnett and Roma Downey’s The Bible follow-up A.D. (which will launch on Easter Sunday), the Wizard of Oz event series Emerald City, David Duchovny’s Charles Manson drama Aquarius, and the Heroes revival Heroes Reborn. It looks like NBC is really banking on 2015 to reverse their fortunes by holding most of their big shows until mid-season, so it will be interesting to see what floats or sinks in the first part of the year and what makes an earlier than planned debut if something tanks early on. As of now, this is what the NBC 2014 schedule looks like:

Monday
8-10 p.m. — The Voice
10-11 p.m. — The Blacklist / State of Affairs (the Katherine Heigl drama begins Nov. 17)

Tuesday
8-9 p.m. — The Voice
9-9:30 p.m. — Marry Me
9:30-10 p.m. — About a Boy
10-11 p.m. — Chicago Fire

Wednesday
8-9 p.m. — The Mysteries of Laura (starring Debra Messing)
9-10 p.m. — Law & Order: SVU
10-11 p.m. — Chicago P.D.

Thursday
8-9 p.m. — The Biggest Loser (new night)
9-9:30 p.m. — Bad Judge (The Blacklist moves into this timeslot Feb. 5)
9:30-10 p.m. — A to Z
10-11 p.m. — Parenthood (most likely its final season)

Friday
8-9 p.m. — Dateline NBC
9-10 p.m. — Grimm
10-11 p.m. — Constantine (look for Hannibal to return here in 2015)

Saturday
8-11 p.m. — Encore programming

Sunday
7-8:20 p.m. — Football Night in America
8:20-11:30 p.m. — NBC Sunday Night Football

It will be interesting to see where NBC plugs in all of their 2015 shows. You can expect Parks & Recreation to return to the Thursday at 8:00 or 8:30 slot after The Biggest Loser ends its season, possibly followed by Tina Fey’s new series (seems a natural match). Parenthood will vacate it’s Thursday slot after (most likely) 13 episodes, and the only real wild card here is the Debra Messing drama which could open up that hour block sooner than NBC hopes.

Update: Check out the iTunes chart rankings as of the lose of voting at 12:00p Eastern at the bottom of the post.

I swear, I’m not bitter about the results of last week’s episode. I’m perfectly content with the idea that Kat Perkins found herself in the bottom three and stole the Instant Save that I predicted would rightfully go to Bria Kelly. Nope, not bitter at all.

With Bria and Tess Boyer sent packing, The Voice is down to eight contestants. And while as much as Blake and Carson wanted to make the start of this live show about Adam’s new hair, this is the point in the timeline of any Voice season where the performances are great across the board. Now it’s about the little things that the coaches can help their performers find to improve on. That, and song choice, song choice song choice. This week, three people will be sent home, raising the stakes even higher.

Sisaundra Lewis: “River Deep, Mountain High” (Tina Turner) – Team Blake

Blake brought Season Two contestant Gwen Sebastian in to work with his artists this week, but the real story is that Lewis is covering a Tina Turner song just like I said she should last week (Granted, “River Deep, Mountain High” is a 60’s song instead of the 80’s time period I recommend, but I totally called that, right?).

I don’t know if it was the fact that Sisaundra’s mother was in the house (seeing her perform live for the first time in a long while) or the fact that she covered Turner or just how amazing she looked on stage, this was easily the best performance I’ve seen this entire season. If she doesn’t vault to the top of the iTunes chart tomorrow, The Voice fans need to be taken behind the woodshed.

Josh Kaufman: “I Can’t Make You Love Me” (Bonnie Raitt) – Team Usher

Usher brought Josh to Henson Studios where, among its many famous moments, was where they record the original “We Are the World.” Bonnie Raitt probably isn’t the first artist you’d think of for him to cover on the show, but I think it’s an inspired song choice – which we know from the last couple of weeks is pretty much the most important thing to get right at this point. (That Usher’s last contestant is a stolen artist from another team is a fact that shouldn’t be lost on the audience.)

Shakira complimented Josh’s intuition as an artist, a point that I think is spot on. This song works for him (though I’m beginning to think Josh Kaufman could sing anything and make it sound great), because he knew how to tailor the song to his voice, and tailor his voice to the song.

I get that they have to fill two hours, and that’s too short for everyone to sing twice, but I’d rather us spend more time on the contestants somehow rather than featuring the coaches. I don’t remember Gwen Sebastian from Season Two, but I will admit I liked the way her and Blake’s voices blended on his newest single “Come a Little Closer.”

Kat Perkins: “Get Lucky” (Daft Punk) – Team Adam

Adam brought in Maroon Five guitarist James Valentine to work with his team this week. The recap of last week, where Adam guaranteed Kat would make it to the finals if saved, just served to remind us of the tragedy of her being in the bottom three to begin with. I’m curious (read: worried) about the song choice here.

“We knew we had to go big” says Adam. He definitely loved the performance, as he was jumping up and down and screaming as she finished. It was something special: different and powerful and distinct. The live audience loved it. I’m not entirely sure it translated nearly as well at home, but we’ll see tomorrow.

Kristen Merlin: “I Drive Your Truck” (Lee Brice) – Team Shakira

Eight contestants left, and both Shakira and Usher are down to one artist. As much as I like the two of them, this isn’t necessarily because the voters like Teams Blake and Adam more (Though, admittedly the dynamic between those two is one of the show’s hallmarks). Either it’s because Adam and Blake are better at grabbing the multi-chair turns early on, or they’re simply better at talent evaluation. It’s a point to look closely at next cycle with two new coaches.

I’ve underestimated Kristen Merlin both of the last two weeks, and am determined not to do it again. It’s curious that country fans seem to be reacting better to a country artist not on Team Blake. I’m not as familiar with “I Drive Your Truck” as some of the other songs Kristen has taken on, but its emotional core makes it a great choice.

It was a beautiful performance, but I’m not sure I agree with Shakira that it was transcendent. Kristen’s placement on the iTunes charts make her a front-runner, but I still think she needs one or more “game changing” performances before she becomes the front-runner.

Delvin Choice: “I Believe I Can Fly” (R. Kelly) – Team Adam

Carson said that “I Believe I Can Fly” might be the perfect choice for Delvin, and just seconds later Adam mentions his doubts. It takes the artist having an emotional moment for the coach to change his tune and say that “Delvin Choice was born to sing this song.” Don’t get me wrong: I believe Delvin’s moment was sincere … the packaging, however, was a little convenient.

Until the final note, I wasn’t connecting with this song nearly as much as the audience was. I appreciated the way he was rooted in the song, in a way that it he was almost living the song as much as singing it, but it didn’t feel like it topped the original. I get that most people will disagree with me here, but I just wasn’t as happy as everyone else.

Audra McLaughlin: “Forgive” (Rebecca Lynn Howard) – Team Blake

Audra is the artist that I keep expecting to explode each week. Her jump to third on the iTunes chart (compared to the other artists) was nice, but I’m waiting for the week that she’s the highest charter of the contestants. “Forgive” might showcase her voice enough to get her there (but when you’re going to pick a song more than 10 years old, I think you’ve got to pick a classic … I’m concerned this doesn’t fit the bill). Audra’s covered some Martina McBride; I think she should revisit her catalog.

It is a big song though. They featured the ending note during the prep-session, and it was enough to get me to set down my laptop and listen. It was a killer performance, but we’re already too far behind to get even three of the coaches a chance to tell her how great it was.

Pharrell Williams and Gwen Stefani both performed as well. I am looking forward to them both joining the coaching ranks next cycle, especially as it signals the departure of CeeLo and Christina Aguilera – the weakest of the whole bunch. Plus, anyone dropping a “TV-Land” reference is top-notch in my book.

Jake Worthington: “Hillbilly Deluxe” (Brooks and Dunn) – Team Blake

I think NBC needs to option a sitcom that’s Blake Shelton and Jake Worthington as a father and son country act. Ratings gold, baby. The question will be whether Jake can overcome his “allerngies” on stage.

Jake is the artist who is probably most ready to go out on tour – with Blake – tomorrow. This wasn’t necessarily his best performance (I think his allergies did have a small impact), but he’s still kicking ass and taking names. But I’m not sure that we saw the introduction of “Jake the Artist” tonight, more like “Jake the Performer,” an important distinction.

Christina Grimmie: “Something” (Lil Wayne) – Team Adam

I liked that the show highlighted the fact that Christina’s two closet friends on the show went home last week; that’s the kind of behind the scenes point that critics are likely to discount, but I think has big impact. It’s also interesting that Adam would advocate a song choice that might be seen as a similar direction to last week (especially considering he originally cautioned Delvin against a choice that might be perceived as being a little on the nose).

Christina Grimmie could win this whole thing (words you wouldn’t have expected from me even two weeks ago). As great as the performances were tonight, this was the first that I rewound and watched again. There’s just something special about those “big notes” that always do well on this show, but it’s even more impressive when they seemingly come from nowhere.

So who goes home? Picking one artist at this point is hard; picking three is nearly impossible. In this stage of the game, it’s more about the performances than raw talent (because everyone left has the talent to win). So did Kat Perkins’ Daft Punk cover go over well with voters? Did Jake’s allergies affect his performance just enough? Will Delvin’s song choice not be as beneficial as I hoped?

Update: Here are the iTunes Chart positions at 12:00pm Eastern (one hour prior to the close of voting). It’s particularly interesting how last week played out. Kat was the 4th highest charting contestant on iTunes, but slipped into the bottom three in the overall voting. That means that Josh, Jake, Sisaundra and Delvin all sold less MP3s but gained more votes.

Note: Previous tracks appearing in the iTunes top 200 include “Hold On, We’re Going Home” (Grimmie) at 31, “Stay With Me” (Kaufman) at 99, “I Won’t Give Up” (Grimmie) at 145 and “This Is It” (Kaufman) at 198.

Update: Check the end of this post to see how each artist faired on the iTunes Charts.

Last week, my accuracy of predictions was all over the place. I had no clue that Josh Kaufman would be the runaway favorite, but he was the only contestant to get the iTunes Top Ten Chart multiplier. While the show has brought back the Last Chance performance to incorporate with the Instant Save, I doubt Tess Boyer – who was saved last week as Dani Moz (sad panda) and TJ Watkins went home – will live to see another week.

This week, the coaches have brought in “Titans of the Industry”(™ Carson Daly) to coach up the players. Adam invited Graham Nash, Blake brought in his producer Scott Hendricks, Shakira had busbee work with her team and Team Usher worked with his producer and musical director Natural.

The show opens with a performance by Rixton. I am rarely a fan of performances by other artists – especially on Monday nights. Heck, I’m not even a fan of the team performances on Tuesday nights (one of the reasons I rarely watch the results show). Thankfully they get it out of the way quickly, though I’d have preferred more time to discuss Blake tweeting Adam’s phone number.

Kat Perkins: “Landslide” (Fleetwood Mac) – Team Adam

Nash has some wonderful things to say about Perkins, who predicts she’ll have a hard time getting through the song without crying – she couldn’t even manage her last cutaway. It’s a brilliant song choice for her; the type of song where she can deliver a wonderful performance without going over the top.

So many of The Voice’s “big” performances are characterized by crazy powerful notes, which is probably why Kat added it in here. I think it was a bad call; everything up to that was outstanding … the texture in Kat’s voice is just fascinating to listen to. But the ending note, while very good, was completely unnecessary.

Tess Boyer: “Ain’t it Fun” (Paramore) – Team Shakira

Again, as Tess was the artist that benefited from the Instant Save last week, she needed a game changing performance here. I’m not that familiar with Paramore’s latest, but choosing a relevant pop song might capture some voters that she didn’t get last week.

Blake said that he couldn’t find anything wrong with the performance, and while I can’t disagree, I’m not sure it was distinctive enough to bring a new following to the table. It’s a shame, because I’m a fan of Tess, and think she’s one of the more marketable contestants left in the game.

Audra McLaughlin: “You Lie” (Reba McEntire) – Team Blake

Audra is probably the best pure female country singer the show has seen in some time. The pre-performance bit stalks about a confidence issue that makes no sense to this writer.

I don’t think most audiences will be familiar with “You Lie,” but Audra killed it. Adam called it a “World Class vocal performance;” she was Reba-esque in every way she needed to be, while providing an original performance. If country fans buy into that performance – like we know that they can do – she could easily find herself near the top of the iTunes charts Tuesday at noon.

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Update: Top 200 iTunes Chart Results at 12:30pm Eastern have been added to the bottom of this post.

The Voice Live Shows are easily the best round of the show … at least the best round not named “Blind Auditions.” While they’ve improved over the last couple of seasons, I hate the middle rounds; the show is drastically better when the decision-making changes from the coaches to the audience. The coaches far too often create match-ups that end with the wrong people going home.

That all changes in the Lives. Song choice matters more than match-up … hell, song choice matters more than just about anything. By now, the contestants have truly starting coming into their own, and the performances will begin to improve dramatically.

Bria Kelly: “Rolling in the Deep” (Adele) – Team Usher

Kelly is the only survivor of my group of favorites. I’ve been impressed by her talent – and she’s a hometown-ish contestant for me. “Rolling in the Deep” a “big” song, but there’s not much of an opportunity for an individual take on it that retains those “big” moments. Kelly did a pretty good job here; that long note towards the end is the kind of thing The Voice voters generally look for.

Adam and Shakira seemed to like it, but didn’t love the lower key; Blake sussed out that that decision was made for that beat at the end that kept going up and up (and up and up). Bria said she’d have died if she hadn’t started out that low.

Delvin Choice: “Unchained Melody” (The Righteous Brothers) – Team Adam

“Unchained Melody” is one of my all-time favorite songs, so I have high expectations anytime someone covers it. Delvin is an artist that I don’t feel like we’ve gotten to see enough. As a four-chair turn, I’m not sure he’s never been relegated to a montage, but I still feel like I’ve only heard him sing once or twice. There are several big moments in the song that lend themselves to showing off, but I don’t think Delvin nailed them. I actually found myself enjoying the verses more, particularly the more “breathy” beginnings.

The judges, however, disagree. Blake still hasn’t stopped talking about his hair, but Blake’s hear to be the goofball. Shakira talked about losing herself in the moment, and while my mind immediately went to Eminem, I doubt that’s what she meant.

Dani Moz: “Just Give Me a Reason” (Pink) – Team Shakira

I love it when competitors play instruments – especially the piano – so I jumped on the Dani bandwagon last week. TV watchers have heard a very average cover of this song recently – Sorry, Glee – but Dani has all the power that Diana Agron doesn’t. The way they arranged the song, originally a duet, didn’t leave Dani much room to breathe. There were a couple of moments where you could tell, but she was smart enough to “schedule” that in moments of the song where it would be less likely.

Adam talks about the breathing demands of the song, but gives Dani more credit that I. Shakira jumps all over herself to defend her artist, almost overdoing it in my opinion.

Audra McLaughlin: “Angel of the Morning” (Juice Newton) – Team Blake

Audra is one of those artists that I’m just not sure about yet. She’s had some ups and downs, and probably sits in the middle of the pack at this point. I was actually a bit surprised when Carson mentioned that this song had never been done on the show yet; you’d think it was one of those that lends itself well to competition. Audra did a solid job; providing one of the first performances of the night I’d purchase on iTunes (Bria’s is/was my favorite performance at this point, but I have too damn many copies of “Rolling in the Deep” in my library as it is).

Usher’s comment about Audra holding that last note so long, while prompting an unfortunate conversation about peeing mid-song, was spot on. As much as I love the coach’s interplay, I do get a little tired of the platitudes, like Blake’s pronouncement about Audra having a different calling than as a medical assistant. I think The Voice needs to produce more bona fide stars to support that kind of talk.

TJ Wilkins: “Waiting on the World to Change” (John Meyer) – Team Usher

I like TJ, who I think is on the verge of his “big” The Voice moment. Covering John Meyer is a bit of an interesting twist for TJ, but I really liked the arrangement and his take on the song. While it was solid, fun performance, I think he’s going to need to do more than be solid to have staying power on the show.

Most of the coaches seem to be talking about his showmanship, which furthers my point. He’s good, and he’s got wonderful stage presence, but really needs that breakout song and performance.

Christina Grimmie: “Dark Horse” (Katy Perry) – Team Adam

There’s something infectious about Christina’s enthusiasm, and while I’ll probably never forgive her for her ouster of Behyer, she’s starting to build a little momentum at exactly at the right time. “Dark Horse” – and that performance – weren’t at all what I expected from Christina, but it was the kind of performance that

Blake identified Christina as Team Adam artist to beat, and I’m really coming around to the fact that he might be right.

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