Arthur: Season 22 The Longest Eleven Minutes/ The Feud

Arthur   PBS 

  

   I've not written about anything "Arthur" related in a while.  So, let's get back into that.  I'm writing about some Season 22 episodes.  This season is short it's only 4 episodes, or 8 segments.  It premiered on May 13th and ran to May 16th 2019. (Using the PBS airing dates, other country airings may vary). 

   Season 22 Episode 2b : The Longest Eleven Minutes 

        I picked this episode because it stuck out to me in a few ways.  Some of it has to do with the context of the show itself and the content of the episode at a strange dissonance. 

       

          I always start these "Arthur" posts with the monologue, the thing they do at the start of episodes. 

  

      The Monologue :  Arthur is doing a school presentation talking about inventions people have come to rely upon. It shows how life was like before the wheel (lots of people being killed by mammoths apparently) Before the printing press, and life without the telephone being invented.  Ending with the question: I wonder what invention in our day, we wouldn't be able to live without.  (The toaster?) 

    The Episode:  It shows Arthur, Muffy, Ladonna, and Buster all on laptops, mobile phone, and a tablet doing internet stuff.  D.W comes into the living room and is bored and wants Arthur to play with her. Then internet goes down. This is weird question, how does Muffy's phone lose internet? Like is she connected to Arthur's wi-fi? But wouldn't it go to her carrier's service internet then?  I'd think the rich girl would have carrier internet as well. Are the mobile phones in this world the same as the internet carrier?  Are we asking a lot of questions and diverting too much? Well,yes. 

COMMENTARY / copyright WGBH 

         Buster is like hit refresh, but that doesn't work. So, the internet is down.  Now the kids are confused as to do with their lives. Then D.W says try restarting  the router. (This episode was written when someone's internet went down and they went through the stages wasn't it? )  They find out the internet is out on the block. (If people have the same service , I guess)  

        The episode gets weirder. Like, they apparently don't know what a radio is because they wonder if Arthur's dad is streaming music. (Umm what?)  Ladonna seems to know something about the radio. Then, Muffy finds an instant camera and they don't know what it is either.  Also Encyclopedias (fine, they win this one)  Since encyclopedia's go by a one to three letters they  made a joke, that I at least liked.   

They might have internet in Argentina/ Copyright WGBH

         Okay earlier this episode they have fake Google, called Boogle but Wikipedia gets name dropped,so apparently, what? They save a bird.  This episode used the terms selfie, and IRL so, I'm out.   They seem to be getting along without the internet; oh it comes back on and it was eleven minutes. 

      What's funny about this episode in the context of this show is that this show as on the air before the Internet was really more mainstream. (1996) With the books coming out before even that. The kids on this show have been shown to know how to use an instant camera, encyclopedias, and radio. It's funny on the meta level that they forgot all this because of how long this show has been on the air and how they need the newer episodes to fit in for the modern audience.  If a PBS station was airing this episode then a season 3 episode after this than it's even funnier. There's even an episode where Arthur messes up a computer all the way back from 1996.   

    

    The other meta thing, I really like is this episode is real time, it's eleven minutes long and internet is out for eleven minutes. Implication is there's no time skip (though, we don't see them calling Brain on the phone with dialing or something), yes land lines still exist in the Arthur world.  That's really amazing.     

     

    The opening shot of the episode is a great touch, there's cobwebs on the outdoor playground and ball in Arthur's yard, making it seem like they've not not used the stuff in sometime. 

    It would be really easy to say this episode was bad because look how modern society has fallen or Arthur has fallen but, that has nothing to do with this episode. It's a fun episode, you do see how much the internet has become part of our lives where it is part of everything, and we do get kind of lost with out it.  Not just kids, but adults too. It's like when the power goes out, it's a strange experience because we depend on electricity.  (There's an Arthur episode that mentions this)  The episode was fun to watch, it made me laugh  at times.  They some good stuff in current "Arthur". 

      More after the Jump

TVLOOKFALL 2020 : What's New, What's Renewed, What's Ended?

TVLOOKFALL 2020  ABC  CBS CW  FOX  NBC 

           It's our annual list of network TV moves either shows being renewed or canceled /ending. Also what's new? For disclosure, we are going to count reboot or one of those shows that are returning after ending as new , just to keep this list consistent.

       Also to be determined is our list for shows that haven't been officially given a status so, it's constantly changing. (red font shows are shows that have moved to or are summer series meaning they are in a different rule)

      Last updated : June 10 3:15 PM MT

ABC

Renewed
20/20
The $100,00 Pyramid
A Million Little Things
America's Funniest Home Videos
American Housewife
American Idol
The Bachelor
Black-ish
Card Sharks
Celebrity Family Feud
The Conners
Dancing with the Stars
For Life

The Good Doctor
The Goldbergs
The Good Doctor
Grey's Anatomy
Holey Moley
Match Game
Press Your Luck
The Rookie
Shark Tank
Station 19
Stumptown
To Tell the Truth
Who Wants to be A Millionaire

New Series 

Big Sky
Call Your  Mother
Supermarket Sweep

Reality/Summer shows  (Determined in their own time) 

Celebrity Family Feud
Dancing with the Stars
Family Food Fight
Kids Say the Darnedest Things

Possibly moving to Fall 
United We Fall

Canceled 
The Baker and the Beauty
Bless This  Mess
Emergence
Fresh off the boat
Grand Hotel
How to Get Away with Murder
Kids Say the Darndest Things
Marvel's Agents of S.H.E.I.L.D
Modern Family
Reef Break
Schooled
Single Parents

CBS 

Renewed 
48 Hours
60 Minutes

All Rise 

The Amazing Race
Blue Bloods
Bob Hearts Abishola
Bull
Evil
FBI
FBI : Most Wanted
MacGyver
Mom
NCIS
NCIS : LA
NCIS : New Oreleans
The Neighborhood
SEAL Team
SWAT
Survivor
Undercover Boss
The Unicorn
Young Sheldon  (was renewed back in 2019 for two seasons) 

New Series 

Summer and reality series (Determined in their own time) 
Big Brother
Big Brother : Celebrity Edition
Blood & Treasure
Love Island

Canceled 
Broke
Carol's Second Act
Criminal Minds
God Friended Me

Hawaii  Five-O (ending April 3)
Madam Secretary
Man With A Plan
Tommy

CW 

Renewed 
All American
Batwoman
Black Lightning
Charmed
DC's Legends of Tomorrow
Dynasty
The Flash
In the Dark
Legacies
Nancy Drew
The Outpost
Pandora
Riverdale
Roswell, New Mexico
Supergirl

New Series 


To Be Determined 
Katy Keene

TBD/ Summer Series 
Burden of Truth
Penn & Teller : Fool Us
Whose Line is it Anyway? 

Canceled 
The 100 (ending in Summer)
Arrow
Supernatural

FOX

Renewed 
9-1-1
9-1-1 Lone Star
Beat Shazam
Bob's Burgers
Bless the Harts
Duncanville
Family Guy
Hell's Kitchen
Last Man Standing
Lego Masters
The Masked Singer
Masterchef
Mental Samurai
Prodigal Son
The Resident
The Simpsons
So You Think You Can Dance

New Series

Summer/ Reality Show (determined at own times)
Ultimate Tag

Moving to Fall/The next season instead 
Filthy Rich
The Great North
NeXt

Canceled 
Almost Family
BH90210
Deputy
Empire
Flirty Dancing
Outmatched

NBC

Renewed 
American Ninja Warrior
The Blacklist
Brookyln Nine-Nine
Chicago Fire (3 seasons)
Chicago Med  (3 Seasons)
Chicago P.D  (3 seasons)
Ellen's Game of Games
Good Girls
Law and Order SVU (3 Seasons)
Manifest
Making It
New Amsterdam (3 seasons)
Superstore
This is Us
The Voice
Zoey's Extraordinary Playlist

New Series 

Summer/Reality Series (TBD) 
America's Got Talent
America's Got Talent: The Champions
Little Big shots
Songland
The Titan Games
The Wall
World of Dance

To Be Determined 

Council of Dads

Canceled 
Blindspot
Bluff City Law
The Good Place
The In between
Indebted
Lincoln Rhyme: Hunt for the Bone Collector
Perfect Harmony
Sunnyside
Will & Grace

It's a Lookback Charlie Brown: Someday You'll find her, Charlie Brown

Peanuts  The Flashback 

 
         
           Some of the plot lines in Peanuts is love. It's a common theme that pops up alot. Either Charlie Brown fawning for "The Little Red-Haired Girl", Peppermint Patty and Marcie both crushing on Charlie Brown, Sally with Linus, Lucy with Schroeder.  This special does something a little different with Charlie Brown but still keeping him  normal.    This is "Someday You'll find her, Charlie Brown" a special that originally aired on October 30th, 1981. 
       
          Charlie Brown seeks love.  So Charlie Brown is watching football with  Linus , not in the direct sense, because Linus is reading a book.  Charlie Brown sees a pretty girl that makes him pine for her now. (Love at first sight?)  The main plot for this special is Charlie Brown going out and seeking her. (Like a stalker?)  (Also was this football game a USFL game or something because it's spring as heck outside)  Charlie Brown lets his obsession with the girl drive him. Linus is mostly drafted into this nonsense.  (Also Charlie Brown says his lucky number is 13)

I'm Linus / Copyright Peanuts 

         Linus is a good friend mostly working with Charlie Brown , even though this is insane. Snoopy and Woodstock do some football gags. (I'm glad this is the old days when you could walk inside football stadiums with no troubles, I guess)  Snoopy and Woodstock even go to the restricted areas where the players exercise.

This is where where the ghost train comes out/ Copyright Peanuts 

              It's subtle but it comes together later. Charlie Brown makes Linus do stuff for him, this will bite him in the back later. Anyway, they go check the downtown records to see who the girl was. (dang so easy to get information on people)  I mean it was really easy to get people's phone numbers and addresses. (the heck)  The people behind the information were glad that some random kids got their info too wow!.(My last last bit of injecting modernism into this post)   Charlie Brown makes Linus go the first house (yes there's more than one). Linus does tell CB that maybe he should go up and it himself, but CB says no he can't because of his nervousness. (Tap tap)  The first girl is not the pretty one that Charlie Brown said he saw, which is kind of mean Chuck.

Chuck thought she was ugly because he's rude/ Copyright Peanuts 

                 more after the jump

Happy New Year, Charlie Brown!

New Year's Holidays 

 
             I could make a joke about the idea of their being a Peanuts special for everything because there kind of is one for almost anything.  New Year's doesn't have as many specials really, compared to Christmas and other holidays. It's kind of hard to think of an idea for a  New Year's special.  Peanuts has one because, sure alright.

        "Happy New Year, Charlie Brown" first aired on CBS on January 1st 1986, ABC currently reruns it with  "She's a Good Skate, Charlie Brown" .   Let's talk about it.

       It starts with Charlie Brown (and Linus ) waiting for Christmas vacation and the teacher decides to assign a book report, but not of any book. The teacher has chosen "War and Peace".  Which is the weirdest thing to assign to kids who are like what eight?   Charles Schulz did insert a lot of references to Leo Tolstoy into  Peanuts.  It's still kind of weird to give children a report on "War and Peace" not only because it's thick book, but it's also above the age range. 
 
            That is the main conflict of the special, Charlie Brown struggles with this huge book. It's something  that many people might have gone through themselves in childhood, or maybe even later.  Charlie Brown tries to read the book but it doesn't interest him in any way and it's a long dense read. I like the gag of him using a cart to wheel the book around.  I am confused as why Linus wasn't working on the assignment when he was shown to be in the same class. Now, he could have already known the book since, he seemed to know everything about Leo Tolstoy.

               The New Year's planning is in the background. Peppermint Patty is having a party and invites everyone. She still doesn't listen to Chuck on the phone, except when he mentions Heather/ The Little Red Haired girl. (Funnily enough)  There is a some light comedy like the Rerun blowing balloons in to square shapes. Peanuts isn't prominently comedy so, that's fine. 

          It is unfair to compare to the other Peanuts holiday specials, that proceeded it but, it does a good job with the holiday it was given to have fun with.  It was sad that Charlie Brown didn't get to dance with the little red haired girl/ Heather, even though he did ask her , for once. Linus for some reason didn't see him right over there on the bench sleeping in front of the house.  The songs are good, it was nice to see Peppermint Patty and Charlie Brown practice dancing.  The musical chairs song was fun as well.

         The sense of stretching for time does happen, where you can really feel they were trying to fit it to the standard time. Charlie Brown reading pieces of "War and Peace",for example, does give it a drag. As  Peanuts special over all for ranking, I'd put it in mid-range, it's not the worst but, not in the best. It's an alright special to give your time to. If you watch it on television, watch the Peppermint Patty special after it too!


   That's it from us, have a Happy New Year!

     
     

Christmas: A Robot for All Seasons (From My Life as A Teenage Robot)

Christmas  Nickelodeon 

                     
                   This time, I have decided to look at an episode of one of my favorite Nicktoon series, that would be "My Life as a Teenage Robot".  This series ran from 2003-2009 (too much detail for this post to explain that date) and has 39 episodes, like Weekenders!  Anyway, I'm looking at the Christmas episode :  A Robot for All Seasons. This is the first episode of season 2 and it first aired on December 8th 2004.

                    The episode already starts with some action of  very fast "Santa" coming through and delivering presents. It's actually the main character, the robot, Jenny (or XJ-9) the reason why she is doing Santa's job is because Santa was injured in a mysterious accident.  So Jenny has saved Christmas, that means this special is short, what a great special, I enjoyed that.  There's even a cheesy Christmas song, that happens in Christmas specials,  which is slightly catchy.   That was a great episode, short but great!

Christmas is saved! / Copyright Viacom 

    Well tune in next time, when we don't pull this joke....

                The episode continues with the day after Christmas, and Jenny, Brad, and Tuck go the mall to go for the annual tradition of post-Christmas shopping.  Jenny sees a sad child who is sad that he doesn't get what he wants for Christmas.  Jenny decides to let the boy , Todd Sweeny (wait they did what now? Oh you crafty crafty writers)  to take her to his house for day of fun with a robot. (What does that mean?) She also finds out he is rich.  Jenny plays along with him and when he puts a device on her; she thinks nonetheless.

Control Robot with Robot stuff/ Copyright Viacom 

            Todd tells her that he really wants weapons for Christmas, and that's what he really wants. (There's the reason, he didn't qualify for the background checks, duh!) He knocks out Jenny; but it seems she wakes up and escapes the mansion.  Jenny makes it back to town and notices the town is celebrating Christmas.


        There's something we and she don't yet. People in the town start attacking her and she doesn't know why.  This makes her go back to  Todd to wonder what the heck is going on? This Christmas episode really has taken a dark turn: Jenny is being chased by police and everyone in the town hates her. The drama is really built up well and we are just as confused because we with Jenny in the technical sense. (I was literally there, I'm a cartoon)


        Luckily the one boy who has crush on her, Sheldon, finds her and he's the only one that doesn't hate her. (His Robot Love keeps his heart strong) He's also there to tell us what is going on here.

       We'll get to that but first, Santa says there are spoilers a head, so yes.  Also more after the Jump.

Christmas: Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer

Christmas  

       
      "Grandma Got Runover by a Reindeer" is a special that first ran on October 31st 2000, on the WB network  and is based on the song of the same name. For many years it ran on Cartoon Network , a couple times on Freeform, it aired on the WB each year, and still does on the successor network, the CW.

      This is a weird Christmas special. Mostly because it's a weird song about a Grandma getting crunched to death by Santa's  Reindeer. (Merry Christmas!)  So, how you make a special based off the idea of a woman getting crunched to death by a reindeer. Well, you don't have her get crunched to death by a reindeer, because Children are watching, and because need to fill 50 minutes of run time.

          I'm going to insert a slight personal opinion: This is a special I do watch every year, even though it's not the best  it's still a weird thing to just watch for fun for me.

      This was directed by Phil Roman? wow.   The narrator for the special is  Elmo Shropshire, who is the singer of the original song so, that's nice touch.  He is being the adult version of main character Jake Spankenheimer , who is talking about his grandma.  The special starts with the famous song and grandma getting run over by a dang reindeer.  I mean, they went right for it, you saw the title Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer and well they are giving you a grandma getting run over by a reindeer.

Uhhhh  oops/ Copyright Warner Bros. 

            Jake says that this almost put an end Christmas. (almost? What, you got the insurance money?)  Meanwhile, they live in a town called Cityville (creative name for a city) and Grandma has a store.(Yeah her name is Grandma , she's not important enough for a name) If you have heard the song before, there's someone named Cousin Mel, well in this special that's a character. She's greedy.

She also attacks dolls/Copyright Warner Bros. 

          Also Jake has better speech to text software than we have in our own times, and I'm mad about this.  Jake's sister taunts him for still believing in Santa because  kids between the ages of 6-11 don't believe in Santa, I guess.   The sister gets a name, Daphne, so does the dog, Doofus, (that's the dog's name; we aren't calling you names)  The dad gets a Christmas tree that is filled with air because,  science? 

Why? / Copyright Warner Bros. 

        Austin Bucks (get it , hold on too early here please hold) is the richest man in town (get it, bucks, rich ha ha ) and he pretty much owns everything in the city.  In fact, the company is called "Own All Corp" (C O M M E N T A R Y) he doesn't own Grandma's store, so he wants to buy it.  Now why does he want to buy the store? To use it as a hub to deliver Christmas presents on Christmas Eve. (What?)  Like Santa, oh wait that's right Jake, there is no Santa hahahhahahaha. (C O M M E N T A R Y)  So he asks her if he could by the store, she says no, he offers money, she asks Jake, he says no, and she then say no. (What would have done if Jake said "Take the Money!"?)
                 

No Deal, troll/ Copyright Warner Bros.

    Mel  doesn't like this, because she thinks she going to get some of Grandma's cash if she had yes? Mel creepily hits on Austin Bucks. Grandma even tells Mel that the store will never be hers? (No will for her) Random song about fruit cake.  Like really, Jake (the narrator version) mentions his Grandma's fruit cake and a song about Grandma's killer fruit cake appears.  It's so random , you know for a special about a Grandma getting runover by a reindeer.  Which, we've not got back to yet.

The state of Kentucky is trying to leave!/ Copyright Warner Bros. 

       Cousin Mel gets Grandma and Jake away from working of fruit cake ( OOOH FRUIT CAKE SONG, cut that out! Oh Sorry)  and  she poisons the food.  Really, pours stuff in the food so the food gets people sick, and Grandma has to sell. (Genius plan?)   They found to insert that line from the song about egg nog into the dialogue. (Wonderful?)   She's allergic to eggs because we can't have Grandma getting drunk on spiked egg nog in a children-targeted special about a Grandma getting runover by a reindeer.   Oh, the dad gets a name, it's Frank, yeah Grandpa doesn't get a name, Grandma gets no one, Mom gets no name, but Dad gets a name!  The special does show us how Grandma and Jake are close.

aww , it would be bad if you like got ran over by a reindeer/Copyright Warner Bros.

more after the jump
   

Christmas: A Christmas Angel (For Better or For Worse)

Christmas  The Flashback 

  Previously on Joshuaonline: Back during Halloween we dipped into a special based off the comic strip "For Better or For Worse" We now dip again for Christmas with the 1992 special "A Christmas Angel".

    The special starts with father, John Patterson, and his two kids : Elizabeth and Michael come home with a Christmas tree. (Getting right into the Christmas, this Christmas special is) The mother, Elly , doesn't seem enthused by the tree.  She does feel  stressed out by the whole Christmas thing in the first place. Elizabeth wants to do Christmas stuff, but everyone seems to be on their own mode. Michael is going out an cleaning driveways of snow to buy Christmas stuff. In fact, he even sings a song. He even turns down his friends' offer to go sledding. (whoa)

 
      While Elizabeth was working on the tree, her little sister, April, breaks her mother's angel. (Her favorite angel) Elizabeth feels the middle kid blues and sad about the angel.  She thinks about making an angel to replace it. (that was nice of her)   Meanwhile, Michael is at the mall (teen heaven until the internet ruined things or whatever)  and looks around for Christmas gifts. The father is making something for Elizabeth. (That was nice of him) When he checks on her, April is into stuff again and he his displeased with Elizabeth.  This makes her feel bad some more.

        Now some sledding. (That's fun)  Elizabeth couldn't ride on one of the sleds with a bunch of other kids because they were full, and she gets bumped off. It's just not her day.  She finds another spot and the camera shows us a plot convenient "No Sledding allowed" sign. (Uh oh danger)   Then she hits her head against a tree and is out. (The music gets scary)

  More after the jump

Christmas: Jack Frost (1979)

Christmas theFlashback 

     
      We dip into another Rankin-Bass and one that turns 40 in 2019.  "Jack Frost" premiered on NBC on December 13th 1979; it's one of the later Rankin-Bass specials.  Interestingly enough, this is the second it's the second time that they have personified Jack Frost  though in this story they have a different canon.

           This is another Rankin Bass Christmas special you could watch in February and not be judged. (What? That was a strange thing to say)

           The February thing was not just a throw away line of mine, I mean the special starts in February with a groundhog named  Pardon-Me Pete , voiced by Buddy Hacket, whom you may know from some older Disney movies. Pete (we are going to call him Pete) is getting ready to do Groundhog Day. (This special will loop)   When he gets scared by his shadow, he explains that wasn't his shadow but Jack Frost. So, before bed he wants to tell us about Jack Frost.  Leading to the theme music. Jack Frost is personified as figure who likes being around the people, in this special it will focus on a town called January Junction.

Gather round me, I shall tell you a story/ Copyright Warner 

            January Junction is kind of in a bad spot there is an evil king named  Kubla Kraus, who ha made the town his serfdom. He takes all the money and makes everyone poor. During winter the town benefits from the snow and cold because people can exchange ice money. (I'm not  sure how this economy works in the first place if a crazy man owns all the money, how do you have a business?)
                   

         Now Jack gets close to the people of January including a girl named Elisa, who likes Jack Frost and he hears this and takes it as something else, I think.  I love the creativeness of this special as Jack's home is  in the clouds they personify winter as Father Winter who run a whole winter operation. There's a guy name Snip who makes the snowflakes, there's a sprite named Holly who is in charge of a White Christmas (they must have fired here around here) and there are some other weather figures. 

Holly and the ivy/ Copyright Warner

   
         Jack has decided that he wants to be a human because has fallen in love with the girl.  He has gone to Father Winter to request this, and after  a song Father allows it. Father says that it's tempoary, Jack has to get a house, horse, gold, and wife before spring and he'll be human permanently. (Well that's a list)

The lady of his affections/ Copyright Warner 

              Now human, Jack meets with Elisa and goes by the name Jack Snip.  (Could have told her he was Jack Frost but apparently that's hard) Father Winter decides to send Snip and Holly to human life as well to assist Jack. (He's using this power a little too much) Jack finds out that January Junction is not the best place to get a house, gold, or horse.

             The villain is ,of course  Kubla Kraus. They made him a very interesting one, he's greedy, mean, and yet he is sad and lonely because he is mean and greedy. He even has a robot army, and robot mice because even the mice don't want to be around him. There's also a dummy he has named Donnie. Also, I'm going to get this out of the way now, he will be dead by the end of special, it's not even reform him special or something, no he will be dead. Not even go away or something straight up dead.
   
      More on that later.  More after the jump