#SetTheVCR: September 6-12, 2020
Sammy Younan
Girth Radio Presents…
This week is all about matchups. I open with Biden vs Trump and close with the NBA Playoffs. And in between is a whole lot of crazy. Are you ready for this week’s #SetTheVCR?
Sunday, September 6
Sammy Suggestion: The Circus (8 p.m. / Showtime & Crave)
In the battle for Biden vs Trump: Kenosha Changed the Narrative. Is that true? The Circus this week will review the past political week as we hurtle without any guardrails towards the November election.
Monday, September 7
Roll the Tape: Season 1 (Anytime / ESPN+)
Sammy Suggestion: Biography: The Nine Lives of Ozzy Osbourne (9 p.m. / A & E)
All aboard the Crazy Train! Metal music’s Iron Man Ozzy Osbourne is profiled in A&E’s Biography: a two-hour documentary reviewing his decades-long career. Yes, his kids from the TV show are interviewed as well as Rick Rubin, Rob Zombie, Post Malone and…Ice-T? Sounds like the documentary went off the rails. Though it’s worth noting listed among the doc’s credits are executive producers for Osbourne Media who are Sharon Osbourne, Ozzy Osbourne, Jack Osbourne, and Peter Glowski. So I dunno how honest the doc can or will be when the subject is producing it.
Tuesday, September 8
A Star Is Born (Anytime / Netflix)
Sammy Suggestion: Biography: I Want My MTV (9 p.m. / A & E)
According to the media release: Biography: I Want My MTV charts the rise of a cultural phenomenon that came to define a generation: MTV. Yes! MTV was (sadly past tense…) so dope! While this doc will feature interviews with the founders and VJs plus Sting, DMC, Annie Lennox, etc. here’s the hook. Among the archival footage and outtakes is an interview with the late great David Bowie that was never broadcast on television. Yo. That’s worth the price of admission.
Wednesday, September 9
Woke (Anytime / Hulu)
Sammy Suggestion: The Social Dilemma (Anytime / Netflix)
The underbelly of Silicon Valley: there’s always an underbelly. Turns out social media is a house of cards…we conflate likes with value and truth; much like we did back in grade school where getting an A “mattered.” Only…it doesn’t; it never did. This documentary questions: “what are the consequences of our growing dependence on social media?” Tristan Harris the president and a co-founder of the Center for Humane Technology is in this and why he’s not a household name I dunno. His inspiring work challenging tech companies is fantastic and you’d be wise to check out one of his two TED Talks as an “app” before this meal.
Thursday, September 10
Unpregnant (Anytime / HBO Max)
The Babysitter: Killer Queen (Anytime / Netflix)
Sammy Suggestion: NFL Season: Week 1 (8:20 p.m. / NBC)
The NFL returns as yet another symbol of our society going back to normal. The NBA opted for a single-site in Orlando while the MLB opted for business as usual. Initially off to a rocky start…which was totally anticipated…the MLB is has figured out the correct set of protocols: only 1 or 2 people have tested positive for coronavirus this past week. Games are being played in a truncated season. Now the NFL is on deck and like the MLB it will take them some time to hash out all the correct procedures. An NFL team rolls 100 people deep: with players, coaches, medical staff, equipment staff, and more. NBA with like 12-15 players on a team that’s easy; NFL will have some bumps but for now, we get to watch the Kansas City Chiefs host the Houston Texans. Enjoy the games as much as you can until the NFL figures out how to properly play football with a virus. I mean Tom Brady is playing for Tampa Bay and that Mahomes kid has a ring so this will be an incredible and wildly unpredictable season.
Friday, September 11
Sammy Suggestion: Blood Quantum (Anytime / Shudder)
Ok! Ready for this? Blood Quantum “depicts the effects of a zombie uprising on a First Nations reserve whose residents are immune to contracting the plague because of their indigenous heritage, but must still cope with the consequences of its effects on the world around them, including white refugees seeking shelter on the reserve.” What?! This Canadian-horror movie started streaming on Shudder at the end of August; if you don’t have Shudder that’s fine it’s out on DVD etc. Oh, zombies…they always keep coming back.
Saturday, September 12
Sammy Suggestion: NBA Playoffs (TBD / ESPN)
Today will be Game 5 of Lakers vs Rockets: The Celtics-Raptors series should be over; really the Eastern Conference Final teams should be settled by Saturday morning. (If not sooner!) The NBA Playoffs have been strange; they have not always gone according to plan and they’re on at the same time as the NFL. It’s the strangest of times. Enjoy the creature comforts.
Sammy Younan @ W • T • F
Also published on Medium.