Ty Watches "Bar Rescue": The Dug Out Edition

This past Sunday was one of the most excellently trashy episodes of "Bar Rescue" that I have seen. Now, it's not on the level of gross that "The Landing Strip" episode achieved. But, this was trashy for other reasons.

First though, let me explain the nuts and bolts as I like to do. The bar that Taffer and crew came to rescue was in the heart of downtown Chicago. The bar was called "The Dug Out", and it was located literally right next to Wrigley Field. During baseball season, "The Dug Out" would make a ton of money from people coming and going to the game. It was during the off season when the bar would hemorrhage money. Well, that and the owner was a complete mess. This guy was so much worse than any owner I have seen, "Landing Strip" and "Piratz Tavern" included. This guy was completely clueless and did not seem to care about anything at all, except getting wasted. To the staff's credit, they tried very hard. They did the best they could, but they were never trained properly and the owner did not seem to care to train them. It was his way or the highway.

During baseball's off season, and during the regular season for that matter, the owner did not make the staff clean the bar. This was where I felt the staff could have done a bit more. This bar was disgusting. But, to the staff's credit, whenever I had a manager or owner that I worked for that showed no signs of caring, I took that as, I should not care as well. He didn't seem to mind that the bar was a disgusting mess, so why would the staff clean? They were still getting paid either way. And when I say this bar, and the kitchen too, were disgusting, I mean they were absolutely barf worthy in the filth that had piled up. I have never seen so many fruit flies in my life. The staff was swatting away flies left and right, the flies were on the walls, cups and trays, they were everywhere. The stools and tables in the bar were old and broken down. Cushions were coming undone and the tables just looked worn down. I also saw caterpillars, ants and some cockroaches crawling around in the front of the bar.

The kitchen was just as bad, if not worse. Nothing looked to have been cleaned one single time. The owner doubled as the chef, and when Taffer and crew watched from the van, what they saw, and what I saw, made me sick to my stomach. The owner did not wear gloves and cross contaminated everything. He also refused to clean anything, as I have already stated. Condiment bottles had so much build up he didn't even use the cap anymore because he could not close them. There was mold, grim and possible grease fire traps from all the loose grease everywhere. Taffer had his spies order food, but when he saw what was going on, he rushed into the bar to tell them not to eat anything. Taffer then told the kitchen expert to throw all the food out and close down the kitchen. He also told the bar expert to close down the front as well.

When they came back the next day, the kitchen expert had asked what happened to all the food he threw away, he did not see it in the trash, and the owner stated that he took it home to freeze. HE DIDN'T WANT RANCID FOOD TO GO TO WASTE! THIS IS VILE! The bartenders were sat down to train, and they were clueless. All they had known before was pouring random alcohols into a big fish bowl that was dubbed non ironically, "The Fishbowl". He also had a lemonade pitcher filled with multiple bourbons. He called this "concoction", "The Hot Pussy Shot", and they kept saying it over and over again throughout the whole episode. It was so gross.

Mind you, all this has happened, and I checked the time left in the episode, and we only had abut 25 minutes left. I soon realized that Taffer was probably going to walk out. Back to training for stress test.

During the training, the staff was on board with everything that Taffer and his crew were showing them. The owner though, he couldn't have cared less. He just sat through all this, questioned everything and told anyone involved with Spike TV and Jon Taffer that he wasn't going to do anything they told him to do once he and his crew left. He was a real asshole. The staff desperately wanted all the changes. What has become a recurring theme on the show, the staff needs the job way more than the owners do. They live paycheck to paycheck, so they need the bar to work out, or else they are back on their own looking for a new job. That can be very tough and stressful. So, the fact that this owner was so cavalier in his attitude really made me dislike him. The failures, as Taffer loves to say, were solely on him. If you cannot succeed with a bar that close to Wrigley Field, you should not be in the restaurant or bar industry. This guy had a goldmine and he was letting his childish attitude flush it down the toilet.

They eventually got around to stress test and it was, to no one surprise, a total disaster. The owner screwed everything up. Oh, he also decided to have a few drinks before stress test right in front of Taffer's front of house expert. This owner was a real piece of shit. I cannot stress that enough. During stress test and training he just floated and never paid attention to what needed to be done. When they were finally drowning in a sea of customers not getting food or drink, Taffer shut it down.

The next day Taffer gathered the staff and not the owner and told them that he was going to remodel the bar for them, but he was leaving immediately after that. He was leaving it in the hands of the employees. This was a first for me in watching "Bar Rescue". When he was telling the staff the plan, a few of the employees literally broke down in tears. It was sad. He let the staff see what he had done. He changed the name to "The Press Box". Not great, but not bad. He added some ivy to the outside and totally refurbished and refurnished the inside. It looked like a legit sports bar. It was one of Taffer's better "rescues".

The icing on the cake was just about to happen right near the end of the episode. After the staff saw the new bar, who should show up but the uninvited and incredibly wasted owner. He walked through the crowd and yelled, "JON! MY MAN!". He then went on to berate Taffer and his staff. He was slurring his words and couldn't say a single sentence coherently. It was a total nightmare. His whole staff quit on the spot. He yelled at them as they were walking away, but they did the best possible thing, given the situation. Then, after the staff and Taffer split, the Spike cameras followed this moron inside and chronicled all the nonsense he said when he saw the bar. It was total gibberish, and he even tried to do a line from "A Few Good Men", which came out horribly wrong.

They did do a 6 week checkup and 2 of the 4 employees came back, but the owner had changed everything back to the way he wanted it, even bringing back "The Hot Pussy Shot", which they just had to throw in there one more time. This bar was a total and complete disaster, and when I fully side with Taffer, there is a serious problem with the people involved with this particular bar. This owner was horrendous, and while I wish no ill will towards anyone, I hope he is no longer involved the food and bar industry because he is going to get people seriously sick due to his lack of caring. This owner was an abomination and he deserves to have his bar taken away from him. It's as cut and dry at that.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. The head editor has been to Wrigley Field a few times, and has been to many bars in the area. There is a good chance that he was victim of "The Hot Pussy Shot". Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

Ty Watches "Taboo"

"Taboo" just finished its first season on FX. I have been very vocal about how much I anticipated this show. I loved how FX promoted the show. I loved how the commercials gave away nothing. I had no idea what the show was going to be about, and I liked it that way. I purposefully waited until now to write about the show because I wanted to fully experience it for myself before I wrote about it. Now, I am not going to spoil much, if anything, I know that binge watching is the new thing and "Taboo" is a perfect binge worthy show, but I do have some thoughts that I want to get out since the show finished its first season.

"Taboo" centers around a man named James Delaney(Tom Hardy) who has returned to his home in the UK after a trip to Africa. The people who know James Delaney assumed he died on this trip because of the stories that had made there way back to the UK. When he first arrives back home, the townspeople are shocked. Everyone has questions. Delaney has no time for answers. He is on a mission. First spoiler, his father has died, and Delaney is back to run the family business, which seems to involve some kind of shipping. The show takes place in the early 1800's by the way, hence the shipping company.

Anyway, we come to realize in the pilot that the entire Delaney family is mentally unstable. The mom, the dad and most definitely James Delaney. They are all very crazy. The mom is sent to an institution for all the horrible things she did when she was alive. The dad went madder and madder the older he got we were told. And when Delaney returns from Africa, he claims he can talk to the dead, he says, "They sing to me", and he has many hallucinations. The hallucination scenes are scary, but also very neat and interesting. He is also filled with many tribal tattoos.

We also come to find out that he has a half sister, same dad, different moms, that he is in love with. Her name is Zilpha Geary, excellently played by an unknown to me, Oona Chaplin. She too is in love with him, but after she assumed he died, she married a very mean and brutal man, Thorne Geary(Jefferson Hall). He is a dick head and he gets what he deserves. I'll leave it at that. The two of them love each other, but it is, so to say, taboo, and they do not end up together. Again, I do not want to spoil too much.

There are some other great supporting characters in this show as well. Delaney's butler is wonderfully played by David Hayman. His name is Brace, and while he is a very loyal worker to the Delaney family, he too has done some serious shit and has some dark secrets. We also meet Delaney's fathers second wife, Lorna Bow(Jessie Buckley), who is in it at first for the fortune, but later as a James Delaney supporter and helper. We also meet some prostitutes that may or may not have been some of his fathers clients.

Then we have the British Parliament. They are the baddest dudes in the whole series. The king is a disgusting, gout filled blob of a man. Everyone in this show is some form of filthy kind of monster, but the king takes the cake in looks and attitude. He is so gross. There's Solomon Coop(Jason Watkins), who is the king's right hand man, but he is a slime bag of epic proportions. Then there are the members of Parliament that are just as corrupt as any current politician we have in our government. Sir Stuart Strange(Johnathan Pryce) is a terrible, monstrous human being hell bent on money and killing people. Godfrey(Edward Hogg), the closeted note keeper for Parliament who is a male prostitute at night and Delaney spy on the side. John Pettifer(Richard Dixon) who is a corrupt underling of Strange's. Benjamin Wilton(Leo Bill) is another underling errand boy for Strange. Basically, all of Parliament is corrupt because Delaney owns a piece of land that they need to win the battle that they are in with the United States, but Delaney will not give it up. Watch the show to find out why he won't let go of this land.

Some other characters I really liked in the show include George Chichester(Lucian Msamati), the African American man that has climbed the ranks of government who works with Delaney for what is right. Cholmondeley(Tom Hollander), the chemist that makes gunpowder and just likes to have a good time that ends up helping Delaney out. Dumbarton(Michael Kelly), who is an American spy in the UK posing as a doctor and flag maker that meets a gruesome end. And Atticus(Stephen Graham), Delaney's former enemy turned adversary. There are so many more great characters, these are just the ones that stood out to me.

I enjoyed "Taboo" very much. At first glance I thought it might have been a little too much History Channel for me, but the way the story was told and how it unfolded had me rapt with attention. The show was violent and dark and sad and no one was the good guy. Sure, you root for some people, but in the long run, each and every character has way more flaws than not. The British Parliament is the "bad guy", but that is not to say that Delaney is the "good guy". He is very, very far from a good guy.

I highly recommend people watch "Taboo". It is a very interesting and unique take on some classic historical stories from the US and UK's past. I also recommend binge watching it. It is perfect for that type of viewing.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. If you have FX, you can get FX Now and binge all of "Taboo" right now. What are you waiting for? Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

Ty Watches "Bar Rescue": Summit House Grill and Pub Edition

This past Sunday on "Bar Rescue", Taffer and crew headed to the Summit House Grill and Pub in Colorado. This was a husband and wife owned bar. The wife had a steady job in I.T., but her husband convinced her to quit that job and enter the bar industry.

This was an obvious mistake.

At first, the bar was making tons of money, as per usual. The husband owner said they started out making 30,000 dollars a week and at one point, then started to make closer to 45,000 dollars a week. They were making enough money that they were turning a decent enough profit, so the husband and wife decided to turn the bar over to the employees and managers, only coming in once or twice a week to check up on things.

This was when things started to go downhill. The employees and managers had free rein to do what they pleased. Some worked hard, Nichole to be exact. But, the others had a free for all. They did not respect the husband owner, they played free and loose with the rules and they basically did what they wanted. The husband owner would start to come in more often when he realized they were starting to lose money, but he came in only to get drunk. He seemed to care less and less about the bar and more and more about getting drunk and blaming everyone else for his problems. The wife owner was the one who called Taffer to come and save the bar.

When Taffer arrived, he had the wife come and watch her husband run the business. This was a nightmare. All he did was drink, berate customers and workers, hit on customers and cause big scenes. His wife was mortified by what she saw. When he started to get drunker, meaner and hitting on any female customer he saw, the wife said she'd seen enough and stormed in the bar and gave her husband the business. She yelled and crushed him for what seemed 15 minutes straight. It was beautiful. After the husband blamed her for all his problems, the employees cut him off and had to physically remove him from the bar. It was funny, but also kind of sad. Taffer came in during this fight and poured a beer on the husband as well. It was so disrespectful and totally awesome.

When everyone sobered up, Taffer had them in the next day to train. Before training though, Taffer made the husband blow into a breathalyzer, and luckily for him, he was sober. Then they got to business. The training was a nightmare. The employees had no idea what they were doing and it showed. The kitchen staff was just as clueless. The "experts" did their best to prepare them for stress test.

Needless to say, stress test was terrible. No drinks or food made it to anyone at any decent times. The husband looked so stressed, I said to my wife that he should have a drink to calm his nerves. The wife was great and so was Nichole. Everyone else, a total train wreck.

After shutting down, Taffer and his people got down to fixing the inside of the bar. Interesting fact about this bar, it was clean and nice, it was the husband that was the problem. So, the work Taffer and crew did was minimal. They kept the name and gave the inside a forest feel. It was one of their nicer efforts. Prior to relaunch, Taffer had a heart to heart with the husband, seems to be his new thing, and they hatched out all their problems. Everything seemed great after their talk.

During relaunch, the employees and owners were struggling, at first. I haven't seen something like this in awhile. Of course they dug themselves out and things were running smooth enough for Taffer to leave. During the 6 week check up, the bar seemed to be back on track and they were making a bit of their debt back. Nichole was also a full time manager now, which was much deserved.

This was a very down the middle episode of my beloved "Bar Rescue". That's not to say it wasn't great, but you could tell what was going to happen beat for beat. Come back next week for my review of the next episode.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He was going to open a bar with his wife, but when Ty said he would not serve liquor, his wife shut the whole thing down. Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

Ty Watches "Bar Rescue": St8 Pub Edition

"Bar Rescue" is back. I know that I'm a little late on my review of the mid season premiere, but other stuff has come up. Do not worry, I will be here every Monday from here until this season ends to update you on all the new episodes of the fifth season of "Bar Rescue". I have to say, with what is going on in the world right now, a show like "Bar Rescue" lets me escape the nightmare for at least an hour, and I am very grateful to Spike TV for this. So, lets get to it. 

On Sunday, Taffer and crew were back to rescue a bar that was in disarray in a small suburb of Denver, Colorado. The bar was called St8 Pub. I do not like this name. I'm not a fan of using numbers in place of letters. If this makes me a curmudgeon, so be it. I don't use emoji's, any abbreviations or numbers when texting, writing, or talking. I use full words and something like this seems lazy to me.

Anyway, this bar was small. It was only about 1500 square feet and only had one of each, a speed well, bar top and POS system. That is incredibly tiny. Anyone that has worked in the food industry knows how small that is. To make matters worse, the owner of St8 Pub was given the bar as a gift. He had to pay nothing for it. It was handed to him with the caveat that he would furnish it and pay the bank monthly rent. Sounds easy enough, right?

Well, this guy decided that he would rather forgo paying any rent and just get absolutely sloshed every night. When Taffer and crew arrive at the bar in their car and watch from outside, as they always do, all they see is the owner pounding drink after drink and shot after shot. To make matters worse, he would berate customers and kick them out if he didn't personally like them, and he let his friends drink for free, as long as he could get wasted with them. He also only had one other employee. It was him and a lady named Caitlyn working there. Caitlyn, to her credit, worked her tail off. She would tend bar and do anything that she could do to keep this bar afloat. She was the one who called the people at "Bar Rescue" to come and save the bar. The owners mom was there all the time too, but she was more so there to help out and continue to feed into her sons ego and alcohol problem. She was an enabler. I'm sorry to say that, but it was clearly evident that she saw nothing wrong with what her son was doing.

When Taffer sent in his spies, he first had them order a beer. The beer was served in a mason jar, and the bar expert blew his stack at this. This was an act of terrorism in his eyes. Then, Taffer had the spies order food, and what they saw next made them, and me for that matter, sick to their stomachs. The owner doubled as the chef, and prior to making the food, he smoked a cigarette and took out the trash, never washing his hands before touching the food. That is disgusting. He did put on gloves when making the food, but he kept touching the cutting board and kitchen top and wiping sweat off his face and forehead, rendering the gloves useless. The food he made, a sloppy joe, looked disgusting and looked like mystery meat, which he microwaved. It was gross.

This was when Taffer and crew blasted into the bar and proceeded to destroy this owner with words. They called him every name that every episode of "Bar Rescue" uses. He was a failure, a loser, a drunk, a low life, all bad things, this guy was called. It was brutal and I could not look away. Taffer even went as far as to mock the guy by taking his hat off his head, put it on his head, do an "impersonation" of the owner, and it was one of the most glorious moments ever on any episode of "Bar Rescue".

During this magnificent attack, we come to find out that the owner has not paid rent in 13 months, the exact amount of time he has owned the bar, that he was in debt 35,000 dollars with the bank, and had he not paid them in full by the first of the month they were going to shut down the bar, and that his mom was paying his rent for his apartment. This dude was a real piece of work. He tried to fight back when Taffer was crushing him, but he was too drunk and I genuinely feel like this talk opened his eyes. This was a berating that actually held some weight.

After Taffer closed the bar down, he had everyone come in when they sobered up so they could have a talk. This was when the owner owed up to everything he had done, and was doing, was wrong. He laid it all out on the table. Taffer and crew also proved that he and his one employee knew nothing about craft beer, which they claimed to be experts in. They immediately began training, and also had the owner hire some help. Of course they got up to speed and they got some fresh faces the day before stress test.

Needless to say, stress test was a nightmare. Nothing went right. Drinks were poured wrong. Beer was poured improperly. Food died in the pass. Tables never got drinks or food. It was your typical stress test. They shut it down, got to the root of the problem, and Taffer brought in his people to fix the place up. There was the heart to heart with mother and son. Son owned up, once again, to his mistakes and Taffer had that creepy smile on his face when they resolved their conflict.

When they came back for the re open, things seemed to be much better. Taffer renamed the bar Downstairs Pub and Grill. I very much dislike this name. He wanted a whole "man cave"(I despise this pairing of words), vibe, and he figured downstairs was where these man caves exist. He also put up fake pornography magazine cover photos on the wall. It was so god damn stupid. Other than those two dumb things, the inside of the bar looked much better. They had a new bar top, new stools and chairs, more POS systems, a better draught system and easier, better cocktails and food. The kitchen also looked much better. Smaller pots and pans, most everything used a pressure cooker and a fryer, so it was much less clutter. The kitchen was cleaner too. During the re open, everything ran much more smoothly. Food and drink was getting to the tables in correct timing, and everything, according to the customers, tasted very good. It was a great turnaround, as it usually is with most bars on "Bar Rescue".

When they did the 3 month check up, the bar was running smooth, the owner did not drink on the job, was paying his own rent and had a plan in place with the bank to pay them back in smaller increments over a certain period of time. It was your typical "Bar Rescue" ending.

We all need our heroes in dark time, and the crew of "Bar Rescue" are my bright knights. I'm very happy this show is back for me to review for everyone, and I cannot wait until next week to watch the new episode and write about it next Monday. "Bar Rescue" is back. Woo hoo!

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. When the world gets crazy, all Ty can do is ¯\_(ツ)_/¯. Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

Ty Watches "Man Seeking Woman"

I'm a big fan of the television show "Man Seeking Woman". I have watched it from the start. I was excited to see Jay Baruchel in a leading role on a sitcom. I've been a fan of his since I first saw him on "Undeclared", and the fandom only got bigger after seeing the excellent movie "Goon", and his role in "This is the End". I am also a Eric Andre fan. I think you all know this very well by now. So, I was pumped to see him in a major supporting role. Other than those 2, I hadn't really heard of anyone else that was going to be on the show, but I really have grown to like Brit Lower, she plays his sister, and the actors that play his mom and dad.

"Man Seeking Woman" has a simple premise based on a book with the same title. Jay Baruchel plays Josh, who is unlucky in love. Eric Andre is his best friend and the first two seasons were basically about their many mishaps when meeting ladies and the things that happened afterward. I thought it was great. I found the show funny, unique and very cool. They took things to the literal point on this show. In one episode, they mention going to a destination wedding, I believe I have brought this up on the podcast before, and the destination is hell. Well, the wedding is literally in hell, There are devils and demons poking and prodding people with pitchforks and everything. Most episodes are like this, and I think that it is great.

Then, when I saw promos for season 3, I saw that Josh had a steady girlfriend. I had a lot of questions going into season three. I thought, were they going to focus on Mike(Eric Andre) more? Or maybe it would be Josh's sister who got more screen time. Side note, there is an episode in season 2 where Josh's sister has an affair with Santa Claus that is so god damn good. Seriously people, go watch that episode. Maybe they would focus on the parents more. I really did not know what to expect.

I have to say, this season has been just as good, if not better than the previous 2 seasons. I know it is called "Man Seeking Woman", and the "man" now has a "woman", but that has not slowed the show down a bit. The show is just as biting and satirical and literal as it has ever been.

They did a whole unwanted citizen type theme for the season 3 premiere. Josh was staying at Lucy's(Katie Findlay, an excellent addition to the cast), his new girlfriend's apartment all the time and her roommates were fed up. So, the writers treated the whole episode as if Josh was an illegal immigrant. It was timely without the show knowing it would be timely, and it wrapped up very sweet, with Lucy leaving her cushy apartment to stay with Josh. I wish some of the monsters we have in government now would watch this episode to see how stupid they all truly are, but I know they would not get the joke.

From there on, each episode has been pretty decent. We have Lucy moving in with Josh and changing his whole place around so it suits her needs, only to realize this makes Josh upset. There was an episode where Lucy and Josh get into a fight and Josh escapes to Mike's "Bro Island", that was hilarious. There was an episode that showed the way different age groups act, like Millennials and Baby Boomers. They have the whole meeting the parents thing, which was a real standout this year, especially the episode where Josh meets Lucy's parents. I loved the whole "Where the Wild Things Are" theme they used.

Then we have this past Wednesday's show. It was real, real good. Josh and Mike are playing video games, and Mike inadvertently looks at Josh's phone for some info. As soon as he unlocks the screen, he sees that Josh has an article up about asking your girlfriend to have, and I'm not being gross, this was what came up, anal sex. Mike is thrilled, but he says that this is something you have to ask the Father of your girlfriend if it is okay, a la marriage. There is a great scene following that when Mike gets Josh's sister involved in the debate, and she agrees with Mike. So, Josh asks, Lucy's mom and dad say that they've been waiting for this day, then nonchalantly, Mike asks Lucy's parents if he can propose marriage to her, and they kind of blow it off and say sure. It was funny. The rest of the episode focuses on how much anxiety something like proposing can cause, and they never touch on the anal sex thing again. I loved that they showed how much terror the person asking someone else to marry them go through. I also love how they show the one being proposed to is overly prepared and just wants it to happen, no matter what. It was a very good 22 minutes of TV.

With all that being said, my fears that the show wouldn't be as edgy or literal as it was for 2 seasons were for naught. It is just as funny, takes just as many chances and the addition of Lucy was an absolute grand slam. I'm a big, big fan of this show and I think many more would be to if they gave it a shot. Go check "Man Seeking Woman" out, it is well worth your time.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He is still working up the nerve to ask his wife's parents if he can marry their daughter. Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

Ty Watches "Legion"

Today I'm going to keep my piece kind of short. The main reason, I do not want to spoil anything for anyone who hasn't watched the show yet, but "Legion" is going to be a masterpiece.

My wife and I just watched the premiere last night, and I was totally blown away. I loved absolutely everything about the show. The tone was dark with splashes of humor here and there. The acting was exquisite. All the main characters, and for that matter, the supporting characters, did a wonderful job. The set pieces were pretty much perfect. The pace and style was like nothing else I have seen. The color of the show was retro and really cool. The wardrobe was a 70's throwback, which I really enjoy. The interstitial scenes spliced in during David's "episodes" were terrifying, yet I couldn't look away. This is one of the most unique shows I've seen in quite some time.

The fact that the writers and producers can take a superhero property like X-Men and make it their own is a triumph in and of itself. I'm sure I missed a lot of real inside baseball stuff with side characters and dialogue, I'm not fully versed when it comes to the X-Men universe, but "Legion" held my attention for 90 minutes straight.

I also really liked the action sequences they had in the first episode. They were big on a small screen. It was the best action I've seen on the small screen since the season premiere of "Lost". I actually think "Legion"'s premiere was better than "Lost".

As I said at the top, I do not want to give anything away, so go watch the premiere as soon as possible. I also do not think you have to be a superhero or comic book person to enjoy this show. Its got something for everyone. Shows only get better, most of the time, after they premiere. If this happens with "Legion", it is going to go down as one of the greatest shows of all time. I cannot wait to see where they go from here and I'm pretty sure it is going to work and it's going to be great.

FX continues to have the best programming and continues to take the best chances on new shows. I love FX and I'm fully on board with "Legion". Everyone needs to watch this show now. It is phenomenal.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He really likes FX. Hear him talk all about it on a recent episode of the X Millennial Man. Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

The Greatest Television Ever: "Workaholics" is Going Out as One of the Best Comedies Ever

Comedy Central is currently airing its final season of "Workaholics". I've been a fan of this show since day one. I was a fan of these guys when they were known as Mail Order Comedy and only did videos for YouTube. So, when they got a show on Comedy Central, needless to say, I was thrilled. And, the fact that the show turned out to be just as funny as I hoped was icing on the cake.

"Workaholics" has had many, many memorable episodes. Front yard wrestling was a gem. Having the weightlifters that were lifting weights for Jesus coming to live with them, hilarious. Any episode that heavily featured Karl, tremendous. When they found a new weed dealer, excellent. When they made their "burrweedos", another classic. I could go on and on and on. I love this show.

When it was announced that the seventh season would be their last, I was sad, but it felt right. There wasn't much else these guys could do, and Comedy Central has some great, newer shows like "Broad City", "Review", "Detrioters" and "Jeff and Some Aliens" that fit right into that late night schedule with relative ease. They have good shows already in place to fill the void that "Workaholics" might have left.

With that being said, "Workaholics" is going out with a bang. Every single episode so far has been great. Every one has been a home run. Every one has been hilarious. Every one has surprised me with how hilarious it has been. The show has always been funny, but each episode for its final season, so far, has been tremendous. Whether it features Karl and Anders talking about who is the "top" in their business relationship, only to find out that Alice's dad, played excellently by Dennis Quaid, is the true "top". That episode also features great side stories with Adam and Alice acting like a couple and Blake selling weed over the phone as opposed to the fire whistle Alice's dad created which they are supposed to be selling. That is when Karl comes in and takes that episode from good to great.

Or, take the season premiere that featured Blake, Ders and Adam having to train new employees, who are just younger versions of themselves. This episode had the three main characters realizing that they are getting older and they may not be able to handle the pranking that the younger generation does nowadays. It also features a great scene involving Ders, Adam and Blake also hiring an older gentleman because he is 69 years old. The humor is as childish as you can imagine, and I loved every second of it. The three younger actors they got for this episode were awesome as well.

The third episode of the season found the boys going to the TeleAmeriCorp's corporate condo for a weekend, and of course they got into some shenanigans. First off, they weren't even supposed to be there, Adam stole the keys. But, Blake is hell bent on playing volleyball and seeing the sunset, Ders wants to get a hickey and Adam wants to film a video that will make him go viral. There is some great scenes of them playing volleyball, a al "Top Gun", but it pans out to reveal that they are beating children in the game. They also meet some ladies that they take a liking to, but they have bully esque boyfriends, like an 80's movie, and those scenes make for some great comedy. Ders constantly trying to find someone to give him a hickey is sad, but hilarious. Adam's attempts at going viral are all for naught, and he constantly hurts himself. The episode culminates with them being locked out of the condo while some townies have a big party without them.

Then, last nights episode was really cool and really different. This time they focused on the character of Bill, a sad sack loner that works with them, but they put him in a thriller type of movie style episode. It turns out it is all a dream, and the whole office is playing a prank on him, spoiler alert. The episode was dark, violent, but above all else, very funny. The ending is a riot. Watch it, you will not be disappointed.

"Workaholics" has only 6 episodes left, and you better believe that I will be writing about the series finale. But, I'm so glad that these guys got there shot and they ran with it and hit on something big. This show has given all three of these guys an extended career in show business as well. Adam Devine is becoming a bona fide movie star, Anders Holm has had some great bit parts in movies, "Top Five" comes to mind immediately for me, and so has Blake Anderson, "Dope" comes to mind. I will miss "Workaholics", but I have been extremely impressed with how they have come out of the gates so far, and I cannot wait to see what they do with their final episodes. I'm sure whatever they do, it will work and it will be funny. That has how the whole series has been.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He loves to look into this fantasy world of places people go to work. He works wherever he wakes. Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

Playing Ten Questions with a New Five Year Old

Nothing is off the record here

My son turned 5 yesterday, and I decided that I wanted to interview him. I wanted to know how he sees the world. I wanted the insight of a 5 year old because, honestly, I do not remember much, if anything, from when I was 5. I asked him 10 very simple, easy questions. He answered them all as truthfully as he could, and then he asked me the same 10 questions. I thought this was an interesting idea, so I'm going to go through each question, his answer, why he answered the way he answered and my response when he interviewed me. Here we go.

Question one: Who is your favorite superhero? As you all know by now, my son loves superheroes. His answer was, very quickly, Captain America. When asked why, he simply said because he has a shield. Nothing else, just that he has a shield. Short and sweet. My answer to this question, Wolverine. When asked why, I told my son that I liked his powers and his claws. Both of us needed little to no time to answer this question.

Question two: What is your favorite movie? Miles thought about this one and finally settled on "Captain America: Civil War". See the running theme so far? When asked why it was his favorite, he said because of the battle scene in the airport. Now, full disclosure, that is the only scene of the movie he has ever watched. He hasn't seen anything else in the movie. I thought it was an interesting choice. My pick, "Napoleon Dynamite". When asked why, I told him that it was silly and goofy and I've seen it over 40 times. He was unimpressed.

Question three: What is your favorite TV show? He quickly answered "PJ Masks". You all know how I feel about this show. But, my son loves it because of the "superhero" theme. Simple and plain. When I was asked, I of course said "The Simpsons". It's the best show ever and I will not hear of anyone not agreeing with me.

Question four: What is your favorite book? His answered spoke so much to his age and the time we live in now. Without hesitation, Miles said, "Captain America: An Origin Story", on his Kindle Fire. He reads books off a tablet now. I still read paperbacks, but this generation of kids, everything is digital. When I asked him why this was his favorite, he said because it tells him everything about his favorite superhero. When he asked me, I said "Lord of the Flies". He asked me what is was about, I told him, and he said he wants to read it someday. This was a very proud moment for me.

Question five: What is your favorite sport? Miles said baseball, baseball, baseball. When I asked why, he said it is easy, he likes to hit and throw and play first base. It was a very child like answer, and I loved it. I was the same when I was his age. I told him that, but when he asked me the same question, I told him basketball. It is my favorite to play and watch. He thought I was going to say football, which I love, but I surprised him with basketball.

Question six: What do you like about school? He told me he likes his teachers, the stuff they teach him and playing with his friends. I thought this was a perfect response from a 5 year old in Pre K. That is exactly what I'd expect most 5 year olds to say. When he asked me what I liked about school, I told him recess. He was confused because recess is so short, but I told him I looked forward to it everyday.

Question seven: Who is your favorite family member, grandparents and cousins included? This may sound like an odd question, but he's 5, and he said he loves everyone! I was floored. He was being completely honest too! Anyone that knows Miles knows that he loves everyone and everything. I know I'm biased, but he's a damn good kid. When he asked me, I said besides Mom(my wife), I told him my brothers. I've been through it all with my brothers and they have all made me a better person. Thanks guys.

Question eight: Who is your best friend? Now, this may have been an answer based on who was around, but I think this is true for most 5 year old boys, he said Mom(my wife). When I asked him why, he said she is the nicest and sweetest person he knows and he loves her so much. It was very nice. When he asked me, I did not have as quick an answer. I have lost touch with a lot of people I used to consider my best friend, but when it comes down to it, my father is my best friend. We go to shows, games, movies and just talk about everything. He has always been there for me and he's always kept me level headed. Not only is he my dad, he is undoubtedly my best friend.

Question 9: What is your favorite food? He answered just as I thought, saying mac and cheese. This kid would eat it everyday if I let him. He said he loves it because it is gooey and cheesy and that his Grammy, my mother in law, makes the best. I told him my favorite food was steak. When asked why, I told him that I love meat. That is it and that is all.

Final question: What is your favorite restaurant? He said Chuck E Cheese. I think this place is gross, Miles loves it. This is the most 5 year old answer imaginable. That place is made for young kids. He even likes the food, where I find it inedible. My answer, The Block. It's a local Saint Louis butcher block that has the best meat I've ever had in my life. It is really great. If any readers not from Saint Louis come to town, check The Block out. It's incredible.

So, that is the life through the eyes of the newly minted 5 year old son, Miles Kulik. I loved this idea and I'm glad my wife suggested it. I had a lot of fun doing the interview and even more fun writing it. This was great. I hope you all enjoy this as much as I enjoyed doing it.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man. The other great thing about having a new five your old in the house. The dad can spend the weekend playing at an indoor water park. Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

Ty Watches "The Simpsons": A New Classic with "The Great Phatsby"

This past Sunday was one of the best "Simpsons" episodes I have ever seen. I'm not one of these fly by night hipster "Simpsons" fans either that say, " it was so much better 10 years ago". Screw those people. "The Simpsons" has been, and always will be the greatest show ever.

Having said that, every once in awhile, an episode like Sunday night comes along and just grabs you. I knew I'd be on board when I saw commercials for the episode leading up to it. I'm an enormous hip hop fan, as you all know very well by now, and the fact that this episode was based around hip hop had me from the start. I also really liked the fact that they based the entire episode around "The Great Gatsby", calling this episode, "The Great Phatsby". That is some tremendous wordplay. The beginning, middle and end were all wonderful. I loved Homer being the narrator for the whole episode.

The B story, with Smithers going to Canada to get a particular kind of ice was very funny. I loved that they kept cutting back to it as well. It seemed that every time I forgot about Smithers, they'd cut to a scene of him going through a horrific incident to bring this fancy ice back to Mr Burns.

The A story was tremendous. Mr Burns tries to throw a fancy party to get back to feeling good about himself. The party is a disaster because he staged in like a 1920's party. Mr Burns and Homer then take his boat out for a ride and they stumble upon a very uproarious and fun party. They both get off the boat and meander their way through the party, trying to find out who is throwing this excellent shindig. Everyone they run into say this is a mystery person, but they do get to meet the man because he is a big, big Monty Burns fan.

The gentleman's name is Jay G, and he is the biggest producer in current rap music. He tells Mr Burns that he owes everything to him and his book on business. They become fast friends, and Homer is there for the ride. Jay G gives Mr Burns the confidence to live lavishly, and Mr Burns does just that, all the way to bankrupting himself.

We soon learn that this was Jay G's plan all along. He followed Mr Burns book to a T. He even wrote a dis rap to sully Burns' name. The video for that song is hilarious. After this, Bart tells Mr Burns that he needs to write a dis rap back, because that is how you win in today's world of rap music. They go to Springfield's rap aficionado, Milhouse, to get all the advice they need. Another great scene.

There is also a C story going on during this where Marge and Lisa open their own store, and it drives both of them crazy. It is very funny and not to be missed. Anyway, back to the A story.

When Bart, Homer and Mr Burns get together to record their song, the voice guest list is second to none. The RZA comes in and does a verse, Snoop Dogg does a verse, Common does a verse and Keegan Michael Key does a verse, and they all sound great. When Burns is ready to release the single, a hologrammed Jay G shows up and says he bought his single and bought out everyone that rapped on the song. When Burns is at his lowest, he steals Jay G's prize goose and threatens to eat it. That doesn't happen, but there is a fight scene between the two of them and they end up on a broken chandelier that is about to crash to the ground. When Jay G tells him why he did what he did, Burns finally understands. Smithers saves them by sledding in on a pallet filled with snow. Mr Burns then tells him he wanted ice, not snow. It was very funny. Mr Burns and Jay G then make an agreement and Burns gets his nuclear plant back. He decides to add music everyday, but after one time, he decides it will only last the one time.

This episode was so good. There was a whole "Empire" tone to the episode as well, with Taraji P Henson playing a character named Praileine. It was awesome. This was one of the better "Simpsons" I've seen in awhile. This is an episode I will think about and watch a lot when it comes on FXX or reruns on Fox. I loved that it was an hour long and all the spoofs and actors and rappers they got to be in this episode was second to none. This was an instant classic in my opinion.

"The Simpsons" is the best show ever, and "The Great Phatsby" proved that tenfold. It was a dynamite hour of television. Go watch it as soon as possible. You won't be disappointed.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He thinks the "The SImpsons" peaked in 2196. It was all downhill from there. Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

No Brent Musberger, Forgetting About Domestic Abuse is not OK

Please Brent, just shut up already.

As I said yesterday, today, I want to comment on the whole Brent Musberger situation from Monday night. I was watching the Sugar Bowl, in which Oklahoma blew out Auburn, and I actually turned the game off before I had heard Musberger's much maligned comments on Oklahoma running back Joe Mixon, who is on film punching his then girlfriend in the face.

Again, we have a situation where a football player is on tape abusing a female. This has to stop. We cannot allow this to continue to happen. It is disturbing, disgusting, horrifying and illegal. No one should ever, ever put hands on a female, child or anyone weaker than them. This is so terrible, and there needs to be punishments for people that do this type of thing. My mother worked in a field where she helped battered women and children, and those people had horrific lives. They were always scared. Whenever I would come around, I'm a bigger guy, I could feel their fear in the air. I would never put my hands on anyone, I'm a pacifist, but these women and children only knew of men that constantly hit them. That is no way to live your life. Living in fear is a terrible way to live.

With his terrible actions did Oklahoma punish Mixon? Not that I can tell. In fact, he started at running back in the Sugar Bowl, and was their best player on the field. But, at what point does illegal activity beat out physical ability? Yes, Mixon is a good football player, but he hit a female. He should not have been playing in that game. But, Bob Stoops, who is a doofus, played him anyway after he deemed Mixon's "apology" enough punishment. Mixon seemed genuine in his "apology", but that does not take away the fact that he hit his girlfriend in the face. He should not be allowed to play football after that.

Ray Rice is done in the NFL, as he should be, but others do not face the same type of punishment. Adrian Peterson, after hitting his 4 year old with a switch, missed one season, but came back and was deemed a "special" player for being able to overcome "adversity". Richie Incognito bullied a player into retiring early, but he is now a pro bowl player after his short suspension. Hope Solo repeatedly beat up a family member, who then came out and said they were afraid of her anytime they saw her, but she is still the goalie on the US National soccer team. If Adrian Peterson, Richie Incognito, Hope Solo or Joe Mixon were you or me, and we did these same things, we would be put in jail and treated as pariahs. But since they are athletic, they get fourth, fifth and sixth chances. It is embarrassing and disturbing.

This all leads me to what Musberger said during the game the other night. During the broadcast, remember, I turned the game off because it was not competitive, Musberger said, this is via Yahoo Sports, "He's just one of the best, and lets just hope, given a second chance by Bob Stoops and Oklahoma, let's hope this young man makes the most of his chance and goes on to have a career in the National Football League". ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! Instead of addressing what he did, which a lot of other sports outlets had been doing leading up to the game, Musberger took his time to praise Joe Mixon. The only mention of Mixon hitting this female from Musberger was, "given a second chance". What a crock.

This is part of the problem. Musberger only looks at the athletic ability, not the horrific thing that he did. This is terrible. Musberger had the perfect platform to call out this horrific abuse and say that Oklahoma should have held this kid more accountable, I mean, players get kicked off teams for getting high, but they can still play when they hit females, if they are good, but instead, he heaped praise on Mixon. He wished him a long and prosperous career in the NFL. I do not know if this is the first time that Mixon laid hands on this lady, but as my mother, and a lot of other people that have helped abused people say, if they hit you once, they have, or have wanted, to hit you more. But, did Musberger talk about this? Of course not. He only pointed out that Mixon was a good football player, and that Oklahoma did the right thing, in giving him a "second chance".

Then, Musberger gave people even more ammo when he tried to defend himself and his comments while still calling the game. Instead of just saying that he was wrong, or doing a written apology, or something along the lines of trying to bury his awful remarks, he said, this time the quote is from the LA Times, "I happen to pull for people with second chances, OK? Let me make it absolutely clear that I hope he has a wonderful career and that he teaches people with that brutal, violent video. OK?". People shredded him once again via social media, as they should. He still wished this kid good fortune. I do not want this kid to have a bad life, but he beat a woman, and it was on film, and it was awful. I saw people saying that he wants this kid to succeed, but he never mentions the female that he hit. He never once says that he hopes she can one day live without fear.

Musberger has proven himself to be an idiot as far as sports announcers go. He never stops to think about what he is saying, he just blurts whatever comes to his feeble mind. This is embarrassing and disturbing. ESPN had a platform to address this, but they instead put Musberger on to do the game, and he praises a woman abuser. I just do not get it. This stinks and it is making it harder and harder for me to watch football, without turning on my Echo, muting the announcers, and listening to music while I watch the game.

These announcers, the older they get, the worse they become. Brent Musbereger proved his age with these remarks, and I hope someone somewhere punishes him accordingly. But I'm sure they won't, and when I turn on college football next year, Musberger will be right there, calling the games. What a shame.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture Editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. 

Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

The SeedSing 2016 Year in Pop Culture: Best, and Worst, in Television

This week marks the week of my "Best Of"' lists. I will do TV, movies, music, podcasts and sports moments.

Right off the bat though, 2016 has been a pain in the ass. This is one of the worst years possibly in the history of the world. We have lost so many great people, George Michael even passed last night, I mean, Jesus Christ, we have lost some legends. There is also the terrible, horrible, dreadful election that we have spoken so much of on the site and podcast. The weather, at least here in Saint Louis, has been a nightmare. To make a long story short, 2016 has stunk. This is my generations "great depression", or World War or any other bad thing you want to say. It has been a horrific year.

But, some good, maybe, possibly, even great things have come out this year, and that is what I'm going to be talking about the next 5 days. So, even though I have laid out how shitty 2016 has been, I do have some "Best Of" stuff to get to. I will also throw in one thing on each list I thought was terrible as well, but today comes my top 5 TV shows of the year. I will count down from 5-1 on each list.

So, here we go.

At number 5, I have "Horace and Pete". This show came from nowhere. Louis C.K. had been working on it for some time, and put out every episode on his site on a random Saturday in the middle of the summer. It was an odd time to put out a show, but would you expect anything different from a genius like C.K.? But, getting to what made this show so great, it was so very different from anything C.K. has been doing. It was dark and very depressing. Sure, there were some funny moments, but there was way, way more dark and deep moments. C.K. shined on the show, but so did Steven Buscemi, Alan Alda, Edie Falco and every patron at the bar, especially Steven Wright. The show was shot like a play, which I enjoyed very much. It was unique, it was ground breaking, in its own way and it had Louis C.K.'s imprint all over it. I'm sure it will be on Netflix or some other streaming device, but I recommend buying it on his site. It is only 20 or 30 bucks for the whole series, and you will never forget the greatness that you will see when watching "Horace and Pete". I still can't shake the ending, and to me, that is the sign of a great show.

At number 4, I get a little lighter with, "People of Earth". I had heard very little about this show leading to its build up, but I knew Wyatt Cenac was the star, and I'm a big fan of his. So, I recorded the premiere, which was on Halloween, and waited until 3 or 4 episodes had recorded. I watched all 3 or 4 in one sitting and was immediately hooked. The show has a very easy plot to understand. A group of people calling themselves "Experiencers" get together every week to talk about the time that they were abducted by aliens. In each episode you get to see the people getting abducted, and what they each went through during their experiences. But, there is so much more to this show than just some UFO, alien stuff. The show is very funny. I laughed out loud at parts. There were episodes that were moving and heartfelt. Cenac is a star in this role. Ana Gasteyer is equally as good. The rest of the cast does great in their roles to. The best part though is the aliens. The interactions and things that go on on the ship are great. The creators do not treat the aliens like monsters. Sure, they look like aliens, but they have squabbles and get into petty fights just like anyone else at their respective job does. Like I said, the show did not get the coverage it deserved on the lead up, but the show is great, and it is coming back in 2017 for a second season, which makes me very happy.

At number 3, I have "Luke Cage". This show kicks ass people. I watched it not because it is a superhero show, but because Ali Shaheed Muhammed, from ATCQ, did all the original music for it. But, in watching it for the music, I fell in love with the show. When my wife asked me why I was enjoying it so much, I told her it is like "The Wire", which may be the greatest television show ever, but with superheroes, and it is easier to follow the story. When "The Wire" would go deep into cop talk, sometimes they would lose me, that never happens in "Luke Cage". It was easy for me to follow everything, and I loved that about this show. Mike Colter is excellent as Luke Cage, but everyone else on the show, be it Theo Rossi, Alfre Woodard, Rosario Dawson, Masherala Ali, or anyone else in the cast, they are all stars. The show is dark and violent, but it is also incredible. I love Luke Cage's powers, I love his "origin" story, I loved watching the fight scenes, I loved everything about this show. They even had big time musical guest stars, people like Charles Bradley, Rapheal Saadiq and Sharon Jones, RIP, show up in some episodes. "Luke Cage" is the second best Netflix Original that I have seen. People need to watch it, even if you are not a "superhero" person.

The reason "Luke Cage" is the second best Netflix show leads me to my number 2 show of 2016, "Stranger Things". Honestly, has there been a recent show that has been more talked about on social media than "Stranger Things". The crazy thing about it, none of the talk was negative. I cannot find one person that does not think this show is awesome. I was skeptical at first when I heard it was a cross between "E.T." and the "X-Files", but as I watched, I found it to be a bit more like "Goonies" and "The X-Files", both of which I love. The kids on this show are wonderful. They are the true stars that are the heart and soul of what makes "Stranger Things" so good. But, the adults, mainly Winona Ryder, are just as good. They have to live in this crazy world that the Duffer Brothers created as well, and they do a phenomenal job on the show. This show kind of had it all. There were love stories, comedy, action, family drama, regular drama, monsters, aliens, weird old scientist guys, but above all else, the best Sci Fi since "Blade Runner". I do not want to give anything away in case there are one or two people that have not seen "Stranger Things", but damn is this show great. The best part is the kids, and that goes double for Millie Bobby Brown, who plays 11. Seriously, if you haven't seen "Stranger Things" yet, first, what the hell is wrong with you, but second, go watch it right now, and thank me later. This show is a true gem.

Finally, my number one show of 2016, "Atlanta". Did you really think I'd pick something else? I've been talking up this show since I saw the first trailer for it, and not only did it deliver on my expectations, but it exceeded them by a thousand miles. There hasn't been a show this original and unique on TV in quite some time. The time and effort that went into "Atlanta" paid off so much. The show was moving, funny, heartfelt, treated every character as if they were the main character, gave us some great newish actors and actresses to love and proved that Donald Glover is one of the best, and most innovative, people working in show business right now. This show had everything. All the episodes were all home runs. The show paid off and, as I have already stated, exceeded everyone's wildest dreams. Every episode with Paper Boi was excellent. Zazie Beets, who played Earn's baby's mother, was tremendous in her solo episode. When Earn and her go to her mother's party, another fantastic 30 minutes of television. But, the best episode of the season was when they had the "BET" type talk show that even included some commercials that Glover and staff made up themselves. This was the most original thing that has been on TV in over a decade. "Atlanta" was head and shoulders above any other TV show on this year, and we did have some decent TV this year. "Atlanta" was the best though, and it wasn't even close.

As far as my one bad TV show of the year goes, it cannot be anything other than "The Walking Dead". I hammeredlast season's finale, and true to my word, I did not watch one single episode of this season, but my wife did, and she said it was excruciatingly boring. They even killed off some "main" characters, but when she told me who they were, my response was something along the lines of "Who?", or "I don't even know who you are talking about". I do not care about Negan, I think the show did all it could in about 2 seasons, but now, they are scraping the barrel. People crushed "The Office" for going on too long, including me, so why doesn't everyone do the same for "The Walking Dead"? I don't get it, but from what I gathered, it was probably the worst show of the year.

That is it for today, come back tomorrow for my top 5 movies of 2016.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He picked no network tv shows because he is under the age of 60 and does not wathc network television. Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

SeedSing's Advent Calendar of Holiday Television Programs: Day 23 - "Seinfeld - The Strike"

The pre-Christmas Day season of Advent is upon us. Here at SeedSing we love the chocolaty goodness of getting a piece of candy once a day until we get to open our presents. As our gift to you we will present a new awesome holiday television program for every day of Advent. This is the greatest tv of the season. Enjoy.

Day 23 "Seinfeld - The Strike"

Original air date - December, 18th 1997 

Opened Doors: One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten, Eleven, Twelve, Thirteen,  Fourteen, Fifteen, Sixteen, Seventeen, Eighteen, Nineteen, Twenty, Twenty-One, Twenty-Two

For SeedSing's Advent Calendar of great holiday television shows, today, I'm going to write about the "Festivus" episode of "Seinfeld". I know the episode is called "The Strike", but lets be honest, I think we all know this as the Festivus episode. The Festivus episode of "Seinfeld" ranks right up there with any "Simpsons", "The Office" or any other TV show we have written about for the Advent calendar. In fact, I'm going to say that the Festivus episode of "Seinfeld" is the best holiday television show ever. I may quote "The Simpsons" more, or laugh at "The Office" more, but this particular episode of "Seinfeld" has literally changed the way I view the holiday. Today marks Festivus, and I will be airing grievances, showing feats of strength and getting the big pole out for this wonderful pre holiday holiday. 

The episode starts off funny. We all learn that Kramer was/is a worker in a bagel shop, and the strike that he has been seemingly on for years, has ended. Funny right off the bat. The whole thing with the bagel shop, and Kramer's past, and now present, are all classic "Seinfeld". We also get another story involving Elaine giving some creeps a phony phone number and there is some wackiness that happens with this plot line throughout. But, the true gem of the episode is when George's dad tells the world of the joyous day of Festivus.

We learn that when George was a kid, his dad was in line waiting to get him a toy, a doll in fact, and someone else got the last one. He pleaded and prodded the person to give him the doll, but they just would not budge. This caused Frank to lose his mind. He got very, very upset, as he almost always does.  This was when and where he Frank decided he needed to have a "holiday for the rest of us", and thus, Festivus was born. He decided that everyone needs to do many things to make themselves feel a bit better during this holiday season.

Let's be honest, this time of year brings out the anxiety and anger in the best of us. The holiday season can be pretty rough. So, the fact that Frank came up with a holiday where everyone can air their grievances, I love it. I wish this was a real thing and people would not get upset at the outcome. Imagine how nice it would be to tell everyone how you feel, but with the caveat that they cannot get mad at you, and they are allowed to do the same. This would be terrific. To let it all out, that would feel great from both sides. I love that the Costanza's do this every year, because who has more grievances than the Costanza's? No one, that's who. Imagine Frank, Estelle and George sitting around airing their grievances, it must be magically hilarious.

Then, the feats of strength. This would be my absolute favorite. This gives you the chance to prove who is the strongest in your family. I would crush this part of Festivus (ed note: no he would not), and I think my whole family, while they might disagree at first, knows that I would dominate. Now, imagine once again, the Costanza's doing this. I can almost guarantee that Estelle would be the strongest in the family. She may not look it, but I think she would absolutely dominate George and Frank in a feats of strength competition. I bet George is also the weakest, even at everyone's advanced age. He is so meek and mean, but that is just his attitude, I'm sure that does not translate into actual strength.

Then, we have the Festivus pole, which is the alternative to the tree and menorah used during this time of year. It is just an unadorned pole that sits in your living room on December 23rd. It does nothing, but it adds so much to this episode. The fact that Frank just wanted an alternative to all the glitz and glamour of the holiday's is a perfect representation of Frank and the Costanza's. They do not conform to social norms at any times, and I love that.

What makes this episode even more wonderful is the fact that people have made Festivus a real holiday. This has become a real thing. At the time of its airing, it was just an idea that Jerry Seinfeld, Larry David and the "Seinfeld" writing crew came up with, but now, it is real. The computer hasn't proclaimed that I have spelled the word wrong once, there is actual written facts on the internet and most people actually celebrate the day. This has become a world wide, nationally celebrated holiday. I know for a fact that when I go see my family later today, we will celebrate some of the best parts of Festivus, and I cannot wait (ed note: also the fact that Ty will once again lose the feats of strength).

The fact that Festivus is a nationally recognized thing should be more than enough to get this episode on our list, but there are so many more reasons. It is a funny, goofy, Costanza heavy episode, which are usually the best that "Seinfeld" has to offer. While I love "The Simpsons", and it will always be my favorite show, this episode of "Seinfeld" is one of the best episodes of just general television, but it is also the best representation of this holiday that TV has ever put out. It is magnificent.

Go out and have a wonderful Festivus everyone. After all, it is a holiday for the rest of us.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. Did we mention that Ty always loses the feats of strength. He does always lose. Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

SeedSing's Advent Calendar of Awesome Holiday Television Programs: Day 21 - "Saturday Night Live - TV Funhouse December 17th, 2005

The pre-Christmas Day season of Advent is upon us. Here at SeedSing we love the chocolaty goodness of getting a piece of candy once a day until we get to open our presents. As our gift to you we will present a new awesome holiday television program for every day of Advent. This is the greatest tv of the season. Enjoy.

Day 21 "Saturday Night Live - TV Funhouse December 17th, 2005"

Original air date - Read the title 

Opened Doors: One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten, Eleven, Twelve, Thirteen,  Fourteen, Fifteen, Sixteen, Seventeen, Eighteen, Nineteen, Twenty

We all need that special time where we rule the world. I can do no justice to the master work of Darlene Love and the people at TV Funhouse. 

Enjoy

RD 

RD Kulik is the Head Editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He also did not wait in line for King Kong on Christmas Day. He wish he had.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

SeedSing's Advent Calendar of Awesome Holiday Television Programs: Day 20 - "King of the Hill: Pretty, Pretty Dresses"

The pre-Christmas Day season of Advent is upon us. Here at SeedSing we love the chocolaty goodness of getting a piece of candy once a day until we get to open our presents. As our gift to you we will present a new awesome holiday television program for every day of Advent. This is the greatest tv of the season. Enjoy.

Day 20 "King of the Hill - Pretty, Pretty, Dresses"

Original air date - December 15th, 1998 

Opened Doors: One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten, Eleven, Twelve, Thirteen,  Fourteen, Fifteen, Sixteen, Seventeen, Eighteen, Nineteen

We will stand by our good friends through almost anything, at any time of the year. These people became our best friends because they did something that made our lives better. Sometimes it is the little things, like sitting nest to you at lunch in the second grade when no one else would, or standing up for you when a bigger kid was being a bully. Maybe you were on the same sports team, and this particular friend was blocking the opposing team as you got all the glory. They took some big hits for you, and you will in turn take some big hits for them.

King of the Hill is the often forgotten Fox Animated show that aired alongside the early years of The Simpsons.  King of the Hill was centered on Hank Hill, his family, and his group of best friends. Nearly every week, Hank's existence would be upset by the misadventures of his wife Peggy, his son Bobby, or one of his alleyway drinking buddies. Even if he hesitated, Hank would always try to do the right thing, because that is what you do for friends and family.

The season three episode "Pretty, Pretty, Dresses" takes place Christmastime in Arlen Texas. The Hills are planning their annual holiday party, and Hank's sad sack friend Bill is feeling down. Bill's wife Lenore left him on Christmas many years ago, and he is not over the separation. Bill embarrasses the Hill's a few times with his mental agony, until Peggy finally decides that Bill is not welcome at the party. 

Hank attempts to help his friend out by destroying the lot of old gifts Bill has left for Lenore. This causes Bill to seemingly get better, until the next day when Hank sees his friend outside wearing a dress. Hank is not at all comfortable with this, and asks Bill what in the hell is going on. Bill is not Bill, he is Lenore. Hank's friend has lost his mind.

Through this struggle, Hank goes above and beyond to try and shield his friend from ridicule. Hank explains to the family that Bill blocked for him when they both played football at Arlen High. Bill's blocking helped Hank set the season record for rushing yards. When Bill shows up to the Hill's holiday party as Lenore, Hank is left with only one choice. As the crowd mocks and laughs at Bill, Hank emerges from his bedroom in a dress. He went above and beyond his own comfort to help a friend. Once outside, Hank gets Bill to finally understand that Lenore is gone and it is time to move on. Bill takes off the dress and thanks Hank for being a good friend.

The holidays are not an easy time for a lot of people. We may be filled with joy, while our friends are on the edge of a nervous breakdown. The best we can do is find a way to reach to these freinds and to let them no know we will do almost anything to get them back to good spirits. They were pushing opoosing players out of the way so we can reach glory, wearing a dress is the least we can do for them.

RD

RD Kulik is the Head Editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He has been sad, and he has worn a dress, but never at the same time.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

SeedSing's Advent Calendar of Holiday Television Programs: Day 19 "The Office - Christmas Party"

The pre-Christmas Day season of Advent is upon us. Here at SeedSing we love the chocolaty goodness of getting a piece of candy once a day until we get to open our presents. As our gift to you we will present a new awesome holiday television program for every day of Advent. This is the greatest tv of the season. Enjoy.

Day 19: "The Office - Christmas Party"

Original air date - December 6th, 2005 

Opened Doors: One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten, Eleven, Twelve, Thirteen,  Fourteen, Fifteen, Sixteen, Seventeen, Eighteen

For SeedSing's Advent Calendar of great holiday TV shows, today I'm going to write about one of my all-time favorite episodes of the American version of "The Office". The episode is simply titled, "Christmas Party", and it takes place in what most everybody believes is their best season, the second.

The episode starts like most, with one on one interviews, and we can see that Dunder Mifflin is decorated for the season. They have a big tree, lots of wreaths, holly, all the things you'd expect when walking into any office during the holiday's. We get an early interview with Jim(John Krasinski), talking about how he finally got Pam(Jenna Fischer) for secret Santa. They have always done a secret Santa at Dunder Mifflin, and Jim, apparently, has never gotten his true love, Pam before. This was well before they were married and had kids and everything, so I think it was great for the writers to have this as one of the main stories in this episode. Later, while speaking with Jim, Michael Scott(Steve Carrell) reveals to him that he got his favorite person in the office, Ryan(BJ Novak), for secret Santa. He proclaims that he spent a lot of dough and went all out because he wanted this party to be extra special. Jim says he thought there was a 20 dollar limit, but we all know Michael to be a bit of a spender and a pest.

When all the workers gather around the tree to do secret Santa, that is when this episode goes from good to great. At first, all is well.  Oscar(Oscar Nunez) gets the shower radio he wanted from his secret Santa, Kelly(Mindy Kaling). Jim gets his gift from Creed(Creed Bratton), which is just one of his old shirts, because Creed is never prepared for anything. Oscar has a gift for Creed, but he doesn't know anything about him, assumes he is Irish, and gets him a four-leaved clover keychain. Then, it is Pam's turn, and she opens her gift, which is a teapot that she has pointed out to Jim many, many times. He not only remembers to get her this teapot, but he also stuffs it with some inside jokes and a note telling her how he truly feels about her. She is very happy, and Jim is pleased with the great job he has done. Then we get to Ryan. He opens his present, and it is a video iPod. For those of you that are even younger than me, back then, in the early to mid-2000's, a video iPod was a big deal, and pretty expensive. It is so expensive in fact, they say that it cost 400 dollars for Michael to buy it, because of course he left the price tag on. After all the initial shock, it is now Michael's turn to open his present from Phyllis(Phyllis Smith). He opens the paper to reveal a homemade oven mitt. It is a very thoughtful and very nice gift, and just what secret Santa should be all about, but Michael is unhappy. He is so upset that Phyllis did not spend a single penny on his gift. He throws his Santa hat off and madly storms into the hallway to let the camera crew knows how he feels about Phyllis' gift. After a minute or so, the other workers ask if they should just continue to open gifts, and Dwight(Rainn Wilson), says no one does anything until Michael says so.

Michael comes back after about 5 minutes and declares that they are going to play a game called "Yankee Swap". The game consists of people deciding if they want to steal a present, open a new present or just keep what they have. We all know this game. Others call it "White Elephant" or "Nasty Christmas". The game is brutal, and shows people's true feelings. This is exactly what Michael wants, because it means everyone will want the iPod he bought. The game starts, and of course the iPod is the hot item. Everyone is trading for it, even Pam. When Pam takes it the first time, Jim is noticeably upset, but Pam says to him, "I mean, it's an iPod". Brutal and to the point. After awhile, Phyllis leaves the room after Michael bad mouths her gift and convinces Meredith(Kate Flannery) to take it. Michel tries to "explain" reverse psychology to the audience before this happens, and it is hilarious. Go watch it now. After Phyllis leaves, Michael asks what is wrong with her, and the rest of the workers tell him it is because he bought a very expensive gift, then bad mouthed all the other gifts.

Michael feels bad, and tries to make up for his mistake, but he makes it worse by telling everyone that he got a big bonus for firing someone, and this just makes everyone even madder. They all leave the circle around the tree, and Michael is despondent. Michael leaves to go get alcohol for the party because he thinks this will make everything better.

While he is at the liquor store, we get shots of everyone trying to get the gifts they truly want. Everyone wants the iPod, but Pam has it, and she loves it. She is smitten. Jim is trying everything he can to get the teapot back, Dwight has it now, but he just cannot convince him. Dwight claims he will use it for sinus infections, and that makes Jim even more upset. At one point, we see Dwight looking through the teapot, and he fins all the inside jokes. Pam sees this from a distance, and she starts to realize that Jim went through a whole lot to get this gift specifically for her.

Michael returns, with 15 bottles of vodka, and now the Christmas party truly begins. They aren't supposed to have alcohol, but no one truly cares, as I expect most real life offices would do the same. The vodka does help. People start to have fun, no one is mad at Michael anymore. At one point, Michael proclaims that Ryan is the "king of the party planning committee", because he found some shot glasses. Even Todd Packer(David Koechner) shows up, with mistletoe on his groin. During the party, Jim walks over to Pam, who looks like she is working, to tell her she doesn't have to answer phones at a party, but we come to realize that she has traded gifts with Dwight. Jim is thrilled and tells her that there is more to the gift than just the tea pot. He and Pam talk about all the inside jokes in the tea pot, but Jim slyly takes the note away and puts it in his pocket before Pam can get to it. We even get to meet Phyllis' boyfriend for the first time, Bob Vance, and his interaction with 3 of the workers is great. After the party they all decide that they are going to go to a bar for an after party, and they even invite Michael, who never gets invited to anything. Before they leave though, Meredith approaches Michael and takes off her shirt. Michael does not reciprocate the feelings, but it is pretty funny. I put this part in because it is the first true time we see how drunk Meredith acts. This becomes a running gag throughout the show.

This particular episode of "The Office" is great. They always brought their A game to the holiday episodes, but this was the first, and, in my opinion, the best. It is a classic.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He did not have any drinks at the SeedSing holiday party, but he did clean his sinuses with a teapot. Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

SeedSing's Advent Calendar of Awesome Holiday Television Programs: Day 18 - "A Very Murray Christmas"

The pre-Christmas Day season of Advent is upon us. Here at SeedSing we love the chocolaty goodness of getting a piece of candy once a day until we get to open our presents. As our gift to you we will present a new awesome holiday television program for every day of Advent. This is the greatest tv of the season. Enjoy.

Day 18: "A Very Murray Christmas"

Original air date - December 4th, 2015 

Opened Doors: One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten, Eleven, Twelve, Thirteen,  Fourteen, Fifteen, Sixteen, Seventeen

The Holiday season can be very lonely for some. In today's economy, many people will find themselves away from family and friends around Christmas. Even worse, some of us will be trying to get home, but the unpredictable December weather will bring some cataclysmic storm that will strand us where we stand. Sometimes the best thing to do when we are alone on Christmas is to find the nearest bar, and drink with your temporary holiday family.

Netflix got into the musical holiday Christmas special business with their 2015 release of A Very Murray Christmas. The one-hour special, directed by Sofia Coppola, featured internet sensation Bill Murray in his own modern holiday extravaganza. There was music, drama, and guest stars galore. The entire ordeal was a call back to the Christmas specials of the 50's and 60's, but A Very Murray Christmas incorporated the cynicism of star player Mr. Bill Murray.

The tale is a simple one. Bill is waiting, with his piano playing buddy Paul Shaffer, to start filming a star-studded musical Christmas special. The problem is that New York City is being pounded by a terrible blizzard. Bill is not optimistic about his special going off.  His producers are typical smarmy Hollywood people and urge him all will be well. How could all be right, the guest stars are nowhere to be seen? There is no George Clooney, or Pope Francis, or Angelina Jolie, the snow has kept them all away. Even if Mr. Murray wants to flee, the show must go on. Thank goodness Chris Rock gets stuck in New York. Bill has one, uncooperative, guest star to sing with. Then the power goes out. Special canceled, everyone is allowed to let it all go.

Poor Bill is still stuck in New York. With trusted Paul Shaeffer by his side, Mr. Murray decides to celebrate Christmas in the hotel bar drinking with the staff. He encounters a poor almost married couple (Rashida Jones and Jason Schartzman) who ended up in a fight because the weather ruined their picture perfect New York Christmas wedding. Being the lover of weddings that Bill Murray is, he tries to make it right. He sings with the kitchen staff (Phoenix), he orders drinks, he brings people together. Once Christmas eve becomes Christmas day, Mr. Bill Murray has had too much joy, and drink, and he proceeds to pass out.

In his dreamlike drunken sleep, Bill lives his grand Christmas special. George Clooney and Miley Cyrus join him for song, dance, and general holiday frivolity. The entire event is what makes the holidays magical. Bill Murray did it, he imagined the greatest 21st-century-holiday tv special ever. It makes the fact that he wakes up with just Paul Shaffer, and his piano, to keep Mr. Murray company for Christmas day a worthy reward.

We are never alone, especially on Christmas day. The weather may trap us, or jobs may be our late December prison, but we will always find people to be festive with. So many people think they will find themselves alone on Christmas Day, but they will always find each other. Barring their company, we will always have the spirits of the holidays. The ghosts of bourbon, vodka, gin, tequila, and rum will let us experience the joy of the season. They may even help us imagine George Clooney and Miley Cyrus. That is a true Christmas miracle.

RD

RD Kulik is the Head Editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He has spent many times alone around Christmas Day. If only he had Phoenix there to help him out. 

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

SeedSing's Advent Calendar of Awesome Television Programs: Day 17 - "A Very Sunny Christmas"

The pre-Christmas Day season of Advent is upon us. Here at SeedSing we love the chocolaty goodness of getting a piece of candy once a day until we get to open our presents. As our gift to you we will present a new awesome holiday television program for every day of Advent. This is the greatest tv of the season. Enjoy.

Day 17: "A Very Sunny Christmas"

Original air date - December 16th, 2010, released on DVD and Blu-ray November 17th, 2009 

Opened Doors: One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten, Eleven, Twelve, Thirteen,  Fourteen, Fifteen, Sixteen

The memories of our childhood Christmases tend to be filled with joy and excitement. Of course we do have a few friends who hated Christmas because their parents were not into the holiday spirit, but most of us have great memories. We got awesome toys, people came over to visit, and the day ended with some fun activities. As we get older, we start to learn all the things our parents did to make these great, or unpleasant, holiday memories. Sometimes these truths from our Christmas past will ruin our Christmas present, and make Christmas yet to come look even worse. Sometimes we are only left with a simple activity to take our minds off of the ugly lie that is Christmas.

In November of 2009, the long-running FX comedy It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia released an extra long episode on DVD and Blu-ray titled A Very Sunny Christmas. The episode had some harsher than normal language, and some animated nudity. FX was not ready to air the very special episode of the Always Sunny gang. With a few edits for television, A Very Sunny Christmas made it's television debut on December 16th, 2010 as the sixth season finale.

The supersized holiday special has Mac and Charlie excited for Christmas, but Dee and Dennis are not feeling the joy. Mac and Charlie love Christmas because as kids their parents made the holidays awesome. Dee and Dennis hate Christmas because their dad Frank used the joyous day to promise his kids great gifts and just end up faking them out with empty packages. 

This year Frank goes too far. He buys Dennis dream car, a Lamborghini Countach, and Franks intends to keep it for himself. He also carries around a designer bag, Dee's dream gift, and fills the bag with cheese snacks and chocolate. The Reynold's kids have been pushed to the breaking point and decide to pull a Christmas Carol scheme on Frank to make him change. 

Meanwhile, Mac and Charlie are getting more excited for Christmas. On a visit to Mac's home, the two lifelong friends find a videotape of a young Mac at Christmas. Here we learn that Mac's criminal father used to take his family from house to house on Christmas morning to steal other families presents. It was presented to Mac as a South Philly tradition where you would go to other people's houses and take their presents while they went to your house and got presents for themselves. Once Charlie helps Mac see the truth, their Christmas spirit starts to dim. They decide to head over to see Charlie's mom, she is always filled with holiday joy.

At Charlie's house, Mac learns about the Christmases of the past in the Kelly household. Every year a Santa. or elf, would come to the door. The gentleman would give little Charlie a present, then head upstairs with mom Kelly. Many Santas, and elves, would come to the Kelly house on Christmas day. Being confronted with the fact that his beloved mother is an actual prostitue starts to completely break Charlie's fragile mind.

The Christmas Carol scheme of Dennis and Dee does not go well. Frank's old business partner Eugene, a man that Frank swindled millions of dollars from, is a born again Christian who just wants to talk about Jesus. Their attempt to show Frank how much people hate him just ends with the nude elder Reynolds bursting from a couch he demanded to be sown into. Their attempt to show him a future gravesite also fails spectacularly. The lesson of Christmas was not appearing before the Scrooge-like Frank.

With their terrible realizations, Mac and Charlie are still trying to make Christmas merry. On a trip to a mall to buy an old friend a new shirt, and a cool toy, poor Charlie spots the mall Santa and starts to approach the jolly fellow. Once on Santa's lap Charlie has one question, did Santa visit his mom (the real dialogue was too hot for FX, hence the early DVD release). With Santa quite confused, Charlie lunges at the man and red and starts to bite old St Nick's ear off. The scene ends with a little girl in hysterics.

The whole gang gets back together on Christmas Eve night and decide that the whole Christmas thing is garbage. They vow to forget their troubles by getting drunk and forgetting about all the awfulness. While they poor the first few drinks, Charlie receives a phone call and tells everyone that Frank died in a car accident.

Once the gang reaches the hospital, they see Frank very alive. He was in an accident, but just hurt his leg. He tells the crew that he had a vision, one that looks a lot like the Rudolph animated special. Through the vision he wants to be a better man. The gang doesn't buy it and heads back to the bar. The truth is that Frank does want to be better and has decorated the whole bar, with his old partner Eugene, for the holidays. Frank is giving Dennis the Lamborghini, Dee gets the designer bag, Mac and Charlie get the new hot toy, everyone is about to have a great Christmas.

Then Eugene enacts his own fake out and pulls a gun on the crew. He demands all the gifts and blows everyone down with an industrial snow machine. Christmas sucks once again. The only thing that everyone can do to make this Christmas worthwhile is to throw rocks at trains. Why wouldn't you throw rocks at trains?

The idea of a perfect Christmas is a myth. The truth of how people pull off a Christmas miracle is filled with some dark actions. Most people do not have criminal fathers, or prostitutes for mothers, but we all have parents who have gone to extremes to make the holidays memorable. When confronted with the truth, we have a choice to make. We can try to make the holidays joyous in our own way, or we can bite Santa's ear off. No matter what we choose, the day should definately end with anice group activity.

RD

RD Kulik is the Head Editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He one time had an Omni Bot. That thing was the stuff.

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

SeedSing's Advent Calendar of Awesome Holiday Television Programs: Day 16 "The Boba Fett Cartoon Featured in the Star Wars Holiday Special"

The pre-Christmas Day season of Advent is upon us. Here at SeedSing we love the chocolaty goodness of getting a piece of candy once a day until we get to open our presents. As our gift to you we will present a new awesome holiday television program for every day of Advent. This is the greatest tv of the season. Enjoy.

Day 16: "The Boba Fett Cartoon Featured in the Star Wars Holiday Special"

Original air date - November 17th, 1978

Opened Doors: One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten, Eleven, Twelve, Thirteen,  Fourteen, Fifteen

Sometimes the thing we really want for Christmas turns out to not be that great. Maybe there was a big video game we were wishing for, and it was underwhelming. A new cool drone that crashes and breaks within ten minutes. A hoverboard that sets fire to your feet. Many times we have our heart set on something, and our anticipation is rewarded with shoddy craftsmanship. As we dig through the garbage that once was our wanted presents, we sometimes find something unexpected and spectacular.

It is well known that the Star Wars Holiday Special is an epic piece of trash. Premiering on November 17th, 1978, less than two years after the release of the original film, the holiday special was immediately greeting with disgust and disdain. George Lucas himself has wished for the destruction of every copy of the cash grab be destroyed. The story was idiotic, the guest stars were questionable, and the Tree of Life song was a special kind of stupid. The special only aired once, and has never been given a VHS, Betamax, DVD, or BluRay release. For almost two hours, the world was inflicted in holiday blues from a galaxy far far and away. It was mostly a major disappointment, except for a 10-minute cartoon smack dab in the middle.

"The Faithful Wookie" was a small animated feature that split apart the mind numbing stupidness of the Star Wars Holiday Spectacular. The animated short is most famous for introducing the bounty hunter Boba Fett into the Star Wars cannon. It is considered so influential that the 2011 BluRay release of The Empire Strikes Back has the cartoon remastered in high definition as an easter egg.

The adventure itself centers around Luke trying to rescue Han and Chewie from some McGuffin, and Boba Fett appearing as a helpful ally. The 1978 audience had never seen this character before and did not know what the armored man's motivations were. Unfortunately, we learn that Boba Fett is in contact with Darth Vader, and the bounty hunter is trying to set a trap for Han, Chewie, and Luke. The ever resourceful R2D2 catches Fett, and our new enemy uses his jet pack to escape, promising that they will all meet again. 

The ten-minute cartoon shows why Boba Fett has become one of the most popular figures in the Star Wars hall of heroes and villains. His armor is awesome. He uses the things on his wrist, and his jetpack. "The Faithful Wookie" features more dialogue from Boba Fett than what will come in the next two films. The adventure from our heroes is basic stuff, but the premier of this incredible new resident of a galaxy far far away was the only gift worth keeping from the Star Wars Holiday Special.

It is disappointing to get the new great thing and then learn it is a poorly constructed cash grab by some focus group driven idiots in a corporate office. The whole ordeal leaves a scar on what was once a favorite piece of pop culture. But, sometimes if we dig through the trash, we will find a gem. Sometimes that gem even comes in the mail with a rocket that shoots off of its back. If you find that gem, hold onto it, it is worth an obscene amount of money.

RD

RD Kulik is the Head Editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. He was inspired to write this because he just got done seeing Rouge One. He is now hoping to get his very own Death Star engineer figurine in the mail any day now

SeedSing is funded by a group of awesome people. Join them by donating to SeedSing.

SeedSing's Advent Calendar of Awesome Holiday Television Programs: Day 15 - "Futurama: Xmas Story"

The pre-Christmas Day season of Advent is upon us. Here at SeedSing we love the chocolaty goodness of getting a piece of candy once a day until we get to open our presents. As our gift to you we will present a new awesome holiday television program for every day of Advent. This is the greatest tv of the season. Enjoy.

Day 15: "Futurama - Xmas Story"

Original air date - December 19th, 1999

Opened Doors: One, Two, Three, Four, Five, Six, Seven, Eight, Nine, Ten, Eleven, Twelve, Thirteen, Fourteen

Christmas has changed a lot over the course of human history. Many Christians associate December 25th with the birth of Jesus. The earliest Christmas celebrations were usually pagan affairs. Many people associate the December 25th as the shortest day of the year, so a big celebration takes place to get everyone in a good mood. Today we look at Christmas as a time for gift giving and togetherness. What will Christmas look like a thousand years from now?

The Fox animated show Futurama imagined how a lot of the world would be like in the year 3000. Our hero Fry is from the 20th century, so things are very foreign to him in this advanced world. In the second season episode "Xmas Story", one of the things he gets homesick, or timesick, for is celebrating Christmas. Thankful the Planet Express crew, and most of humanity still celebrate the timeless holiday of Xmas, there are just a few things different. Pine trees are long extinct, so your traditional Xmas tree is one of the palm variety. There is still gift giving, but not necessarily from Santa. Santa is quite different in the 30th century.

In the distant future, society decided to make Santa real by building a robot that would deliver toys to the nice, and punish the naughty. Due to a programming error, being naughty was very easy to achieve. The majority of the planet was naughty, and every December 25th Santa delivered his punishment. That punishment came from the end of a few high powered guns. The new Xmas tradition Fry must learn is to barricade himself from Santa's carnage.

Not really knowing the severity of the tradition, Fry gets caught outside when Santa's reign of terror begins. He is trying to recapture Lela's present, a parrot, and Santa comes to deliver his Xmas purge. Bender is a big fan of the murderbot, but everyone else is fleeing for their lives. In the end, Santa has all the naughty Planet Express employees in his sights. All are naughty, except Dr. Zoidberg, he made Santa's good list. Fry's first new Xmas was about to end until Santa is tricked back into the chimney. Following a big explosion, the large built not so jolly robot is sent into the upper atmosphere. No more Santa until next year. The crew rejoices by singing the classic carol "Santa Claus is Gunning You Down" New holiday memories for Fry and his friends.

We get attached to the traditions of our favorite holidays, but time moves on. As kids we all bought into the idea of a jolly St Nick delivering toys. As we get older most of us accept the fact that the magic was largely an illusion. In the far future we will have the technology to make our fairy tale traditions come to life. The question is, will these new creations honor our dreams, or will they thirst for our blood. Happy Xmas anyways.

RD

RD Kulik is the Head Editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. Next to Bender, he really wants to hang out with Tiny TimBot's creator. That person has some creativity.

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The Problem With "Any Given Wednesday" was the Not Ready for Prime time Host

Once again, Simmons is better heard. Let it go

Bill Simmons, who I am a big, big fan of, I need to say that before I continue, has been speaking publicly lately about his show, "Any Given Wednesday" being canceled. He has been making many, many excuses for why this show just didn't work out. I wrote 2 separate pieces, one saying the show was okay, but the second talking about how it looked like it was going to be canceled. After about 3 episodes, I started to see what others were saying about the show. Simmons' takes were stale, he was not a good host, the interviews went on far too long, his schtick wasn't good for television, that we had seen him already not do great on TV when he did ESPN's pre-game basketball show, everything they said, and as I wrote earlier this week, I do not like critics, but this was one of the few times they were right. His show just did not work out, and that should have been fine. Yeah, they canceled his show, and to have that aired in public has to be a bit embarrassing, but he is a world renowned podcaster, a great sports writer and seems to know how to run a website.

But, his comments lately have left a sour taste in my mouth. He has blamed everyone but the one person who deserves the most blame, himself. He has called out the producers of the show for giving him a bad day of the week to put out a show. He claims that his takes were stale by Wednesday, and he was already behind the eight ball when compared to shows like "PTI", or stuff on Fox Sports 1. He has said he wished HBO made it a monthly instead of a weekly show. I think that is a terrible, terrible idea. Who wants to watch one show a month about sports. I love, love, love sports, but if he is complaining about having stale takes because his show is on a Wednesday, imagine how bad and old they would be on a monthly basis. All the takes he would have given had his show been monthly would have been talked about a million times over before he released the episodes. And who only does one show a month? That is just a dumb idea.

He has also blamed the viewers for not watching his show enough. Well, when the show is not that good, why would you expect viewers to continue to tune in? The only thing that he had on his show that was even close to being remotely viral was Ben Affleck's drunken take on deflategate, and that was incredibly uncomfortable to watch. Other than that, he had boring interviews with people like Aaron Rodgers, Seth Rogen, Ricky Williams, Jonah Hill, Bill Hader, basically everyone that he had on the show was not that good, except for Vince Staples. I actually want Staples to get his own show, because I think that would work out very, very well. He was funny and comfortable on screen. But, juxtapose that to how uncomfortable Simmons looked and it made for bad television.

To blame the company that gave you a humongous contract after the whole ESPN thing, that is childish, and you seem to be poking the bear. Don't publicly call out HBO because they will bury you. It is not their fault that your television show did not work, it was your fault Bill Simmons. You can also still do other things for HBO, so I say again, stop complaining about them in public.

Simmons can do something like "30 For 30" for HBO, and make it even better. HBO has to have more money than ESPN, and I'm pretty sure that HBO has more viewers than ESPN. I watch HBO a whole hell of a lot more than I watch ESPN. I'd love to see you do sports documentaries for HBO. I think that would be awesome. You could make real documentaries too, that don't need commercials for funding, or anything like that. That is where you should put your focus instead of complaining about how everyone but you ruined your show.

All this brings me to my main point for today. You and you alone Bill Simmons were the reason that "Any Given Wednesday" did not work. You just do not seem to have what it takes to be a host of a TV show, and that is okay. But, this blaming of everyone else is childish and immature. Take the blame. You have so many other money making ventures, just bite the bullet on your show being canceled, and let it go. I love your podcast, but I'm getting annoyed that you have to bring up all the reasons that don't involve you being a bad host as to why your show was canceled. The most simple explanation is usually the right one, and the simplest reason is that you were bad on TV.

I almost feel like you are doing this just to have some kind of "hot take". That should embarrass someone of your caliber because you should be above the "hot take". "Hot takes" are for someone like me, a blogger for a small, but up and coming website.

"Any Given Wednesday" was a bad show and it was because of you Bill Simmons. It was nobody's fault but your own, and until you own up to that, people are going to continue to call you out, no matter how much you complain in public. I'll still listen and read your stuff because I like your podcast and your writing, but some people just aren't made for TV, and you are, unfortunately for you, one of those people.

Ty

Ty is the Pop Culture editor for SeedSing and the other host of the X Millennial Man Podcast. Here is old sports takes on the X Millennial Man mini episodes. Follow Ty on instagram and twitter.

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