Paramount+ LAUNCH FAIL (Fixed) – Automatic Update For CBS All Access Existing Customers Didn’t Allow Roku TV Activation Codes

March 4, 2021March 4, 2021 ~ Todd Russell ~ Leave a comment

It’s launch day for Paramount+ and while we’d love to tell existing CBS All Access subscribers that it’s a smooth transition, well, that was not the case.

As with too many things today, new customers are treated better than existing customers (see: Poor Technical Execution: Paramount+ LIMITED TIME OFFER 50% Discount for CBS All Access Customers).

When you visit Roku Smart TV channel lineup, the CBS All Access icon is gone and you must now sign in anew. The problem is the login points to CBS.com not paramountplus.com. So the activation codes for the TV don’t work.

This sent us back to the computer where our paramountplus.com account was functional.

We can sign into our paramountplus.com account and see the new paramount+ content there (Spongebob: Sponge on the Run, namely), but when we try to activate this perfectly working account on Roku it tells us to go to cbs.com and activate. When we go there, it doesn’t recognize the paramountplus.com account email.

Confused? Of course you are! So are we. CBS had months to get this figured out — work out how the transition process would work and it is one hot tech mess. I’m a tech-savvy customer and having problems, that means people who aren’t are going to be lighting up their 1-800 customer support line wanting to get their “automatically updated” CBS All Access now Paramount+ account working on their Roku-powered smart TVs — and not able to.

Looks like an app update will be coming soon.

Oh, and our Paramount+ login that works fine on the computer doesn’t work at all on the Roku. My guess is that it’s looking for a Roku account setup for Paramount+ and not an account that was activated through the computer. But, like I said above, everything points to cbs.com which seems to not have migrated the pre-launch existing paramountplus accounts. They didn’t even recognize our email as having an account. When I signed up with the same email address as our paramount+ account — it created a brand new FREE account. Sigh.

Guess for the time being if we want to watch anything from Paramount+ it will have to be on the computer?! Maybe I can get it to work on the phone and cast it to TV that way … a workaround, yes, but at least providing some way to watch Paramount+ on our TV.

HEY, THEY FIXED IT!

Tried again an hour later — after writing this post and tweeting my initial frustration (see here) — and the Roku smart TV app now properly points to paramountplus.com. We were finally able to make it all work. Those of you who don’t wake up first thing in the morning for these things will have missed the excitement.

This is the pain of being on the bleeding edge of anything. Kudos to the Paramount+ engineers that quickly noticed the problem and/or saw existing early riser customers were having these issues and fixed it! Thank you.

Off to check out what’s new …

More Details on Paramount+ ad-supported tier: $1/month less than CBS All Access, but no local CBS channels

February 28, 2021February 27, 2021 ~ Todd Russell ~ Leave a comment

We already fought our way through to a full year subscription at 50% off of Paramount+ (see: Poor Technical Execution: Paramount+ LIMITED TIME OFFER 50% Discount for CBS All Access Customers), but as the March launch date draws nearer, we’re learning even more about what the rebranded, expanded service is going to look like — and if you like live TV, the less expensive ad-supported monthly plan might not be as appealing.

The base, ad-supported tier of Paramount Plus, launching in June, will cost $4.99 per month — a dollar less than the current entry-level CBS All Access package with commercials. The full Paramount Plus premium tier with no ads (except in live programming) will be the same, at $9.99 per month. There’s an important caveat, though: The $5 monthly plan for Paramount Plus, while it will include live sports including NFL games, will exclude local CBS stations.
Paramount Plus: What’s Streaming, Pricing Plans, How to Get It – Variety

For those who don’t care about the local channels, and if you have access to locast.org in your area or have your own antenna setup to get them free, you can enjoy there instead and save the buck a month.

Will you be signing up and checking out Paramount+ at launch, or waiting to see what sort of new content it provides that you can’t get elsewhere?

U.S Households Signed up for 9 Million Total New Streaming Subscriptions in Q3 2020 vs. 2 Million in 2019

November 26, 2020November 25, 2020 ~ Todd Russell ~ Leave a comment

Streaming has benefited in 2020 from the pandemic, with three streaming services performing especially well with new subscribers over the third quarter 2020: HBO Max, Hulu and CBS All Access. Hulu more from their live TV subscription offering as more people ditch cable and satellite for streaming live TV.

Americans are streaming more video than ever before amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The average U.S. household now subscribes to 2.5 streaming services versus 2.1 a year ago, according to an estimate from analysts at UBS. Americans signed up for 9 million total new subscriptions last quarter, way up from the 2 million subscriptions added in the third quarter last year.
These 3 Streaming Services Crushed It Last Quarter

In 2020, I’ve been most impressed with Hulu. I didn’t really watch it that much before this year, but felt like I was missing something good. The Mandalorian aside, Disney+ has been underwhelming by comparison to Hulu, at least for what I want to watch.

We’re renewing Disney+ for another year, but it’s still mostly a play for our grandchildren, it’s not something we will watch very often. Again, except for The Mandalorian which is about to air episode #5 of 8. That’s three more to go and then another drought of new content until Pixar’s Soul drops on Christmas (see: Disney Diss? Rips Soul From Theaters To Be Disney+ Exclusive) and additional intended for theaters show up on Disney+.

Am also surprised to see CBS All Access on this list. They have a very small library of movies, but do have some good, mostly classic TV shows to watch. They are pretty much the only game in town to stream season four of the classic Twilight Zone. The one with the hour long episodes. They have the other four seasons also and Jordan Peele’s most recent version of The Twilight Zone.

Any big streaming channel surprises above for you?

WHAT TO WATCH THIS WEEKEND #38 of 2020 Movie and TV Streaming Picks – Netflix, HBO Max, Hulu, CBS All Access, Shudder

September 17, 2020September 16, 2020 ~ Todd Russell ~ Leave a comment

Weekend #38 of 53 (9/18 – 9/20/2020) for 2020 Picks By Streaming Service

Once again this week, Netflix with their massive back stock of movies and TV shows already produced pre-pandemic is the focal point of what’s new on streaming.

Starting to make us wonder when they’re going to run out (we hope they don’t!), but it seems no other streaming channel has the ramp up and head start with originally produced content that Netflix has. Maybe in 2021 and beyond there will be more and better competition, but Netflix is at the top of the heap, somewhat easily, we are reminded week in and week out.

This week a featured movie starring Tom Holland and Robert Pattinson in The Devil All The Time and the TV series Jurassic World: Camp Crustaceous. Shudder also has an original, Spiral, that looks worth checking out.

As far as other TV, Netflix is also premiering Ratched, a series based on the popular nurse character from Ken Kesey’s One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest. HBO continues their weekly new movie on their platform with a good one, The Invisible Man (2020) from Blumhouse earlier this year. Although there hasn’t been a lot of competition that is currently our #1 favorite film watched in theaters in 2020.

KEY

*Title with asterisk – newly released
Title is linked and has star rating – already watched, rated and reviewed
Title bolded – on our schedule to watch/rewatch, rate and review (or in progress)

NOTE: If you’re coming to these posts weeks or months later, some and/or all of the picks listed below may no longer be on the streaming services indicated. Anything marked as “Original” typically doesn’t expire on the streaming services.

NETFLIX Movies

*The Devil All The Time
The Paramedic (Sept 16)
The Last Word (2017)

NETFLIX TV

*Jurassic World: Camp Crustaceous
*Ratched – Season 1 – 9 episodes
based on Nurse Ratchet from One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest by Ken Kesey
*Dragon’s Dogma – Season 1 – 7 episodes
Videogames, Anime
*Challenger: The Final Flight – 4 episodes
Docuseries

HBO Max Movies

*The Invisible Man ⭐️⭐️⭐️½ (2020)

Hulu TV

*Pen15 – Season 2 (10 episodes) – Original

CBS All Access TV

*Star Trek: Lower Decks (Sept 17) – Season 1, Episode 7: “Much Ado About Boimler”
TV-PG, Animated

Shudder Movies

*Spiral – Original

ViacomCBS announces new plus-sized name for expanded CBS All Access: Paramount+

September 15, 2020September 15, 2020 ~ Todd Russell ~ 2 Comments

As if Disney+ and AppleTV+ weren’t inspired names enough for the plus symbol, as if a name change was really necessary, ViacomCBS is dropping the name CBS All Access in favor of something new.

Here’s the press release intro.

Sept. 15, 2020 – ViacomCBS (NASDAQ: VIAC, VIACA) today unveiled “Paramount+” as the brand name for the company’s upcoming global streaming service, building on a legacy of innovation and superior storytelling that distinguishes one of the most iconic brands in Hollywood. The company’s transformed subscription video on-demand and live streaming service, CBS All Access, will be rebranded as Paramount+ in early 2021 as part of the service’s expansion to feature content from ViacomCBS’ leading portfolio of broadcast, news, sports and entertainment brands.
ViacomCBS Press Express | VIACOMCBS UNVEILS BRAND FOR UPCOMING GLOBAL STREAMING SERVICE: PARAMOUNT+

Processing. Not sure what to think of the new name. CBS and Paramount are both strong names, but which one is more recognizable? I’m going with CBS. So, CBS All Access sounded pretty good to me. Paramount+ is a one-liner so it will make headlines about it more compact, but not sure it’s a better name.

Is it a worse name? Not really. I mean, it’s miles better than Quibi, easily the worst streaming channel name to come along in awhile. Somebody was drinking some severe tech Kool-Aid when they put that name on the blackboard.

I’ve never been much of a fan for brand name changes. Customers get used to brands and names and changing them is risky business. Did Comcast really get cooler when they became Xfinity? No. Will the name change matter here? I don’t know. Am sure they felt like if they just added a bunch of expanded content to CBS All Access it wouldn’t get as much media attention as also changing the name. Not the case for us here, as we report on any significant new changes on content regardless if the the streaming channel name changes or not, but ViacomCBS isn’t thinking about tiny little us. They’re wanting the ability to blast out multiple press releases. First, they get one for the name change, another when they pick the launch date, another when they launch — see how the game is plaed.

They’re telegraphing the name change six months or so in advance, maybe three months, if “early 2021” translates to January 2021. My guess is “early 2021” means first quarter to early second quarter, so this launch could be anywhere from January – May, 2021. If they’ve settled on a name, you’d think a launch date might be close behind.

What do you think of the name, friendly readers? Does it make any difference to you what a streaming service is called? If they have the content, we’re there, right? Without it a name is just a name.

AppleTV+ isn’t better because they have the “+” at the end. Neither is Disney. Peacock stayed out of it and just called themselves Peacock. HBO wanted to be cooler than a plus, so added the word “max” to the end. Or maybe they decapitated the Cine-“max”. Har har.

WHAT TO WATCH THIS WEEKEND #37 of 2020 Movie and TV Streaming Picks – Netflix, HBO Max, Hulu, CBS All Access, Shudder, Peacock

September 10, 2020September 10, 2020 ~ Todd Russell ~ Leave a comment

Weekend #37 of 53 (9/11 – 9/13/2020) for 2020 Picks By Streaming Service

Our home movie theater is still not reopened. We still have that one Regal Cinema theater 30 miles south, and that’s been our go-to option for the movie theater experience. Everything else, still remains shuttered in our area, including at least one independent theater.

This means probably a lot of moviegoers in our area are either staying with streaming for their entertainment options or also making the trek 30 miles south to the lone Regal Cinema near Olympia, Washington that’s open. It hasn’t been very busy any of the times we’ve been there, so I think a lot of people are staying home and streaming.

Still close to the first of the month, there are a bunch of good streaming movies to check out and some new movies and TV shows as well.

Shudder is doing a 61 days of Halloween countdown in 2020. They normally do 31 days, but have expanded to 61, I guess because of the Thing That Should Not be Named. They have a movie I’ve been wanting to see that was previously VOD only and it’s a Shudder exclusive, Color Out Of Space starring Nicolas Cage. We need to get our horror on because it’s that witching season!

Peacock movies rotated in September 1st and their roster of originals are included in this weekend streaming post as well.

Next week or the week after, we’ll try to check out some of the free streaming channels (Roku, Tubi, IMDB, etc). There are way too many streaming choices available out there right now to choose from and keeping up with the ones we pay for is challenging.

Chances are really good if you want to see a movie released in the last 20 years, it’s available to stream somewhere. We like using the FREE services: Reelgood.com and JustWatch.com to see what movies are playing where. If you’re reading this post past the dates indicated in the title, then you might need to check those services to see where the movies and TV shows have moved onto.

KEY

NETFLIX Movies

*The Babysitter: Killer Queen – Original, directed by McG
*#Alive (2020)
Pets United (Sept 11)
Dad Wanted (Sept 11)
Midnight Special (2016)
Son of Adam (2018)

NETFLIX TV

Julie & The Phantoms
Greenleaf – Season 5

HBO Max Movies

*Unpregnant – Original
Coastal Elites

HBO Max TV

Detention Adventure – Season 1
Make It Big Make It Small – Season 1

Hulu TV

*Woke – Season 1 (8 episodes) – Original

CBS All Access TV

*Star Trek: Lower Decks (Aug 27) – Season 1, Episode 6: “Terminal Provocations”
TV-PG, Animated

Shudder Movies

BRAM STOKER’S DRACULA (Director: Francis Ford Coppola)
COLOR OUT OF SPACE – A SHUDDER EXCLUSIVE
COUNTESS DRACULA (Director: Peter Sasdy)
THE VAMPIRE LOVERS (Director: Roy Ward Baker)
VICTOR CROWLEY (Director: Adam Green)
LOST SOUL: THE DOOMED JOURNEY OF RICHARD STANLEY’S ISLAND OF DR. MOREAU (Director: David Gregory)
FADE TO BLACK (Director: Vernon Zimmerman)
SOUTHBOUND (Directors: Roxanne Benjamin, David Bruckner, Patrick Horvath, Radio Silence)

Shudder TV

NOS4A2 Season 2 (Sept 10)

Peacock Movies

*Black Boys (Sept 10) – Original
*The Sit-in: Harry Belafonte Hosts The Tonight Show (Sept 10) – Original (documentary)
Anthony (Sept 4) – Original

Movies rotated into PEACOCK service as of September 1, 2020

You Should Have Left
The Break-Up
Island of Lost Souls
Semi-Pro
Wanted
Catwoman
Vegas Vacation
The Mummy (1932 film)
3:10 to Yuma
National Lampoon’s Vacation
National Lampoon’s European Vacation
He’s Just Not That Into You
Transporter 3
Because I Said So
Hitch
Zombieland
Love Happens
Nurse Betty
Beetlejuice

In last week’s movie lists from streaming services (see: WHAT TO WATCH THIS WEEKEND #36 of 2020 Movie and TV Streaming Picks – Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, HBO Max, Hulu, CBS All Access) we didn’t include Peacock in the September movies rotating in list, so correcting that above.

WHAT TO WATCH THIS WEEKEND #36 of 2020 Movie and TV Streaming Picks – Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, HBO Max, Hulu, CBS All Access

September 6, 2020 ~ Todd Russell ~ 1 Comment

Weekend #36 of 53 (9/4 – 9/7/2020) for 2020 Picks By Streaming Service

Here we are again, armed with detailed listings of first of the month rotated movies. A holiday three day weekend as well. With too many folks still grounded by the Thing That Should Not Be Named, at least we have tons of movies for solace.

Yes, still a lot of movie theaters are not reopened, including our home theater (but we do have one Regal Cinema 30 miles south), but streaming remains a strong alternative. When we say there’s plenty to watch from the safety and comfort of home that’s not hyperbole, just reference this post.

The theaters really only have Tenet ⭐️⭐️⭐️½ as the big new film — and it’s been one that many have waited eagerly to see — and Mulan is the big VOD stream this weekend, testing the $30 price point. We saw a poll saying a pretty decent percentage of people will pay the VOD for Mulan. Did you? Let us know (spoiler-free, please) in the comments.

Again, the first of the month is an exciting time for that new paint smell at your favorite streaming service. The streaming services flood with rotated movies. Have lists of those below as well for the main streaming services (Netflix, Amazon, HBO Max, Hulu). Our favorite streaming categories are “recently added/what’s new” and “leaving soon” because they help us find what’s changed on the service, but these first of the month lists are handy.

The car is started, let’s roll.

KEY

NETFLIX Movies

*Love, Guaranteed
*I’m Thinking of Ending Things
*Freaks – You’re One Of Us

NETFLIX TV

Away – Season 1 (10 episodes)
Sci-fi, Hilary Swank, Original
Sister, Sister – Season 1-6
Borgen – Season 1-3
The Promised Neverland – Season 1

Movies rotated into NETFLIX on September 1

Adrift
Anaconda
Back to the Future
Back to the Future Part II
Back to the Future Part III
Barbershop
Barbie Princess Adventure
Bookmarks: Celebrating Black Voices — Netflix Family
The Boss Baby: Get That Baby! — Netflix Family
Children of the Sea
Coneheads
Felipe Esparza: Bad Decisions — Netflix Comedy Special
Glory
Grease
La Partita / The Match — Netflix Film
Magic Mike
The Muppets
Muppets Most Wanted
Not Another Teen Movie
Pineapple Express
Possession
The Producers (2005)
Puss in Boots
Red Dragon
Residue
Sex Drive
The Smurfs
Wildlife
Zathura

AMAZON PRIME VIDEO Movies

*Dino Dana The Movie
*Hell On The Border (2019)

AMAZON PRIME VIDEO TV

*The Boys – Season 2
A Chef’s Life – Season 1
Cedar Cove – Season 1
Codename: Kids Next Door – Season 1
George Gently – Season 1
Hero Elementary – Season 1
How to Become a SuperStar Student, 2nd Edition – Season 1
I’m Dying Up Here – Season 1
Keeping Faith – Season 1
Last Hope with Troy Dunn – Season 1
Nazi Mega Weapons – Season 1
Stuck With You – Season 1
Texas Metal – Season 1
The Blood Pact – Season 1
The Bureau – Season 1
The Celtic World – Season 1
The Crimson Field – Season 1
The Jack Benny Show – Season 1

Movies rotated into AMAZON PRIME VIDEO on September 1

1/1
1 Million Happy Nows
A Birder’s Guide To Everything
Abe & Phil’s Last Poker Game
Addicted To Fresno
Alex Cross
American Dragons
Bachelor Lions
Barney Thomson
Beach Party
Bewitched
Big Time
Bitter Melon
Bully
C.O.G.
Carrington
Casino Royale
Close Encounters Of The Third Kind
Dark Matter
De-Lovely
Defense Of The Realm
Die, Monster, Die!
Don’t Talk To Irene
Dr. Goldfoot And The Bikini Machine
Eaten By Lions
Employee Of The Month
Enemy Within
Extreme Justice
Face 2 Face
Gas-s-s-s
I’d Like To Be Alone Now
I’m Not Here
Kart Racer
Kramer Vs. Kramer
Lakeview Terrace
Lord Love A Duck
Man Of La Mancha
Microbe And Gasoline
Miss Nobody
Muscle Beach Party
Music Within
No Way To Live
Patriots Day
Rambo
Sex And The City: The Movie
Sex And The City 2
Slash
Slow Burn
Snapshots
Sunlight Jr.
The Bank Job
The Billion Dollar Hobo
The Birdcage
The Dunning Man
The Festival
The Go-Getters
The Graduate
The Hanoi Hilton
The Haunted Palace
The House On Carroll Street
The Last House On The Left
The Mechanic
The Ring Thing
The Video Dead
The Visitors
The Weight Of Water
The White Bus
The Woods
The Yes Men
To Keep The Light
The Turkey Bowl
Twice-Told Tales
Tyler Perry’s Daddy’s Little Girls
Warrior Road
Weather Girl
What Children Do
What If It Works?
Whoever Slew Auntie Roo?
Yongary: Monster From The Deep
Zoom

HBO Max Movies

*Spies In Disguise ⭐️⭐️

HBO Max TV

Raised By Wolves – Limited Series
Ridley Scott, first full episode by HBO Max on YouTube for FREE
*Lovecraft Country – Season 1, Episode 4: “Holy Ghost” (Sep 6)
*Infinity Train – Season 3, Episode 4
Animated, Episode Run Time: 11 minutes
Doctor Who: Season 12
Forensic Files II: Season 1
Impractical Jokers: Seasons 5-8
Lazor Wulf – Season 1
Mao Mao, Heroes of Pure Heart– Episodes 1-30
Moral Orel – Seasons 1-3
OK K.O.! Let’s Be Heroes – Seasons 1-3
Sealab 2021: Seasons 1-5
Squidbillies – Seasons 1-12
Superjail! – Seasons 1-4
Tigtone: Season 1
Tim and Eric Awesome Show, Great Job! – Seasons 1-5
Young Sheldon – Seasons 1-3

Movies rotated into HBO MAX on September 1

93Queen
All The Right Moves
The Astronaut Farmer
Badlands
Ballmastrz: 9009
Bandidas
Barnyard
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
Black Dynamite
Blood Diamond
The Bodyguard
The Brak Show
Butterfield 8
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof
Caveman
Charlotte’s Web
The Cider House Rules
City Of God
Clara’s Heart
Clerks
Cold Creek Manor
Congo
The Conversation
Cop Out
The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button
Date Movie (Unrated Version)
Dave
The Devil Inside
Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood
Dog Day Afternoon
Dolores Claiborne
Election
Fatal Attraction
Father of the Bride
Final Destination 5
Flight Of The Phoenix
Going the Distance
A Good Year
Grease
Harlem Nights
Harvey Birdman: Attorney at Law
Heartbreakers
A Hidden Life
Honeymoon in Vegas
Idlewild
Impractical Jokers: After Party
Impractical Jokers: The Movie
Infomercials
In Good Company
Jackson
JFK

Joe Pera Talks With You
Journey 2: The Mysterious Island
Joyful Noise
A Kiss Before Dying
The Lake House
Lassie Come Home
Lean on Me
Life with Father
Little
Little Women (1949)
Lost in Space
A Man Apart
Marathon Man
The Mexican
Miracle Workers: Season 1
Midnight Run
Miracle At St. Anna
Miss Congeniality
Miss Congeniality 2: Armed and Fabulous
Murder by Numbers
Netizens
Observe and Report
Off the Air
An Officer and a Gentleman
The Operative
The Outsiders
Over the Garden Wall
Over The Hedge
Point Break
Private Benjamin
Prometheus
PT 109
Red Riding Hood
The Replacements
Replicas
Reversal of Fortune
A Room With A View
See No Evil
Shrek Forever After
Sin Cielo
The Sitter (Unrated Version)
Snakes on a Plane
Son of the Mask
Star 80
Sunrise at Campobello
Tennessee Johnson
Three Kings
Too Beautiful: Our Right to Fight
Two Weeks Notice
V for Vendetta
Victoria and Abdul
The Wedding Singer
Wes Craven’s New Nightmare
When We Were Kings
Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
The Wind and the Lion,

Hulu Movies

*Madagascar: A Little Wild (Sep 7) – Original
Trolls World Tour ⭐️⭐️½

Streaming on Monday September 7, Labor Day, this Hulu Original

Hulu TV

Mike Tyson Mysteries – Complete Season 4

Movies rotated into HULU on September 1

50 First Dates
Absolute Power
Aeon Flux
American Dragons
An American Haunting
Any Given Sunday
Anywhere but Here
Back to School
Bad Girls from Mars
The Bank Job
Because I Said So
The Birdcage
Broken Lizard’s Club Dread
Call Me
Carrington
The Cold Light Of Day
Cool Blue
Criminal Law
The Day the Earth Stood Still
De-Lovely
Demolition Man
Desperate Hours
Deuces Wild
Employee of the Month
The End of Violence
Evil Dead II
Extreme Justice
The Festival
Hanoi Hilton
Harold & Kumar Escape from Guantanamo Bay
Harold & Kumar Go To White Castle
Hoosiers
The House on Carroll Street
I Feel Pretty
The Impossible
Invasion U.S.A.
Jessabelle
Julia
The Last Boy Scout
The Last House on the Left
The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane
Love Is All There Is
Mad Money
Man of La Mancha
The Mechanic
Mississippi Burning
Mr. North
Music Within
Not Another Teen Movie
Notorious
The Omen
Outbreak

Pee-wee’s Big Adventure
Pieces of April
Practical Magic
Rambo
Reasonable Doubt
Religulous
Slow Burn
Some Kind of Wonderful
Stargate
The Terminator
Things You Can Tell Just By Looking At Her
This World, Then the Fireworks
Top Gun
Trolls World Tour
Turkey Bowl
Twilight
The Twilight Saga: New Moon
The Twilight Saga: Eclipse
The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 1
The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2
Tyler Perry’s Daddy’s Little Girls
The Weight of Water
Wanted
The Woods

CBS All Access TV

*Star Trek: Lower Decks (Aug 27) – Season 1, Episode 5: “Cupid’s Errant Arrow”
TV-PG, Animated

WHAT TO WATCH THIS WEEKEND #35 of 2020 Movie and TV Streaming Picks – Netflix, CBS All Access, HBO Max, Hulu

August 27, 2020 ~ Todd Russell ~ Leave a comment

Weekend #35 of 53 (8/28 – 8/30/2020) for 2020 Picks By Streaming Service

As more movie theaters continue to reopen around the United States and, just to present all sides, some educated and uneducated people are saying: “don’t go to the theaters, it’s unsafe!” you, friendly readers, must decide for yourself whether to wait or head back to theaters. Whatever you decide, it’s all good 🙂

If you don’t go out, or even if you do, there are still plenty of streaming options available to check out from the safety and comfort of your home.

Hopefully, we give you a couple possible ideas below.

Movies

VOD/PVOD – Bill & Ted Face The Music ($24.99 at Google Play, Vudu and others)
Netflix – Unknown Origins (8/28)
Hulu – The Binge (8/28)

Netflix – Cobra Kai – Season 1 & 2

KEY

NETFLIX Movies

*1BR (2019)
*Santana (2020)
*Unknown Origins
*Blaze (August 30)
*All Together Now

NETFLIX TV

*Cobra Kai – Season 1 & 2
Karate Kid TV series
*I Am A Killer – Season 1
True Crime, Reality – Original

CBS All Access TV

*Star Trek: Lower Decks (Aug 27) – Season 1, Episode 4: “Moist Vessel”
TV-PG, Animated

HBO Max Movies

*The Way Back ⭐️⭐️⭐️

HBO Max TV

*Lovecraft Country – Season 1, Episode 3: “Holy Ghost” (Aug 29)
*Infinity Train – Season 3, Episode 3
Animated, Episode Run Time: 11 minutes

Hulu Movies

*The Binge (August 28) – Original

WHAT TO WATCH THIS WEEKEND #34 of 2020 Movie and TV Streaming Picks – Netflix, CBS All Access, DC Universe, HBO Max

August 21, 2020 ~ Todd Russell ~ Leave a comment

Weekend #34 of 53 (8/21 – 8/16/2020) for 2020 Picks By Streaming Service

If movie theaters aren’t reopened in your area, or not in your entertainment plans for the coming weekend, it’s all good, plenty of options streaming at home and below we’ve got our eyes on that movie and TV scene.

Movies

Netflix – The Sleepover (8/21)
DC Universe – Justice League Dark: Apokolips War (8/21)

High Score – Netflix (6 episodes) – While writing this post, am already digging deep into this docuseries on the history of videogaming. Episode run times are approximately 40 minutes each.

KEY

NETFLIX Movies

*The Sleepover (2020)
*Good Kisser (2019)

NETFLIX TV

*Hoops – Season 1 (10 episodes binge watch release: August 21)
Animated, Sit-Com, Adult – Original
*Lucifer – Season 5 (Aug 21)
*Biohackers – Season 1 (6 episodes binge watch release: August 20)
*High Score
Video games, Docuseries – 6 episodes
*John Was Trying To Contact Aliens
Documentary – Original
*Great Pretender – Season 1 (binge watch all 14 episodes: August 20)
Anime – Average run time: 23 minutes
*Alien TV – Season 1 (August 21)
Animation, Science Fiction

CBS All Access TV

*Star Trek: Lower Decks (Aug 20) – Season 1, Episode 3: “Temporal Edict”
Adult, Animated

DC Universe

*Justice League Dark: Apokolips War

HBO Max Movies

*Queen & Slim (Aug 22) ⭐️⭐️½

HBO Max TV

*Lovecraft Country – Season 1, Episode 2: “Whitey’s On The Moon” (Aug 22)
*Infinity Train – Season 3, Episode 2
Animated, Episode Run Time: 11 minutes

CBS All Access added new content on July 30 – still mostly for TV fans

August 2, 2020August 1, 2020 ~ Todd Russell ~ 2 Comments

On July 30, CBS All Access not so quietly added more content for subscribers, including hubs a la HBO Max for Bet, Comedy Central, MTV, Nickoledean and Smithsonian Channel.

As mentioned previously (see: CBS All Access Working on Greatly Expanded Library For Release in 2021), CBS doesn’t want their flagship streaming channel to be a niche, also-ran with a few good old classic TV shows, a smattering of movies, Star Trek and some other new shows.

CBS All Access showed a bit of its hand today, announcing it added some 3,500 episodes to its service from roughly 70 new shows, including series from BET, Comedy Central, MTV, Nickelodeon, TV Land, VH1, and the Smithsonian Channel. It’s also added more Paramount Pictures flicks since its initial announcement in May, with more than 150 movies now available to stream. That’s on top of CBS’s already expansive library on the service.
Hold Onto Your Peacock, CBS All Access Just Got Better

We resubscribed late last month in preparation to watch Star Trek: Lower Decks (FIRST LOOK) and Jordan Peele’s The Twilight Zone Season 2. I binged all episodes of the latter one and enjoyed it a little more than the first season. Am waiting for them to release the black and white versions, as I enjoy watching that series (more) desaturated. Weird? Nah, just classic minded I guess. I think of Twilight Zone in black and white, not color.

At any rate, what else has new has been added of interest to CBS All Access, or what was there all along that we haven’t paid much attention to?

A few more movies added

Emphasis on the word “few.” You can quick scroll from top to bottom all the movies A-Z on CBS in very short order. I’d say, without counting, that’s it’s less than 200 total movies.

By contract, HBO Max has around 1,000 or more. Peacock? Less than HBO Max but an overall decent amount of titles (see: ). Netflix has over 3,000 movies. Amazon Prime has over 10,000 movies – sure, most aren’t worth watching, but they slay all competition in the volume department. Hulu for number of movies is somewhere between CBS and Peacock. If you want Marvel, Star Wars or classic Disney, well Disney+ has you covered.

After this update, CBS still isn’t exactly a destination for movie lovers — yet. They are reportedly working on a rebranding in 2021 and adding even more movies.

Live CBS TV – has it been there all along?

Live TV is something I wasn’t really aware they offered before — and maybe it’s been there all along — but sure enough we can watch the local CBS channel as part of the subscription. That’s cool for watching news. We also get that through locast.org and if I we installed an over the air antennae, we’d get even more free local broadcast.

This would be useful for watching the NFL Sunday CBS broadcasted games, coming up in a couple months. I don’t know if/when they broadcast any MLB, but that would be of interest.

MTV – Aeon Flux, Beavis & Butthead, Celebrity Death Match

Something I was looking around to watch recently after seeing Charlize Theron in Aeon Flux was the original animated series.

Good news for fans, as season 1 of Aeon Flux is now available on CBS All Access.

Celebrity Death Match Season 5 and 6, Beavis & Butthead Season 1-3 are also available.

CBS All Access is a decent value for TV fans and they made it a little better.

What are CBS All Access streaming competitors doing with Live TV?

I wish that Disney+ included live TV for Fox. So +1 for Live TV offering from CBS, even if we rarely watch live TV, at least we know it’s there as part of the subscription.

Peacock sort of flirts around with Live coverage, offering some Live Sports and organizes some of their TV content as “live channels.” It’s not the same as offering the full live TV channel, but at least they are moving in that direction.

Netflix offers no live TV, they are strictly on demand streaming. While this has worked well for them to date, one could see them being behind the curve in this area as more cord cutters move to streaming but also desire some amount of Live TV programming.

Amazon Prime has flirted with live TV, offering Thursday night NFL football games. Think I watched one of them and it was done well. There are rumors circulating that they are working on adding 24/7 live TV, no idea how much more they will charge or if this will be included as part of an existing Prime subscription.

HBO Max is all on demand. They don’t offer any access to their cable TV and satellite Live TV channels.

Hulu offers Live TV as a paid add-on service.

Will CBS All Access Rebranding Really Matter?

This could and probably should be a separate post, because I have a lot to say about name and branding changes, but will summarize here.

I don’t care that much about names and branding. Sure, it makes sites easier to visit on the web if their name isn’t Quibi, but what is CBS All Access going to rebrand to? Don’t think that’s been announced yet, but if they want to attract more movie fans, than they need to bulk up their movie library. Their TV offering is compelling enough to bring us back once or twice a year.

It’s their originals right now, as mentioned above, that caused us to resubscribe. I might have resubscribed to check out Aeon Flux because that’s not available anywhere else and costs $1.99 an episode on Google Play. Can binge the whole first season as part of the subscription, so excited there.. Also, I’d definitely be interested in revisiting Beavis & Butthead. Fondly remember that MTV show.

Will Star Trek: Lower Decks be a hit or miss? Don’t know, but am looking more forward to checking that out next week when it debuts.

What are you looking most forward to seeing on CBS All Access? Anything there now or coming soon?