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Hello RTV Fanatics Unite fans! From Ricky the Rat, Rufus the Rat Terrier, And of course, me, Catlover04! Hello RTV people, How are you all on this fine, beautiful long weekend morning here in the US. No work on Monday means extra fun for one more day. Yesterday, youngest daughter came from college because ... well, she had a reason to. While she was here, she wanted to go see a movie that was just released this weekend. If you've never heard of it, let me introduce you. If you have but read some bad reviews, don't believe them. I cannot imagine why a beautiful story such as this would get a bad review. Let me tell you the real story of.... This heartwarming story stars Jim Bulushi and Marcia Gay Hardin as the parents of a young man (played by Charlie Rowe) who at the age of 18 suffers meningitis while swimming in a lake on a family vacation. It leaves him a paraplegic, confined to a wheel chair and unable to care for himself. After four years of struggling to find peace in the new reality he is faced with, the family decides to find a service animal to help him. The animal he chooses is an adorable Capuchin monkey called Gigi (played by a beautiful little monkey named Allie) who was rescued out of horrible conditions from a petting zoo in California then trained to be a service animal. The bond between Gigi and Nate was a beautiful thing to watch unfold. When an activist group catches wind that a Capuchin monkey is living in a private home, they seek to have the laws changed in the state of Tennessee to make it illegal for a primate to be used as a service animal. This of course causes much anguish for young Nate and his family. I don't think I said anything that you don't get just from watching the preview. But if I did, I apologize. I can't recall the last time I saw a movie that made me smile, then cry, then laugh, then smile again... then cry again... then smile again. I loved it - so imagine my surprise to find negative reviews. Reaction was mixed: some reviewers loved it; others were really hard on it, saying "it never touched the heartstrings." Those reviewers must have hearts of stone. Take it from a normal, everyday person who loves a good story told well (especially when I know it is based on true events) who ran a gamut of emotions while watching. I found it excellent, hopeful, and inspiring. It tugged on MY heartstrings from beginning to end. Moving on, we are nearing the end of summer - and wow, has it been a slow summer season where TV is concerned. I managed to finish my "Castle" watch and then needed something new that I've never seen before to enjoy. The show I picked can be found everywhere: Netflix, Hulu, Sling, every free streaming app out there like Pluto (where it has its own channel), Frndly (also with its own channel) Pureflix, Up Faith and Family, the Roku Channel, the Fire TV list of free channels. It's running in syndication several places too. Literally, it's everywhere you look. Therefore, you'd think this would be something everyone talks about. or at least, that we on this channel would have talked about before. But can't recall ever discussing it here. I did watch the first couple of episodes years ago and for some reason, it didn't stick. Too busy with other things, I guess. But now, with so little to be excited about TV-wise, I've given it another try. And this time, I'm hooked. The show, of course, is .... I know what you're thinking - how is it possible that Catlover, who loves family friendly shows no matter how sappy they are, has never watched this one? Baffling, I know. If I'm not mistaken, this show is a Canadian show (yes it is) so it would surprise me if Ali, at least, hasn't watched it a little. Funny, when you watch a long-running show like this, you're amazed at the people you see in it. Tatiana Maslany, for example, plays cute little cowgirl in season one. I had trouble recognizing her at first because all I recognize her from is "Orphan Black"; (you know, Sarah Manning/Helena/Allison/Katja to name just a few of her characters from that offbeat sci/fi show). Also, a season one episode had a young actor at the start of his career, unknown to all. He played a side character in one story line. I sure recognize him now: it's Benjamin Hollingsworth, the bad boy on Netflix's "Virgin River". I'm mid-season two of "Heartland" right now. I heard a rumor that I might see WCTH's Nathan Grant (Kevin McGarry) in some episodes down the line. It will be fun to see who else shows up as the series goes on. Now let's move on to our TV week. Sunday, September 4th "Big Brother: Season 24, Episode 25", 8 pm on CBS We'll find out who wins the HOH comp that began last Thursday. But more importantly: ZINGBOT!!! Yes, that hilarious robot is here to throw vicious shade at the remaining players! And oh, what an abundance of material he has to work with (even with racist Kyle out of the house). Best suggestion I read on twitter: "Taylor needs to stop eating all the good Lays. That's why Alyssa is getting all the bad ones! #KyleIsLousyInBedShade "Chesapeake Shores: That's All There is to That", Season 6 Episode 4, 8 pm on Hallmark I truly love this show. I know no one is watching it but me, but it's the final season so I'm mentioning it anyway. Monday, September 5th "The Bachelorette", Season 19 Episode 9, 8 pm on ABC Episode synopsis reads like this: In part one of overnight dates week, Gabby takes a leap of faith with Erich, and sets sail with Johnny; Rachel takes the reins with Tino. "Fantasy Suite" night! Where the ladies can chose to spend an intimate night with a bachelor - and no cameras in the room! Also known as "You Don't Buy a Shoe Without Trying It On First" night! "Snake In the Grass: Bullying Behavior!'" Season 1, Episode 6, 11 pm on USA It's brains versus brawn as the players struggle to put their heads together and catch the Snake. Well, I did do a recap for the last episode for the sake of the Canadians who can't watch; below is a link if anyone is interested. That recap was a one-time thing though... unless this "brains vs. brawn" verbiage is a hint we have more "Survivor" people on this upcoming episode. I wonder? "Snake In The Grass: Survivor Vs. Big Brother" Discussion Page - RTV Fanatics Unite (weebly.com) Tuesday, September 6th "The Bachelorette", Season 19 Episode 9, 8 pm on ABC In part two of overnight dates week, Erich and Gabby find themselves at crossroads; James and Zach each confess to a shocking truth about their feelings. Just what we need: a SECOND "Bachelorette" episode this week! Night two features all the drama caused by the bedroom antics of Monday's show. Which bachelor is angry that the star was intimate with another man besides him (suddenly remembering which show he came here to play). There is always one. Even worse, which one was a Bachelorette speaking of when she said "Who would have believed that "Big Brother"'s Kyle WASN'T the worse guy in bed in the summer of 2022?" #MoreKyleShade I think I forgot to watch AGT last week. Think I'll skip talking about it for this week. "The Amazing Race Canada" Season 8 Episode 7, is on at 9 pm for our Canadians. Add it to our list of episodes we'll have to watch later. The three of us will be on the "Bachelorette" board live. Wednesday, September 7th Before we get into tonight's fun, I wanted to draw your attention to the kick-off page for "Survivor 43: Cutthroat Island" that I took the time to assemble yesterday using information from the cast assessment of Dalton Ross. Here is a link if you would like to check it out: Survivor 43: Cutthroat Island Official Cast Announcement - RTV Fanatics Unite (weebly.com) Interesting cast. I wish I had higher expectations. But we shall see come September 21st. Moving on... "Masterchef: Semi-Final Finale Part One with Guest Graham Elliot", Season 20, Episode 18, 8 to 10 pm on Fox Another two hour show tonight, followed by the finale episode next week at 8 pm. The top five chefs are faced with two separate elimination challenges in the semifinals: a baked Alaska and an intricate lobster tortellini; the chefs who advance to the finals prepare an appetizer and entrée with the support of guest Graham Elliot. These two hour episodes are killing me. I guess they are trying to get it all done before the fall TV season kicks into gear. "Big Brother" Season 24 Episode 26, 8 pm on CBS With the Leftovers officially over, how is the house breaking down into alliances? Who is HOH, and how will that effect the Veto? "The Challenge USA: Pledges of Allegiance", Season 1 Episode 9, 9:00 pm on CBS Episode synopsis reads like this: Players must scale a moving semi-truck. That just sounds insane. Insane and frightfully dangerous. What kind of drama will be in the works now that Sarah has not only saved herself from elimination (despite Angela and Alissa's best efforts to take her down) but also has earned the money for the Paramount Plus thing? "Resident Alien: Harry, a Parent", Season 2 Episode 13, 10 pm on Syfy Episode synopsis reads like this: After losing the alien baby, Harry learns which alien race is on Earth and it's not what he expected. Come on, Ali. Take a break from "The Orville" to catch up on THIS. We need you for the chat! :) Thursday, September 8th "Big Brother" Season 24 Episode 27, 9 to 11 pm on CBS Two hour show for the season's double eviction! Twice the evictions, HOH comps and Veto challenges. But damn them, they had BETTER save some time for a visit to the jury house! Seeing Karl arrive will be the highlight of the season! Friday, September 9th Here is another fine resource for premiere date alerts on TV Insider. I don't know why I forget about this site a lot; they produce some good info occasionally.
Fall 2022 Premiere Dates: Find Out When New Shows & Seasons Will Debut (tvinsider.com) Before the weekend is over, I am making plans to put together an "Original Series Streaming" page to highlight upcoming shows on Streaming sites. It will be done on the "Streaming Corner" blog site. It might be tonight or tomorrow before I get it complete but when I do, I'll post it here first (in the comments of this page and also the comments of tomorrow's daily page). I thought it might be nice to do some research and highlight original shows of interest. Of course, if anyone has anything they'd like to add that I miss, that's what the comment section is for. Stay tuned on this. I am actually going to a play this afternoon that my daughter is involved in so will be gone for a big chunk of the day. Will work on this tonight. While bingeing "Heartland" I'm sure. I can multi-task like that! Next week will see the start of the fall season for a few shows so maybe next week we can find some new stuff to chat about. These are my rat musings for the day. If anyone has anything to add, please do so in the comments.
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