Too Much TV: A Solid Alternative For Cable TV Cutters

If you are looking for a cheap streaming TV option that includes a built-in DVR, I have a suggestion

Here's everything you need to know about the world of television for Thursday, April 17th, 2025:

AN ALTERNATIVE TO A VIRTUAL CABLE PACKAGE
It's no secret that the price of virtual cable packages such as YouTube TV and Hulu Live TV continue to increase. And there are some people that don't really care about getting a package of cable TV channels, especially if they aren't hard-core sports fans. With those virtual cable packages now costing in the range of $70-$80 a month, many people are looking for a cheaper option.

I've seen a few companies try to fill that gap, but the first one I've seen that feels like a solid cable alternative is Tablo. It's a small Apple TV+ sized unit that can be hooked up to an over-the-air antenna (which can be included in the package). The Tablo is connected to your home’s Wi-Fi router and you can stream every available broadcast network, along with more than 125+ diginets, streaming and FAST channels.

You can watch, pause, record, and replay either two or four channels at once (depending on the unit) with 50+ hours of onboard storage. Any TV connected to your home broadband network can access the unit, which means you don't have to purchase separate dongles or boxes for each television. And the Tablo puts all of the over-the-air and available streaming channels into a seamless two-week programming grid.

Once you buy the unit - which ranges from $99.95 to $159.95, you are all in. There are no monthly subscriptions or other fees.

Tablo announced on Wednesday that it has added 45 WBD-branded FAST channels to its offerings, which includes everything from CNN Headline and Bleacher Report Sports Network to Say Yes To The Dress and Primetime Soaps.

I haven't had a chance to try out the Tablo yet. But at first glance, it seems like a solid choice for someone looking to really cut the cord.

THE MYSTERIOUS WORLD OF AD INSERTIONS
I continue to try and learn as much as I can about the streaming ad business, but it remains a black box of mysterious buying algorithms. I lot of times I can tell something is going on, but can't quite figure out what it is and if it really matters.

Here's one example. I tend to have the TV on in the background when I'm writing this newsletter. And more often than not, if it's in the evening, I have MSNBC on. I enjoy the primetime anchors (well, most of them) and it gives me the opportunity to catch up on the day's political news. But because of the nature of the programming, I can also tune it out if I need to. In a lot of ways, I use MSNBC as a three-hour daily podcast.

I watch MSNBC via the consistently frustrating Hulu Live TV and in recent weeks, I have noticed something about the ad breaks on MSNBC. Most commercial breaks on Hulu Live tend to be a mix of national commercials sold by the network and some regional and/or local ads sold out of the ad spots provided to Hulu. And sometimes if Hulu doesn't sell one of the ad availabilities, Hulu will run some sort of a house ad. That tends to be either one of those quirky "watch more Hulu" ads or some sort of public service commercial.

But in recent weeks, I've noticed that many of the ad breaks on MSNBC consist almost entirely of house ads and public service commercials. I just watched one nearly five minute commercial break that included eight NBC "The More You Know" spots (including *5* discussing the joys of mentorship), an ad for MSNBC podcasts and a final one that promoted Hulu.

Does anyone have any idea what is going on? I'm assuming it's not good that there aren't more paid ads running on MSNBC, but is that a Hulu problem or a larger one from the MSNBC side?

IS THIS TEXAS SUBURB THE NEW 'GROUND ZERO MOSQUE'
Unless you closely follow conservative media closely, you might not have heard about the latest outrage targeting “EPIC City,” a 402-acre suburban development near Josephine, Texas that a group of Muslims are attempting to develop. Push back about the idea began on social media (go figure), but quickly expanded to conservative podcasters, pundits and Fox News. Now Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and Attorney General Ken Paxton are announcing investigations of what they refer to as "Sharia City."

The Bulwark has some great coverage of the story, which I only mention here because of this kinda crazy connection to the 1980s primetime soap Dallas:

Far-right activist Amy Mek, who has almost half a million followers on X, tried to key in on this story’s emotional resonance for opponents of the development in a post on Tuesday. The EPIC mosque group, she claims, once hosted an event at the Texas ranch where Dallas was filmed, and which now hosts an event center.

Yes, she said: The imagined mansion of oil baron J.R. Ewing had been repurposed for an Eid celebration. This had to be a deliberate, strategic choice.

“Dallas was ‘just a show,’ right?” Mek asked in her X post. “Wrong.”

Mek went on to claim that the EPIC City group has targeted Ewing’s fictional legacy to punish real-life Texans.

“It stood for ambition, power, Texas pride—and that’s exactly why it was targeted,” she wrote. “This isn’t coexistence. It’s conquest—one Texas symbol at a time.”

ODDS AND SODS
* The fabulous Substack Hey Whatever Nevermind has a piece that posted today about "The Return Of 80s Comfort TV." Yes, there are a couple of quotes from me in the piece, but I would recommend it regardless.

* ICYMI, I took a look at the season two premiere of Discovery's Expedition Files, hosted by Josh Gates, the Marlon Brando of conspiracy theory TV show hosts.

* I find most of the trade interviews that promise a showrunner "will unpack what you just saw on season premiere/finale" a bit depressing. Do we really need someone to walk the audience through every beat of an episode? I know it's an easy piece for journalists to slap together. But I'd like to think viewers can get what they need from a show simply from watching the episode and thinking about it afterwards.

* The Gossip Reading Club Substack has a great piece following the careers of the six women Vanity Fair chose as the "Ingenues of 2003" - Kate Bosworth, Kerry Washington, Zooey Deschanel, Alison Lohman, Sophia Myles, and Joy Bryant.

* Season two, volume one of The Sandman premieres Thursday, July 3rd on Netflix.

* Season two of Twisted Metal premieres Thursday, July 31st on Peacock.

* I don't usually mention casting updates or news about a show that is "under development." But I have to admit I'm pretty excited by the news that a live-action Pacific Rim television series from Eric Heisserer (Shadow and Bone, Bird Box) is apparently under development at Prime Video.

* The documentary series 100 Foot Wave returns for a third season Thursday, May 1st on HBO.

* CBS has ordered America’s Culinary Cup, a cooking competition series hosted by former Top Chef judge Padma Lakshmi. It is set to premiere sometime during the 2025-2026 season and according to the network it will "feature an invitation-only cast of the nation’s most decorated chefs as they embark on a one-of-a-kind competition designed to challenge their creativity, endurance, presentation, leadership and more."

* Netflix has renewed Temptation Island for a second season.

* Season four of the Canadian medical drama Transplant will premiere Thursday, May 22nd on NBC.

WHAT'S NEW TONIGHT AND TOMORROW

THURSDAY, APRIL 17TH:
Boarders Season Two Premiere (Tubi)
Bosch: Legacy Series Finale (Prime Video)
Istanbul Encyclopedia Series Premiere (Netflix)
Law & Order: Organized Crime Season Five Premiere (Peacock)
Leverage: Redemption Season Three Premiere (Prime Video)
Matlock Season One Finale (CBS)
#1 Happy Family USA Series Premiere (Prime Video)
Ransom Canyon Series Premiere (Netflix)
The Wheel Of Time Season Three Finale (Prime Video)

FRIDAY, APRIL 18TH:
Dead Mail (Shudder)
Get Rich Or Die Trying (LMN)
iHostage (Netflix)
Jane Season Three Premiere (Apple TV+)
Light & Magic (Disney+)
Oklahoma City Bombing: American Terror (Netflix)
The Narrow Road To The Deep North Series Premiere (Prime Video)

SEE YOU ON FRIDAY!