Too Much TV: Your TV Talking Points For Monday, May 23rd, 2022

Is marketing the least-appreciated component of a successful streaming strategy?

Here's everything you need to know about the world of television for Monday, May 23rd, 2022.

IS MARKETING THE LEAST APPRECIATED COMPONENT OF A SUCCESSFUL STREAMING STRATEGY?
I spend a lot of time here writing about content discovery, publicity and marketing. In part because my niche is...well, nichier programming. But also, for all of the talk about whether the streaming industry is creating too much new content, the truth is that without proper marketing and promotion, all of that effort will just disappear as soon it is released.

In his latest newsletter, Bloomberg's Lucas Shaw writes about Netflix's just-wrapped comedy festival and this paragraph stuck out to me:

If you ask members of Netflix’s programming team to list their biggest complaints about the company, many of them would say it doesn’t market the shows enough. (Filmmakers would say this too.) Netflix has always been reluctant to spend big on marketing because it is expensive and inefficient given its range of output.

Netflix certainly has some marketing issues very specific to the service. But it's also true that none of the streaming services (or to be honest, most of the broadcast networks) are very good at properly marketing and promoting less mainstream original programming. 

If you are not working in the industry, you would likely be shocked at the number of shows that premiere with little or no efforts expended on PR and marketing. It's not just that there aren't any screeners for the press. A lot of time there isn't the slightest shred of info available about the show. I understand about tight budgets and being forced to triage your limited resources. But that's a discussion that needs to take place in the executive suites when resources are being allocated. 

Because a lot of these problems get down to having the money and the people to properly highlight original content. And while the metrics of a successful marketing effort might be challenging to quantify, it’s still the best way to ensure that each shows gets the opportunity to deliver the best value to the company.

GUY FIERI, MAYOR OF FLAVORTOWN
The NY Times has a profile of Guy Fieri, and while none of it is probably new if you've been following his career, there are some amusing points, including this look back at the video he submitted in hopes of being cast on The Next Food Network Star:

Revisiting the video, what stands out is how fully formed Mr. Fieri’s public image was before a single television producer could think to meddle.

His hairstylist friend gave him the bleached spikes on a lark one day, and they stuck. His buddies knew his talents for table-to-table rat-a-tat, and urged him to make a tape. The ethos was effectively airlifted to “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives” shortly after he won the next-food-star competition, and has never much changed.

“It’s been super-hard to rip off, and I’ve tried numerous times,” said Jordan Harman, who helped develop the show in 2007 and is now at A+E Networks. “You can redo the same beats, the same kind of places, the same kind of food. But there’s a magic that he brings that is really not replicable.”

The irony of that video is that Fieri's season of Next Food Network Star is one of the few not available on demand or on Discovery+. Which I am assuming is because Fieri and/or the Food Network don't want people looking back at his earliest TV moments.

For the record, I find Fieri very entertaining. Although not quite so much when he continues to push his son Hunter into the spotlight on every one of his Food Network shows.

THE GAME YOU WILL PROBABLY BE PLAYING THIS FALL
I've been playing around with an Alpha build test of the upcoming Warner Brothers game "MetaVersus" and so far it is a blast to play. It's essentially a version of a Super Smash Bros-like brawler, with characters throw items around the arena and pelting each other with all sorts of different gadgets and various attacks.

The big treat is the wide range of characters players can choose from. New plyers start out with the ability to play a limited number of characters, including Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman and Shaggy and Velma from Scooby Doo. Each tier you level up (think of it as a Fortnite battle pass) gains you access to additional characters and it is a crazy mix of well-known characters ranging from Adventure Time to Game Of Thrones. Each character has he or her own specific abilities and powers and it makes for a complex but endlessly entertaining mix.

The public Beta test is apparently launching in July with the game set to go on sale this fall. I know what I'll be asking for at Christmas,

IF YOU LIKE ABSOLUTELY CRAZY REALITY SHOWS
Insiders, the Netflix reality series from Spain, is back for another second season & when I reviewed S1 last October, I described it as "a bit like Big Brother, if that show was produced by a psychopath with ADHD."

I was really looking forward to the new season, but had some trouble getting more info from Netflix. In part, because their press site claims the show isn't available in the U.S.

As I have mentioned quite a bit in recent months, none of the streamers do a particularly great job when it comes to making it easy to cover international productions. Netflix is more noticeable simply because of the volume of original productions from outside the U.S. that are dropped into the American version of the service with little or no notice. But to be honest, HBO Max isn't any better at surfacing global content and unlike Netflix, many of the non-English language originals hitting HBO Max don't have a dubbed English-language audio track.

SPEAKING OF ORIGINAL PRORAMMING FROM OUTSIDE THE U.S.
As you likely already know, Discovery has a massive global presence and creates non-scripted content in a number of countries. But most of that hasn't made its way to the U.S. market, although thanks to Discovery+ and its AAPI promotion, a number of the shows have been added to the streaming service this month.

Discovery+ has included a number of original programs from its Asian markets, including Say Yes To The Dress Asia, The Real Housewives Of Melbourne, My Taste Of Hong Kong, Food War Asia, Must Try Asia, Back To The Streets Jakarta, Easy Chinese With Ching-He Huang, Passage To China and House Hunters Asia.

Discovery+ also has added a healthy number of original non-scripted shows from the UK., Europe, the Middle East and Africa including The Real Housewives Of Cheshire, Paranormal Lockdown U.K., The Real Housewives of Johannesberg, London Lit and Ibiza Weekend.

ICYMI ON ALLYOURSCREENS
Here's a rundown of some of the pieces that posted over the weekend on the web site:

* A review of the Peacock limited series Angelyne.

* Q&A: Brandon Sawyer Talks Netflix's Boss Baby: Back In Business

* A review of the really delightful Disney+ movie Chip 'N Dale Rescue Rangers. They really should have released this into movie theaters.

* All of the titles scheduled to leave Crackle.

* It's time for a competitor to Saturday Night Live. 

* Linda Martindale has a recap of Sunday's episode of Riverdale.

* Today's 70s song you should know: 'One Fine Morning' By Lighthouse. And this song has an unlikely connection to the "Lord Of The Rings" film trilogy.

REVIEWS COMING THIS WEEK ON ALLYOURSCREENS
This week is a bit slower than in recent weeks, which is still scary given the number of pieces posting throughout the week. 

I won't have a review of Stranger Things until after it premieres, since I didn't receive screeners. I'll also a piece Thursday about the series finale of The Ellen DeGeneres Show. There will also be a number of interviews related to the upcoming FX series Pistol posting on Saturday.

TUESDAY, MAY 24TH:
Keeper of the Ashes: The Oklahoma Girl Scout Murders (Hulu)
Sins Of The Amish (Peacock)
This Is Us Series Finale (NBC)

WEDNESDAY, MAY 25:
The Great American Tag Sale With Martha Stewart (ABC)
Somebody Feed Phil Season Premiere (Netflix)

THURSDAY, MAY 26TH:
Kings Of Pain (History)

FRIDAY, MAY 27TH:
Carpool Karaoke: The Series Season Premiere (Apple TV+)
Obi-Wan Kenobi Series Premiere (Disney+)
Shoresy Series Premiere (Hulu)
We Feed People (Disney+)

ODDS AND SODS
* Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore gets its streaming premiere May 30th on HBO Max.

* An anonymous TV writer offers an inside look at why special effects seem so bad right now.

* SiriusXM has acquired Team Coco and its podcast 'Conan O'Brien Needs a Friend' for an estimated $150 million.

* The new Food Network series Me Or The Menu comes from the producers of 90 Day Fiancee and it follows finds four couples trying to beat the odds of ending up in divorce court, while also navigating the unique challenges of the cutthroat restaurant industry. 

WHAT'S NEW FOR MONDAY
Here's a quick rundown of all the new stuff premiering today on TV and streaming:

Baby Drivers Series Premiere (Discovery+)
Beat Shazam Season Premiere (Fox)
Don't Forget The Lyrics! Season Premiere (Fox)
Ghost In The Shell: SAC_2045 (Netflix)
Godspeed (Netflix)
Minnie's Bow-Toons: Party Palace Pals Season Two Premiere (Disney)
Prehistoric Planet Series Premiere (Apple TV+)
Sea Of Love (Netflix)
Welcome To Wedding Hell Series Premiere (Netflix)

Click Here to see the list of all of the upcoming premiere dates for the next few months.

SEE YOU TUESDAY!

If you have any feedback, send it along to Rick@AllYourScreens.com and follow me on Twitter @aysrick.