What's New is a recurring column that looks at the new films, music, books and DVD releases in and/or about Chinese mainland
Film: The Secret Life of Pets
Louis C.K. voices Max, an adorable terrier living large in Manhattan who is driven to jealousy when his owner adopts a new dog called Duke (Modern Family’s Eric Stonestreet). However, Max’s quest to rid the home of his new competitor leads to the unlikely pair being lost on the streets, desperately trying to make it home. Comedy stars like Kevin Hart, Steve Coogan, Dana Carvey, Hannibal Buress and Albert Brooks voice a colorful cast of characters ranging from vengeful white rabbits to wise basset hounds. Released last month, The Secret Life of Pets has received strong reviews and has already grossed over USD145 million worldwide. Released nationwide on August 2.
Sports: Olympics
Yes, Rio sounds hellish and there's a really high potential for disaster, but who can really resist Olympics fever? Expect China to rack up medals and catch the action on QQ Sports which has locked up exclusive streaming rights for the next few Olympics. Streamable at QQ Sports from Aug 5-21.
Sports: ESPN on QQ
Speaking of Tencent, the tech giant signed a deal with ESPN in March to be its exclusive Mainland distributor. While the multifaceted deal involves having Chinese analysts on site for NBA games and digital rights to things like the NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship game, it also has led to ESPN stories being translated into Chinese and available on QQ, including analysis from top notch basketball writer Zach Lowe. And since we can’t forgive ESPN for what they did to Grantland, Bill Simmons’ The Ringer website is now running and is pretty great, although access to their podcasts sadly requires a VPN.
Music: Rolling Bowling - Love, Don’t Have Tomorrow
The Beijing rockabilly trio have seemingly been incognito since signing with Modern Sky. However, they’ve re-emerged with their first disc for the label led by a jaunty on the road video for the cheekily titled lead single ‘His Wife Was Not at Home,’ that shows the hard-working group has indeed been busy playing live, just in Europe. Love, Don’t Have Tomorrow kicks off with a 50s style guitar riff and those classic rock and roll sounds follow throughout the disc’s 10 tracks. Available at Modern Sky.
Music: Emotion, No
Rising out of the ashes of the Guangzhou indie institution Full Label, Qiii Snacks teams up with Hong Kong's Sweaty and Cramped for this collection celebrating the unlikely influence of Midwest emo on Asia’s indie rock scenes. While emo may have become a dirty word in America, Emotion, No celebrates the legacies of 90s undergroud favorites like Sunny Day Real Estate, Get-Up Kids, Jimmy Eats World and American Football. Cheekily split into two sides (‘Punky’ and ‘Nerdy’), the tape consists of eight songs from eight Asian cities ranging from Singapore’s Forests to Okinawa’s Offseason. The Mainland is represented by Wuhan’s Chinese Football and Shenzhen’s Bokchoy. Cassettes available at Qiii Snack’s Taobao or digitally at Sweaty and Cramped's Bandcamp.
TV: DC's Legends of Tomorrow
Sohu scores the streaming rights to this spin-off the popular superheroes saga, Arrow. Legends of Tomorrow follows the efforts of time master Rip Hunter who assembles a dream team of heroes and villains from the DC Comics universe in an effort to prevent the immortal dictator Vandal Savage from destroying the world and time. The show was renewed for a second season, with season one episodes streamable now at Sohu.
For past What's New columns, click here.
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