‘The Singing Bee’ returns this Saturday

CEBU, Philippines - The well-loved hosting tandem of Roderick Paulate and Amy Perez is back beginning Saturday (Nov. 16) as the hit musical game show “The Singing Bee” returns to ABS-CBN.Weekend bonding time will surely become more fun as the whole family can sing and play along with the game, regardless if he can sing or not, as long as he can guess the correct lyrics of popular songs. On top of that, returning Kapamilya Dick and Amy will complete the viewing experience with their exchange of witty banters.

In its pilot episode this Saturday, Carmi Martin, Boboy Garovillo, Ogie Diaz, Eric Fructuoso and Kiray Celis — Dick and Amy’s closest friends in the entertainment industry — will play and compete to win the P1 million jackpot prize.

“The Voice of the Philippines” artists Isa Fabregas, Jessica Reynoso, Penelope Matanguihan, Maki Ricafort, and Yuki Ito are also part of “The Singing Bee” as the show’s resident singers called  the “Songbees.” The “Bandble Bees,” led by veteran musical director Mel Villena, will also stage a comeback along with sexy dancers “Honeybees.”

“The Singing Bee” will be composed of four exciting rounds. Five individuals will compete in the elimination round called “To Bee Continued,” where each contestant has to sing the next line of the song initiated by the “Songbees.” The first four people who sing the line correctly will qualify for the next two rounds “Jumble Bee” and “Beedeoke.”

In “Jumble Bee” round, lyrics from a particular song will be shown scrambled on screen and each of the contestants have to sing it in correct order to earn two points.

The four remaining contestants will consecutively sing a song in a fill-in-the-blanks format in the “Beedeoke” round. Each player has three blanks to fill in, where each correct answer is equal to three points.

The contestant with the highest of total points from the second and third rounds will advance to the jackpot round dubbed as the “Final Countdown” to face the defending champion.

In the final round, the contestants must first determine who between them will go first through the toss-up called “Manuhan.” One of the hosts will give an artist name and the contestants must provide any song title recorded by the given artist. Whoever buzzes in first with the correct answer will get the first bid at the jackpot and the privilege to choose a category.

The first finalist must then guess four missing lyrics in seven songs to be played in the “Final Countdown.” Each correct answer corresponds to P20,000 cash. If ever he completes all four, the first finalist wins the P1 million grand prize. But in the event that the first finalist commits a mistake, the second finalist will have the chance to steal and play for the jackpot. Whoever wins in the “Final Countdown” will be hailed as the champion and will return to the next week’s episode to defend his title.

Justin Timberlake insists he’s not cool

Justin Timberlake covers one of the five GQ Men of the Year issues, looking brooding in a casual blue blazer and pant suit. J.T. discusses a number of topics inside the magazine such as believing that he’s “not cool.”

“Being cool is about keeping your blood pressure steady. So no. Don’t be cool. Be passionate. Be dedicated. Be tenacious. Be uncompromising. Be pissed. Be happy. Be sad,” he said.

He continued, “It’s important to take risks. To do sketch comedy when you’re supposed to be staying in your lane as a singer. To do movies when all people want is your next album. I’ve made a career out of doing things that I should not be doing. I wasn’t cool about it because being cool would have meant I passed up on those opportunities. If you do that, it’s because you’re afraid. And what are you afraid of?”

The 32-year-old Memphis native also spoke about dealing with harsh critics in this industry. “It’s a struggling city with a defeatist attitude. I’m from this town, and I grew up with a little bit of a chip on my shoulder, so sometimes I find it funny that I’ve been able to acquire the patience it takes to be kind to people in our business. Because sometimes I just want to kill everybody.”

Regardless, J.T. doesn’t spend too much time worrying about what’s being said, because he’s already working on his next big project. “I don’t see myself as someone who’s ever going to be defined by one moment,” he said. “It’s on to the next.”

Elizabeth Olsen confirms role in ‘The Avengers: Age of Ultron’

After months of rumors, Elizabeth Olsen has finally confirmed that she has joined “The Avengers: Age of Ultron.”

Samuel L. Jackson had seemingly confirmed Olsen’s role in an October interview with The Wall Street Journal, and now the actress herself has shared the good news with MTV News. Olsen will be playing Wanda Maximoff, better known as Scarlet Witch, Magneto’s daughter.

“The Avengers: Age of Ultron” will also introduce Scarlet’s twin brother, Quicksilver, played by Olsen’s “Godzilla” co-star Aaron Taylor-Johnson.

“We get to play husband and wife, and we get to play twin brother and sister,” the 24-year-old younger sister of Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen said. “It’s also fun because even though in ‘Godzilla’ we play husband and wife, we don’t have a lot of scenes together. I just love him. I love his family. I’m so excited to actually work with each other.”

Per Marvel lore, Scarlet and Quicksilver are the mutant children of Magneto, the notorious villain of the “X-Men” comic books. Her powers include the ability to cast hexes that enable her to do such wonders as deflect objects, create force fields and blow stuck up while her sibling’s powers include moving and thinking at superhuman speeds.

Olsen also gushed over “The Avengers” director Joss Whedon. “Some people are too smart for their own good, but he’s amazing,” she said.

“The Avengers: Age of Ultron,” which stars Robert Downey Jr., Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth, Scarlett Johansson, Mark Ruffalo, Jeremy Renner and James Spader, is slated to hit theaters May 1, 2015.

TV5’s ‘For Love Or Money’ and ‘Positive’ heat up Thursday primetime

TV5’s back-to-back weekly primetime dramas “For Love or Money” and “Positive” continue to be bold, intriguing, and groundbreaking as their compelling stories unfold the biggest twists that will surprise viewers and keep them wanting for more.

Ultimate leading man Derek Ramsay and timeless beauty Alice Dixson will set the screen on fire as their “business deal” results to a steamy one night stand in “For Love or Money.” As Edward’s (Derek Ramsay) 10-million-peso deal with Kristine (Alice Dixson) unexpectedly leads into a night of intimacy that was forbidden in the contract, Kristine realizes that Edward is not Ramil (her former fiancé who died before they got married) and decides to end their 10-day affair earlier than scheduled. Edward returns to his wife Roselle (Ritz Azul) but lies when asked if anything happened between him and Kristine. Could this lie be the start of Edward’s infidelity? What will happen when he and Kristine meet again?

Meanwhile, renowned indie actress Mercedes Cabral plays the role of a sex-for-hire woman and engages in a number of steamy sex scenes with Kapatid drama prince Martin Escudero in the HIV-themed series, “Positive.”

In tonight’s episode, Carlo (Martin Escudero) zeroes in on Chiqui (Mercedes Cabral), a sex worker whom he met in a sleazy bar some four years ago. They have became constant sexual partners until Carlo decided to distance himself from Chiqui when he felt that the woman was beginning to take their supposed “relationship” seriously. Now that Carlo is living with AIDS, he needs to track down Chiqui to know if she’s the source of the virus.

Carlo comes face-to-face with Chiqui. He tells her that he’s living with AIDS and wants to know if he got it from her. Chiqui is equally mad and adamant about Carlo’s intention of meeting up with her again. At first, Chiqui declines Carlo’s offer for her to undergo HIV testing, but she eventually yields — for a price. Is Chiqui the source of the virus? What will be the result of her HIV test?

Don’t miss these exciting Thursday dramas of TV5. “For Love or Money” airs every Thursday at 8 p.m., followed by “Positive” at 9 p.m.

Lisa Macuja shares life story on ‘Bottomline’

Discover the beauty of ballet dancing in “The Bottomline With Boy Abunda” this Saturday as Prima Ballerina Lisa Macuja-Elizalde shares the story of her life, career, and her nearing retirement from dancing.

What challenges did Macuja go through for the sake of her dreams? How hard is it for her to leave the world of ballet? What advice can she give to the younger generation who dreams to be like her?

Don’t miss the 2013 USTv Awards Best Public Affairs Talk Show “The Bottomline with Boy Abunda” this Nov. 16 after “Banana Split.” For more updates, log on to www.abs-cbn.com or follow @abscbndotcom on Twitter. (PR)(FREEMAN)