This will hardly come as a surprise, but there are lots of Hawaii Five-0 updates to share :

• Matt Roush went through the networks’ fall lineups for Access Hollywood. “Hawaii Five-0 stands out because it’s a brand name, a classic iconic series.” View the clip on YouTube – with thanks to Deb!
• DVR Divas also invited Matt Roush to discuss the new shows with them. You can view the video or listen to the audio; they reach H50 at 13:37. I’ve also added a transcript:
  

  “[Mike and Molly] is going to be hammocked in between Two and a Half Men and Hawaii Five 0 which is a slam dunk I suppose. Clips for that look explosive, they’ve poured a huge amount of money into that Hawaii Five-0, it’s sexy as hell and it isn’t just Alex O’Loughlin carrying the show, ’cause I don’t think he can carry a show by himself. You’ve got DDK, you’ve got Grace Park, you’ve got Scott Caan who stole those clips, and they all have charisma and I think they’re going to lift him as well and with Hawaii, the exotic locale and everybody looking wonderful, explosions… it almost has a more of an A-Team feel than the old Hawaii Five-0 feel. I think CBS has a definite hit in that one.”

• EW PopWatch is casting doubt on CBS Marketing president George Schweitzer’s claim that the Hawaii Five-0 theme song “is the most enduring theme in the history of television.” Popwatch refers to a recent article in Variety about the importance of signature tunes for remakes:

“We’re going to treat it as a lead character of the show,” [Schweitzer] added, including a full main-title sequence (in an era when there are few left) featuring a new recording of the theme that is “as close to the iconic, classic version as possible.”

Schweitzer believes the “Five-O” theme is not just about nostalgia but appeals to younger converts — as evidenced by the millions of hits on YouTube for multiple versions, including Brian Setzer’s live performance in Japan and various amateur renditions.

For “Five-O,” Schweitzer said CBS’ radio network will be drafted into service, playing various versions and possibly even “marathons” of “Five-O” music, which has been recorded by many artists, including Henry Mancini and a bizarre rendition by Sammy Davis Jr.

“We will do many things to market the show just based on the music alone,” Schweitzer said, citing online competitions, mashups and social media. “It’s part of the culture, so we want to make that culture work for modern media.”

• From an upfront report at RBR.com:
  

  The clear audience favorite was the trailer from series remake, Hawaii Five-O which had some exciting action sequences. Tassler remarked, “This is not your father’s Hawaii Five O.”   Unfortunately, many of the attendees weren’t old enough to remember their father’s version of the series. Attendees were happy to learn that Daniel Dae Kim, one of the stars of ABC’s recently departed Lost, was cast in the role of Detective Chin Ho Kelly. The audience also enjoyed listening to the famous theme music. In fact, the theme music will be heavily promoted throughout the summer in advance of the series premiere.

• Here’s a third promo posted by Deb that aired on CBS for the show – it’s only 8 seconds long, so don’t blink !
• Brandy McDonnell at The Oklahoman posted another article on her blog about Alex, this time in relation to Hawaii Five-0. Upon being asked about taking on the role of Steve McGarrett, Alex responds:
  

  “Yeah, that was a big decision for me and, I mean, it was ultimately and evidently … an offer I couldn’t turn down. And I’m really glad I took it up. So yeah, you become more realistic about what it means to sign that seven-year contract and become a little more discerning. But I feel like I’ve made the right decision.”

• According to Tim Ryan, the series will begin filming on July 15th on Oahu. It sounds like finding studio space may be a challenge for the production as ABC is still renting the Hawaii Film Studios despite the fact that Lost has long since wrapped. Tim also writes that CBS is planning a Sunset on the Beach event for the Hawaii Five-0 premiere!
• Someone had to go and do a study of the number of tweets on Twitter for the new fall shows! I haven’t done a comparison, but am just enjoying the fact that the official CBS uploads of the Hawaii Five-0 Fall Preview video on YouTube has logged over 42,000 views. The opening credits video posted by The Collider is now at over 73,000 views. The show’s popularity has risen by 231% on IMDb.
• From a cute article posted at NBC’s PopcornBiz:
  

  But the biggest change: Detective Steve McGarrett is going to have some emotional issues, darnit!

  It is 2010 after all. Men are allowed to have these things.

  The character, classically played by Jack Lord, has been given to Alex O’Loughlin and he will have his own way of dealing with some Oprah-esque issues — like a tattered relationship with his sister played by Taryn Manning.

  “My character was written in humanize (McGarrett),” Manning tells PopcornBiz. “I play his younger sister and she’s kind of upset at the world and wants to get closer to her brother.”

  Scarily, we are talking about emotional closeness. On a cop show.

• According to the Futon Critic, however, Mary Ann McGarrett didn’t make the final cut of the pilot episode (although she could of course still be appearing in a later episode). The Futon Critic posted a first-look review in which they try hard to find fault with the pilot, but can’t quite seem to succeed!
• For another interview with Taryn Manning, check out this video on YouTube.

The Back-up Plan updates:

• A “new” interview with Alex and Jennifer at the press junket by ViewCave.
• From a lovely review by the Express Advocate in Oz:
  

  The chemistry with Australian actor, Alex O’Loughlin (The Oyster Farmer), is palpable, with scenes that many will relate to.

  The women in the audience at the screening seemed to agree, regularly gasping in delight.

  

  What surprised me the most was the range of emotions The Back-up Plan covered, and all with plenty of verve.

  If you are looking for a romantic escapade into the world of pregnancy dilemmas, this is your movie.

• Another review worth a read posted by The Reel Reviewer:
  

  The following predictability is the one I depend on with every ticket I buy for a romantic comedy … the ever necessary good-looking guy. His smile lights up the screen and you can grate cheese on his abs, which are displayed often. And no complaints here. However, this sort of newcomer, Alex O’Loughlin, really carried the role well. He proved to have good comic timing and likable expressions that gave me the ability to read him easily and consistently.

  The Reel Reviewer considers “The Back-Up Plan” a good plan A for a predictable romantic comedy.

Three Rivers updates:

• Daemon’s TV have posted some stills from episode 10, Every Breath You Take of Alex as Andy Yablonski.
• If you don’t mind a major spoiler, check out the closing scene of episode 9 A Roll of the Dice on YouTube – with thanks to Labormieze!
• I was hoping we would have some clarification by now about the Win-Loss episode CBS is airing on June 5th. I hear it’s supposed to be the unaired pilot (the title certainly sounds familiar), but it’s puzzling because the entertainment release issued by CBS is clearly that of the first episode, i.e. Place of Life. We’ll just have to wait and see what happens!

Other items:

• Check out the CW’s promo for Moonlight on YouTube! The show premieres this Thursday at 9/8c.
• The SyFy channel is doing another Moonlight marathon on Thursday as well, showing all 16 episodes, starting at 8 AM and finishing at 4 AM on Friday.
• Sabine Atkins has been invited to attend the Donate Life Hollywood Film Festival including the cocktail party on June 11th. Of course all Donate Life Hollywood Person of the Year nominees have been invited as well, including Alex O’Loughlin. There is no guarantee that he will be present; however, if he does attend, Sabine may get the opportunity to interview him briefly. To this purpose, she is inviting fans to submit questions for Alex, preferably pertaining to his work as an ambassador for Donate Life. You are welcome to email your questions to questions@alexoloughlinfansfordonatelife.com no later than June 9th. Thanks, Sabine – we’ll keep our fingers crossed for you!

Gallery updates:

• If everything in the print publications album appears to have been updated, that’s because I had to set it up again after accidentally deleting it.  Worth checking out are the hi-res scans from the Aussie OK! and another version of the Joanne Hawkins interview with Alex, this time in The Sunday Mail (Brisbane).
• I’ve also added 27 more HQs of Alex at the LA premiere, an album with pictures from the premiere after party and HQs of Alex and Jason Dohring at the New York Comic Con in April 2008.

That’s all for now – I hope you have a great week!