Top Picks: 'The Hunger Games: Catching Fire' on DVD, Lake Street Dive's album 'Bad Self Portraits,' and more
NBA hopefuls
The program Summer Dreams takes viewers inside the National Basketball Association鈥檚 summer league, in which players, aspiring coaches, and rising referees alike must prove themselves. Draft picks and unsigned hopefuls must try to impress the NBA higher-ups who attend. 鈥淓very move you make can determine whether you have a career in the NBA or you don鈥檛,鈥� Lee Jenkins of Sports Illustrated says of the summer league. 鈥淪ummer Dreams鈥� airs on March 15.
Let the games begin!
鈥�Hunger Games鈥� heroine Katniss Everdeen returns in the second installment in the film series, The Hunger Games: Catching Fire 鈥� and this movie is even better than the first. Soon after their victory in the deadly games, Katniss (Jennifer Lawrence) and her friend Peeta (Josh Hutcherson) are forced to go back for a champions鈥� face-off. Stanley Tucci reprises his role as a creepy TV host. 鈥淐atching Fire鈥� arrives on DVD and Blu-ray March 7.
Space watch
takes us inside the International Space Station with Live From Space, which airs March 14 at 8 p.m. ET聽 (5 p.m. PT). Audiences will see astronauts Rick Mastracchio and Koichi Wakata in real time aboard the ISS. Soledad O鈥橞rien hosts the program from Houston with astronaut Mike Massimino. Viewers can ask the astronauts a question beforehand or say hello by submitting a photo or video using Instagram. Learn more at .
TV with an accent
If you are a fan of British TV (why do all the best shows seem to originate on the other side of the pond?) you can binge-watch to your heart鈥檚 content on Acorn TV. This Web-streaming service offers top series from across the Commonwealth, such as 鈥淛ack Irish: Dead Point鈥� (Australia, starring Guy Pearce), 鈥淪lings聽 & Arrows鈥� (Canada), and 鈥淚nspector George Gently鈥� (Britain). Check out these and other shows at . The subscription cost is $5 a month; the first month is free.
Buzz band
There will be bigger selling albums in 2014, but 鈥檚 third album, Bad Self Portraits, should clean up come Grammy time. The Boston-bred quartet has concocted an irresistible soul/pop sound built around the jazzy, funky vocals of a star in the making, Rachael Price, that will have you dancing and swooning and singing along to the album鈥檚 11 original tunes. Check out the band鈥檚 many YouTube videos online and you鈥檒l be raving, too.
R&B tribute
In March, celebrates the boomer rocker in all of us with its 鈥淕reat Performances鈥� special The Dukes of September. Three rock legends 鈥� Michael McDonald (The Doobie Brothers), Donald Fagen (Steely Dan), and Boz Scaggs 鈥� come together to celebrate the R&B music that inspired them and their own storied chart-topping musical history. This performance was taped live at Lincoln Center in New York. Check local listings for airing dates in your area
