As a long time fan of game shows, I welcome any new offerings in the genre, even if the concept for Hip Hop Squares seems directly ripped off from a series of not-terribly-funny sketches from In Living Color:

MTV’s sibling MTV2 network has greenlighted a reboot of veteran game show Hollywood Squares. Titled Hip Hop Squares, the new show will premiere May 22 and star Nick Cannon; Jackass‘ Bam Margera; Kat Graham; DJ Khaled; rappers Fat Joe, Biz Markie, Ghostface Killah, Mac Miller and MGK; and the Pittsburgh Steelers’ LaMarr Woodley, among others. Radio DJ Peter Rosenberg will host, Nicole Lyn as DJ. “The show will refresh an iconic format and create a fun, dynamic series that’s unpredictable, heavy on personality and much more ‘party’ than ‘game show’,” said Paul Ricci, Head of Programming for MTV2. Hip Hop Squares is under license from CBS Television Distribution, which owns rights to the original.

I welcome Ghostface's appearance anywhere; he really could be the modern Paul Lynde, although I suspect Mr. Mariah Carey will get the center square, regrettably.

Tonight on Arizona Illustrated's Political Roundtable: Pima County Democratic Party Chairman Jeff Rogers and Republican strategist Sam Stone join Arizona Public Media reporter Andrea Kelly and host Jim Nintzel to talk about the politics of healthcare in Arizona, the latest on the U.S. Senate race to replace the retiring Jon Kyl, a proposal to raise bus fares in the city of Tucson, the sorry state of Tucson's streets and the latest at the Arizona Legislature. Tune at 6:30 p.m. on Channel 6!

Old Tucson Studios will be the backdrop for some upcoming episodes of the Food Network's popular show Chopped.

Lauren Mueller, director of public relations for the Food Network and the Cooking Channel, says the taping was for special stunt-themed episodes. She said the episodes are likely to air in late July.

That's all she had for the time being. She said more details will be available sometime in May.

You could be forgiven for forgetting what on earth has happened up to this point on the series Mad Men, which comes back Sunday night with a two hour episode kicking off season five. After all, it has been eighteen months since the last new episode aired. Thankfully, the internet comes through in pop culture emergencies such as this, so you can choose from (at least) two different ways of jogging your memory:

Jezebel runs through the show's history character by major character, which was helpful since I would have been very confused by any future references to Abe Drexler.

OR

New York Magazine goes through each episode in condensed form, giving more extended treatment to the show's ten best episodes.

Or, just read both and regale your friends with your exceptional mastery of the show's backstory. Assuming your friends spend quite a bit of time talking about Mad Men. If that's not the case, perhaps there are better uses of your time.

Tonight on Arizona Illustrated's Political Roundtable: Pima County Democratic Party Chairman Jeff Rogers and Republican strategist Brett Mecum hash out the latest in the GOP primary in the race to complete Gabrielle Giffords' congressional term (including some of Jesse Kelly's eyebrow-raising assertions and Frank Antenori's driving record), talk about the contraception and abortion bills at the Legislature and predict whether Russell Pearce can make a successful comeback.

Here's Arizona Public Media's Congressional District 8 debate, featuring the four Republicans who want to complete Gabrielle Giffords' term: 2010 nominee Jesse Kelly, state Sen. Frank Antenori, marketing businessman and sports broadcaster Dave Sitton and former fighter pilot Martha McSally. (If you want to know more about them, check out this week's feature story.)

I didn't see any game-changers last night. As they have in earlier debates, the candidates essentially agreed with one another one most issues, although McSally and Sitton said they'd still seek earmarks for Southern Arizona, while Antenori and Kelly said they would not. And Kelly is sticking with a double-layer fence along the entire border, while the other three said that it doesn't make sense in areas where the terrain doesn't lend itself to fencing.

I thought the whopper of the night came from Kelly, who declared: "We have more oil in this country than in Saudi Arabia."

If you're going by proven reserves of oil, that's a pretty tall tale. Take a look at this chart from Wikipedia:

• Wikipedia

But Kelly was sticking by his assertion today.

"We have more oil than Saudi Arabia and we should develop it as soon as possible to lower gas prices," Kelly said via email.

Kelly cited a Fox News story that included this assertion:

My colleagues at Arizona Public Media are presenting the first (and perhaps only) televised debate of the Congressional District 8 GOP primary tonight.

Tune in as state Sen. Frank Antenori, Jesse Kelly, Dave Sitton and Martha McSally go head-to-head in the Arizona Illustrated studio from 6 to 7 p.m. on Channel 6.

The winner of the April 17 primary will face Democrat Ron Barber in the June 12 special election that will decide who will finish Gabrielle Giffords' term.

If you want to know more about the candidates, check out this week's feature story in TW.

Tired of having your friends reveal what Omar does at the end of Season 3 of The Wire or exactly who the Final Five are on Battlestar Galactica? Here are the new rules for spoilers.

Pima County Republican Party Chairwoman Carolyn Cox and Pima County Democratic Party Chairman Jeff Rogers debate the issues of the week on tonight's Political Roundtable with Arizona Public Media's Christopher Conover and your host, Jim Nintzel. Among the topics: How the Republican primary in the Congressional District 8 special election to finish Gabrielle Giffords' term is shaping up; why the West University Neighborhood Association is upset with the Tucson City Council over the possibility of high-rise development on the west end of the UA near the Main Gate; and the latest news at the Arizona Legislature, including bills to defund Planned Parenthood, audit the Pima County bond program and more.

This week on Arizona Illustrated's Political Roundtable: Pima County Republican Party Chairwoman Carolyn Cox and Pima County Democratic Party Chairman Jeff Rogers join Arizona Public Media's Christopher Conover and Political Roundtable moderator Jim Nintzel for a discussion of the race to finish Gabrielle Giffords' congressional term, a battle over development near university-area neighborhood and the latest at the Arizona Legislature. Watch it tonight at 6:30 p.m. on Channel 6.