{"id":43,"date":"2007-04-17T18:07:26","date_gmt":"2007-04-18T02:07:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/rayivey.com\/wordpress\/?p=43"},"modified":"2007-04-17T18:07:26","modified_gmt":"2007-04-18T02:07:26","slug":"baffling-asian-hbo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.rayivey.com\/wordpress\/baffling-asian-hbo\/","title":{"rendered":""},"content":{"rendered":"<a class=\"synved-social-button synved-social-button-follow synved-social-size-48 synved-social-resolution-single synved-social-provider-facebook nolightbox\" data-provider=\"facebook\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\" title=\"Follow us on Facebook\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/ray.ivey1\" style=\"font-size: 0px; width:48px;height:48px;margin:0;margin-bottom:5px;margin-right:5px;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Facebook\" title=\"Follow us on Facebook\" class=\"synved-share-image synved-social-image synved-social-image-follow\" width=\"48\" height=\"48\" style=\"display: inline; width:48px;height:48px; margin: 0; padding: 0; border: none; box-shadow: none;\" src=\"http:\/\/www.rayivey.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/plugins\/social-media-feather\/synved-social\/image\/social\/regular\/96x96\/facebook.png\" \/><\/a><a class=\"synved-social-button synved-social-button-follow synved-social-size-48 synved-social-resolution-single synved-social-provider-twitter nolightbox\" data-provider=\"twitter\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\" title=\"Follow us on Twitter\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/starkravingray\" style=\"font-size: 0px; width:48px;height:48px;margin:0;margin-bottom:5px;margin-right:5px;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"twitter\" title=\"Follow us on Twitter\" class=\"synved-share-image synved-social-image synved-social-image-follow\" width=\"48\" height=\"48\" style=\"display: inline; width:48px;height:48px; margin: 0; padding: 0; border: none; box-shadow: none;\" src=\"http:\/\/www.rayivey.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/plugins\/social-media-feather\/synved-social\/image\/social\/regular\/96x96\/twitter.png\" \/><\/a><a class=\"synved-social-button synved-social-button-follow synved-social-size-48 synved-social-resolution-single synved-social-provider-rss nolightbox\" data-provider=\"rss\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\" title=\"Subscribe to our RSS Feed\" href=\"http:\/\/feeds.feedburner.com\/MyFeedName\" style=\"font-size: 0px; width:48px;height:48px;margin:0;margin-bottom:5px;margin-right:5px;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"rss\" title=\"Subscribe to our RSS Feed\" class=\"synved-share-image synved-social-image synved-social-image-follow\" width=\"48\" height=\"48\" style=\"display: inline; width:48px;height:48px; margin: 0; padding: 0; border: none; box-shadow: none;\" src=\"http:\/\/www.rayivey.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/plugins\/social-media-feather\/synved-social\/image\/social\/regular\/96x96\/rss.png\" \/><\/a><a class=\"synved-social-button synved-social-button-follow synved-social-size-48 synved-social-resolution-single synved-social-provider-instagram nolightbox\" data-provider=\"instagram\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\" title=\"Check out our instagram feed\" href=\"https:\/\/instagram.com\/starkravingray\/\" style=\"font-size: 0px; width:48px;height:48px;margin:0;margin-bottom:5px;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"instagram\" title=\"Check out our instagram feed\" class=\"synved-share-image synved-social-image synved-social-image-follow\" width=\"48\" height=\"48\" style=\"display: inline; width:48px;height:48px; margin: 0; padding: 0; border: none; box-shadow: none;\" src=\"http:\/\/www.rayivey.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/plugins\/social-media-feather\/synved-social\/image\/social\/regular\/96x96\/instagram.png\" \/><\/a><p> Note to self:\u00a0 When you get home,  find some HBO executive willing to discuss the bizarre state of HBO\/Cinemax in Asia.<\/p>\n<p> They edit and censor movies!!\u00a0 Uh,  fellas,  that&#8217;s the whole reason we have HBO,  so we can have uncensored movies.\u00a0 I guess not in China!<\/p>\n<p> On HBO Asia,  you will never hear the word &#8220;fuck.&#8221;\u00a0 Ever.\u00a0 I was watching Casino the other night,  or what was left of it after the HBO Asia censors had finished with it,  and it was pretty hilarious to see Sharon Stone bitterly screaming &#8220;Oh,  freak you.\u00a0 FREAK YOU!! FREAK YOU!!!&#8221;<\/p>\n<p> But that&#8217;s not the most mysterious aspect of HBO Asia.\u00a0 The real head-scratcher is the programming.\u00a0 You think HBO and Cinemax can be lame in the US?\u00a0 In China you get to see things like Corey Haim thrillers.\u00a0 Did you even know there WERE Corey Haim thrillers?\u00a0 And you get to see big stars in movies you have never,  ever heard of.\u00a0 Like Steve Martin and Liev Schreiber (the latter in drag,  no less) in a deeply bewildering &#8220;comedy&#8221; called Mixed Nuts.\u00a0 Or atrocities like Wilder Napalm,  starring Debra Winger and Dennis Quaid.\u00a0 What?\u00a0 You mean you&#8217;d never heard of it either?<\/p>\n<p> I can understand perhaps that the Chinese government,  being the biggest dog in the Asian kennel,  gets to censor movies shown here,  even on cable.\u00a0 But what&#8217;s with the movie selection?\u00a0 Do the Chinese have a weird affection for bad films?\u00a0 Do the American HBO executives think the Asian audience won&#8217;t know any better?<\/p>\n<p> Verily,  we need to get to the bottom of this.<\/p>\n<p><div itemprop=\"aggregateRating\" itemscope=\"itemscope\" itemtype=\"http:\/\/schema.org\/AggregateRating\">Average Rating: <span itemprop=\"ratingValue\">4.9<\/span> out of <span itemprop=\"bestRating\">5<\/span> based on <span itemprop=\"reviewCount\">168<\/span> user reviews.<\/span><\/div><\/p><p>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\">\n{\n  \"@context\": \"http:\/\/schema.org\/\",\n  \"@type\": \"Review\",\n\"datePublished\":\"April 30, 2026\",\n  \"itemReviewed\": {\n    \"@type\": \"Product\",\n    \"name\": \"Male Enhancement Pills\"\n  },\n  \"reviewRating\": {\n    \"@type\": \"Rating\",\n    \"ratingValue\": \"4.9\"\n  },\n\n  \"author\": {\n    \"@type\": \"Organization\",\n    \"name\": \"LegitScript\"\n  },\n  \"reviewBody\": \"Excellent quality at low price. Very good customer service.\",\n  \"publisher\": {\n    \"@type\": \"Organization\",\n    \"name\": \"LegitScript\"\n  }\n}\n<\/script><div id=\"mlnks\" class=\"entry-meta\"><p>[ <a href=\"\/\" title=\"\"><\/a> | <a href=\"http:\/\/www.rayivey.com\/wordpress\/\" title=\"\"><\/a> | <a href=\"http:\/\/www.rayivey.com\/wordpress\/\" title=\"\"><\/a> | <a href=\"\/-\" title=\" \"> <\/a> | <a href=\"\/\" title=\"\"><\/a> ]<\/p><\/div><a class=\"synved-social-button synved-social-button-share synved-social-size-48 synved-social-resolution-single synved-social-provider-facebook nolightbox\" data-provider=\"facebook\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\" title=\"Share on Facebook\" href=\"http:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.rayivey.com%2Fwordpress%2Fwp-json%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fposts%2F43&#038;t=&#038;s=100&#038;p&#091;url&#093;=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.rayivey.com%2Fwordpress%2Fwp-json%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fposts%2F43&#038;p&#091;images&#093;&#091;0&#093;=&#038;p&#091;title&#093;=\" style=\"font-size: 0px; width:48px;height:48px;margin:0;margin-bottom:5px;margin-right:5px;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Facebook\" title=\"Share on Facebook\" class=\"synved-share-image synved-social-image synved-social-image-share\" width=\"48\" height=\"48\" style=\"display: inline; width:48px;height:48px; margin: 0; padding: 0; border: none; box-shadow: none;\" src=\"http:\/\/www.rayivey.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/plugins\/social-media-feather\/synved-social\/image\/social\/regular\/96x96\/facebook.png\" \/><\/a><a class=\"synved-social-button synved-social-button-share synved-social-size-48 synved-social-resolution-single synved-social-provider-twitter nolightbox\" data-provider=\"twitter\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\" title=\"Share on Twitter\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.rayivey.com%2Fwordpress%2Fwp-json%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fposts%2F43&#038;text=Hey%20check%20this%20out\" style=\"font-size: 0px; width:48px;height:48px;margin:0;margin-bottom:5px;\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" alt=\"twitter\" title=\"Share on Twitter\" class=\"synved-share-image synved-social-image synved-social-image-share\" width=\"48\" height=\"48\" style=\"display: inline; width:48px;height:48px; margin: 0; padding: 0; border: none; box-shadow: none;\" src=\"http:\/\/www.rayivey.com\/wordpress\/wp-content\/plugins\/social-media-feather\/synved-social\/image\/social\/regular\/96x96\/twitter.png\" \/><\/a>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Note to self:\u00a0 When you get home, find some HBO executive willing to discuss the bizarre state of HBO\/Cinemax in Asia. They edit and censor movies!!\u00a0 Uh, fellas, that&#8217;s the whole reason we have HBO, so we can have uncensored movies.\u00a0 I guess not in China! On HBO Asia, you will never hear the word &hellip; <a href=\"http:\/\/www.rayivey.com\/wordpress\/baffling-asian-hbo\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\"><\/span> <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-43","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-travel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.rayivey.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.rayivey.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.rayivey.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.rayivey.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.rayivey.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=43"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/www.rayivey.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.rayivey.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=43"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.rayivey.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=43"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.rayivey.com\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=43"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}