Sigh...for the past hour I'm been trying to memorize a monologue for my drama class and I've gotten tired of repeating the same thing over and over so for a quick break, I ventured online to my blog to talk about one of my favourite new shows--Life.
Life is just about the most awesome new show of the season. Seriously. Damien Lewis is a fantastic actor who plays a fantastically-written character named Charlie Crews. It's one of the only shows this season that I've actually watched every episode of on the same day it aired (normally I DVR my shows and watch them periodically).
Life, for those of you who are as yet unaware, is about an L.A. cop named Charlie Crews (Damien lewis) who has just been let out of prison after 15 years locked in--it's been proven he didn't commit the triple murder he was convicted of. He's been given a wealthy multi-million-dollar settlement and instead of living the life of leisure and luxury, he's opted to rejoin the L.A.P.D. (Los Angeles Police Department), this time as a detective. The L.A.P.D. aren't so sure they want him back on the force, and Charlie's new partner, Dani Reese (Sarah Shahi) is ordered to keep a watchful eye on him so that they can gain a reason to kick him out. Dani, who was recently suspended after a drug addiction, is reluctant to rat her partner out, and with each episode, becomes more and more attached to Charlie, though she won't admit it.
The major thing that makes this show great, is the character of Charlie Crews himself. Charlie is full of quirks, attitudes and sensitivities, all caused by his fifteen years of being a former cop, stuck in a high-security prison with inmates who hated cops.
The show does have a murder-of-the-week subplot, but there are ongoing story threads as well, namely the one where Charlie digs deeper and deeper to uncover the conspiracy that put him in prison all those years ago. There are also the relationships he develops amongst the people around him, including Dani, his lawyer Constance Griffith (Brooke Langton), his financial manager and former white collar fellow convict Ted Earley (Adam Arkin), his ex-wife, who divorced him after he was convicted of murder, and his former partner, Robert Stark (Brent Sexton).
There is plenty in this show to keep viewers entertained, and if you haven't yet tuned in, do so. It's worth your time, trust me.
Now...back to memorizing my wonderful monologue.
Wednesday, October 24, 2007
Monday, October 22, 2007
My lack of short story ideas and the Viva-less Laughlin
This past week I've struggled with short story ideas. For my short fiction writing class tonight, I was supposed to hand in a short story written in the first person, five to ten pages long, but I failed to produce such a piece of work. I started about ten stories in the past week but I could finish not a one. That's what I'm supposed to be doing now, but the creative girl in me just refuses to surface. I keep drawing blanks...I almost handed in a story I wrote a few months ago but my conscience gave me a kick in the rear so I didn't...this happens to me sometimes. I can go months and months with ideas crawling inside my brain and then WHAM the ideas quit coming. Anyhow...
Viva Laughlin is viva-less. I watched the first episode on Thursday and I have the second one sitting in my DVR but I guess there's no use in watching it as it was cancelled today. Poor Viva Laughlin--it was doomed before it even started. While I admit to loving seeing characters break into song and dance numbers (seriously, I do), Viva Laughlin just didn't gel with me. None of the characters seemed likeable to me and having watched more than my share of 30s and 40s movies (where breaking into song and dance was the norm) I think I'll stick to those as the singing and dancing actually fit. In Viva Laughlin, it all just seemed way too tacky. Goodbye Viva--I won't miss you.
Now back to writing my short story...grrrr.....arghhh....
Viva Laughlin is viva-less. I watched the first episode on Thursday and I have the second one sitting in my DVR but I guess there's no use in watching it as it was cancelled today. Poor Viva Laughlin--it was doomed before it even started. While I admit to loving seeing characters break into song and dance numbers (seriously, I do), Viva Laughlin just didn't gel with me. None of the characters seemed likeable to me and having watched more than my share of 30s and 40s movies (where breaking into song and dance was the norm) I think I'll stick to those as the singing and dancing actually fit. In Viva Laughlin, it all just seemed way too tacky. Goodbye Viva--I won't miss you.
Now back to writing my short story...grrrr.....arghhh....
Friday, October 19, 2007
I hate geology but I like Life With Derek
I just got back from taking my geology midterm. Hours of studying and I thought I had it in the can. I didn't. I failed more than miserably. I'm taking this geology course as one of the science requirements for my Arts degree (damn liberal arts requirement!) and I suck at math and science A LOT. I knew it would be hard but...dangnammit, this is the second test I failed in the class so I guess I have to drop it. I can't afford to risk another F on my transcript. I have two previous failures, both from the cursed Introduction to Statistics class, which I took twice and failed twice (those were previous attempts to satisfy the science requirement). I''m required to complete six credit hours of math or science for my 4-year degree but after five years (I switched my major a few times so I've been at uni longer) I only have three credit hours, a physical geography course I worked my ass off in my second year to get a lowly D. I'd never been more proud to get a D...looks like next term I may have to try biology.
Anyways, let's forget about my insidious geology midterm failure and get to talking about a show I came across a few weeks ago on Family Channel. Yes, you heard me right--I'm actually watching a show that's made on Family Channel. As a rule the shows that come on that channel are corny and bubblegummish but Life With Derek is different. I began watching it at two in the morning at work (I work the night shift). There isn't much on at that time and with only thirty channels I often can't find much to watch. However, I recently discovered reruns of Boy Meets World, an old fave of mine on Family Channel at that time, and after Boy Meets World, Life With Derek came on. I gotta say, I really like it.
The premise of the show is that a single mom with two daughters and a single dad with two sons and one daughter, get married. The mom and daughters move into the dad's house. The mom's oldest daughter, overacheiver Casey (played by the up and coming Ashley Leggat) is about fifteen years old and is none too thrilled about moving to a new home and having to go to a new school. She immediately begins a feud with her new stepbrother Derek (Michael Seater) who is the same age and much more popular than she is (he has a rock band and is the captain of his hockey team). I find the constant battling that ensues between both Casey and Derek extremely entertaining. I also like seeing all the mayhem that develops in Casey and
Derek's new blended family as everyone learns to get along. This show is great, and it's Canadian to boot. What's more, it comes on Family Channel a lot so it's easy to catch up on episodes.
Anyways, let's forget about my insidious geology midterm failure and get to talking about a show I came across a few weeks ago on Family Channel. Yes, you heard me right--I'm actually watching a show that's made on Family Channel. As a rule the shows that come on that channel are corny and bubblegummish but Life With Derek is different. I began watching it at two in the morning at work (I work the night shift). There isn't much on at that time and with only thirty channels I often can't find much to watch. However, I recently discovered reruns of Boy Meets World, an old fave of mine on Family Channel at that time, and after Boy Meets World, Life With Derek came on. I gotta say, I really like it.
The premise of the show is that a single mom with two daughters and a single dad with two sons and one daughter, get married. The mom and daughters move into the dad's house. The mom's oldest daughter, overacheiver Casey (played by the up and coming Ashley Leggat) is about fifteen years old and is none too thrilled about moving to a new home and having to go to a new school. She immediately begins a feud with her new stepbrother Derek (Michael Seater) who is the same age and much more popular than she is (he has a rock band and is the captain of his hockey team). I find the constant battling that ensues between both Casey and Derek extremely entertaining. I also like seeing all the mayhem that develops in Casey and
Derek's new blended family as everyone learns to get along. This show is great, and it's Canadian to boot. What's more, it comes on Family Channel a lot so it's easy to catch up on episodes.
Thursday, October 18, 2007
The top 10 new shows of the fall (in my humble opinion)
Of all the show's that have premiered this fall, these are the ten that I like the most:
- Heartland (It's a rural drama set on a horse ranch, taking place in the Canadian prairies with a good cast and good storylines so I love it.)
- Life (Damian Lewis who plays the lead in this show is phenomenal and so is the character he plays, excellant supporting cast and storylines as well)
- Cane (I love this show because of the ongoing storylines and family dynamics, it's becoming more and more of an addictive show for me. The complex characters and the cast who play them are awesome.)
- Waterloo Road (This British drama is pheomenal. It's such high quality with moving storylines and characters. I urge people who get the chance to watch it to do so.)
- Dirty Sexy Money (A really entertaining show. Donald Sutherland and Peter Krause are awesome in this.)
- Blood Ties (While it doesn't have a big American budget for expensive sets, I find the characters in this show about a private eye and a 400-year-old vampire intriging. I was surprised how much I liked it because before I watched it I thought it would be cliche but it isn't.)
- Samantha Who? (It only debuted a couple days ago, but it started off really strongly. Christina Applegate sure proved herself as a talented actress.)
- Kyle XY (Even though it debuted in the States a couple years ago, it only began airing in Canada this year, and I really like it so far.)
- Bionic Woman (While I think there are plenty of flaws with this show, I have become a regular watcher)
- K-Ville (While it started off great, it's fading. I was hoping for more in the way of ongoing storylines but the show is seeming to go in more of a procedural direction.)
Wednesday, October 17, 2007
Burnt soup & my thoughts on Cane
Yesterday I tuned in happily to see Cane, a show that's quickly becoming a fave of mine this year. I typically gravitate to shows with storylines involving family dynamics and what I really like about Cane is that three generations of the main family on the show--the Ducque family, to be specific--all have major storylines, giving the show a multigenerational appeal. The family dynamic angle is not enough for me to watch a series though, as my detest for Brothers and Sisters and 7th Heaven will prove. A series needs riveting ongoing stories, appealing and well-developed characters and worthwhile settings to make me like it and Cane has all that in full force.
The show revolves (as previously mentioned) around the Cuban-American Ducque family who own a rum and sugar-cane empire near Miami, Florida. The head of the family is Pancho Ducque. His wife is Amalia. They have three natural children named Francisco, Isabel and Henry. Pancho also has an honorary son, Alex Vega, who was taken in by the family as a boy. Alex is married to Isabel and they have three children together named Jaime, Katie and Artie.
The show has an excellent cast playing all these complex characters but because I don't feel like clicking back and forth to read the names on the imdb website to name them here, you can go there yourself.
The show's name comes from the sugar-cane empire that the Ducques own, and is also perhaps a reference to the Cane/Abel story from the Bible in which one brother hates the brother that he thinks his parents love more. In the show's case, middle brother Frank (short for Francisco) is resentful of his father Pancho's decision to make oldest brother Alex the new CEO of the family company, despite the fact that Frank is the natural-born son (Alex is honorarily adopted). Frank is also secretly having an affair with Ellis Samuels, the daughter of the rival enemy sugar-cane family, and she's manipulating him into giving up precious Ducque secrets. The Samuels cause a fair amount of problems for the Ducques, so much so that Alex is forced to hire a hitman to get rid of a man they sent after him. I won't get into the plot because it might give alot away but I urge you to check it out. The show needs better ratings desperately as it's not doing so well in the States. It seems every year the shows I like most get cancelled early. I'm hoping this won't be the case with Cane.
I like Cane so much, that yesterday when I was watching it on my TV, I was so into it that I forgot all about the tomato macaroni soup I had cooking on the stove. It burnt BADLY. The pot it was in is beyond washing. It's in the garbage bin beside my apartment building now. My apartment smells horribly of burnt tomatoes. But watching Cane was worth it. Honestly.
The show revolves (as previously mentioned) around the Cuban-American Ducque family who own a rum and sugar-cane empire near Miami, Florida. The head of the family is Pancho Ducque. His wife is Amalia. They have three natural children named Francisco, Isabel and Henry. Pancho also has an honorary son, Alex Vega, who was taken in by the family as a boy. Alex is married to Isabel and they have three children together named Jaime, Katie and Artie.
The show has an excellent cast playing all these complex characters but because I don't feel like clicking back and forth to read the names on the imdb website to name them here, you can go there yourself.
The show's name comes from the sugar-cane empire that the Ducques own, and is also perhaps a reference to the Cane/Abel story from the Bible in which one brother hates the brother that he thinks his parents love more. In the show's case, middle brother Frank (short for Francisco) is resentful of his father Pancho's decision to make oldest brother Alex the new CEO of the family company, despite the fact that Frank is the natural-born son (Alex is honorarily adopted). Frank is also secretly having an affair with Ellis Samuels, the daughter of the rival enemy sugar-cane family, and she's manipulating him into giving up precious Ducque secrets. The Samuels cause a fair amount of problems for the Ducques, so much so that Alex is forced to hire a hitman to get rid of a man they sent after him. I won't get into the plot because it might give alot away but I urge you to check it out. The show needs better ratings desperately as it's not doing so well in the States. It seems every year the shows I like most get cancelled early. I'm hoping this won't be the case with Cane.
I like Cane so much, that yesterday when I was watching it on my TV, I was so into it that I forgot all about the tomato macaroni soup I had cooking on the stove. It burnt BADLY. The pot it was in is beyond washing. It's in the garbage bin beside my apartment building now. My apartment smells horribly of burnt tomatoes. But watching Cane was worth it. Honestly.
Monday, October 15, 2007
Show Review - Life Is Wild
So far, I've seen two episodes of Life Is Wild, a new show which debuted on the CW network in the States last Sunday. I found the show good and bad on several levels. I had high expectations but maybe I shouldn't have. It really wasn't that good.
The show is about a New York blended family who move to South Africa so the dad can start a vetrinary practice there. This is actually an American version of the British drama Wild At Heart, which, from what I can gather of the small amount of clips I've seen of it, is much better in quality then Life Is Wild. I just wish Wild At Heart would air on BBC Canada so I can watch that instead...
I loved the South African setting, and love the fact that the show is trying to explore issues unique to South Africa. I also loved a few of the storylines BUT there are a few major annoyances which I can't ignore. The biggest one is the lead actress in the show, Leah Pipes, who I find completely and utterly wrong for the role she's portraying--that of 16-year-old teenager Katie Clarke. I find Pipes extremely annoying and though I like enough about the show itself, with Katie as the main character, it is incredibly hard to ignore her. Now normally I don't like to criticize an actor so harshly, but sheesh, the girl needs to quiet down in her acting. She speaks too loudly and emphasizes her words too much. Perhaps it's only a result of nervousness or the awkwardness that occurs in the first few episodes of a new series, but I really am finding it hard to enjoy it with her in it.
Another thing that annoys me is something that I guess comes as a result of not being American. The American characters in the show come across as ethnocentric and naieve to other cultures. They unabashedly insult South African people by insulting their culture, without realizing they are doing so. They appear so uneducated about the outside world that it amazes me. I don't think that was the intention of the writers at all but I can clearly see it with non-American eyes. The stupidity of some of the characters frustrates me. The teenage boy goes skateboarding in the bush while there's an injured lioness on the the loose nearby. Another character takes a lion cub for a walk. Katie accepts a ride from complete strangers at a gas station. Watching some of the actions of these characters makes me want to bang my head against the wall. Yet I will stay watching. As I said earlier, the unique setting and storylines are enough for me to keep watching--for now.
The show is about a New York blended family who move to South Africa so the dad can start a vetrinary practice there. This is actually an American version of the British drama Wild At Heart, which, from what I can gather of the small amount of clips I've seen of it, is much better in quality then Life Is Wild. I just wish Wild At Heart would air on BBC Canada so I can watch that instead...
I loved the South African setting, and love the fact that the show is trying to explore issues unique to South Africa. I also loved a few of the storylines BUT there are a few major annoyances which I can't ignore. The biggest one is the lead actress in the show, Leah Pipes, who I find completely and utterly wrong for the role she's portraying--that of 16-year-old teenager Katie Clarke. I find Pipes extremely annoying and though I like enough about the show itself, with Katie as the main character, it is incredibly hard to ignore her. Now normally I don't like to criticize an actor so harshly, but sheesh, the girl needs to quiet down in her acting. She speaks too loudly and emphasizes her words too much. Perhaps it's only a result of nervousness or the awkwardness that occurs in the first few episodes of a new series, but I really am finding it hard to enjoy it with her in it.
Another thing that annoys me is something that I guess comes as a result of not being American. The American characters in the show come across as ethnocentric and naieve to other cultures. They unabashedly insult South African people by insulting their culture, without realizing they are doing so. They appear so uneducated about the outside world that it amazes me. I don't think that was the intention of the writers at all but I can clearly see it with non-American eyes. The stupidity of some of the characters frustrates me. The teenage boy goes skateboarding in the bush while there's an injured lioness on the the loose nearby. Another character takes a lion cub for a walk. Katie accepts a ride from complete strangers at a gas station. Watching some of the actions of these characters makes me want to bang my head against the wall. Yet I will stay watching. As I said earlier, the unique setting and storylines are enough for me to keep watching--for now.
Sunday, October 14, 2007
Show Review - Heartland
[aired Oct. 14, 2007 on CBC]
Well, this show just went down as my favourite new show of the year. I love almost everything about it. The sibling dynamics, the horses, the drama and the prairies all work to together to make Heartland the best show CBC has had in years.
Not all shows have to be dark and edgy to be good. Nor do they have to have gratuitous violence and sex to be entertaining. I miss good wholesome family dramas. Give me the early 90s with shows like Dr. Quinn and Road to Avonlea any day.
The characters are well-written and the actors who play them are incredibly well-cast. Sure, there were a few awkward scenes, but that's to be expected with a new series (I've watched enough pilot episodes in my time to know that).
Heartland takes place on a ranch at the edge of the prairies, right near the Alberta foothills and revolves around two sisters, Lou (Michelle Morgan) and Amy (Amber Marshall) and their grandpa Jack (Shaun Johnston), after the death of the girls' mother and Jack's daughter. Lou is in her 20s and has lived in the big city for years, but she returns home for her mother's funeral. Amy, only 16, still lives on Heartland and is left badly injured in the same accident that killed her mother. Both girls don't get along at all and Jack is left to act as the peacemaker. Lou eventually decides to stay after realizing the ranch needs her in order to bring it out of debt. Also starring in the show are Nathaniel Arcand, Graham Wardle, Aedan Tomney, Jessica Amlee, Chris Potter, Wanda Cannon and Cindy Busby. This large ensemble cast gives the show plenty of complexly intriguing characters well worth tuning into the show for.
Well, this show just went down as my favourite new show of the year. I love almost everything about it. The sibling dynamics, the horses, the drama and the prairies all work to together to make Heartland the best show CBC has had in years.
Not all shows have to be dark and edgy to be good. Nor do they have to have gratuitous violence and sex to be entertaining. I miss good wholesome family dramas. Give me the early 90s with shows like Dr. Quinn and Road to Avonlea any day.
The characters are well-written and the actors who play them are incredibly well-cast. Sure, there were a few awkward scenes, but that's to be expected with a new series (I've watched enough pilot episodes in my time to know that).
Heartland takes place on a ranch at the edge of the prairies, right near the Alberta foothills and revolves around two sisters, Lou (Michelle Morgan) and Amy (Amber Marshall) and their grandpa Jack (Shaun Johnston), after the death of the girls' mother and Jack's daughter. Lou is in her 20s and has lived in the big city for years, but she returns home for her mother's funeral. Amy, only 16, still lives on Heartland and is left badly injured in the same accident that killed her mother. Both girls don't get along at all and Jack is left to act as the peacemaker. Lou eventually decides to stay after realizing the ranch needs her in order to bring it out of debt. Also starring in the show are Nathaniel Arcand, Graham Wardle, Aedan Tomney, Jessica Amlee, Chris Potter, Wanda Cannon and Cindy Busby. This large ensemble cast gives the show plenty of complexly intriguing characters well worth tuning into the show for.
Wednesday, October 3, 2007
Show Review - Whistler
[aired Sep. 29 on CTV]
It's been forever since the first season of Whistler ended its run on CTV (actually, it was 12 months) and FINALLY the first episode of the second season aired on Saturday. There were some developments that I didn't like--I absolutely hated that they killed off Ethan (I understand that the actor Nick Lea left, but still--couldn't they have just said he'd left town?) and I hated that Carrie lost the baby (I would have loved it if Carrie had Beck's baby--would have left so many storylines, including a reason for Beck's ghost to stick around). However, that all being said, this episode was awesome. I am so thrilled that the show decided to take advantage of its Whistler setting alot more than it did in its first season. This season looks like it'll feature a ton of snowboarding-related storylines and there's many new characters who are part of Whistler's snowboarding world.
The main story in this episode has Quinn, the main character, returning home to Whistler after many months at university in the States for the commemoration of a training facility named in honour of his dead brother, and Olympic snowboarding champion, Beck Mackaye. He reunites with Carrie, his ex-girlfriend (and also Beck's ex as well) and after they share a passionate night together, he rethinks going back to school, deciding, after a snowboard run on the mountain, to stay in Whistler.
Twelve months of waiting anxiously for Whistler to return my TV screen was worth it.
It's been forever since the first season of Whistler ended its run on CTV (actually, it was 12 months) and FINALLY the first episode of the second season aired on Saturday. There were some developments that I didn't like--I absolutely hated that they killed off Ethan (I understand that the actor Nick Lea left, but still--couldn't they have just said he'd left town?) and I hated that Carrie lost the baby (I would have loved it if Carrie had Beck's baby--would have left so many storylines, including a reason for Beck's ghost to stick around). However, that all being said, this episode was awesome. I am so thrilled that the show decided to take advantage of its Whistler setting alot more than it did in its first season. This season looks like it'll feature a ton of snowboarding-related storylines and there's many new characters who are part of Whistler's snowboarding world.
The main story in this episode has Quinn, the main character, returning home to Whistler after many months at university in the States for the commemoration of a training facility named in honour of his dead brother, and Olympic snowboarding champion, Beck Mackaye. He reunites with Carrie, his ex-girlfriend (and also Beck's ex as well) and after they share a passionate night together, he rethinks going back to school, deciding, after a snowboard run on the mountain, to stay in Whistler.
Twelve months of waiting anxiously for Whistler to return my TV screen was worth it.
Commentary - ratings for Rick Mercer Report and The Tudors
Well, I just saw an article which announced that Rick Mercer Report and The Tudors, two shows which premiered on CBC last evening, both got nearly one million viewers. That's fantastic news. I guess all of CBC's promotions paid off. I actually enjoyed The Tudors very much, history buff that I am (even though I realize some of the historical facts on the show are slightly skewed) and am happy that it got so many viewers, especially since it's a quasi-Canadian production (sort of). It brings more viewers to CBC, and that makes me happy because CBC, unlike CTV or Global, produces much more Canadian content (as they should) and more viewers for one show means more viewers who see the promos for other shows on the pubcaster. As for Rick Mercer Report, I really think the guy is a genius. One of my tiffs with other personalities on Canadian TV, is that they fail to truly grasp the regional identity of this country (ie. the east/west divide and diversity) but Rick Mercer appeals to the whole country, be it north, south, east or west. His is a truly national show in focus, and he is really good at diving into the grey areas of national politics and opinions. I've been a fan of him through his ventures in This Hour Has 22 Minutes, Made In Canada, Monday Night Report and now this, the Rick Mercer Report. I will admit to not having watched his show yesterday, but I had a good excuse--I had a class (Shakespeare) so wasn't home. I got home in time to watch The Tudors and Rick Mercer is sitting contentedly in my DVR. I will watch him after I get off my computer. For the article that I got the info on the ratings for the two above shows, visit Channel Canada at the following link:
http://www.channelcanada.com/Article2013.html
http://www.channelcanada.com/Article2013.html
Monday, October 1, 2007
My take on last week's ratings
Well, last week's ratings, published today, basically outlined the state of Canadian television in a nutshell--American-dominated. Only five Canadian-produced shows made it into the top 30, and four of those were newscasts. Only one was a scripted series--the past hit Corner Gas, which, disappointedly, dipped below the million-viewer mark for the first time in it's history (that's counting first-run episodes only). That may be attributed to the fact that the show's timeslot was changed to Mondays at 9:30pm ET (8:30pm CT) where it is now up against big shows including Heroes and K-Ville (and soon, also, Samantha Who? and Intelligence). Plus it's later in the evening, so that may account for some loss in ratings too. I'm not too upset though--Corner Gas is a show that I can take or leave. I've never quite gotten into it. It'll be interesting to see, though, since most Canuck sitcoms and dramas begin airing in the next few weeks, how those shows will do. Maybe there'll be a few more Canadian shows which make the Top 30.
As I said, the shows that made the Top 30, were, with the exception of the aforementioned one sitcom and four newscasts, all American. I'm actually fairly disapointed in the ratings of the American shows as well. Out of all 25 of them, I actually only took the time to watch two of them--Prison Break and Back To You, the former which was awesome, the latter one which I actually hated and won't watch again. The cursed CSIs took four spots (#4, #11, #20 and #21) and the boring Law & Orders took four spots as well (#10, #12, #13 and #17) although I admit, I have the SVU premiere saved on my DVR for viewing as I want to check out Adam Beach in his new role. I also have the #26 show, Desperate Housewives, saved on my DVR to watch too, although I'm not so sure I care to see it. That leaves fourteen shows that made the charts that I haven't mentioned, none of which I care enough about to do so.
As I said, the shows that made the Top 30, were, with the exception of the aforementioned one sitcom and four newscasts, all American. I'm actually fairly disapointed in the ratings of the American shows as well. Out of all 25 of them, I actually only took the time to watch two of them--Prison Break and Back To You, the former which was awesome, the latter one which I actually hated and won't watch again. The cursed CSIs took four spots (#4, #11, #20 and #21) and the boring Law & Orders took four spots as well (#10, #12, #13 and #17) although I admit, I have the SVU premiere saved on my DVR for viewing as I want to check out Adam Beach in his new role. I also have the #26 show, Desperate Housewives, saved on my DVR to watch too, although I'm not so sure I care to see it. That leaves fourteen shows that made the charts that I haven't mentioned, none of which I care enough about to do so.
Sunday, September 30, 2007
Show Review - Las Vegas
Las Vegas definitely earns my title of the best "comeback show" of the season. Last year, it was learned James Caan, the awesome actor who played the most awesome character on the show--Ed Deline--for the first four seasons, wouldn't be back for a fifth one. Fans of the show gasped in horror, believing without question that the show would flounder and fail. James Caan, after all, left big shoes to fill and the writers couldn't possibly write in a good enough new character to replace him, could they?
Its fifth season premiere proved the show won't sink like many viewers expect it to, at least if you go by the show's storylines and characters themselves. Tom Selleck, the big name actor who was brought in this year to replace James Caan, proves to be a fantastic addition to the cast. His character, slightly unpredictable A.J. Cooper, is intriguing and brings a real freshness to this show.
Last year, I only watched the occasional episode, but this year, so far, I intend on watching every episode.
Its fifth season premiere proved the show won't sink like many viewers expect it to, at least if you go by the show's storylines and characters themselves. Tom Selleck, the big name actor who was brought in this year to replace James Caan, proves to be a fantastic addition to the cast. His character, slightly unpredictable A.J. Cooper, is intriguing and brings a real freshness to this show.
Last year, I only watched the occasional episode, but this year, so far, I intend on watching every episode.
Monday, September 24, 2007
My take on last week's ratings
[based on BBM ratings for Sep. 10-16]
Canadian Idol's performance show on Monday and results show on Tuesday got the highest national ratings with both garnering over 2 million viewers each. I watched both shows so I guess that means I'm on that bandwagon. It's a really entertaining show, plus it was one of the only good shows to watch this summer. This season came to a good conclusion, though I will say it won't go down as one of my favourite seasons, as I've liked previous seasons much more.
The Emmy awards came in third place with 1.6 million viewers. I never bothered to watch this year. None of the shows I like ever get nominated so I don't see much of a point. Besides, the shows that do get nominated are all from HBO, which we don't get in Canada until long after they premiere, so when they finally do air up here, we're at least a season behind. Another thing I don't like about the Emmys, is all the focus on fashion. I couldn't care less what so-and-so is wearing.
The CTV Evening News got fourth place with 1.4 million viewers. Personally, I like CBC news better, although I admit I don't really even watch the evening news. I get most of my news from Canoe.ca, which happens to be my Internet homepage.
In fifth place is that danged C.S.I. Miami with over 1.3 million viewers. I loathe all the C.S.I.s. I'm not a fan of procedural dramas. Shows with ongoing storylines and a focus on character development are more to my liking. A couple of my friends are avid C.S.I. watchers. I've been made to watch it at their insistence. I find the writing poor, with little or no character development at all. I can't figure out why the C.S.I.s continue to garner such high ratings. I guess any joe schmoe can pick up watching it and understand what's going on. It's really not that complex. It's dumb and I wish there weren't three whole C.S.I. shows on the air. The reruns are on several channels at several times of the day. Please people--enough with the C.S.I.s!!!
In sixth place with just under 1.3 million viewers is Law & Order: SVU. I don't watch any of the Law & Orders (there's three of those as well). Again, I'm not a fan of the procedurals...
In seventh place with 1.25 million viewers is the despised Big Brother, a reality show that earns much vehemence from me. I am NOT a fan of Big Brother. I can't understand what's so appealing about watching grown adults walking around a house acting like they're in junior high, starting cliques and holding popularity contests then voting the person they don't like out of the house. Puh-Lease.
In eighth place is Jeopardy and Access Hollywood (since they combine to make an hour of programming, they're counted as one show in the ratings scheme). I actually like Jeopardy, watched it steadfastly as a kid but rarely watch it now but I won't watch Access Hollywood--should I honestly care if Paris Hilton is going to jail for four and a half minutes again?
Corner Gas takes the ninth place spot with a little over one million viewers, not bad considering it was a repeat. Sometimes I watch Corner Gas and sometimes I don't. It's one of those shows I could take or leave.
And finally in tenth spot with just under a million viewers is Criminal Minds, a show I have never watched, and do not plan to watch in the future.
Canadian Idol's performance show on Monday and results show on Tuesday got the highest national ratings with both garnering over 2 million viewers each. I watched both shows so I guess that means I'm on that bandwagon. It's a really entertaining show, plus it was one of the only good shows to watch this summer. This season came to a good conclusion, though I will say it won't go down as one of my favourite seasons, as I've liked previous seasons much more.
The Emmy awards came in third place with 1.6 million viewers. I never bothered to watch this year. None of the shows I like ever get nominated so I don't see much of a point. Besides, the shows that do get nominated are all from HBO, which we don't get in Canada until long after they premiere, so when they finally do air up here, we're at least a season behind. Another thing I don't like about the Emmys, is all the focus on fashion. I couldn't care less what so-and-so is wearing.
The CTV Evening News got fourth place with 1.4 million viewers. Personally, I like CBC news better, although I admit I don't really even watch the evening news. I get most of my news from Canoe.ca, which happens to be my Internet homepage.
In fifth place is that danged C.S.I. Miami with over 1.3 million viewers. I loathe all the C.S.I.s. I'm not a fan of procedural dramas. Shows with ongoing storylines and a focus on character development are more to my liking. A couple of my friends are avid C.S.I. watchers. I've been made to watch it at their insistence. I find the writing poor, with little or no character development at all. I can't figure out why the C.S.I.s continue to garner such high ratings. I guess any joe schmoe can pick up watching it and understand what's going on. It's really not that complex. It's dumb and I wish there weren't three whole C.S.I. shows on the air. The reruns are on several channels at several times of the day. Please people--enough with the C.S.I.s!!!
In sixth place with just under 1.3 million viewers is Law & Order: SVU. I don't watch any of the Law & Orders (there's three of those as well). Again, I'm not a fan of the procedurals...
In seventh place with 1.25 million viewers is the despised Big Brother, a reality show that earns much vehemence from me. I am NOT a fan of Big Brother. I can't understand what's so appealing about watching grown adults walking around a house acting like they're in junior high, starting cliques and holding popularity contests then voting the person they don't like out of the house. Puh-Lease.
In eighth place is Jeopardy and Access Hollywood (since they combine to make an hour of programming, they're counted as one show in the ratings scheme). I actually like Jeopardy, watched it steadfastly as a kid but rarely watch it now but I won't watch Access Hollywood--should I honestly care if Paris Hilton is going to jail for four and a half minutes again?
Corner Gas takes the ninth place spot with a little over one million viewers, not bad considering it was a repeat. Sometimes I watch Corner Gas and sometimes I don't. It's one of those shows I could take or leave.
And finally in tenth spot with just under a million viewers is Criminal Minds, a show I have never watched, and do not plan to watch in the future.
Sunday, September 23, 2007
Show review - Grand Star
[pilot episode aired Sep. 22 on Space TV]
Sigh...this show really wasn't worth my time. The premise (the one I read prior to watching) seemed like it had possibilities for success, but really, I just didn't get it...so glad it was only a half hour show.
This is one of those sci-fi shows, set years in the future with weird props (reminicent of oldschool Star Trek backdrops), weird technology, weird buildings, and weird characters. The main storyline involves a young man (played by Kyle Labine, the brother of the more well-known Tyler Labine) who accidentally sees the sun, but never having seen the sun, has no idea what it is. All he knows is that he had better keep his discovery a secret since the two people who saw it and bragged about it, end up mysteriously dead, probably the misfortunate victims of the government who want the sun to remain a secret for some reason which I don't even care to know about.
I admit that I'm not a sci-fi junkie to begin with but just the same, there have been several sci-fi shows which have managed to gain my liking. Grand Star just isn't one of them.
Sigh...this show really wasn't worth my time. The premise (the one I read prior to watching) seemed like it had possibilities for success, but really, I just didn't get it...so glad it was only a half hour show.
This is one of those sci-fi shows, set years in the future with weird props (reminicent of oldschool Star Trek backdrops), weird technology, weird buildings, and weird characters. The main storyline involves a young man (played by Kyle Labine, the brother of the more well-known Tyler Labine) who accidentally sees the sun, but never having seen the sun, has no idea what it is. All he knows is that he had better keep his discovery a secret since the two people who saw it and bragged about it, end up mysteriously dead, probably the misfortunate victims of the government who want the sun to remain a secret for some reason which I don't even care to know about.
I admit that I'm not a sci-fi junkie to begin with but just the same, there have been several sci-fi shows which have managed to gain my liking. Grand Star just isn't one of them.
Saturday, September 22, 2007
My thoughts on City TV's new season's shows
Originally, earlier this year, I was pleasantly surprised at the amount of Canuck shows planned to air on City TV's stations for the 2007-2008 season but since City TV was recently purchased by Rogers Media the smallest Canadian network's schedule has changed slightly. CTV Globemedia, which temporaily held options on all City TV's shows after taking over CHUM Media, kept some of the shows, while passing on a few others to Rogers. Shows originally planned for City TV's 2007-2008 season were Across the River to Motor City, Blood Ties, Murdoch Mysteries, The Bridge, Terminal City, Less Than Kind and Grand Star.
Across the River to Motor City is, at least from what I can gather from the vague info I've found online, is the story of a father and daughter at two different times in history--the present year and 1963. The show is also set in Detroit and Windsor, two cities across the Canadian-American border from each other. It is the story of murder, mystery and conspiracy. To me it seems exceptionally complex but the critics have praised it so I definitely intend to check it out when it debutes November 19th.
Blood Ties is the real diamond in the rough for this TV season. It debuted early in August and from the handful of episodes I've seen, I've been thoroughly impressed with the writing. The show isn't flashy or expensive-looking but the characters are exceptionally intriguing and it's a show I plan on watching for a long time to come. The show's main characters are Vicki, a private investigator, Mike, her former partner from her days as a police detective and Henry Fitzroy, a 500-year-old vampire. Put the three together and you have an amazing show.
Murdoch Mysteries is a show which was scheduled to debute on City TV this fall, but since CTV Globemedia retained the rights of it when it bought out CHUM, the show is in a bit of a limbo. It's scheduled to air on CTV Globemedia's specialty channel Bravo sometime in 2008 but no word yet if it's gonna end up on the big network itself. Hopefully it will because from what I hear, it'll be good and it deserves all the exposure it gets rather than getting burnt off on a channel not very many people watch. The show, by the way, is about a detective in Victorian-era Toronto (late 1800s for those who aren't history know-it-alls) who solves a variety of mysteries of the supernatural sort. There's something refreshing about watching a mystery series set in a time before the internet and cell phones existed--it feels more mysterious if you ask me.
The Bridge is a cop drama set in Toronto. That's all I know about it. It's set to air in 2008.
Terminal City is a ten-part miniseries which originally aired on Movie Central last year. It garnered a few awards and the critics loved it. It's about a woman who becomes terminally ill with breast cancer who hosts her own reality show. I will give this show a chance as breast cancer has hit my family in the past and I am interested to see how this show deals with the real issues. It debuts September 10th.
Less Than Kind is a quirky comedy set in Winnipeg. It's main character is a teenager whose family runs a failing driving school. I'm definitely gonna watch it when it airs in 2008 as I lived in Winnipeg two years and it'll be interesting to see if I recognize anything in the background.
Grand Star is a show with scarcely any info available. From what I can gather (please feel free to reply with a correction if I'm wrong) the original title of this series was Ice Planet. It's a sci-fi show which takes place far into the future on earth where an ice age has encased the planet after the explosion of nuclear waste on the moon. Yes, you've heard me right. I may or may not let curiosity get the best of me and watch it when it airs September 22nd on Space TV. It will not be airing on City TV as was originally fortold.
Across the River to Motor City is, at least from what I can gather from the vague info I've found online, is the story of a father and daughter at two different times in history--the present year and 1963. The show is also set in Detroit and Windsor, two cities across the Canadian-American border from each other. It is the story of murder, mystery and conspiracy. To me it seems exceptionally complex but the critics have praised it so I definitely intend to check it out when it debutes November 19th.
Blood Ties is the real diamond in the rough for this TV season. It debuted early in August and from the handful of episodes I've seen, I've been thoroughly impressed with the writing. The show isn't flashy or expensive-looking but the characters are exceptionally intriguing and it's a show I plan on watching for a long time to come. The show's main characters are Vicki, a private investigator, Mike, her former partner from her days as a police detective and Henry Fitzroy, a 500-year-old vampire. Put the three together and you have an amazing show.
Murdoch Mysteries is a show which was scheduled to debute on City TV this fall, but since CTV Globemedia retained the rights of it when it bought out CHUM, the show is in a bit of a limbo. It's scheduled to air on CTV Globemedia's specialty channel Bravo sometime in 2008 but no word yet if it's gonna end up on the big network itself. Hopefully it will because from what I hear, it'll be good and it deserves all the exposure it gets rather than getting burnt off on a channel not very many people watch. The show, by the way, is about a detective in Victorian-era Toronto (late 1800s for those who aren't history know-it-alls) who solves a variety of mysteries of the supernatural sort. There's something refreshing about watching a mystery series set in a time before the internet and cell phones existed--it feels more mysterious if you ask me.
The Bridge is a cop drama set in Toronto. That's all I know about it. It's set to air in 2008.
Terminal City is a ten-part miniseries which originally aired on Movie Central last year. It garnered a few awards and the critics loved it. It's about a woman who becomes terminally ill with breast cancer who hosts her own reality show. I will give this show a chance as breast cancer has hit my family in the past and I am interested to see how this show deals with the real issues. It debuts September 10th.
Less Than Kind is a quirky comedy set in Winnipeg. It's main character is a teenager whose family runs a failing driving school. I'm definitely gonna watch it when it airs in 2008 as I lived in Winnipeg two years and it'll be interesting to see if I recognize anything in the background.
Grand Star is a show with scarcely any info available. From what I can gather (please feel free to reply with a correction if I'm wrong) the original title of this series was Ice Planet. It's a sci-fi show which takes place far into the future on earth where an ice age has encased the planet after the explosion of nuclear waste on the moon. Yes, you've heard me right. I may or may not let curiosity get the best of me and watch it when it airs September 22nd on Space TV. It will not be airing on City TV as was originally fortold.
Friday, September 21, 2007
Looking back at Road to Avonlea
In my previous post, I mentioned the long-running 90s show, Road to Avonlea, a Canadian-made hour-long drama. I loved Road to Avonlea. It was exported worldwide but in some countries, including the States, it was just called Avonlea. The show was based on the book The Story Girl by L.M. Montgomery initially but original storylines were written following the first season. The show lasted 7 seasons! It was watched by an average of 3 million Canucks every episode! The only other Canadian show to get that high of average ratings is Hockey Night In Canada! The show starred Sarah Polley, Gemma Zaprongna, Michael Mahonen, Zachary Bennett and a bunch of others. It was really well-written. After Road to Avonlea ended in 1996, the producers wanted to shoot a series with another one of L.M. Montgomery's books so they produced Emily of New Moon which lasted for 4 seasons. It ended in 2000. After it ended, the Canadian Television Fund was cut in half so CBC had to scrap alot of their shows.
It's a shame because dramas used to be so good. I have high hopes though, that with this new leaf CBC seems to be turning over, in terms of bringing back dramas to the network,
that we once again get good quality Canadian-made drama series again.
It's a shame because dramas used to be so good. I have high hopes though, that with this new leaf CBC seems to be turning over, in terms of bringing back dramas to the network,
that we once again get good quality Canadian-made drama series again.
My complaint about the lack of Canadian hour-long dramas
What irks me is that in the current television season--the fall of 2007--there are very few new episodes of Canadian dramas set to air. And by dramas, I mean hour-long scripted series ( I don't count sitcoms and reality shows as "drama" like the Cancon execs whose job it is to ensure homegrown drama makes the networks' schedules do). From the four major networks, there are only five Canadian hour-long dramas set to air. CBC is going to be airing the first season of its new family drama Heartland and the second season of its crime world drama Intelligence. City TV is going to be airing its new shows Across the River to Motor City and Blood Ties (which also aired this summer in the States with a successful run). CTV is going to air its second season of the ski resort mystery series Whistler. Global TV is the only network without an hour-long drama on its fall docket--I wonder how that got past the Cancon regulators...
So, my point, of course, is that while, if you go by ratings, it is the hour-long dramas which garner the best ratings on both sides of the border, Canadian networks scarcely produce any. Canada did, during the 90s, have several successful hour-long dramas of its own. Shows such as Street Legal, North of 60, Traders, Neon Rider and Road to Avonlea got well over a million viewers per episode. So what the hell happened to make networks think producing drama was a waste of time? Sure, hour-long dramas cost more money to make than sitcoms and reality shows, but really, the hour-long dramas bring in better advertising revenue, don't they? Someone please explain this to me!
So, my point, of course, is that while, if you go by ratings, it is the hour-long dramas which garner the best ratings on both sides of the border, Canadian networks scarcely produce any. Canada did, during the 90s, have several successful hour-long dramas of its own. Shows such as Street Legal, North of 60, Traders, Neon Rider and Road to Avonlea got well over a million viewers per episode. So what the hell happened to make networks think producing drama was a waste of time? Sure, hour-long dramas cost more money to make than sitcoms and reality shows, but really, the hour-long dramas bring in better advertising revenue, don't they? Someone please explain this to me!
Thursday, September 20, 2007
Show Review - Back To You
[pilot episode aired Sep. 19 on Global TV]
First of all, I will admit to not having high expectations for this show. I'm not big on this type of sitcom and I was never a fan of either Frasier or Everyone Loves Raymond, the two shows which Kelsey Grammar and Patricia Heaton, the two stars of Back To You, each respectively starred in. I expected to be bored, but I watched it anyway. And I was bored, all the jokes were corny and the storyline was predictable. This is one situation comedy that I won't be watching in the future.
The show is about a news anchor named Chuck Darling (Kelsey Grammar) who returns to the news station he worked at in the 90s after he is fired from a national newscast for an incident that appears relentlessly on YouTube. His new co-anchor, Kelly Carr (Patricia Heaton) is also his old co-anchor from his old days at the station, and is anything but thrilled at his return. Yada yada...I couldn't care less. I'm not surprised that I hated it.
So you ask, why did I watch it to begin with? Well...just to give me leverage when I insult it while having conversations about the show with other people. They'll ask me if I've even seen an episode of the show, and I can say "Yeah, sure I did, I gave it a chance and it sucked." This is a boring predictable typical sitcom, the type American networks have been spinning this past decade. Give me a good 80s or early 90s sitcom any day...
First of all, I will admit to not having high expectations for this show. I'm not big on this type of sitcom and I was never a fan of either Frasier or Everyone Loves Raymond, the two shows which Kelsey Grammar and Patricia Heaton, the two stars of Back To You, each respectively starred in. I expected to be bored, but I watched it anyway. And I was bored, all the jokes were corny and the storyline was predictable. This is one situation comedy that I won't be watching in the future.
The show is about a news anchor named Chuck Darling (Kelsey Grammar) who returns to the news station he worked at in the 90s after he is fired from a national newscast for an incident that appears relentlessly on YouTube. His new co-anchor, Kelly Carr (Patricia Heaton) is also his old co-anchor from his old days at the station, and is anything but thrilled at his return. Yada yada...I couldn't care less. I'm not surprised that I hated it.
So you ask, why did I watch it to begin with? Well...just to give me leverage when I insult it while having conversations about the show with other people. They'll ask me if I've even seen an episode of the show, and I can say "Yeah, sure I did, I gave it a chance and it sucked." This is a boring predictable typical sitcom, the type American networks have been spinning this past decade. Give me a good 80s or early 90s sitcom any day...
Show Review - St. Urbain's Horseman
[part 1 of a two-part miniseries, aired Sep. 19 on CBC]
You may or may not recognize the title of this one. St. Urbain's Horseman is an adaptation of a novel of the same name by acclaimed Canadian novelist, essayist and screenwriter, Mordecai Richler. The novel won the Governor General's literary award way back in 1972 (that's eleven years before I was born just so you know).
Having only seen the first part, I can't give an overall opinion on the miniseries yet, but so far so good. I've never read the book, but after watching this, maybe I will. It's set in several places, but the main settings are in Montreal and London (England). The story centres around the life of a Jewish young man named Jacob Hersh (played exceptionally well by David Julian Hirsh) as he rises to prominence as an established television director. The title character, "St. Urbain's Horseman" refers to his cousin named Joey Hersh, who in more ways then one, causes problems for Jacob over the course of his life. While everyone else sees Joey for who he is--a conniving scoundrel--Jacob continues to idolize Joey, an adoration which started when he was was a kid.
I have mixed feelings about watching miniseries'. I hate to see stories come to an end. I become attached to characters then bam, the story's over. That's the case with St. Urbain's Horseman--I'm getting attached to the characters--but as this is only a miniseries, I will have to say goodbye to them tomorrow. This is probably why I enjoy television over film. I like stories to go on and on and on.
You may or may not recognize the title of this one. St. Urbain's Horseman is an adaptation of a novel of the same name by acclaimed Canadian novelist, essayist and screenwriter, Mordecai Richler. The novel won the Governor General's literary award way back in 1972 (that's eleven years before I was born just so you know).
Having only seen the first part, I can't give an overall opinion on the miniseries yet, but so far so good. I've never read the book, but after watching this, maybe I will. It's set in several places, but the main settings are in Montreal and London (England). The story centres around the life of a Jewish young man named Jacob Hersh (played exceptionally well by David Julian Hirsh) as he rises to prominence as an established television director. The title character, "St. Urbain's Horseman" refers to his cousin named Joey Hersh, who in more ways then one, causes problems for Jacob over the course of his life. While everyone else sees Joey for who he is--a conniving scoundrel--Jacob continues to idolize Joey, an adoration which started when he was was a kid.
I have mixed feelings about watching miniseries'. I hate to see stories come to an end. I become attached to characters then bam, the story's over. That's the case with St. Urbain's Horseman--I'm getting attached to the characters--but as this is only a miniseries, I will have to say goodbye to them tomorrow. This is probably why I enjoy television over film. I like stories to go on and on and on.
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
Show Review - Kyle XY
[pilot episode, aired tonight on Space TV]
On a lark, I decided to check out the first episode of Kyle XY that aired tonight. I'm glad I did because I might've missed out on a reasonably good show if I hadn't. There's a major likelihood I'll become a regular watcher now as it was definitely worth my time.
The show revolves around a teenage boy, possibly 17 or so years old, who wakes up naked in the middle of the forest without a belly button. Sure, the premise sounds extremely weird until you figure out he was created by some sort of alien beings to explore human life on earth. Sure, sure, I see your "huh?" reaction but trust me, if you watched it yourself, it would all make sense. The boy, who is given the name Kyle by the psychologist who takes him into her home to live with her family, knows nothing about anything. Essentially, all the world is a complete mystery to him. However, as he's gifted with an exceptionally superior brain, he learns things easily although plenty of confusion and mistakes ensue for him. Throughout this episode he struggles to understand the people he is now living with, including the mothering psychologist, the computer technician father, the awkward pre-teen son and the rather well-developed party-girl daughter. While initially the kids and dad of the family aren't happy with having him there, by the end of the episode they have agreed to keep him around rather than putting him into foster care. So, I'm tuning in next week to see where the story goes from there.
On a lark, I decided to check out the first episode of Kyle XY that aired tonight. I'm glad I did because I might've missed out on a reasonably good show if I hadn't. There's a major likelihood I'll become a regular watcher now as it was definitely worth my time.
The show revolves around a teenage boy, possibly 17 or so years old, who wakes up naked in the middle of the forest without a belly button. Sure, the premise sounds extremely weird until you figure out he was created by some sort of alien beings to explore human life on earth. Sure, sure, I see your "huh?" reaction but trust me, if you watched it yourself, it would all make sense. The boy, who is given the name Kyle by the psychologist who takes him into her home to live with her family, knows nothing about anything. Essentially, all the world is a complete mystery to him. However, as he's gifted with an exceptionally superior brain, he learns things easily although plenty of confusion and mistakes ensue for him. Throughout this episode he struggles to understand the people he is now living with, including the mothering psychologist, the computer technician father, the awkward pre-teen son and the rather well-developed party-girl daughter. While initially the kids and dad of the family aren't happy with having him there, by the end of the episode they have agreed to keep him around rather than putting him into foster care. So, I'm tuning in next week to see where the story goes from there.
Show Review - Kid Nation
[pilot episode aired Sep. 19 on E! Canada]
The title for this show is most certainly a misnomer. Bonanza City (the "town" where this show takes place) is really nothing more than a difficult summer camp for kids. The show purports that it's about kids building a new world for themselves but really, the show's producers/organizers are the ones building the world by structuring it as they see best by creating a town council in which they chose the members beforehand, asked the kids to organize themselves into four groups, divided the chores according to organized social classes and had an adult host to come in who regularily acted as a referee. Really, Bonanza City is very much an adult-designed town with kids thrown in to look cute and bring in viewers. No thank you! I have better things to do with my time then watch this dud of a show.
The title for this show is most certainly a misnomer. Bonanza City (the "town" where this show takes place) is really nothing more than a difficult summer camp for kids. The show purports that it's about kids building a new world for themselves but really, the show's producers/organizers are the ones building the world by structuring it as they see best by creating a town council in which they chose the members beforehand, asked the kids to organize themselves into four groups, divided the chores according to organized social classes and had an adult host to come in who regularily acted as a referee. Really, Bonanza City is very much an adult-designed town with kids thrown in to look cute and bring in viewers. No thank you! I have better things to do with my time then watch this dud of a show.
Tuesday, September 18, 2007
Show Review - K-Ville
[pilot episode, aired Sep. 17 on Global TV]
There are a lot of new big budget shows produced by the American networks each season with plenty of hype and promotion to get viewers to tune in. Each year I make a list of all the new shows I want to check out most. Because I'm a television addict that list usually gets fairly long. However, that list gets considerably shorter as the season goes on. Many shows prove to be disappointing flops while other shows, despite my liking them, end up being dropped from network lineups after poor ratings.
K-Ville, luckily, is a show that doesn't disappoint. Not only did I really like it, but the American audience (the only one that really counts in today's television world) loved it too. It garnered rather good ratings so unless the show suddenly gets downright awful in upcoming episodes, it likely won't get pulled by FOX.
Anthony Anderson and Cole Hauser prove to be the right picks to play the leads in the series, playing new partners in a New Orleans (post-Katrina) police department. The writing and directing are smooth and the story told is captivating. I definitely intend to watch it this season.
There are a lot of new big budget shows produced by the American networks each season with plenty of hype and promotion to get viewers to tune in. Each year I make a list of all the new shows I want to check out most. Because I'm a television addict that list usually gets fairly long. However, that list gets considerably shorter as the season goes on. Many shows prove to be disappointing flops while other shows, despite my liking them, end up being dropped from network lineups after poor ratings.
K-Ville, luckily, is a show that doesn't disappoint. Not only did I really like it, but the American audience (the only one that really counts in today's television world) loved it too. It garnered rather good ratings so unless the show suddenly gets downright awful in upcoming episodes, it likely won't get pulled by FOX.
Anthony Anderson and Cole Hauser prove to be the right picks to play the leads in the series, playing new partners in a New Orleans (post-Katrina) police department. The writing and directing are smooth and the story told is captivating. I definitely intend to watch it this season.
Show Review - Prison Break
[the premiere of Season 3, aired Sep. 17 on Global TV]
Back when Prison Break debuted two years ago, I was an avid watcher. The storylines and characters were well-written (the character of Michael Scofield in particular) and the theme was considerably original for a television show. However, halfway through the first season I quit watching, despite having gotten both my brothers addicted by taping the earlier episodes and making them watch them. The plot had gotten redundant for me as I wondered if I would be stuck watching Michael, Lincoln and the rest of them in that prison for years to come. I had no idea they'd actually get to escape by the end of the season. If I had known an escape would come so quickly, I would have stayed an avid viewer. As it was, I abandoned Prison Break halfway through Season 1, something I now regret just a little bit.
Upon reading a preview for tonight's episode I was intrigued by the thought of Michael being stuck in a Panamanian prison called Sona where there were no guards within (just on watch towers outside) where every man was for himself. I'm glad that I tuned in. While I don't understand many of the references to people or groups outside the prison since I haven't watched the last season and a half, this season is a whole new fresh ballgame. People who haven't tuned into the show in the past, can tune in now and understand everything that's going on. The world within the prison walls is foreign territory to Michael Scofield (played by the always incredible Wentworth Miller) and to us so we can see things through his eyes. And with the new setting comes new characters, including one powerful character named Lechero (played by Robert Wisdom who proves to be a wise casting decision on the show's part) who essentially runs the prison as a type of king who other prisoners fear for good reason.
Prison Break is known as one of the most action-packed dramas on television today, and tonight's episode stayed true to that reputation. This episode included a hostage-taking, a man-verses-man fight to the death, a visit to a morgue, a denied extradition and several other big moments that makes me want to consider watching Prison Break again full time. I'll definitely tune in next week and then I'll see how I still like it from there.
Back when Prison Break debuted two years ago, I was an avid watcher. The storylines and characters were well-written (the character of Michael Scofield in particular) and the theme was considerably original for a television show. However, halfway through the first season I quit watching, despite having gotten both my brothers addicted by taping the earlier episodes and making them watch them. The plot had gotten redundant for me as I wondered if I would be stuck watching Michael, Lincoln and the rest of them in that prison for years to come. I had no idea they'd actually get to escape by the end of the season. If I had known an escape would come so quickly, I would have stayed an avid viewer. As it was, I abandoned Prison Break halfway through Season 1, something I now regret just a little bit.
Upon reading a preview for tonight's episode I was intrigued by the thought of Michael being stuck in a Panamanian prison called Sona where there were no guards within (just on watch towers outside) where every man was for himself. I'm glad that I tuned in. While I don't understand many of the references to people or groups outside the prison since I haven't watched the last season and a half, this season is a whole new fresh ballgame. People who haven't tuned into the show in the past, can tune in now and understand everything that's going on. The world within the prison walls is foreign territory to Michael Scofield (played by the always incredible Wentworth Miller) and to us so we can see things through his eyes. And with the new setting comes new characters, including one powerful character named Lechero (played by Robert Wisdom who proves to be a wise casting decision on the show's part) who essentially runs the prison as a type of king who other prisoners fear for good reason.
Prison Break is known as one of the most action-packed dramas on television today, and tonight's episode stayed true to that reputation. This episode included a hostage-taking, a man-verses-man fight to the death, a visit to a morgue, a denied extradition and several other big moments that makes me want to consider watching Prison Break again full time. I'll definitely tune in next week and then I'll see how I still like it from there.
Monday, September 17, 2007
My take on last week's ratings
[based on the BBM ratings from Sep. 3-9]
Taking the top two spots in the ratings chart this time was Canadian Idol. Its performance show garnered over 2 million viewers and its results show attracted 1.9 million viewers. I watched both and was extremely disappointed when Carly Rae Jepsen was eliminated from the competition (why oh why oh why didn't Jaydee Bixbee get the boot!?). Now moving on before I go on a tirade against teenage girls who vote with their eyes and not their ears...
In third spot with 1.4 million viewers was C.S.I. Miami. I hate hate hate this show and have given up trying to figure out why people watch it. Now, moving on again before I go on a tirade against people who watch C.S.I...
In fourth spot was Criminal Minds. I can't say I approve. I've never watched the show and there's not very much likelihood that I'll decide to check it out on a lark in the future.
With 1.35 million viewers, the fifth spot goes to the CTV Evening News. I get it, people watch the news because they want to stay informed. I myself watch the news, though not CTV as I prefer CBC Newsworld.
I am infuriated that Big Brother got the sixth, seventh and eighth spots (it aired on three different nights). I still cannot figure out what all 1.3 million viewers see in the show. My brother loves the show, but let's move on before I go on a tirade against my brother...
Law & Order: SVU got the ninth spot. 1. 2 million viewers tuned in. I am not a Law & Order viewer myself. I find Law & Order an okay show, albeit not my type to watch so I steer clear.
At long last, Criminal Minds gets the tenth spot with just under one million people who watched it. Good for them.
Taking the top two spots in the ratings chart this time was Canadian Idol. Its performance show garnered over 2 million viewers and its results show attracted 1.9 million viewers. I watched both and was extremely disappointed when Carly Rae Jepsen was eliminated from the competition (why oh why oh why didn't Jaydee Bixbee get the boot!?). Now moving on before I go on a tirade against teenage girls who vote with their eyes and not their ears...
In third spot with 1.4 million viewers was C.S.I. Miami. I hate hate hate this show and have given up trying to figure out why people watch it. Now, moving on again before I go on a tirade against people who watch C.S.I...
In fourth spot was Criminal Minds. I can't say I approve. I've never watched the show and there's not very much likelihood that I'll decide to check it out on a lark in the future.
With 1.35 million viewers, the fifth spot goes to the CTV Evening News. I get it, people watch the news because they want to stay informed. I myself watch the news, though not CTV as I prefer CBC Newsworld.
I am infuriated that Big Brother got the sixth, seventh and eighth spots (it aired on three different nights). I still cannot figure out what all 1.3 million viewers see in the show. My brother loves the show, but let's move on before I go on a tirade against my brother...
Law & Order: SVU got the ninth spot. 1. 2 million viewers tuned in. I am not a Law & Order viewer myself. I find Law & Order an okay show, albeit not my type to watch so I steer clear.
At long last, Criminal Minds gets the tenth spot with just under one million people who watched it. Good for them.
Show Review - Roar
[pilot episode, aired Sep. 15 on Space TV]
My oh my, I love Heath Ledger. He's the star of Roar, an Australian/American co-production that was shot way back in 1997. Heath was only 18 at the time, and even back then he was astutely capable of carrying the lead role. He plays the part of a young Irish chieftain, given the responsibility of uniting the Irish clans against the Roman encroachers, after his father is killed by them. The story is told in great style, with history, war, romance and magic thrown together to create an enchanting story of an Ireland from a millennium and a half ago.
Roar is one of those gems, cancelled too early, destined to never rise again from the television graveyard, albeit now for a short visit to Space TV. The series' 13 episodes will be airing consecutively on Saturday evenings.
My oh my, I love Heath Ledger. He's the star of Roar, an Australian/American co-production that was shot way back in 1997. Heath was only 18 at the time, and even back then he was astutely capable of carrying the lead role. He plays the part of a young Irish chieftain, given the responsibility of uniting the Irish clans against the Roman encroachers, after his father is killed by them. The story is told in great style, with history, war, romance and magic thrown together to create an enchanting story of an Ireland from a millennium and a half ago.
Roar is one of those gems, cancelled too early, destined to never rise again from the television graveyard, albeit now for a short visit to Space TV. The series' 13 episodes will be airing consecutively on Saturday evenings.
Sunday, September 16, 2007
CTV's Canadian shows this season
With two Canadian shows on its fall docket--Corner Gas and Whistler--CTV at least, if you want to look on the bright side, scheduled twice as many Canadian shows as it's fellow private broadcast network Global. Nice, huh?
I'm a big fan of Whistler--a damn good show---and I am thankful CTV decided to renew it for a second season, but I wish it wasn't scheduled for Saturdays. In Canada, that's the deathstar night, where no shows end up surviving in the longterm (except for good ol' HNIC which has survived a very long time there).
Degrassi: The Next Generation, is also returning in December...although I'm not so sure that counts as the fall season, does it?
Robson Arms and Instant Star have both been renewed for an additonal season each but likely won't air until sometime in 2008. And there are a few other shows rumoured to be in the works. Rumoured titles of new series include Night Doctor, Listeners and Sold.
Though there are a lack of Canadian shows on CTV's fall schedule, I am happy with the fact that all their shows do contain Canadian-ness (if you get what I mean) and have relatively good productions values.
I can't wait until Whistler starts at the end of this month...It's been literally a year since the season finale aired.
I'm a big fan of Whistler--a damn good show---and I am thankful CTV decided to renew it for a second season, but I wish it wasn't scheduled for Saturdays. In Canada, that's the deathstar night, where no shows end up surviving in the longterm (except for good ol' HNIC which has survived a very long time there).
Degrassi: The Next Generation, is also returning in December...although I'm not so sure that counts as the fall season, does it?
Robson Arms and Instant Star have both been renewed for an additonal season each but likely won't air until sometime in 2008. And there are a few other shows rumoured to be in the works. Rumoured titles of new series include Night Doctor, Listeners and Sold.
Though there are a lack of Canadian shows on CTV's fall schedule, I am happy with the fact that all their shows do contain Canadian-ness (if you get what I mean) and have relatively good productions values.
I can't wait until Whistler starts at the end of this month...It's been literally a year since the season finale aired.
Show Review - Blood Ties
[2-hour pilot episode, aired Sep. 14 on Space TV]
This show just won a convert. Honestly, it was really good, but not necessarily in the conventional way. It didn't blow me away like other shows have. The storylines, premise, and setting are all been-there-seen-that but by the end of this two hour pilot episode I really really can't wait to see another episode. Why, you ask? Well, I'll tell you that it has to do everything with the actors in the show and the characters they played. They won me over. They are what made the show so good.
The central character in the show is 30-something-year-old Vicki Nelson. Vicki is a tough former cop, who quit the force after being relegated to a desk job when she started to lose her sight. She suffers from some sort of degenerative eye disease which apparently will cause her to someday be blind. Vicki can still see, though she has tunnel vision and night blindness, but instead of letting it bring her down, she starts her own private investigation business. In the pilot episode, a young woman named Corrine Fennel hires her to find her boyfriend's killer, telling Vicki that a vampire killed him. Of course, Vicki doesn't believe her but by mid-episode she comes around to the idea when, while out investigating, she meets a really good-looking man named Henry Fitzroy who just happens to be a vampire. When Henry's vampire charms don't work on Vicki (he is capable of hypnotizing humans with his eyes) he is taken aback. Once he convinces Vicki that he is not the bad guy she thinks he is, the two pair up to fight a demon and save Toronto from destruction. Also assisting them is Miki Celluci, a detective on the police force and a former lover of Vicki who is very protective of her.
There is definite onscreen chemistry between Christina Cox and Kyle Schmid, who play the roles of Vicki and Henry. And there is also onscreen chemistry between Christina Cox and Dylan Neal, who plays Mike. This, thankfully, makes the inevitable future love triangle between Henry, Vicki and Mike extremely unpredictable. Most television triangles consist of two people who are right for each other and a third who obviously is not. Blood Ties does not follow that example and I think that serves the show well. It makes me want to tune in next time to see just what happens to these very intriguing characters.
This show just won a convert. Honestly, it was really good, but not necessarily in the conventional way. It didn't blow me away like other shows have. The storylines, premise, and setting are all been-there-seen-that but by the end of this two hour pilot episode I really really can't wait to see another episode. Why, you ask? Well, I'll tell you that it has to do everything with the actors in the show and the characters they played. They won me over. They are what made the show so good.
The central character in the show is 30-something-year-old Vicki Nelson. Vicki is a tough former cop, who quit the force after being relegated to a desk job when she started to lose her sight. She suffers from some sort of degenerative eye disease which apparently will cause her to someday be blind. Vicki can still see, though she has tunnel vision and night blindness, but instead of letting it bring her down, she starts her own private investigation business. In the pilot episode, a young woman named Corrine Fennel hires her to find her boyfriend's killer, telling Vicki that a vampire killed him. Of course, Vicki doesn't believe her but by mid-episode she comes around to the idea when, while out investigating, she meets a really good-looking man named Henry Fitzroy who just happens to be a vampire. When Henry's vampire charms don't work on Vicki (he is capable of hypnotizing humans with his eyes) he is taken aback. Once he convinces Vicki that he is not the bad guy she thinks he is, the two pair up to fight a demon and save Toronto from destruction. Also assisting them is Miki Celluci, a detective on the police force and a former lover of Vicki who is very protective of her.
There is definite onscreen chemistry between Christina Cox and Kyle Schmid, who play the roles of Vicki and Henry. And there is also onscreen chemistry between Christina Cox and Dylan Neal, who plays Mike. This, thankfully, makes the inevitable future love triangle between Henry, Vicki and Mike extremely unpredictable. Most television triangles consist of two people who are right for each other and a third who obviously is not. Blood Ties does not follow that example and I think that serves the show well. It makes me want to tune in next time to see just what happens to these very intriguing characters.
Saturday, September 15, 2007
Show Review - Terminal City
[pilot episode, aired Sep. 13 on City TV]
Well, I watched it and I guess I get it but this was one of those artsy-try-too-hard shows that leaves me to wonder if I want to tune in to later episodes. I wanted to like it. I really did. After all, the show won and was nominated for numerous ACTRA, Leo and Gemini awards. It also happens to be Canadian, and patriotic nutcase that I am, I always try to give homegrown drama a chance--after all, we don't get too much of it. But this show failed to get my adoration for several reasons.
The main character, Katie (played by Maria Del Mar) finds out she's terminally ill with breast cancer. Plenty of drama ensues as the rest of her family finds out about it. Normally you'd expect a sentimental gal like me to be crying her eyes out (I tend to cry through sad TV moments) but not a single tear went down my cheek. I failed to identify with any of the characters, save one, Katie's teenage daughter, Sarah (played by Katie Boland). While the rest of the characters seem rather cold and distant too me, there were several points where I found myself really understanding and feeling sorry for Sarah. When her mother asked her to come with her to a biopsy, Sarah, though wanting to turn tail and say no, reluctantly went with. The tension at the hospital proves too much for her and she finds herself unable to be in the room with her mother while the procedure is being performed so she exits guiltily. This one character is enough to get me to tune in to the next episode. After all, Terminal City is a 10-episode miniseries so it's not as if they can drag the story too much. Plus I got my mother to watch the first episode and she loved it so I don't think she'd appreciate it if I bailed on her now.
Well, I watched it and I guess I get it but this was one of those artsy-try-too-hard shows that leaves me to wonder if I want to tune in to later episodes. I wanted to like it. I really did. After all, the show won and was nominated for numerous ACTRA, Leo and Gemini awards. It also happens to be Canadian, and patriotic nutcase that I am, I always try to give homegrown drama a chance--after all, we don't get too much of it. But this show failed to get my adoration for several reasons.
The main character, Katie (played by Maria Del Mar) finds out she's terminally ill with breast cancer. Plenty of drama ensues as the rest of her family finds out about it. Normally you'd expect a sentimental gal like me to be crying her eyes out (I tend to cry through sad TV moments) but not a single tear went down my cheek. I failed to identify with any of the characters, save one, Katie's teenage daughter, Sarah (played by Katie Boland). While the rest of the characters seem rather cold and distant too me, there were several points where I found myself really understanding and feeling sorry for Sarah. When her mother asked her to come with her to a biopsy, Sarah, though wanting to turn tail and say no, reluctantly went with. The tension at the hospital proves too much for her and she finds herself unable to be in the room with her mother while the procedure is being performed so she exits guiltily. This one character is enough to get me to tune in to the next episode. After all, Terminal City is a 10-episode miniseries so it's not as if they can drag the story too much. Plus I got my mother to watch the first episode and she loved it so I don't think she'd appreciate it if I bailed on her now.
Commentary - Global TV's lack of Canadian content this fall
All I could do was roll my eyes and sigh as I read Global's fall lineup a couple months back. With only one scripted series--a sitcom called Da Kink In My Hair--on their fall roster, I noticed immediately that there was a major lack of Canadian dramatic content. Not that I was surprised or anything...after all, Global has a history of getting around the Cancon rules (rules? Ha!) by calling non-scripted series "dramatic programming" and completely Americanizing the dramas and sitcoms they do air. This past summer, a show called The Best Years aired. It was Canadian-produced but the characters and setting were in Boston, U.S.A. It's kind of a slap in the face to Canadians when networks use their Cancon money to create American shows. Basically the message that comes across, is Canada isn't good enough to have a show set there. The same can be said of the now-cancelled Falcon Beach, which tried to hide the fact it was Canadian--they set that in New England as well. I've listened to the logic used by Global to explain why they do that. It's claimed American viewers don't want to watch shows not set within America. However, I want to point out that Da Vinci's Inquest, Degrassi: The Next Generation and Instant Star all have Canadian settings and show many things that are Canadian, yet they are big hits south of the border. I think Global needs to get off its highhorse if you know what I mean and start showing some Canadian (and not Americanized) shows. I've been hearing that a Canadian drama called Search and Rescue will debut sometime midseason on Global but there's not much known about it. Hopefully it won't be another Global muckup.
Friday, September 14, 2007
My thoughts on CBC's upcoming season
This fall season, in my humble opinion, looks to be the most promising one for the CBC in over a decade. Last year I got the sense that things were turning around with our pubcaster and this year I'm getting fairly confident in them.
I am happy to see a big influx in original dramatic series for this upcoming season. Apparently, CBC is moving away from its miniseries which I think is a good move. Though I watched a few of them last year (ie. the Rene Levesque one) I think the CBC would do much better to gradually grow an audience over time via a scripted series, rather than a short-term project such as a miniseries.
This fall there have been two Canuck dramas sceduled so far--Heartland and Intelligence--both of which I'm incredibly excited about. Heartland is a rural family drama which takes place on a horse ranch in Alberta. It's actually my top pick (and I'm counting both American and Canadian series) for this season--I'm a sucker for these kind of shows. And Intelligence, a very well-written series, at least when looking back to last year when its first season aired, had one of the best cliffhanger finales last season so I'm eager to see just how the main character, Jimmy Reardon, gets out of the life-threatening situation he ended up in...
On a sadder note, I'm a bit sad to see Jozi H, last year's other drama, cancelled, as I found the characters and storylines intriguing and wanted to see the characters live on. Oh well, there's always those shows I mourn every year for their seemingly-abrupt cancellations...I guess it's something I'll never get used to.
As for sitcoms, Little Mosque On the Prairie, which I intend to watch this year as I enjoyed it last year, will be coming back with 20 new episodes, plus sometime later in the season a new sitcom called Sophie will debute, and that one sounds like it's worth checking out as well.
Sometime in the midseason CBC will roll out a number of new drama series and sitcoms though details are still vague. MVP. Jpod and The Border are three new dramas we will for sure see this season but it's not yet known when. And there are many shows in the works, but so far all I have are the titles to go on which include 314 Broadview, Welcome to Happy Valley, Valhalla, Tumble & Spin, Call, Citizen Nutt, Cowgirls, Clearsky & Chang, CTU, Dark Room, Duty Free, Easton Meets West, Father of the Year, Going Postal, Greed, Left Coast, Obitz, Parking Lot Guy, Pathfinder, Peeple's Choice and Port Hope.
Now let's talk about reality shows set to hit CBC--I'm not a reality show lover so I'll likely only check out the first episodes of No Opportunity Wasted and Triple Sensation. I'll skip Dragon's Den altogether. There's also a show set to air sometime midseason called The Week the Women Went, in which all the women of a small Alberta town leave their husbands and children to fend for themselves a week while they take a holiday elsewhere. It's a show I'm slightly curious about.
Other shows for the fall I'm definitely going to check out are The Rick Mercer Report and Who Do You Think You Are? I've always been a fan of Rick Mercer's rants and raves and this season I'll continue to be one. As for the second show I mentioned, Who Do You Think You Are?, I'm also excitedly anticipating as geneaology is a great hobby of mine and I'm always interested in seeing other people tracing their roots as well--it will be particularily interesting seeing well-known Canadians such as Don Cherry, Shaun Majumder and Mary Walsh trace theirs. I'll also probably tune in occasionally to This Hour Has 22 Minutes and Royal Canadian Air Farce as well. And let's not forget our nation's official show Hockey Night In Canada--I can't wait to see the Canucks and Oilers in action again!
Oh, and I neglected to mention the British shows set to air on CBC this season. Coronation Street will be back as always (I don't watch it) and new shows called The Tudors (which already aired on Showtime down in the States) and Torchwood, a Dr. Who spinoff. I won't even bother checking out the latter but The Tudors appears to be worth at least one viewing by me. I'm a history buff though not a fan of some of the more "edgy" shows so I may or may not like it when it comes out.
With all the above being said, CBC appears to be gaining ground this year on the other networks and hopefully some of its shows will make it onto the Top 20 in the ratings charts.
I am happy to see a big influx in original dramatic series for this upcoming season. Apparently, CBC is moving away from its miniseries which I think is a good move. Though I watched a few of them last year (ie. the Rene Levesque one) I think the CBC would do much better to gradually grow an audience over time via a scripted series, rather than a short-term project such as a miniseries.
This fall there have been two Canuck dramas sceduled so far--Heartland and Intelligence--both of which I'm incredibly excited about. Heartland is a rural family drama which takes place on a horse ranch in Alberta. It's actually my top pick (and I'm counting both American and Canadian series) for this season--I'm a sucker for these kind of shows. And Intelligence, a very well-written series, at least when looking back to last year when its first season aired, had one of the best cliffhanger finales last season so I'm eager to see just how the main character, Jimmy Reardon, gets out of the life-threatening situation he ended up in...
On a sadder note, I'm a bit sad to see Jozi H, last year's other drama, cancelled, as I found the characters and storylines intriguing and wanted to see the characters live on. Oh well, there's always those shows I mourn every year for their seemingly-abrupt cancellations...I guess it's something I'll never get used to.
As for sitcoms, Little Mosque On the Prairie, which I intend to watch this year as I enjoyed it last year, will be coming back with 20 new episodes, plus sometime later in the season a new sitcom called Sophie will debute, and that one sounds like it's worth checking out as well.
Sometime in the midseason CBC will roll out a number of new drama series and sitcoms though details are still vague. MVP. Jpod and The Border are three new dramas we will for sure see this season but it's not yet known when. And there are many shows in the works, but so far all I have are the titles to go on which include 314 Broadview, Welcome to Happy Valley, Valhalla, Tumble & Spin, Call, Citizen Nutt, Cowgirls, Clearsky & Chang, CTU, Dark Room, Duty Free, Easton Meets West, Father of the Year, Going Postal, Greed, Left Coast, Obitz, Parking Lot Guy, Pathfinder, Peeple's Choice and Port Hope.
Now let's talk about reality shows set to hit CBC--I'm not a reality show lover so I'll likely only check out the first episodes of No Opportunity Wasted and Triple Sensation. I'll skip Dragon's Den altogether. There's also a show set to air sometime midseason called The Week the Women Went, in which all the women of a small Alberta town leave their husbands and children to fend for themselves a week while they take a holiday elsewhere. It's a show I'm slightly curious about.
Other shows for the fall I'm definitely going to check out are The Rick Mercer Report and Who Do You Think You Are? I've always been a fan of Rick Mercer's rants and raves and this season I'll continue to be one. As for the second show I mentioned, Who Do You Think You Are?, I'm also excitedly anticipating as geneaology is a great hobby of mine and I'm always interested in seeing other people tracing their roots as well--it will be particularily interesting seeing well-known Canadians such as Don Cherry, Shaun Majumder and Mary Walsh trace theirs. I'll also probably tune in occasionally to This Hour Has 22 Minutes and Royal Canadian Air Farce as well. And let's not forget our nation's official show Hockey Night In Canada--I can't wait to see the Canucks and Oilers in action again!
Oh, and I neglected to mention the British shows set to air on CBC this season. Coronation Street will be back as always (I don't watch it) and new shows called The Tudors (which already aired on Showtime down in the States) and Torchwood, a Dr. Who spinoff. I won't even bother checking out the latter but The Tudors appears to be worth at least one viewing by me. I'm a history buff though not a fan of some of the more "edgy" shows so I may or may not like it when it comes out.
With all the above being said, CBC appears to be gaining ground this year on the other networks and hopefully some of its shows will make it onto the Top 20 in the ratings charts.
Show Review - Waterloo Road
[episode 2, aired Sep. 10 on BBC Canada]
Wow. That's all I can say after watching this episode. I am so glad I decided to subscribe to the BBC Canada channel--Waterloo Road is proving to be one of the best-quality shows I've seen in a long time so the$ 2.50 I spend per month is definitely worth it.
The pilot episode I watched and reviewed earlier was awesome and so is episode 2, which I had the opportunity to watch today (courtesy of my VCR). This episode had a few great storylines but the major one dealt with the aftermath of a car accident, which happened over the weekend. The accident resulted in one student, Adam, dead, and another student, Holly, in a coma. Everyone, including the students and teachers, blame Donte, Adam's best friend, the student who was said to be driving drunk in the same car at the time. When Donte shows up at school, Headmaster Jack Rimmer wants to keep him out of school, but because Donte's father pleads with him to allow Donte keep attending, and no charges have been laid, Jack reluctantly allows Donte to stay at school. Complicating things is the fact that the dead Adam's sister, Yasmin, is also a student at the school. Yasmin's friends convince her to go for Donte's blood, and throughout the day at school, Donte is subjected to numerous forms of bullying, with the entire school against him in efforts to make him suffer. By the end of the school day, a few boys who Yasmin has asked to help her get revenge have Donte tied up in a storage room at school, a knife at his throat. They want Donte to pay for Adam's death. However, they fail to realize Donte is already paying--not only has he lost his best friend, but he wasn't actually the one who was driving the car.
I won't tell you what happens, in case you want to watch the episode yourself, but I will tell you the end is very very good.
Wow. That's all I can say after watching this episode. I am so glad I decided to subscribe to the BBC Canada channel--Waterloo Road is proving to be one of the best-quality shows I've seen in a long time so the$ 2.50 I spend per month is definitely worth it.
The pilot episode I watched and reviewed earlier was awesome and so is episode 2, which I had the opportunity to watch today (courtesy of my VCR). This episode had a few great storylines but the major one dealt with the aftermath of a car accident, which happened over the weekend. The accident resulted in one student, Adam, dead, and another student, Holly, in a coma. Everyone, including the students and teachers, blame Donte, Adam's best friend, the student who was said to be driving drunk in the same car at the time. When Donte shows up at school, Headmaster Jack Rimmer wants to keep him out of school, but because Donte's father pleads with him to allow Donte keep attending, and no charges have been laid, Jack reluctantly allows Donte to stay at school. Complicating things is the fact that the dead Adam's sister, Yasmin, is also a student at the school. Yasmin's friends convince her to go for Donte's blood, and throughout the day at school, Donte is subjected to numerous forms of bullying, with the entire school against him in efforts to make him suffer. By the end of the school day, a few boys who Yasmin has asked to help her get revenge have Donte tied up in a storage room at school, a knife at his throat. They want Donte to pay for Adam's death. However, they fail to realize Donte is already paying--not only has he lost his best friend, but he wasn't actually the one who was driving the car.
I won't tell you what happens, in case you want to watch the episode yourself, but I will tell you the end is very very good.
Thursday, September 13, 2007
Show Review - Waterloo Road
[pilot episode, aired Sep. 3 on BBC Canada]
I watched Waterloo Road tonight and I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised at how good it is. It had rave reviews from British viewers but I was unsure if it would appeal to me, a Canadian. Sometimes British dramas and comedies are too quirky for me and I often don't understand the storylines or humour very well (it just doesn't translate) but occasionally, as is the case with shows like Distant Shores and My Family, there is a universal appeal that draws me in to the series. This was the case with Waterloo Road which I found fantastic. The show translates exceedingly well. The characters and storylines are appealing and within the first five minutes of the premiere episode I knew immediately that I will tune in regularly to this series.
Please, note, that as some of the accents were hard for me to decipher, I watched this show with close captioning so I could see what some people were saying. It didn't take away from the show at all though.
I watched Waterloo Road tonight and I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised at how good it is. It had rave reviews from British viewers but I was unsure if it would appeal to me, a Canadian. Sometimes British dramas and comedies are too quirky for me and I often don't understand the storylines or humour very well (it just doesn't translate) but occasionally, as is the case with shows like Distant Shores and My Family, there is a universal appeal that draws me in to the series. This was the case with Waterloo Road which I found fantastic. The show translates exceedingly well. The characters and storylines are appealing and within the first five minutes of the premiere episode I knew immediately that I will tune in regularly to this series.
Please, note, that as some of the accents were hard for me to decipher, I watched this show with close captioning so I could see what some people were saying. It didn't take away from the show at all though.
News Article Commentary - Da Kink In My Hair
I was just at the TV, eh? site where they've posted Global TV's press release on their new series called "Da Kink In My Hair". TV, eh?, for those who don't know, is a site which posts news articles from around the web and they occasionally do podcasts as well, talking to Canadian TV industry insiders. I check out the site on a daily basis for news on the Canadian TV scene.
Well, anyways, today, as I've just said, they posted a press release on Da Kink In My Hair. It's Global's only Canadian fall show--the rest of their shows are from south of the border--something that hasn't escaped the notice of many who support homegrown television shows, I might add. Da Kink In My Hair is a 13-episode sitcom set to premiere on October 14th. It's based on an award-winning play I've never heard of by a playwright named Trey Anthony. It's set in a beauty salon in Toronto's Caribbean community, and centres around a group of zany characters.
I will at the very least, give this show a chance, but honestly, I'm not sure if it's a show I'll like. I'm not much of a sitcom person (I prefer dramas instead) and the title is kind of a turn-off--I realize that it's probably a cultural phrase, but still the title just doesn't appeal to me. Also, I'm not sure if the Toronto setting appeals to me either. I've never been to Toronto, but the people I've met from Toronto (mainly online) seem to be big bashers of Western Canada so maybe right now I have a distrust of anything Torontonian. Please tell me I'm wrong--there's nice people from Toronto, right?
Even with my above complaints, I will give this show a chance--after all, it is Canadian...right?
Well, anyways, today, as I've just said, they posted a press release on Da Kink In My Hair. It's Global's only Canadian fall show--the rest of their shows are from south of the border--something that hasn't escaped the notice of many who support homegrown television shows, I might add. Da Kink In My Hair is a 13-episode sitcom set to premiere on October 14th. It's based on an award-winning play I've never heard of by a playwright named Trey Anthony. It's set in a beauty salon in Toronto's Caribbean community, and centres around a group of zany characters.
I will at the very least, give this show a chance, but honestly, I'm not sure if it's a show I'll like. I'm not much of a sitcom person (I prefer dramas instead) and the title is kind of a turn-off--I realize that it's probably a cultural phrase, but still the title just doesn't appeal to me. Also, I'm not sure if the Toronto setting appeals to me either. I've never been to Toronto, but the people I've met from Toronto (mainly online) seem to be big bashers of Western Canada so maybe right now I have a distrust of anything Torontonian. Please tell me I'm wrong--there's nice people from Toronto, right?
Even with my above complaints, I will give this show a chance--after all, it is Canadian...right?
Wednesday, September 12, 2007
Comments on the Canadian Idol Finale
As finales go, this one was pretty good. There were the Top 10 finalists singing a Bon Jovi medley together, a performance each by Brian Melo and Jaydee Bixbee (the final two contestants) and then performances by Bon Jovi, Eva Evila and Avril Lavigne.
When, after two long hours of waiting in suspense, the host, Ben Mulroney, finally began to announce the winner of this year's Canadian Idol, I held my breathe and swore to myself if Jaydee won I would quit watching the show forever. When Brian was announced as a winner, I gave a thrilled shout, then clamped my hand on my mouth as I remembered I live in an apartment and it was 11pm. I watched as Brian, with a lot of emotion, sang his new song titled "All I Ever Wanted". Then I clicked off the TV and went to bed. No more Canadian Idol until next summer.
When, after two long hours of waiting in suspense, the host, Ben Mulroney, finally began to announce the winner of this year's Canadian Idol, I held my breathe and swore to myself if Jaydee won I would quit watching the show forever. When Brian was announced as a winner, I gave a thrilled shout, then clamped my hand on my mouth as I remembered I live in an apartment and it was 11pm. I watched as Brian, with a lot of emotion, sang his new song titled "All I Ever Wanted". Then I clicked off the TV and went to bed. No more Canadian Idol until next summer.
Introducing TV from the viewpoint of a Canuck...
Well, I've read a lot of other peoples' blogs lately and for a while now I've wanted to start my own. I figured now is as good a time as any to get started on one so here goes. I've chosen to specialize my blog so the theme of my blog from herein out will be "TV from the viewpoint of a Canuck". The reason for this theme being is that I am a Canuck (that's the nickname for a Canadian for those who don't know) and I'm what you'd call a television addict (sad but true fact). I find it exciting and thrilling to scan the web for news on show developments, ratings, reviews, casting announcements, etc. Now, for a bit about me...
My name is Ally. I'm a Canadian (as I've already told you), born and raised and of huge interest to me is the state of Canadian television, specifically scripted television series. I'm not much of a reality fan per say (although I'm an avid Canadian Idol and Rock Star fan) and I routinely watch Hockey Night In Canada (go Canucks go!! and go Oilers go!!). I also watch a fair chunk of American television with a smidgen of Aussie and British TV thrown in. As well, I run my own forum (to go to it click the link found at the bottom of this entry). In this blog, I plan to give commentary about the many developments in the television world, from a Canuck point-of-view so stay tuned...
http://z15.invisionfree.com/CanuckTV/index.php?act=idx
My name is Ally. I'm a Canadian (as I've already told you), born and raised and of huge interest to me is the state of Canadian television, specifically scripted television series. I'm not much of a reality fan per say (although I'm an avid Canadian Idol and Rock Star fan) and I routinely watch Hockey Night In Canada (go Canucks go!! and go Oilers go!!). I also watch a fair chunk of American television with a smidgen of Aussie and British TV thrown in. As well, I run my own forum (to go to it click the link found at the bottom of this entry). In this blog, I plan to give commentary about the many developments in the television world, from a Canuck point-of-view so stay tuned...
http://z15.invisionfree.com/CanuckTV/index.php?act=idx
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