TV, eh?

Here’s part two of the Canadian TV fall preview podcast, featuring a writer on writer interview with Intelligence and Da Vinci’s Inquest creator Chris Haddock, plus lively discussion on some new and returning fall shows. The podcast is about 20 minutes long; segment start times are approximate:

1. TV fan and industry insider Caroline from A Place Called Say It, Say It, Say It, writer John Callaghan of Creatively Progressing and I talk about some of the new fall shows – Heartland, Da Kink in My Hair, and The Tudors.

2. (Start time: 4:45) Writer Denis McGrath from Dead Things on Sticks interviews Intelligence and Da Vinci’s Inquest creator Chris Haddock – spoilerphobes beware, as he lets us in on what to expect from season two, starting Monday, Oct. 1 at 9 p.m. on CBC. (See a partial transcript of this interview here.)

3. (Start time: 15:04) Caroline, John, and I are back with not-so-positive thoughts on Whistler and more positive ones on The Best Years and Blood Ties.

Check premiere dates and times on the schedule page. The theme music is from “Quarter to Eight,” a podcast safe track by Sweet Japonic.

Subscribe via the iTunes store or with any other program via the TV, Eh? feed, or listen below.

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From Playback:

• Small numbers for Best Years
  “The college-set Canadian-made drama The Best Years ended its inaugural season on a low note, attracting only 205,000 viewers for its finale on Global on Tuesday, Aug. 14, according to BBM Nielsen Media Research.” Read more.

THE BEST YEARS

Tuesday, August 14 – 10pm ET/PT

As the first term comes to a close and with the holidays quickly approaching, Samantha decides to take a chance and contact someone from her past; Dawn struggles with the reality of accepting a movie role, forcing her to choose between a career in film or the new life she’s been building for herself at Charles U; Kathryn gets a reality check from the school administration about the state of her grades.

From Marilyn Moss of the Hollywood Reporter:

• Bottom Line: A welcome summer addition to young-adult programming
  “The N’s new series for college kids (or thereabouts) is a welcome summer addition to young-adult programming. Realistic but not overwhelmingly so, humorous yet with enough pathos to get college kids involved, The Best Years, which focuses on one freshman’s new experiences at a Boston college, is wonderfully engaging fun and not in the least bit superficial.”

From Joanne Ostrow of the Denver Post:

• “Best Years” moves to head of the class
  “The tone of the pilot is uneven, at times juvenile, at times reaching to far into Fox territory. But if producer (Aaron) Martin can figure out how to keep the angst going without making the stories too frighteningly real for younger viewers, Sam Best may be the coed to watch.”

From Rick Ellis of All Your TV:

• Review: The Best Years
  “While The Best Years isn’t a home run, it is well worth watching. In no small part due to series star Charity Shea. “

Angel Cohn of TV Guide talks to The Best Years star:

• The N’s The Best Years Tackles the Hottest Topics
  “Of course there are love triangles and quadrangles and more, and most revolve around Devon, the basketball star played by She’s the Man hottie Brandon Jay McLaren.”

These are reviews about the American premiere, about the show currently airing on Global:

David Bianculli of the NY Daily News:

• Class struggle in ‘Best Years’
  “”Degrassi” head writer Aaron Martin is the creator of “The Best Years,” and establishes his new, college-age series with a scattershot approach that would earn different grades. For starters, he gets an A for casting Charity Shea as Samantha. She’s a fresh-faced young actress who, like Anne Hathaway in “The Devil Wears Prada,” exudes vulnerability, confidence and casual beauty.”

Robert Philpot of the Star-Telegram:

• ‘The Best Years’ has the smarts for college
  “With Veronica Mars and Gilmore Girls no longer doing first-run episodes, there’s a dearth of series about college. The Best Years, the first series on The N to move into higher education, tries to change that. It doesn’t have Veronica’s smarts or Gilmore’s wit, but it’s a watchable genre entry nonetheless.”

Ginia Bellafante of the New York Times reviews The Best Years (talking about its premiere on The N network, but it’s been airing on Global in Canada):

• Majoring in Snob Studies at Rich Kid U
  “The Best Years,” a new series on the N network, immerses itself so deeply in the pits of class warfare that its characters might as well be carrying cans of mace.

From Global:

The Best Years
Tuesdays – 10pm ET/PT
July 3: “Shadow of a Doubt” – Samantha’s birthday is ruined by the unexpected return of her Uncle Patrick – a.k.a. the man who abandoned her to the foster system after her parents died. Meanwhile, Dawn prepares for her big opening night of ‘Macbeth’ but Trent is wrapped up with concern for Sam and is painfully oblivious to her need for attention.

July 10: “All that Heaven Allows” – Devon surprises Sam when he reveals his true feeling for her; Sam is blindsided by her visit from Uncle Patrick and his real agenda for reconciliation; Noah turns up the heat with Prof. Grant and can hardly believe his luck; Kathryn is crazed when she hears Beau has misplaced her ‘special tape’.

July 17: “Reality Bites” – Sam is confused about her feelings for Trent and still hasn’t told Devon about their kiss; Uncle Patrick attempts to reconcile with Sam after he discovers her past; Dawn is shocked to find she is cut from the play and is livid with Sam over the kiss; Trent tries to push Sam into admitting her feelings for him.

July 24: “Cruising” – Sam is enraged when Professor Fisher makes a case study out of Crazed College Girls that offers an all-expenses paid trip to Cabo; Kathryn and Shannon are all over the competition – letting loose, leading men on, and dressing sexy; Sam learns the truth about her family history.

July 31: “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner” – Sam and Trent continue to dance around their relationship status; Trent scores some major points with Sam when he enlists the help of his lawyer father in Sam’s search for information about her family background; Professor Fisher puts two and two together, and realizes the “other man” who has ruined his marriage is his star student, Noah Jensen.

The show is debuting in the US this week but airs on Global Tuesdays at 10 p.m.

Jacqueline Cutler of the New Jersey Star-Ledger relates to it:

• Mom’s TV log: A week’s worth of family viewing
  “All too often, teen dramas are too sexy or just laughable. But this one, from “Degrassi” writer Aaron Martin, captivates because it is different and honest. As someone who almost lost my chance because of the dreaded mandatory meal ticket, I related to it. More shocking, my daughter, who won’t have to finagle her way out of said meal ticket, also loved it.”

Rich Heldenfels of the Ohio Beacon Journal isn’t as impressed:

• These aren’t `Best Years’
  “If The Best Years was a little better acted, a little more dramatic, a little more carefully thought out — a little more something, then I might have forgiven the many clunks and creaks in the premiere.”

Marise Strauss of Playback talks statistics, including those of Global’s new Canadian series, The Best Years:

• On the Lot loses to House
  “However, few House fans stuck around to watch the premiere of Global’s homegrown series The Best Years at 10 p.m., which managed 346,000 viewers in the timeslot formerly held by The Gilmore Girls.”

TV Stevie from Rogers/Yahoo recaps the first episode:

• Those were the Best Years of our lives
  “Best Years has the potential to be a winner. I’d never denounce a show on a few holes in its first episode. In fact, it probably takes more than an entire season (if it lasts that long) to get a proper read. The first episode laid the groundwork for some future storylines, and I can see the plot going somewhere.”

From Infinite Monkey Theorem:

• The Best Years
  “Samantha, the plucky orphan, is alright. Casting Charity Shea was a great choice, she’s likable and brings a quirky charm to the role that elevates it. She’s the high point. The rest of the characters are laughable. We have the rich-bitch roomate (who’s blonde in case you didn’t guess). The basketball jock love interest. The Asian nerd we can’t help but love. None of the characters provide a twist on the stereotype. None of them have a whiff of originality. They’re flat out boring.”

Dana Gee of the Vancouver Province thinks teen girls might like The Best Years:

• Not exactly the Best show
  “This show has got “teen girl” written all over it. That in mind, The Best Years gets a more generous review as it does deliver the kind of extreme — as in plentiful and borderline silly — drama that often appeals to those more concerned with the mall than mutual funds.”

andPop interviews The Best Years star:

• Charity Shea is Counting Her Lucky Stars
  “It has a lot of heart,” Shea, on vacation in the Bahamas, says about The Best Years. “It’s a way for kids to watch something they can relate to or something they might deal with when they do go to college and it’s something they can learn from.”

Gayle MacDonald of the Globe and Mail interviews The Best Years creator Aaron Martin:

• It’s like Degrassi, only older and set in Boston
  Martin believes his new series will target a slightly older demographic than Degrassi’s. “We want teens, but we’re looking for women in their 20s, 30s and 40s as well.”

Vinay Menon of the Toronto Star is less than impressed with The Best Years:

• More like the bland years
  “The rich blond who turns out to be a mean girl? Check. The gifted black athlete from the shattered neighbourhood? Check. The geeky Asian friend desperate to fit in? Check. The meta-wink show within a show? Check. The hipster score? Check. The transparent courting of young viewers? Check. Okay, so The Best Years isn’t exactly striving for originality. So what? When it comes to building these shows, a formulaic, derivative blueprint is a moot point so long as the finished structure is compelling on its own terms. Alas, this is where the trouble begins.”

Bill Harris of the Toronto Sun finds The Best Years is nearly the worst:

• ‘The Best Years’ a total misnomer: Global series compares unfavourably with, well, just about anything else out there
  ” Sadly, The Best Years makes the recently cancelled Falcon Beach look like Masterpiece Theatre. Here’s one positive: Charity Shea, who plays Samantha, has a smile that truly lights up a TV screen. There isn’t much else to smile about, though. “

Elizabeth Withey of The Edmonton Journal interviews Niall Matter, star of The Best Years:

• From the rigs to TV: Edmonton-born actor stars in new drama The Best Years
  “Matter, 26, plays Trent Hamilton, a rebellious bartender and part-time student who has a cocaine problem. ‘What guy wouldn’t want to play the bad boy on a TV show?’ Matter said. ‘It’s a primal thing with guys. They want to be bad.’”

Adam Gonshor of andPop interviews Degrassi writer, The Best Years creator Aaron Martin:

• Aaron Martin Graduates from Degrassi
  “‘When I went and developed this show, looking back at why so many college shows don’t work is because you really need a strong central character to make a college show work,’ Martin says.”

From the Guelph Tribune:

• Tv Series Stars U of G Campus
  “A new TV series set at the University of Guelph with U of G students used as extras will make its debut Tuesday May 22 at 10 p.m. on Global Television.”