Yearly Archives: 2015

Featured, Reality, Lifestyle & Documentary

Property Brothers gamble it all on own At Home reno

Jonathan and Drew Scott have built themselves a nice little empire. They’ve got their TV series in Property Brothers and Buying & Selling with the Property Brothers, both of which air on W Network. They’ve got a production company that includes third sibling, J.D., on the docket. Heck, they’ve even got a Caribbean design cruise that fans can go on later this year.

Now Jonathan and Drew embark on their newest—and perhaps most important—project this week with Property Brothers at Home. Debuting Tuesday on W Network, the series follows the duo (with some help with J.D.) as they transform the spacious home they co-own in Las Vegas into something special in time for a family reunion.

“We wanted this show to be something different,” Jonathan says. “The most important parts of our shows are those brotherly moments when we give each other a hard time. Who can’t relate to that with a sibling or a friend?”

“When Property Brothers was first pitched to us, they wanted a male-female host combo. They thought Jonathan was very feminine, so it was perfect,” Drew teases, proving the point. There are plenty of friendly jabs in Tuesday’s bow, from Jonathan mocking Drew’s frustration at the cluttered garage, to Drew teasing Jonathan for his lack of a love life, and J.D. and Drew messing around with swords while Jonathan is being fitted for a suit of armour. (Yes, you read that right. The reason why is revealed by episode end.) Jonathan marvels that any work gets done because they’re constantly laughing and having a good time.

Tuesday’s first instalment in the four-parter quickly sets the scene: Jonathan and Drew bought a huge home in Las Vegas years ago, but because of their busy lives had never gotten around to renovating it. The two decided that 2014 would be the year they’d finally get the job done. And, after a year and a half of getting all of the necessary permits approved, they broke ground on the project. It was anything but smooth sailing. Sure, some overhead bulkheads were easily dismantled because there were no support beams hidden that needed to be saved, but a cut wire deep in the home’s foundation threatened to derail the whole thing.

“We both said that, no matter what happened, we had to keep the cameras rolling,” Jonathan explains. “No matter if it was during a fight or a problem with the build, we weren’t going to cut the cameras. There were a few moments when we were caught off-guard.”

“Jonathan has some diva moments,” Drew offers with a laugh.

Property Brothers at Home airs Tuesdays at 10 p.m. ET/PT on W Network. If you want to give to the brothers’ charity, check out their website.

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19-2, Ascension, Murdoch Mysteries

Tonight: Murdoch Mysteries, Ascension, 19-2

Murdoch Mysteries, CBC – “Toronto’s Girl Problem”
Working with Brackenreid’s nephew, Murdoch and the team discover a murdered woman may be connected to a gang of female jewel thieves. Guest starring Charlie Clements.

Ascension, CBC
As the mystery of Lorelei’s murder deepens, an investigation into Project Ascension threatens to expose the entire project.

19-2, Bravo – “Rock Garden”
Amelie takes a chance on Ben, while Nick and Isabelle receive shocking news about Theo.

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Featured

He Said/She Said: To cord cut or not to cord cut?

3 Comments

Join Greg and Diane on Mondays as we debate a TV-related issue that’s on our minds. This week: to cut the television cable cord or not?

Diane said: 

I cut the cord nearly four years ago, and it’s only recently I starting thinking about exploring the possibility of subscribing again to a very basic cable service if I could find  one. (Hi Talk TV — when are you going to make a decision on skinny basic?) Instead I bought an over-the-air antenna — something I’ve been meaning to do for nearly four years. Now I can channel surf and watch the Oscars, all in free high definition, and my life is complete.

Given I barely missed over-the-air TV in that time, it’s safe to say I haven’t missed cable. I cobble together what I do watch from network websites and apps, network-supplied screeners, Netflix, iTunes, friends’ houses, and … other means.

I’ve written about the cord-cutting experience at length a couple of times already, but in short: it wasn’t a financial decision, exactly — it was a cost/benefit decision.

This will sound odd from someone who started a website about television, but I don’t watch a ton of television. So I resented paying an exorbitant amount for a slew of cable channels I mostly didn’t watch that  didn’t even include all the shows I want to watch.

It’s not fully rational, but I would rather pay more through individual subscription and season pass fees to get exactly what I want than pay one giant corporation to sell me what I don’t want.

I’m lucky in that I’ve never cared for live sports or television news. In my cable TV days I had a PVR (at one point the open-source MythTV) and recorded my shows for later commercial-fast-forwarded-through viewing. I never did much channel surfing.

I wasn’t trained to channel surf. We didn’t always have cable when I was a kid, got a VCR in the early days of that magical technology, and I’ve had periods as an adult where I haven’t had a TV, never mind cable. (That’s not a hoity toity “I don’t watch [sniff] television” mentality, that’s an “I was a starving university student/arts administrator/non-profit employee/Mexico ex-pat” mentality.) I love many television shows, but I can easily live without television.

Not that I want to. I just want to live without a cable bill.

Greg said:

Diane fascinates me, simply because she’s able to live her life without cable television. Me? I can’t imagine my life without it. Yes, I have Netflix, so perhaps I’ve taken that all-important step towards a cable-free life, but I don’t think so.

I grew up in a household that had all of the cable channels available. As a result, I’ve done the same as an adult. Even before I became a television critic I was watching as many different things on the small screen as I could and I’d miss it if all that went away. I know I’m paying a lofty price for my addiction—a fact that pains me every time I get an email from the cable company telling me the latest bill has arrived—but I simply can’t live without the choice it offers me.

Feel like watching John Catucci visit the latest restaurant? I tune in to Food Network. Got a hankering to check out the Jays on a lazy Sunday afternoon in the summer? Sportsnet. What big-screen movie or documentary might catch my eye as I’m rolling through the channels? The Movie Network has me covered. Pair all those options with my PVR and I can keep myself entertained for awhile.

Cutting the cord would be like cutting off my right arm, the one that runs the remote. I just can’t do it.

 

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Featured, Heartland

Review: Broncos and bruised egos on Heartland

Tim is back! And with big news. Yes, Amy and Ty began the first serious steps  toward their wedding day with the touching discovery of Marion’s old wedding dress and Georgie and Steven’s relationship is blossoming thanks to a case of chicken pox, but the most memorable moments for me during “Cowgirls Don’t Cry” were the scenes between Tim and Jade.

Jade is quickly evolving into one of my new favourite characters on Heartland. Maybe it’s her spunk, or the way she gets under Lou’s skin, but her evolution from rich brat into bona fide cowgirl has been pretty impressive. Yes, I knew that Jade would have some raw talent in the saddle even before she climbed up there (with no help from Caleb), but I still got a charge out of her impressing Tim and shaming the boys a bit. Tim, meanwhile, learned quickly that his tough approach to teaching wasn’t winning anyone over. In fact, it was driving his students away from him.

I admit that I yelled, “No!” when I realized that Jade was going to ride the bronco, and I was relieved when she wasn’t hurt from the fall. (This is Heartland, and broken limbs occur almost as frequently as broken hearts.) Luckily, she’ll be back for the next set of classes along with at least three more kids that are interested in learning the rope from Tim.

Raise your hand if you knew that Wade was working two jobs to pay for Lily’s rehab. Yeah, me too. It’s a well-worn trope, but it was still an effective way of teaching Ty that people can change, even a former gambler like Wade, who has left his mistakes in the rearview mirror in order to make a better life for Lily. It was a bold—but expected—move for Ty to give Wade money to help pay for his mother’s rehab, though I noticed he didn’t give it all away.

He’s got to leave some for the wedding day that’s fast approaching.

Notes and quotes

  • Thanks to Lisa, I now know the difference between embossed and debossed.
  • “You are like a wedding planning lioness ready to pounce.” I’ve missed Jack’s quips.
  • I love watching Katie in family scenes, like last night when she was poking her food at dinner.
  • Things got a little dusty on my couch when Amy revealed yellow and blue were her mom’s favourite colours.

Heartland airs Sundays at 7 p.m. on CBC.

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Featured, Masterchef Canada

Review: Advantages and accidents on MasterChef Canada

If you had the chance to save a competitor in MasterChef Canada, would you save a friend, a weak chef or a strong chef? That was the task left to Jon to contemplate after he emerged as champion of the first Mystery Box Challenge.

If it was me, I’d be saving weaker chefs I felt I could take down later in the contest. Home cooks that looked like they’d break under the pressure of group challenges, would stress out over little things or be totally disorganized. So I wasn’t shocked at all when Jon—after kicking butt with his cream cheese tarts—picked Jennifer as one of the three chefs he’d save from elimination. I was a little shocked that Jon chose David as his first save, though. I’m guessing it’s because they’ve become fast friends, but David has proven himself to be a skilled competitor and that move may come back to haunt Jon.

Speaking of decisions coming back to haunt them, I wonder how Kevin felt after basically saving Andrew from elimination this week? Andrew badly overcooked his pork chop in the Mystery Box and asked for another chunk of meat. Kevin gave him his, and Andrew not only got kudos for that plate but went on to land the top dish of the night with his crispy ginger beef. Andrew will be one of two captains when MasterChef Canada moves to Toronto’s docklands to prepare food for Cirque du Soleil in two week’s time.

Also nabbing a captain’s spot was Line, who was able to turn the one stir fry she tried years ago into a winning plate. The girl needs to lay off the shocked look on her face, though, she knows what she’s doing.

At the other end of the scale were Debbie, Kyle and Kwasi. Debbie cut herself early on Sunday night and never recovered, Kyle’s huge chunks of vegetables doomed him, especially when Alvin made a point of telling him that, and Kwasi’s veggie stir fry wasn’t up to snuff. In the end it was Debbie and Kyle who were shown the door.

Notes and quotes

  • There are still some chefs that haven’t gotten the spotlight at all, like Cody, Christopher and Kristen
  • Is it just me, or does the exterior to MasterChef look a lot like the exterior for Hell’s Kitchen?
  • Lifehack! I forgot you can sharpen a knife using the bottom of a ceramic bowl.
  • “Kevin?!” You couldn’t fake the surprise reaction when Kevin heard his name called out.
  • Michael Bonacini once cooked a chicken with the gizzards still in the plastic bag inside of it? There is hope for us all.

MasterChef Canada airs Sundays at 7 p.m. ET/PT on CTV.

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