All posts by Greg David

Prior to becoming a television critic and owner of TV, Eh?, Greg David was a critic for TV Guide Canada, the country's most trusted source for TV news. He has interviewed television actors, actresses and behind-the-scenes folks from hundreds of television series from Canada, the U.S. and internationally. He is a podcaster, public speaker, weekly radio guest and educator, and past member of the Television Critics Association.
Children's Programming

Family Channel greenlights Season 4 of The Next Step

From a media release:

Following last week’s DHX Television rebranding announcement, which emphasizes a mandate to build on the success of the company’s strong original production slate, Family Channel has revealed its plans for a fourth season of the popular tween drama The Next Step. The commissioning decision for the series, which currently ranks as the #1 kids television series airing across all Canadian kids networks1, follows the mid-season finale of the third season and the conclusion of the sold-out two-month, cross-country The Next Step Live on Stage tour. Production on the season four order, from Temple Street Productions, is set to begin this summer in Toronto.

Since its premiere in March, season three of The Next Step drew in an impressive average audience of 281,400 viewers2, weeknights at 7:30 p.m. ET/PT, making it the #1 series across all specialty networks for the three weeks of premiere episodes, with its target demos of kids 7-11, 6-12 and kids 8-14.3 On average, 479,000 unique viewers tuned-in to The Next Step each weeknight, and the third season has reached over 1.8 million Canadians to date.4

The Next Step follows the lives of an elite group of dancers who train at The Next Step studio. The first half of season three saw the dancers compete against rival studio, Elite, and each other, in order to secure a spot on the Internationals team. Thursday night’s finale brought even more twists and turns as viewers were introduced to Ella (Ella Gilling), a mischievous exchange program dancer from England, and Amanda (Logan Fabbro) was sent packing. Episodes of The Next Step currently air Fridays at 7:30 p.m. ET/PT on Family.

Commissioned by Family Channel, The Next Step is produced by Temple Street Productions and is executive produced by Frank van Keeken (Wingin’ It, Kids in the Hall, Billable Hours), Ivan Schneeberg and David Fortier (Orphan Black, Being Erica, Wingin’ It). BBC Worldwide has acquired international distribution rights. The Next Step is also produced with financial assistance from The Shaw Rocket Fund.

 

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Featured, Masterchef Canada

Review: Losers return to MasterChef Canada

I don’t like it when reality shows bring eliminated contestants back to win their way onto the program. To me, if you have been cut, you weren’t good enough in the first place and don’t deserve another chance. And you certainly don’t deserve another shot at winning the MasterChef Canada title and $100,000 over someone who has been in the trenches every single week.

So I went into Sunday’s latest episode, “Walking on Eggshells,” with a bad taste in my mouth. To me, Andrew, Cody and Kevin were nothing more than a dramatic twist that didn’t need to be there. This season has been filled with enough twists to keep me interested, so why this overkill? Regardless of my thoughts, the trio competed in the first challenge of the week, to prepare the perfect egg three ways.

The judges didn’t make things easy on Andrew, Cody and Kevin—they had just eight minutes to make a three-egg omelette, poached egg and soft-boiled egg—and the trio sweated it out. Kevin, who always seems to be a bit of a bull in a china shop in the kitchen, broke his poached egg yolk and was out of the running early, leaving the door open for Cody and Andrew. Cody ultimately won a spot back in. I won’t spend any more time whining about it.

Instead, I’ll spotlight Cody’s bonehead move of giving David a pass for the week. He is one of the strongest chefs in the kitchen and instead of making him battle, Cody let David off easy. Armchair David indeed. I understand Cody’s reasoning of putting David up there so he’s not competing with him, but he’ll have to face David sooner or later.

As for the rest of the finalists, they had an almost insurmountable task in recreating a sea scallop mousse. I’m sorry, but how can the judges expect the home cooks to master a dish that Michael Bonacini messed up the first few times he tried to construct it? Making things worse for herself was Jennifer, who forgot to grab eggs from the pantry. Kudos to Michael for taking time out to talk her off the ledge, but she had a tough road ahead of her. And yet she pulled it off by using a roux to thicken the custard and snagged a special nod from the judges.

Jon’s double shot of whipping his mousse too much and leaving a chunk of lobster cartilage in the finished dish put him firmly in the bottom next to Cody and his chunky mousse and Michael’s puddly creation. Jon’s two mistakes were enough to send him home and keep Cody in the competition.

Notes and quotes

  • “I’d rather cook what lays the eggs.” — Kevin
  • “It’s one of the most attractive poached eggs I’ve seen.” Uh, thanks Alvin.
  • I love that the finalists refer to David as “Armchair David,” because he’s always in the gallery watching others compete.
  • “I don’t get a mousse. Why would you do that to food?” Amen, Jon. Amen.
  • Does anyone have time to sit in that little library/study at the back of the kitchen?

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

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Featured, Reality, Lifestyle & Documentary

Preview: Bringing the dead to life in Mummies Alive

“Mummies: time travellers from the past. Who were they and how did they die?” That’s the goal of History’s latest documentary series, Mummies Alive.

Narrated by Jason Priestley—he utters the above quote off the top of the show—Mummies Alive, produced by Canada’s Saloon Media and UK’s Impossible Factual, is pretty entertaining. Rather than focus on the mummies we’re used to, like Egyptian pharaohs, this six-parter explores discoveries from different parts of the world and a wide range of time periods.

Sunday’s first episode, “The Gunslinger Mummy,” delves into the back story of a mummy on display at a Seattle curiosity shop since the 1950s. According to stories passed down, “Sylvester” was an American Wild West cowboy killed 120 years ago in a saloon shootout. But is that hole in his leathery stomach really from a bullet? Using state-of-the-art science, professors Ron Beckett and Jerry Conlogue investigate the truth behind the surprisingly well-preserved corpse. As Beckett exclaims, Sylvester looks more like a wooden carving than a mummy, complete with a full moustache and mouth full of broad, crooked white teeth.

Rather than perform an autopsy—which would destroy the body—they turn to forensic pathologist Dr. Richard Shepherd and his super-cool computer scanner, which removes layers of skin to reveal the skeleton underneath. Experts embark on some stunning tests, including using a Colt .45 and a beef brisket to prove whether or not Sylvester was shot in the stomach and if the Arizona desert really was hot and dry enough to turn Sylvester into a mummy.

Rather than just stick with the science of the investigation, Sunday’s debut uses newspaper articles, word-of-mouth and CGI to tell the alleged tale of Sylvester, a rough-and-tumble man who may have been on the wrong end of a poker game. Gunfights in the Wild West were commonplace, but is that what happened to Sylvester? A history of the time period and other facts are revealed until the true story of Sylvester, his life—and circumstances surrounding his death—are brought to light. It’s a fun and informative ride.

Upcoming episodes include spotlighting two Iron Age bog people and a Neolithic murder victim.

Mummies Alive airs Sundays at 10 p.m. ET on History.

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