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.
Featured

Comments and queries for the week of October 2

Battle of the Blades is excellent family entertainment. If you’re a skating fan this is a show not to miss. So glad Kurt is back, his skating is what we all hope to see. —Cora

I am so glad my TV family is coming back. I have not seen my real family in five years now and was so looking forward to going home to England this year to see them until COVID-19 reared its ugly head. So waiting for another year to see my TV family doesn’t seem such a long time to wait. At least it is coming back. WooHoo!!! —Beth

I’m happy to settle for 11 episodes. Hope we are all here to watch the new season. Safe travels, everyone! —Mary

We are from North Dakota and we watched all 13 seasons and can’t wait for Season 14! the lives of the families in Heartland got us through the COVID-19 and our world situation but we still need more of them! Please, please, please keep Amy and Ty and Lyndy on the show! —Jerilyn

I’m from France. Love this show, Chris Potter and Tim’s character! Hope to see Season 13 on Netflix soon. —Caroline

My husband and I are from England and we love Heartland. We’ve watched all episodes via Netflix. Can’t wait for Season 14. We absolute love it, and we love the scenery too. All the actors and actresses are superb. We also think that Caleb is very funny. The whole program is superb, keep it up guys. —Judith

Got a question or comment about Canadian TV? Email greg.david@tv-eh.com or via Twitter @tv_eh.

Facebooktwitterredditlinkedinmail
Private Eyes

Filming underway on Season 5 of Private Eyes

From a media release:

 Global and Entertainment One (eOne) announced today that production is underway on Season 5 of the smash-hit series, Private Eyes (8X60). From Canadian broadcaster and production partner Corus Entertainment, with leading independent studio eOne, the new season returns with more cases and drama for Everett & Shade Private Investigations. Canada’s favourite detective duo Angie Everett (Cindy Sampson) and Matt Shade (Jason Priestley) are back with eight new episodes featuring more cases and some real questions about their future together, professionally, and personally. As the recipient of the 2019 Golden Screen Award for Canada’s most-watched comedy or drama, Season 4 of Private Eyes is set to air later this fall on Global.

Season 5 welcomes back Shade’s daughter, Jules Shade (Jordyn Negri) and her boyfriend Liam Benson (Jonny Gray); Shade’s father, “The Soup Don” Don Shade (Barry Flatman); Everett and Shade Agency’s assistant, Zoe Chow (Samantha Wan); Officer Danica Powers (Ruth Goodwin); Angie’s mother, Nora Everett (Mimi Kuzyk); Shade’s ex-wife, Becca D’Orsay (Nicole DeBoer); and Angie’s childhood friend, Detective Kurtis ‘Maz’ Mazhari (Ennis Esmer).

Guest stars this season include Kandyse McClure (Battlestar Galactica) as Jada Berry, Shade’s new love interest; Brett Donahue as Tex Clarkson (Bad Blood); Sagine Semajuste (Grand Army) as Laila Maxton, the successful Financial Health Coach; Enrico Colantoni (Veronica Mars) as Chief George Cutler, and special appearances by Canadian Singer-Songwriter, Royal Wood; renowned Toronto Drag Queen, Lucy Flawless, and more.

Broadcast details for Season 4 of Private Eyes are coming soon. Stream Seasons 1 through 3 anytime with the Global TV App or STACKTV, available with Amazon Prime Video Channels.

Private Eyes is produced by eOne in association with Corus Entertainment, with the participation of the Canada Media Fund, the Canadian Film or Video Production Tax Credit, and the Ontario Film and Television Tax Credit. The series is executive produced by Jocelyn Hamilton and Tecca Crosby for eOne, Shawn Piller and Lloyd Segan for Piller/Segan, Jason Priestley, Alexandra Zarowny and James Thorpe. Piller, Zarowny and Thorpe are also showrunners.

Facebooktwitterredditlinkedinmail
Featured, Web series

Season 2 of Detention Adventure a slam-dunk with new mystery and characters

At the end of its first season, Detention Adventure teased a new quest to be tackled by our heroic foursome: a map hinting at the lost treasure of Ignatius Cockshutt.

The time for that quest is nigh, as Season 2 of Detention Adventure returns to CBC Gem on Friday.

But Raign (Simone Miller), Brett (Tomaso Sanelli), Joy (Alina Prijono), and Hulk (Jack Fulton) aren’t alone this time around; quick and quirky Kelly (Lilly Bartlam) joins the fray and adds a new dimension to the web series.

“We wanted to have a history expert this season,” says co-creator, co-executive producer, co-writer and director Joe Kicak. “Having Kelly in there really became the catalyst for this season. And, as you’ll see, she very much becomes part of the story arc.”

A big part of what makes the second season of Detention Adventure so enjoyable—aside from the nods to Brantford, Ont. (my hometown) and the addition of Workin’ Moms’ Sarah McVie—is the personal stories attached to the four main characters. From dealing with divorce or the death of a parent to feeling like the odd one out or an underachiever, Raign, Brett, Joy and Hulk face reality when they aren’t hunting for Cockshutt’s treasure.

“We wanted them to feel very real,” says co-creator, co-executive producer and co-writer Carmen Albano. “The emotional arc of our characters is important, so it had to be genuine.”

Detention Adventure serves up genuine scares too. Several scenes shot in a darkened church result in very creepy moments, making this adult wonder if it was a little too scary for kids.

“CBC told us to just go for it,” Kicak says with a laugh. “We shot one scene and they said, ‘We didn’t really get a jump scare,’ so we made it even worse. Then they said, ‘OK, maybe you went a little too far.’ It might scare some kids but, at the same time, you might have other kids who really enjoy the ride.”

Climb on board the ride this Friday.

Season 2 of Detention Adventure is available on CBC Gem this Friday.

Image courtesy of CBC.

Facebooktwitterredditlinkedinmail
Featured, Reality, Lifestyle & Documentary

Preview: CBC’s Rare Bird Alert spies the birders in our midst

I recently moved from Toronto to a small town just outside of Gatineau, QC. Surrounded by forest, the big-city robins and cardinals I spotted in Southern Ontario have been swapped for blue jays, woodpeckers, chickadees, warblers and wild turkeys. I’ve downloaded the Merlin Bird ID app from The Cornell Lab of Ornithology onto my iPhone and am constantly searching for and documenting my findings. Needless to say, I was intrigued to watch a screener of Paul Riss’ documentary.

“Rare Bird Alert,” broadcast as part of CBC Docs POV this Saturday at 8 p.m. on CBC and CBC Gem, embarks on a one-man odyssey to meet other enthusiasts and take the pulse of birdwatching in North America. Turns out I’m not the only one on the birding bandwagon; birdwatching has become one of the fastest-growing pastimes on the continent. With the Latin names of 234 birds tattooed on his body, Hamilton-based Riss heads out to meet a few folks amid the growing flock.

In Canada, one in five people is an active birder who spends more than a quarter of the year watching birds. According to the Canadian Nature Survey, more than half of these are women; birdwatching has now become more popular than gardening.

Among those Riss meets are biologist Melissa Hafting, teenage birding phenomenon Toby Theriault, LBGTQ visual artist Christina Baal, and Philadelphia rocker and naturalist Tony Croasdale. All have their own reasons for birding, from passion to environmental activism.

There are also some sobering stats. The bird population is dropping worldwide, sounding the alarm on climate change.

“Rare Bird Alert” is fun and funky, with an engaging soundtrack and great graphics to accompany stunning shots of birds in varying backdrops. From a cattle egret in Hamilton’s Royal Botanical Gardens, a least bittern in Long Point and Anna’s hummingbird in Vancouver, the must-don’ts of birding (always confirm your sighting) and the definition behind “lifer” and “face-melter,” Riss’ project is for anyone interested in birding or the people who do it.

“Rare Bird Alert” airs as part of CBC Docs POV, Saturday at 8 p.m. on CBC and CBC Gem.

Images courtesy of Dream Street Pictures.

Facebooktwitterredditlinkedinmail