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.
Cardinal

Cardinal returns for Season 2 beginning Jan. 4 on CTV; plus photo gallery

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From a media release:

CTV officially announced today that CARDINAL, the international success and #1 new Canadian drama series of the 2016/17 broadcast season, returns for a gripping Season 2 on January 4. Strategically scheduled in a Thursday night timeslot immediately following the two biggest shows on television, THE BIG BANG THEORY (8 p.m.) and YOUNG SHELDON (8:30 p.m.), the critically acclaimed series airs Thursdays at 9 p.m. ET/PT on CTV and CTV GO, following a CraveTVTM FIRST LOOK streaming beginning Wednesdays at 9 p.m. ET. CARDINAL is also set to premiere on Super Écran day-and-date with CTV.

Viewers can catch up on Season 1 now on CraveTVTM and in a six-part television event beginning Monday, Dec. 25 at 10 p.m. ET/PT on CTV Two and CTV.ca. Click HERE for the Season 2 trailer.

Directed by Jeff Renfroe (ROGUE), Season 2 of the Directors Guild of Canada(DGC) award-winning series stars Golden Globe®-nominee Billy Campbell (THE KILLING) as John Cardinal and the multiple Genie Award-winning actress Karine Vanasse (REVENGE) as Detective Lise Delorme, as they weave through an intricate investigation that exposes the seedy underbelly of picturesque Algonquin Bay.

Cycle 1 of CARDINAL garnered a worldwide audience after Entertainment One (eOne) successfully licensed the series internationally to more than 100 territories, with additional sales still pending. For eOne, the series has been a hit with international audiences, debuting to critical acclaim and strong ratings. International sales include: Hulu in the U.S., BBC Four  in the UK, and Canal Plus in France, Telekom in Germany, Calle 13 in Spain, C More in Scandinavia (Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Norway), and SBS in Australia, to name a few.

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CARDINAL picks up several months after the events of Season 1. It’s early summer in Algonquin Bay and the blackflies aren’t the only ones out for blood. Detectives John Cardinal (Campbell) and Lise Delorme (Vanasse) find themselves with a strange case on their hands involving a young woman with a gunshot wound to the head. The investigation quickly takes a turn as Cardinal and Delorme uncover a series of disturbing, ritualistic killings that may be connected to their young victim. Cardinal must work to identify the young woman before her attacker strikes again.

Joining Billy Campbell and Karine Vanasse in Season 2 of CARDINAL is an all-star supporting cast that includes Bruce Ramsay (19-2) as Ray Northwind, Alex Paxton-Beesley (PURE) as Red, Jonathan Keltz (REIGN) as Kevin Tait, Kevin Hanchard (ORPHAN BLACK) as Detective Alan Clegg, Kris Holden-Ried (VIKINGS) as Scott Lasalle, and Dan Petronijevic (19-2) as Leon Rutkowsky.

Returning cast members include Deborah Hay (The Anniversary) as Catherine Cardinal, Glen Gould (Rhymes for Young Ghouls) as Det. Jerry Commanda, Kristen Thomson (Away From Her) as Staff Sergeant Noelle Dyson, David Richmond-Peck (ORPHAN BLACK) as Corporal Malcolm Musgrave, and Alanna Bale (PRIME RADICALS) as Kelly Cardinal.

In the premiere episode, entitled “Red” (Thursday, Jan. 4 at 9 p.m. ET/PT on CTV and CTV GO), Detective Jerry Commanda (Glen Gould) finds a confused, red-haired woman alone at a roadside bar with a bullet in her head. Red (Alex Paxton-Beesley) has no memory of who she is, how she got there, or who shot her. Even after the bullet is removed, she can’t remember anything. Commanda turns the case over to Detectives John Cardinal land Lise Delorme, who must protect Red while trying to uncover her identity and shooter.

CARDINAL is produced by Sienna Films and eOne in association with CTV, with the financial participation of the Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation, the Canada Media Fund, and the Cogeco Program Development Fund; and with the assistance of the Ontario Film and Television Tax Credit and the Canadian Film or Video Production Tax Credit. Super Écran has commissioned the series for French-language Canadian broadcast. eOne distributes the series worldwide.

CARDINAL is adapted from the John Cardinal Mysteries series, a series of six bestselling crime novels written by Giles Blunt. Sarah Dodd (MOTIVE, RANSOM) serves as an Executive Producer and writer for Cycle 2. Jennica Harper (MOTIVE), Alison Bingeman (19-2), and Jeff Renfroe co-executive produce the series, with Renfroe directing all six episodes. The drama is executive produced by Sienna Films duo Julia Sereny and Jennifer Kawaja (COMBAT HOSPITAL). For eOne, Jocelyn Hamilton and Armand Leo serve as Executive Producers.

 

 

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Fubar

Link: Suddenly, Vice content seems tone-deaf and terribly male

From John Doyle of The Globe and Mail:

Link: Suddenly, Vice content seems tone-deaf and terribly male
Fubar Age of Computer has neither the wit or verbal dexterity of Letterkenny nor the benign tomfoolery of Trailer Park Boys. Yours truly has adored both series for their freshness and this Fubar thing feels dated, dumb and tone-deaf to contemporary reality. Continue reading. 

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Featured, Reality, Lifestyle & Documentary

Food Spin with Chef Aleem wheels and deals tasty treats on AMI-tv

I’ve been really impressed with the programming AMI-tv is offering. From folks with disabilities struggling to find a job in Employable Me to an all-out culinary competition featuring blind or low vision home cooks, the network is spotlighting truly inspirational people.

The same is true for the channel’s latest offering, Food Spin with Chef Aleem. Debuting Wednesday at 8:30 p.m. ET on AMI-tv, cameras track Toronto’s Aleem Syed from the moment he wakes up to the time he shuts it down at The Holy Grill, his Halal food truck. The hook? Syed is in a wheelchair, but that hasn’t slowed down his passion. A 2008 shooting incident left him paralyzed from the waist down but hasn’t deterred Syed from following his passion; viewers learn that right away as he goes through his culinary education and work ethic.

Syed’s mother is a big part of his life and in the first of 13 episodes we see the duo bicker good-naturedly before getting down to business: Syed wants to re-create his mother’s classic dessert into something he can sell from the truck. After jumping behind the wheel of his car—yes, he drives himself around—Syed hits up a spice shop in Kensington Market to land spices.

Offered in integrated described video for blind and low vision viewers, Food Spin with Chef Aleem‘s production and entertainment value would be equally at home on Food Network Canada and is a testament to the work AMI-tv is doing with their original productions.

Food Spin with Chef Aleem airs Wednesdays at 8:30 p.m. ET on AMI-tv.

Image courtesy of AMI.

 

 

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Uncategorized

Link: Twenty years later, Twitch City is a work of genius and a reminder of what Canadian TV lacks

From Calum Marsh of the National Post:

Link: Twenty years later, Twitch City is a work of genius and a reminder of what Canadian TV lacks
Just about 20 years ago, the CBC inconspicuously broadcast the pilot episode of what remains, two decades later, perhaps the finest program in Canadian television history. It was called Twitch City, and with near-miraculous daring, it defied every trapping and convention of mainstream TV. Conceived by Don McKellar, who stars, in collaboration with Bruce McDonald, who directs, the series was, broadly speaking, an “anti-sitcom” — a misanthropic comedy that seemed actively hostile to the form. Continue reading.

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Featured, Travelers

Preview: The Travelers team hits the water for high octane adventure

Just because you saved the world from a catastrophic virus doesn’t mean you get any downtime. That’s what MacLaren and the team learn in this week’s new episode of Travelers.

Here’s what Showcase has revealed regarding Monday’s newest episode, “17 Minutes,” written by creator Brad Wright and directed by Amanda Tapping.

A skydiving traveler must try, repeatedly, to save our team from a horrible fate.

And, as always, a few more tidbits from us after watching the episode.

Kat blows her top
No, she’s not still suffering from a fever, but Kat is certainly feeling hot thanks to Grant forgetting something special. We don’t blame her, frankly and he’s in the dog house. That leads to a very funny scene as his team members educate Grant in “21st Century Female Behavior.” I keep forgetting that, despite all of the missions these folks are on, they need to keep their low profile and stay integrated with the population.

Say what?!?!
Just five minutes into “17 Minutes,” everything goes awry for the team in a deadly way. A seemingly routine mission to retrieve an important item turns awful for everyone. Brad Wright and his writers continue to take us on a thrilling ride every week and this one is no exception. It’s twisty, turny and simply fantastic.

Melissa Roxburgh saves the day
Well, her character Carrie tries to anyway. The Vancouver actress portrays the aforementioned skydiver who plummets to earth and attempts to save MacLaren and the squad … and save their mission in the process.

Travelers airs Mondays at 9 p.m. ET on Showcase.

Images courtesy of Corus.

 

 

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