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, Reality, Lifestyle & Documentary

Debbie Travis finds the sweet life in OWN’s La Dolce Debbie

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Debbie Travis wasn’t looking to get back into television. The DIY star of shows like Debbie Travis’ Painted House, two seasons of From the Ground Up and All For One was burnt out by the medium. But a flippant remark at a speaking engagement in Vancouver almost seven years ago changed all that … and her life.

“I made this stupid story up where I said, ‘I have a villa in Tuscany and I’m going to invite everybody out to stay with me,'” she recalls. “And I didn’t have one. But within a short time, I had women signing up to take part.” She rented a retreat and gave it a shot. It was such a success, Travis decided to buy a property and renovate it so she could offer the experience annually.

That multi-year journey from flippant remark to reality is documented in OWN Canada’s La Dolce Debbie, where she, husband Hans Rosenstein and an army of construction dudes turn a 13th century farmhouse and property into an idyll for themselves and—for part of the year—a week-long haven for women looking to be recharged and inspired. Debuting Tuesday at 8:30 p.m. ET, La Dolce Debbie revisits the exhaustive search to find the perfect property, a trek that took Travis and Rosenstein all over Italy. But discovering a tumbledown farmhouse was just the beginning. It took two years of paperwork and planning before a shovel turned the soil.

The six-episode program isn’t only about transforming a farmhouse into a 14-bedroom oasis. It’s as much a relationship tale about a young model who fell in love with a young man she met in France and the life they built in Canada. Travis commented on more than one occasion that Rosenstein wasn’t supposed to appear in La Dolce Debbie, but I’m glad he does, providing levity and patience when things go wrong and Travis becomes frustrated by bureaucracy and blips in construction.

It’s also, as Travis says, a series about next chapters. Upcoming episodes spotlight several of the women who attend the Tuscan getaways she offers where, as she says, you can “put your handbag under the bed” and everything is included. With responsibilities on hold, real contemplation begins via yoga, hikes, swimming, eating drinking, talking and laughing.

“I wanted to create a space where women can come and empty their minds,” she says. “Women today are looking for that next step in their lives and I want them to come and be spoiled with the best of everything, declutter their minds and think about what’s next.”

And, in the process, find their own dolce vita like Travis did.

La Dolce Debbie airs Tuesdays at 8:30 p.m. ET on OWN Canada.

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Anne of Green Gables

Link: Sara Botsford: Marilla for a New Generation in Anne of Green Gables

From Melissa Girimonte of The Televixen:

Sara Botsford: Marilla for a New Generation in Anne of Green Gables
“The style of this film is quite different. It’s much more realistic than idealistic, and it’s much more grounded. [Director] John Kent Harrison has a very clear idea. In his mind, the relationship for Marilla is with Matthew. It’s not with Anne. That’s a relationship that grows, but at the beginning of the film, it’s not about this orphan kid who showed up; it’s about Marilla’s brother and he’s not really going to do without this person to help us on the farm.” Continue reading.

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Saving Hope

Link: Saving Hope postmortem: Season 4 goes out with a bang

From Bridget Liszewski of The TV Junkies:

Saving Hope postmortem: Season 4 goes out with a bang
“We are always conceiving the end of the season not knowing whether the show is going to get ordered or not. We did find out in enough time to try and build in enough of a cliffhanger. We didn’t want to try to compete with Joel (Daniel Gillies) blowing up–because that was so epic–but we wanted there to be a cliffhanger and something to come back to. If it was the last episode of the whole thing we designed it–with Charlie narrating and the tux–to have this feel of coming full circle, but then with a bit of a turn in it when we knew we were coming back.” Continue reading. 

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Featured, Masterchef Canada

MasterChef Canada returns with plenty of tears

MasterChef Canada is manipulative as heck. With two seasons under their belts, producers Proper Television know exactly how to tug at our emotions. With just one hour of this go-round underway, I was already cheering for finalists like Mary Berg and Jennifer Baglioni because of their backstories, and want them to go all the way to the end.

Of course, I’m supposed to feel this way, and once you just accept it, episodes like Sunday’s are entertaining both in the slick production but the storytelling as well. And with three seasons under their belts, judges Michael Bonacini, Alvin Leung and Claudio Aprile know how to inject their own brand of drama into the proceedings too. All three took turns being critical with the first handful of home cooks to shoot for the Top 14, and stated more than once the talent bar had been raised. Thankfully, several contestants met the challenge or exceeded them.

One was Mary Berg, who overcame personal tragedy (her family was in a car accident years ago, claiming her father’s life) to score an apron. Another was Jennifer Bagione, who told her own tear-induced tale. Both parents were deaf and she learned to communicate through sign language. After their mother left, Jennifer took over cooking duties, ensuring Dad had a hot meal to come home to every night. The Maple, Ont., salon manager broke down in tears while the judges communicated through her to her father that she had won a spot in the Top 14.

Not everyone was so lucky. A montage captured several wannabe MasterChef Canada contestants eliminated because their plates were too pedestrian, under-seasoned or just plain bad. Folks like Sean Hickey—he of the bacon-themed headband and apron—bombed out with their audition plate but will battle it out for a spot in the show via kitchen cooking because the judges saw a glimmer of talent.

Who will win the $100,000 grand prize and MasterChef Canada title? It’s too soon to tell, but it’s going to be a fun (and tear-filled) ride on the way to deciding. Tell me who you think will win via the comments below.

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

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Featured, Saving Hope

Saving Charlie on Saving Hope

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The news Saving Hope will return for Season 5 may have eased the stress of Sunday’s two-part season finale and pretty much guaranteed Charlie was going to pull through his brain tumour surgery, but it was still a pretty rough go for my nerves.

Would Charlie emerge still being able to see dead people, or would that ability disappear with his tumour? But while it took both episodes, “Anybody Seen My Baby” and “Let Me Go” for Charlie to emerge from surgery with his faculties intact and his ghostly gift excised (he thinks), he and Alex were far from safe. In fact, one of them may very well be at death’s door when the fifth season kicks off.

Yup, the couple who had been through so much already were thrown into the wringer once more—thanks for Adam Pettle’s finale script—when Crenshaw (Travis Milne) appeared at the Fellowship dinner with a gun and fired it when they stood so Alex and Maggie could accept their award together. To say the twist came out of left field is an understatement and a testament to Pettle and his writing staff. So much has gone on this season I’d completely forgotten about Crenshaw. He, of course, never forgot Charlie’s refusal to help get him cleared of murdering his wife and sought revenge.

Saving_Hope1

It was the perfect wrench to throw into what was for the most part a happy season finale. Yes, there were sad moments—Kristine died and a patient with liver disease lost her unborn daughter in “Anybody Seen My Baby”—but Dawn and Zach are officially an item (after a misstep courtesy of Maggie) and flying between Vancouver and Toronto so they can see Zach’s kids. After everything they’ve been through personally since last season I’m glad the pair are together and truly happy. Not so happy? Cassie, who went from No. 1 to also-ran in Jeremy’s life after his wife, Natasha, jetted in and proclaimed her love for him. Now he’s headed back to California, closing the door on their relationship but opening it up for Dev to make his move.

So what do you think, Saving Hope fans? Did Crenshaw shoot Alex? Charlie? Someone else? Or did he miss? And what did you think of this season overall? Write a comment below or send me a note via Twitter to @tv_eh.

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