From Jeremy Dickson of Kidscreen:
When it comes to tween TV production, Canada comes of age
Oh Canada. It’s the celebrated home of maple syrup, hockey and Degrassi-star-turned-rapper Drake. Within the global kids entertainment biz, the country is gaining a reputation as a burgeoning breeding ground for high-quality TV sitcoms and dramas that target tweens and teens. Continue reading.
From Seth Abramovitch of The Hollywood Reporter:
Kids in the Hall on Lorne Michaels’ “Muscle,” Hollywood Homophobia and their Monty Python Obsession
Nearly 30 years later, the show’s influence can be felt in every corner of the comedy universe – from the films of Seth Rogen (the Steve Jobs star has called them “the benchmark of Canadian comedy”) to descendants like Key & Peele and Inside Amy Schumer. Even Michaels’ crown jewel, Saturday Night Live, in whose immense shadow the Kids have long stood, has borrowed increasingly from their playbook – most recently with the casting of Good Neighbor’s Kyle Mooney and Beck Bennett, who mine the mundane for a similar strain of surrealist humour. Continue reading.
I don’t normally cover DVD and Blu-ray reviews for TV, Eh?, but when Season 3 of Vikings was sent to me, I had to give it a look. Aside from being in my wheelhouse—it’s history—Touchwood and Momentum Pictures have teamed with Tourism Ireland to offer Vikings fans a pretty cool prize: a trip to Dublin and a visit to the Season 4 set (the details on the contest are at the bottom of the page).
Season 3 of the Canada/Ireland co-production—on sale Tuesday—was the most expansive and dramatic so far. King Ragnar Lothbrok (Travis Fimmel) led his troops to Paris where he plotted to take over the city and its riches while Floki (Gustaf Skarsgård) planned to unseat Ragnar over his partnership with King Ecbert (Linus Roache) and fascination with Christianity through Athelstan (George Blagden). Throw in some truly killer battle scenes—the siege of Paris is incredible—and the death of two major characters and creator Michael Hirst is on a roll.
Aside from all 10 episodes contained in the DVD and Blu-ray sets are some great bonus features. There are the requisite Season 3 trailers that teased the broadcast and deleted scenes. While most deleted scenes and episode moments deserve to be on the cutting-room floor, these give some real insight into fringe characters like Porunn (Gaia Weiss) and Torstein (Jefferson Hall).
In celebration of the DVD Blu-ray release, Momentum Pictures partnered with Tourism Ireland and fans of the show can enter to win a trip to Dublin, Ireland, the home of the Vikings set. It includes airfare for two, seven nights’ accommodation, daily Irish breakfasts and a visit the Season 4 set. Enter here.
From Jim Bawden:
Susan Fleming and her Moose Fixation
“Next I’ll be doing a film about moose.”
Respected filmmaker Susan Fleming told me this startling news more than two years ago and I kept wondering what had happened to her latest project. You can check it out for yourself when Moose: A Year In The Life Of A Twig Eater debuts on CBC-TV’s The Nature Of Things on Thursday. Continue reading.
William Shatner’s guest appearance on Murdoch Mysteries has been discussed almost as much as whether or not Crabtree would be freed from prison. Shatner portrays American novelist, essay writer and speaking Mark Twain in Monday’s new instalment, “Marked Twain,” and doesn’t disappoint. Here are some key facts about tonight’s case before it begins.
Margaret is back!
Fans of Arwen Humphreys rejoice, because Margaret is back and better than ever. Thomas is being considered for a membership at the exclusive Empire Club and Margaret is doing her best to make sure he gets in. The Empire Club is a real thing; established in 1903 (the year this season of MM takes place) and was created to keep ties with Britain strong. And while Mark Twain never really spoke there, several other notable folks did, including Winston Churchill, Ronald Reagan, A.Y. Jackson, Roberta Bondar, Indira Gandhi and Prince Philip.
Not everyone loves Mark Twain
He may have written beloved books in The Adventures of Tom Sawyer and Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, but not everyone liked Twain at the time. He was against the way countries like Britain had settled territory around the world through colonization and military force. Hence, Mr. Twain becomes a target.
A certain someone is Twain’s biggest fan
The Curse of the Pharaohs makes an appearance
In a very cool way.
Higgins goes undercover
The Constable First Class dons a top and tails, slicks his hair back, adopts a British accent and ingratiates himself with the Empire Club’s members to suss out the wannabe assassin.
Murdoch Mysteries airs Mondays at 8 p.m. on CBC.
