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Anne with an E, Featured

Comments and queries for the week of August 17

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It’s a shame, and no doubt my loss, but I won’t be watching this second season of Anne with an E. I am so disappointed (as well as others I know) that this Canadian production, by an iconic Canadian author, was aired on Netflix in the States before Canadian audiences had a chance to see it. Not kosher. And the third season no doubt will probably have its airing the same way in 2019. There is hardly a Canadian production I don’t watch, but this has left a bad taste. So long, Anne with an E — parting is such sweet sorrow. —D Mac

Bell Media[Daily Planet‘s cancellation is] disappointing but not really surprising. What we are witnessing are the death throes of profit-based cable television. Media companies like Bell and so many others are prostituting themselves to the public’s lowest common denominator to generate viewers because it is cheap and easy to make programming like what we see now and they have to compete with Internet-based programming. Like flashing lights in a casino, it’s not about quality anymore, it’s just about making you look. Like “click bait” on the Internet. They know you will leave, that is why ad time costs more at the beginning of a show because they already know most people are going to leave in the first 10 minutes. If we would like to preserve intelligent programming on television we need to support networks that don’t rely on maintaining profit margins. Unfortunately, that is only PBS, CPAC and sometimes CBC. Although CBC is fairly debatable also. Ultimately, we are all players in this game and if we want change we need to choose with our remotes and not watch junk TV. I work in the video production industry and all I can say is “Good luck people!” —Sean

So many dance tasks [on The Amazing Race Canada] this year, I’ve seen speculation that it’ll be the theme of the final memory task of the Race at the finale. Darts make for dull TV and I’ve never been a fan of the Face-Off essentially deciding who’s going to finish last halfway through the episode but at least they made it slightly hard with the all sides bit. Six teams and four Legs after this one. Pretty obvious it was going to be a non-elimination episode since the last episode always needs three teams. A good memory-matching opener task. Dylan and Martina were hilarious at the magic Road Block as was the judge watching them. And the kid in the audience that was unimpressed. It feels like the parking ticket was $0 just because they were on the Race. Is there even a penalty for that? I remember Sukhi and Jinder lost 15 minutes due to running a red light. With the amount of focus, Martina and Phil are probably in the finale; stranger things have happened then them possibly winning but they haven’t gotten 1st place yet in any Leg. Sinorama went out of business. I hope that doesn’t mean more budget cuts in future seasons. —DanAmazing

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

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Featured, Killjoys

Preview: Killjoys welcomes its newest member of the family

Are you ready to meet Delle Seyah and D’avin’s baby, Killjoys fans? Of course, we already got a glimpse of the little tyke at the end of last week’s episode. But this Friday we get to know him a little bit better thanks to a fantastic—and very sci-fi (and daytime TV)—twist.

Here’s what Space has revealed with regard to a synopsis for “Greening Pains,” written by showrunner Adam Barken and directed by Stefan Pleszczynski:

A necessary detour to a familiar space station of sin and black-market goods is totally buzzkilled by D’avin’s newborn son. Especially when the wee tyke is aging so rapidly he’s at risk of dying of old age if the team can’t find help amongst the den of criminals they’ve made port in. Added to which, Dutch is still grappling with what happened to her in greenspace, and the Lady’s infection of one of the team is finally revealed …

And here are more spoiler-free details after watching a screener.

Welcome to the family Jaeden Noel!
He’s appeared on such shows as The Expanse, Rogue, Murdoch Mysteries and Odd Squad; now Jaeden Noel checks in as Delle Seyah and D’av’s not-so-little one. The team’s first reaction to his initial growth spurt is classic Killjoys. Look for my interview with Jaeden on the website after Friday’s broadcast.

Delle Seyah isn’t Hullen anymore. That’s good, right?
Depends on who you ask, I guess. I have a feeling the lady herself is going to feel the loss as we advance later into the season. For now, she’s kind of got her hands full.

Fancy returns
An integral member of Team Awesome Force, it’s always good news when Sean Baek grabs some screen time as Fancy. Even better news? Fancy teams up with Gared.

Letterkenny‘s Evan Stern guest-stars
Evan Stern swaps Roald’s Letterkenny overalls for unique facial hair and a memorable scene with Atticus Mitchell’s Pippin. Also memorable? The place Pippin, D’avin, Dutch and Johnny go where Stern’s character is introduced. I was visiting the set that day, and it’s gorgeous.

I never get tired of the Killjoys theme music
It’s simple, rockin’ and has the most memorable singalong since “Hey Jude.”

Killjoys airs Fridays at 10 p.m. ET on Space.

Images courtesy of Bell Media.

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Amazing Race Canada, Featured

Amazing Race Canada: Balloons, balls and ballet in Winnipeg

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Let’s be honest. Zainab and Monica’s luck was going to run out eventually on The Amazing Race Canada. It happened last week, leaving six of the strongest teams left to battle for top position as the midway point to the season was reached.

With two flights of three departing for Winnipeg, that meant split-ups and, perhaps, a little more drama when it came to airplanes. Taylor and Courtney looked very strong headed into this Leg of the Race and are definitely the team to beat. But with the season’s first head-to-head competition, would the RCMP officers prevail? They, along with Mel and Nancy and Leanne and Mar were all on the treasured first flight while Martina and Phil, Dylan and Kwame and Courtney and Adam had to settle for departure No. 2.

There was no indication of how much of an advantage Flight No. 1 had over No. 2 other than the second trio saw the first depart, destined for Winnipeg and the Canadian Museum of Human Rights. Leanne and Mar got there before the other squads but the task was a great equalizer. Teams had to pair quotes with the images of the human rights activists who uttered them; with 11 galleries to scour, this was going to be tough. With viewers having no idea how long the task took, it was the cheerleaders who emerged first. The back half trios arrived at the museum while Nancy and Mel were still there, so there wasn’t too much lag time between flights out of Toronto. Martina and Phil’s plan of dividing and conquering paid off and they jumped to third place. Nancy and Mel and Courtney and Adam teamed up to finish their boards.

The Leg’s Detour, as usual, offered two options. In Tights, Racers made their way to the Royal Winnipeg Ballet to learn some key steps from Swan Lake. In Bites, Racers used Skip the Dishes to deliver two bags of food to hungry citizens. Leanne and Mar, of course, chose Tights. Having several dance-themed challenges this season has really played to their strengths. Taylor and Courtney opted for ballet too, much to the former’s chagrin who was disturbed by the thong up his “arse.”

Meanwhile, Phil and Martina chose Bites, as did Courtney and Adam, leaving Nancy and Mel to dance … and Kwame and Dylan out in the cold. They exited the museum for Bites in last place. A parking ticket (it was a warning) gave Adam the opportunity to highlight the friendliness of Canadians before wishing Fran a happy birthday and hot pizza. Martina and Phil botched the location of their second delivery (apartment buildings are a pain) but got positive reviews. (Um, how much food did Fran and Travis order??)

Leanne and Mar, predictably by this point, nailed the ballet in their first attempt and departed for the Face Off to throw darts at the Royal Canadian Legion. Once there, the first team to hit all segments of the board would be their ticket to advance. Leanne and Mar faced off against Courtney and Taylor. It was the siblings who won, leaving Leanne and Mar to take on Nancy and Mel. Leanne and Mar were triumphant, leaving Nancy and Mel to throw down against Martina and Phil. Martina and Phil won, leaving Nancy and Mel to face Dylan and Kwame. Kwame, who had never thrown a dart in his life, made it look easy and they moved on, leaving Nancy and Mel vs. Adam and Courtney. Not even Mel’s two bullseyes could stop Adam and Courtney, who left the rodeo star and Olympian in last place to wait out a time penalty.

Now in first place, Courtney and Taylor drove to The Forks Market and the Road Block. Here, Racers had to complete the cup and ball trick and create a balloon animal. Courtney, Leanne and Martina all took the test head-on (Martina’s facial expressions killed me), with Courtney finishing it quickly. Honestly, she was really good at both tasks and had the enthusiasm needed to deliver a quality magic trick. Dylan looked amazing decked out in his magician’s outfit but struggled to complete the task.

The Leg’s Pit Stop was located in the Leo Mol garden in the heart of Assiniboine Park where Jon welcomed Courtney and Taylor in first place for the third straight time. Martina and Phil, who have proved to be a lot better in reality than perhaps they were on paper, arrived in second place. Adam and Courtney seemed destined for a decent finish until they got lost on the way to the park. Still, it made no difference and they arrived on the mat ahead of Nancy and Mel.

In a turn of events that I should have seen coming, Jon revealed this was a non-elimination Leg and Nancy and Mel were still in the mix. They’ll have to complete an additional task next week in Prince Edward Island.

Do you think this should have been a non-elimination Leg? Can Martina and Phil win it all? Let me know in the comments below.

Here’s how the teams finished this Leg of the Race:

  1. Courtney and Taylor (trip for two to New York City)
  2. Martina and Phil
  3. Leanne and Mar
  4. Dylan and Kwame
  5. Courtney and Adam
  6. Nancy and Mel (non-elimination Leg)

The Amazing Race Canada airs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET/9 p.m. MT on CTV.

Images courtesy of Bell Media.

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Featured

Comments and queries for the week of August 10

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Thanks for the [Amazing Race Canada] tidbits. Bad placement if everyone came up the other side of the Mat. Kinda telegraphed the Navy ladies would be out. Even without the U-Turn they were an hour behind and 401 traffic in the afternoon. Lattes seemed easier and looked good. The charity tasks are a nice gesture but not really challenging nor good TV despite attempts to make it tense. Though the cheerleaders mistake was funny. Another prize to Asia without mentioning the sponsor. Likely Sinorama from last year that’s been in some trouble lately. Without them a future season will be even smaller in budget it seems. I read a few years back that the producers had to fight for four international episodes a year. Looks like it was cut down even further. Still more Face-Offs, meh. —DanAmazing

[Just in Time for Dinner] is a great show (I haven’t seen the original British version yet but will check it out). However, I too am very frustrated with the poor cooking skills and frequent references to bad dietary choices. “When I want hash browns I go to a drive thru and ask for six.” Seriously? Who feeds their children like that? Also interesting to watch an entire family eat with only forks! They do not know how to use a knife and fork together! Pity but probably culturally accurate… —Tina

I thought the lack of cooking skills in this family pathetic. Irritating to watch. Are 40-somethings really that clueless? —Claire

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

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Featured, Killjoys

Killjoys: Hannah John-Kamen and Luke Macfarlane look forward to Seasons 4 and 5

All hail Team Awesome Force.

Sure, there has been a lot of drama so far on this season on Killjoys, what with Hullen Johnny, Dutch and Aneela in the Green and a baby on the way for D’avin. But there’s also been a lot of fun too. A lot of swagger. I think a lot of that comes from a cast, writers, showrunner and crew who all get what they’re doing and are having a blast doing it.

With that in mind, here are our interviews with Hannah John-Kamen and Luke Macfarlane, conducted during a set visit earlier this year.

Hannah John-Kamen
I’ve already asked a couple of people about this. Obviously, as an actor, it’s good to know that you’ve got a couple of seasons still to go. Why is it important to you to be able to close this out?
Hannah John-Kamen: It’s a real soothing feeling, to be honest, just to know that we can close it out and we can do it properly. We know the time that we can do it in. There’s the story of the Killjoys and of Dutch, also introducing Aneela last season. Knowing that we’ve got two seasons to continue and know when it ends means that we can have a hell of an ending.

As one of the three main characters or actors on the show, you were doing heavy lifting anyway. Then you had another character for you to play. Was it a daunting feeling in the beginning? Is it still daunting?
HJK: No. Actually, to be honest with you I embraced her with open arms. It was just like, ‘OK. This is exciting.’ ‘Cause it’s just the creating of a character is the fun part. That’s the real fun part. I remember doing that with Dutch and figuring out who she is. Then introducing this new character which I suppose is a villainous character, but actually, she’s not and is actually finding when you play a villain, you actually play yourself like you’re the good guy. That was really fun to do, and I absolutely adored that. It was amazing to have such a juxtaposition of Dutch and to find her. That was fun creating.

How do you tap into Aneela?
HJK: It was amazing to see with the writers and actually figure out, what is her backstory? It’s all Khlyen. It’s all linked in with Khlyen. As Dutch, as an actor, Hannah working with Rob Stewart as Dutch and having that history with Khlyen it was amazing to use that history with Khlyen and create this one with Aneela which actually goes back way, way, way further and actually is more damaged.

Near the end of that season where we just found her backstory, and she’s just such a damaged individual. You had to feel bad for her. She’d been propped on this pedestal as being this villain and it was Khlyen all along.
HJK: It was Khlyen. Also, it wasn’t her fault. She didn’t ask to be that. Also what’s amazing is what Michelle [Lovretta] does which is amazing is, there’s no such thing as good and bad. Actually at some point, what was so fun was it flipped. You’re kind of going, ‘Dutch, you’re the bad guy and Aneela is the good guy.’ It was amazing to have that flip of the two characters and that, as an audience to go, ‘Oh god, I’m feeling confused. I’m feeling conflicted here.’

Obviously, you can’t give too much away but what’s the elevator pitch for Season 4?
HJK: Well, now we know that there’s a bigger force than the both of them. We’re gonna definitely, definitely try and destroy the greater evil.

Luke Macfarlane
What does it mean for you as an actor to have two seasons to wrap this up, aside from getting to know you got a gig for job stability?
Luke Macfarlane: Twenty episodes, yeah. Well, especially in this genre you are constantly making these really intricate things and you kind of hope it all goes somewhere. It feels like there’s satisfaction to the conclusion. What does it really mean to me? I mean, you always wonder about these characters. You wonder where they go off to in your mind so I think, I’m hoping there’s some sort of peace and rest for that because like I said, I’ve never been able to do that with a character on a television show. I imagine it’ll be sort of like a beautiful funeral. I don’t know if I’m going to die or not.

Even if you die in genre you can still come back. You never know what’s going to happen.
LM: This is true. As we found out in this show specifically.

D’avin is going to be a father. That must’ve messed with your mind a little bit when you read the script in Season 3 that that was going to happen.
LM: Totally, absolutely. It’s an amazing thing too where you just have to, the given circumstances are you are a dad now and we do this amazing sci-fi thing. He’s become somebody different as it’s gone on. I think he had the most to shuck off and he’s in a way having run away from a family, the guy who’s now building his own family. So it’s really interesting, really connecting with this part of the storyline for him. And hopefully, that will carry on to Season 5.

This character has grown because in Season 1, Episode 1 when we first met him it was almost immediately a pissing contest with Johnny. There’s just an ease between these characters now. It’s so much fun to just sit back and watch their adventures and not worry about squabbling between them.
LM: Totally. There’s always little disagreements and stuff but we’ve moved beyond squabbling for sure. I also think what’s interesting about the show is we’re so used to these kinds of tropes in television like two guys fight over the girl. We’re kind of past those tropes. So as an actor it’s funny to have to reinvent what we are. It’s a little bit more complicated than just your typical two brothers who like the girl and want the girl. So it always keeps you on your toes a little bit.

Killjoys airs Fridays at 10 p.m. ET on Space.

Images courtesy of Bell Media.

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