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Comments and queries for the week of May 25

Really annoyed that Kaegen is back. I hate when the shows do this! I feel like it’s a fake way of getting a certain demographic back on the scene. Yeah, sure he cooked his way back into the competition. It also always seems to be the contestants that I am happy to have seen leave! —Nicole

Such a disappointment to have Alvin go into the Red Team’s kitchen and start telling them to hurry up and offering advice as to put it in the pan NOW, etc., etc., etc. He should not have “aided” them in any way at all! —Julie

Reaction to Daily Planet‘s cancellation

One of the few shows that had some substance. Shame on you. No more stupid reality shows. —Steven

It is a disappointment to lose one of the few educational shows on TV these days. I would happily say goodbye to those mind-numbing reality shows that have taken over the networks. I don’t think it is life altering if some bride picks a particular dress, or if someone makes a better sword, or cooks a better meal. —Kathy

The reality is most of this information is available from YouTube channels which have become way more polished and professional in the past five years. It’s been at least four years since I watched Daily Planet and I was regular viewer back when Jay was the host. The No. 1 science host today in Canada is Linus Sebastian who has a series of YouTube channels. His focus is primarily on computers and tech devices but that overlaps with a lot of what Daily Planet was covering. —Ron

Reaction to InnerSpace‘s cancellation

I’m turning off Space Channel. —Ken

I guess it’s going to hit Fan Expo hard this fall. Why will they support that without the presence of the faces of Space, Teddy, Ajay, Morgan and the crew? —Sean

Innerspace has lost its appeal the last couple years, bashing older versions of movies, promoting movies that turned into rotten tomatoes; whatever happened to personal opinions, it has felt like a 30-minute commercial at times. They still had some good content, Teddy Wilson was always entertaining, of the three hosts him I’ll miss the most. I’m sure a new show will fill the void, maybe with Teddy Wilson hosting it? —Denis

If Bell Media were smart, they’d add Morgan Hoffman to Your Morning or eTalk on CTV as soon as humanly possible. She is my absolute fave. Fun, fashionable and a pleasure to watch onscreen. The InnerSpace crew did some great work, especially with their Orphan Black, post-episode specials, “After The Black” that were must-see for fans. Sad, sad news. —Kevin

 

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

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Featured, Industry News

InnerSpace cancelled at Space

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The in-house house cleaning at Bell Media, sadly, continues. It was announced Thursday afternoon that InnerSpace has not been renewed on Space.

“After 9 phenomenal seasons, last night was InnerSpace‘s final episode,” Space Channel tweeted on Thursday. “Due to increasing production costs and declining revenue, we can no longer continue production. Thank you to our hosts, crew, and incredible fans for all of the unforgettable adventures. LLAP.”

InnerSpace co-hosts Teddy Wilson and Ajay Fry took to Twitter to address the show’s viewers.

Hosted by Wilson, Fry and Morgan Hoffman, InnerSpace has been the go-to Canadian TV series for all of your sci-fi and fantasy news, television and movie reviews and exclusive interviews and set visits.

Nominated for a 2015 Canadian Screen Award for Best Host in a Variety, Lifestyle, Reality/Competition or Talk Program or Series, InnerSpace was, as described by Bell Media, “a daily entertainment talk show that covers film, television, video games, technology, comic books, gadgets and more. Hosted by Ajay Fry, Morgan Hoffman and Teddy Wilson, InnerSpace takes its audience behind the velvet rope by giving them VIP access to the people, places, and things inside the genre they’ve grown to love.”

The news comes a day after Bell Media announced it would not be renewing Daily Planet and on the heels of CBC cancelling its daily talk show, The Goods, after two seasons. Are the Canadian networks pulling the plug on all in-house production? It sure seems that way.

 

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Featured, Industry News

Daily Planet cancelled at Discovery Canada

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It’s the end of the road for Daily Planet. No more “High-Tech Toys Week,” no more “Shark Week,” no more daily science updates from hosts Ziya Tong and Dan Riskin. Bell Media announced is has chosen not to renew the long-running Discovery series after 23 seasons.

“To our viewers, we will always love and appreciate the support you gave us every night at 7e/4p,” a tweet from the show’s Twitter page read on Wednesday afternoon. “From @ziyatong, @riskindan and the @dailyplanetshow family, thank you for watching.”

 

Co-host Ziya Tong followed up with her own message:

 

Co-host Dan Riskin also took to Twitter to say his goodbye:

 

“This programming change reflects the significant financial pressures Bell Media faces in a broadcasting industry defined by growing international competition, evolving viewing options, and an uncertain regulatory framework,” read a statement sent from Bell Media on Wednesday.

Debuting as @discovery.ca in 1995 with host Jay Ingram, the program was renamed Daily Planet in 2002. Ingram exited Daily Planet in 2011 after 16 years at the helm. Past hosts have included Judy Haladay, Gill Deacon, Natasha Stillwell and Valerie Pringle. The program captured a Canadian Screen Award in 2017 for Best News for Information Series.

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Featured, Masterchef Canada

A (Corner) Gas of a time on MasterChef Canada

Tuesday’s “Cooking with (Corner) Gas” episode of MasterChef Canada was full of challenges for the Top 7 home cooks. They had to compete in a Mystery Box Challenge and, FINALLY, a classic MasterChef Canada Tag Team Challenge. But just hold on and let me tell it in order.

As the seven remaining home cooks entered the kitchen they saw a MASSIVE Mystery Box. What could be in it? Or perhaps, who could be in it? Tonight’s challenge was elevated diner food and the contestants got a little bit of help from the cast of the hit series Corner Gas Animated, including Brent Butt, Tara Spencer-Nairn, Lorne Cardinal and Nancy Robertson. For me, it was a good opportunity to add one more great Canadian series to my watch list. For the cooks, winning would give them a huge advantage in the upcoming Elimination Challenge.

All of the cooks rushed to the pantry and got baskets full of delicious products. And then there was Beccy, who had just a couple of grapefruits, eggs and butter. I was looking forward to seeing what she had in her creative mind and what the judges would get in the end. The atmosphere in the kitchen was easy and fun. The Top 7 cooks were cooking passionately and had so many great ideas, like chicken and waffles from Eugene, a Japanese play on steak and eggs from Kaegan and a tuna melt from Marissa. But chefs Claudio, Alvin and Michael made their choice and decided to try three dishes out of the seven; the lucky ones were Nadia, Andy and Beccy. Nadia made a stuffed French toast with smoked applewood brie and spicy berry fig sauce and the judges loved her brie! Beccy cooked an elevated diner pie with grapefruit and basil with Italian meringue and crumble; the presentation was extraordinary. Andy prepared a Thai Burger with vegetable tempura.

Chef Alvin was very impressed by Andy’s dish … and he was the home cook who won the challenge. Which dish would you like to try?

The Elimination Tag Team Challenge was a replication of an Asian box with five different dishes. It contained perfectly crafted Chinese bao with pork belly, cucumber and Asian pear, jellyfish salad and Banh Mi sandwich, and Takoyaki. And for the dessert? Fried banana in coconut batter. The home cooks had 70 minutes to master the box. Andy was safe from elimination but as well had a power to make teams for the Tag Team Challenge. He made Eugene and Beccy a team, Michael G. and Kaegan the second team and Nadia and Marissa the third. The heat was on. The teams were rushing to finish. The normally quiet Beccy was very vocal, urging Eugene to work faster. The judges started to sample the dishes. The first team to get all of their items in their box were Kaegan and Michael G. The Banh Mi was great, the takoyaki and the bun were good, but the bananas were burnt. Beccy and Eugene missed a couple of details but still made a great box. Nadia and Marissa, unfortunately, disappointed judges and Marissa left MasterChef Canada.

MasterChef Canada airs Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET on CTV.

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Featured

APTN’s Guilt Free Zone returns for raucous laughs and rockin’ talent

Guilt Free Zone‘s tagline is “This Show is Ridiculous.” That’s true, but it’s also hilarious, educational and truly unique.

Returning for its third season this Wednesday at 10:30 p.m. ET on APTN, Guilt Free Zone (GFZ) is something I’ve never seen in Canadian primetime. It’s a sketch comedy, variety and musical series that showcases solely Indigenous musicians and talent every week while delivering a humorous take on colonization.

“I remember sitting around, thinking about doing a variety show,” GFZ co-creator, co-executive producer, star and Juno-winning singer-songwriter Derek Miller recalls of his initial idea for a program. “It’s grown a personality and a full vibe since then. It’s been an evolution to see how it goes from an original intellectual property idea to actually stuff happening.”

You can’t talk about GFZ without mentioning its past. Season 1 of the variety program had more of a traditional late-night talk show look, with Miller behind a desk, interviewing Indigenous guests from all walks of life, interspersed with moments of sketch comedy and showcasing a musical guest. Then, in 2015, after watching two episodes of the program, the federal government revoked the program’s tax credit, citing GFZ was a talk show and therefore exempt from receiving money. That forced Laura J, Milliken, the series’ co-creator, executive producer, writer and president and CEO of Big Soul Productions, to do some major scrambling. The result? What GFZ is today. I think the show is better for it, and Milliken agrees.

“That prompted a huge wave of creativity and it was actually a really good thing,” Milliken, the co-executive producer of the Gemini-nominated Moccasin Flats, says. “I kind of paced around my house for like, a month, trying to figure out how we could make it the Guilt Free Zone and keep all these wonderful performances but also give it that comedic feel and also say the things we wanted to say.” To tune into GFZ is to visit a legal speakeasy that Derek has won in a poker game. Derek has no clue how to run a bar and relies on the staff of oddballs who he inherited along with the bar to help him. Those include multiple characters played by Amy Matysio (Save Me), Herbie Barnes (Tipi Tales), Darrell Dennis (Blackstone), Camille Stopps (Killjoys), Craig Lauzon (Royal Canadian Air Farce) and Michaela Washburn (The Thaw).

Those wacky characters—and a writing staff that includes Milliken, Katya Gardiner and Dennis—enables to show to go off in wild, hilarious directions. One upcoming Season 3 instalment, “Dick Trouble,” sees the GFZ crew reminiscing about life pre-cell phone, plunging Derek into a film noir sequence while another, “Whack and Roll,” features puppies and an 80s dance off. There is also an acknowledgement of the taking of sovereign Indigenous lands through the lens of comedy.

“We do make commentary in the comedy about who we are and that we’re still here and we have a sense of humour,” Milliken says. “We make political jabs, social jabs and stereotypical jabs. We fight against the stereotypes that are cast upon us, but really the Guilt Free Zone is a place that’s ours and a place that we have to work together on to preserve and make ours.”

The other half of GFZ‘s weekly episodes are the stellar musical performances. An exclusively Indigenous list of performers—in addition to Miller—takes to the stage this season, including Lee Harvey Osmond, Leela Gilday, DJ Shub, Vern Cheechoo, David R. Maracle, Lacey Hill and Arthur Renwick, introducing viewers to an extensive set of bands, performers and singer-songwriters to take note of.

“In my mind, the performances are so beautiful,” Milliken says. “We’re really trying to show these people in the best way possible. “We’re here. We’re here to stay. We have talent and we have laughter.”

Guilt Free Zone airs Wednesdays at 10:30 p.m. ET on APTN.

Images courtesy of Big Soul Productions.

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