TV, eh? | What's up in Canadian television | Page 1482
TV,eh? What's up in Canadian television
Sensitive Skin

Link: Sensitive Skin is “sharp, moody, shiny and new”

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From Lara Zarum of The Globe and Mail

Kim Cattrall’s Sensitive Skin: Sharp, moody, shiny and new
“In the opening credits of Sensitive Skin, HBO Canada’s new comedy starring Kim Cattrall and Don McKellar, time slows down. The song, Screamin’ Jay Hawkins’s I Put a Spell on You, is the same each time, but instead of a uniform opening sequence, McKellar – who directed all six half-hour episodes – pauses the action and lets the song play over the slowed-down scene, time stretching out like taffy.” Continue reading.

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The Listener

The Listener series finale to air August 18

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From a media release:

CTV announced today that after five seasons and 65 episodes, the hit original drama THE LISTENER will conclude on CTV on Monday, Aug. 18 at 9 p.m. ET/PT. Produced by Shaftesbury in association with CTV and Fox International Channels, THE LISTENER premiered in June of 2009 on CTV.

“Thank you to Shaftesbury for delivering five straight seasons of this much loved series, and to the cast and crew for bringing its captivating stories to life,” said Phil King, President – CTV, Sports, and Entertainment Programming. “THE LISTENER provided a wonderful narrative arc over its 65 episodes, ending its run at the top of its game with a devoted following at home and around the world. It leaves a strong legacy of which we are immensely proud, and we look forward to working with Shaftesbury in the future.”

CTV is currently in development with Shaftesbury on OLD CITY HALL, a drama series based on the novels by Robert Rotenberg and set within the halls of criminal courts; and SMOKE AND MIRRORS, a drama about an illusionist returning home to Niagara Falls and using his extraordinary skills as a private detective.

“Thank you to CTV (Phil, Corrie, Mike, Trish, Tom and Rebecca) as well as our friends at Fox International Channels (Sharon and Andie) and Shine for taking this seven-year journey with us on THE LISTENER,” said Christina Jennings, Chairman and CEO, Shaftesbury. “From start to finish, CTV has been a wonderful broadcast partner. Not every series achieves 65 episodes, and we couldn’t have done it without our dedicated, hardworking family of cast — led by Craig Olejnik – and crew, most recently led by Peter Mohan — who are simply the best in the business. And, thanks of course to THE LISTENER fans – who grew over time.”

In the final episode, an epic story that has threaded its way through all five seasons comes to a gratifying conclusion as secrets from Toby’s (Craig Olejnik) past are finally brought to light. Also Michelle (Lauren Lee Smith), Toby, and Dev (Rainbow Sun Francks) find themselves in the extremely uncomfortable position of investigating their own boss. On clandestine orders from Judge Samuel Griffin (Bruce Gray) and Deputy Commissioner Earl Bamford (Brian Paul) of the IIB, the team must look into Becker’s (Anthony Lemke) dealings with Curtis Maynard (Noam Jenkins), a disgraced former cop with connections to drug dealing.

THE LISTENER was green-lit by CTV in December 2007 and premiered June 3, 2009 on SPACE and CTV. The series instantly became a hit, debuting at #1 in its 10 p.m. timeslot on CTV with an audience of 1.1 million viewers, and went on to average nearly one million viewers in Canada in its first season. In the years that followed, THE LISTENER continued to connect with audiences, averaging 1.1 million viewers. THE LISTENER has been licensed in over 120 markets – including the U.S. (ION Television), U.K., Italy, Spain, Portugal, Argentina, Mexico, Japan, Korea, Poland, Brazil and Turkey – and is seen in 33 languages worldwide.

THE LISTENER Season 5 airs Mondays at 9 p.m. ET/PT on CTV and CTV GO, with the series finale broadcast on Monday, Aug. 18. Viewers can catch encore episodes Saturdays at 9 p.m. ET/PT on CTV, Sundays at 7 p.m. ET/PT on CTV Two (visit CTV.ca for local broadcast times), and Fridays at 10 p.m. ET on Bravo (visit bravo.ca for local broadcast times). The day after each episode of THE LISTENER airs on CTV, viewers can watch the full episode on CTV.ca and the CTV GO app.

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Bitten

New faces join the Bitten pack

From a media release:

  • Tammy Isbell, Tommie-Amber Pirie, and Kiara Glasco join the cast
  • From No Equal Entertainment, Hoodwink Entertainment, and Entertainment One, BITTEN is set to premiere in early 2015 on Space

Space announced today that production has begun on Season 2 of its most-watched original drama series ever, BITTEN, featuring a new coven of witches. Commissioned by Space and produced by No Equal Entertainment, Entertainment One Television (eOne), and Hoodwink Entertainment, the 10-episode, second season of the one-hour thriller is set to premiere in 2015 on Space. Shot on location in Toronto, Hamilton, and Hespeler, Ont., Season 2 sees the return of Laura Vandervoort (SMALLVILLE, Ted) as Elena, the world’s only female werewolf; Greg Bryk (A History Of Violence, ROOKIE BLUE) as the Alpha Pack leader Jeremy Danvers; and Greyston Holt (ALCATRAZ, DURHAM COUNTY) as passionate Clayton Danvers. Season 2 of BITTEN was acquired for U.S. broadcast by Syfy.

Season 2 also introduces a coven of witches who turn to the Pack for support. Tammy Isbell (SAVING HOPE) stars as the calm and level-headed coven leader, Ruth Winterbourne; Tommie-Amber Pirie (MICHAEL: TUESDAYS & THURSDAYS) is cast as Ruth’s daughter, the outspoken spitfire, Paige Winterbourne; and Kiara Glasco (COPPER) stars as the young and impressionable, Savannah Levine. Returning to BITTEN are Steve Lund (BEING ERICA, HAVEN) as Nick Sorrentino and Michael Xavier (THE BEST YEARS) as Dr. Logan Jonsen.

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Rookie Blue

Tonight: Rookie Blue

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Rookie Blue, Global – “Everlasting”
The officers of 15 Division work to track down the car-bomber. But even after catching him, they realize he has more targets set to explode out there. The clock is ticking…

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Amazing Race Canada, Featured

Review: Amazing Race Canada returns home

Before I get into the review for Monday’s latest episode of The Amazing Race, I need to make a quick apology to Insight, the show’s producers. When the Racers left Canada for China two weeks ago, I scoffed that they never should have gone international, stupidly assuming they wouldn’t return to their home and native land. So, sorry for whining (mostly to myself) prematurely because return to Canada the show did.

Monday saw the teams jet to the Yukon, something that involved a flight across the International Date Line turning today into yesterday (“the past, man!” I imagined amiable stoners Mickey and Pete enthusing to each other) and an overall focus on one goal: unseating Olympic hockey champs Natalie and Meaghan as first-place finishers on the mat at the end of the Leg. This week was the first one that I saw teams shed some of that Canadian niceness that seems to plague us wherever we go. Everyone was gunning for Natalie and Meaghan, especially after they surrendered the Express Pass to brothers Pierre and Michel. Rex may have sniffed the air and commented that it was the wrong move, but I understood the girls’ decision. They may view the Quebecers as a threat in the game–and they most certainly are–but the gals also see them as competitors who should be rewarded for playing hard, a mantra these athletes live every day.

Speaking of Rex, can I say how giddy I am that he and Bob are on The Amazing Race? The longtime couple deliver great TV, whether they were getting catty over the fact siblings Sukhi and Jinder had been saved by last week’s non-elimination Leg or sniping (endlessly) at each other over, well, everything. Their countless attempts to re-create that Yukon camping setting had me giggling, especially when Rex threatened to scream if they hadn’t gotten it right after several tries. Sukhi and Jinder rank No. 2 behind Rex and Bob simply because they don’t know anything about anything. Don’t know how to put a leash on a sled dog? Ask another team. Don’t know which way is upriver? Make sure you paddle the wrong way until the current drives you in the right direction.

Meanwhile, mother and son duo Nicole and Cormac haven’t asked for help from anyone. The pair, who were eliminated on Monday, have showed fierce support for each other from the moment Jon Montgomery yelled “Go!” at the beginning of the season and haven’t wavered. If there was a time Cormac could have turned on his mom it was last night, when it took her over 20 tries to complete the biathlon challenge. Instead, he urged her on with compliments and enthusiasm especially when she broke down in tears. Kudos to Nicole for living up to the “never give up” attitude her own mother instilled in her.

Because she took so long nailing those rifle targets, Nicole and Cormac could only hope there was another non-elimination Leg in the cards. Sadly, it wasn’t meant to be and the last-place finishers were eliminated from the competition.

The Amazing Race Canada airs Mondays at 9 p. m. ET on CTV.

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