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TV,eh? What's up in Canadian television
Featured, Podcast, Private Eyes, Second Jen

TV Eh B Cs Podcast 88 — Awards season with Samantha Wan

Samantha Wan is a Toronto-based actor and filmmaker. Samantha found her passion for film and acting at a young age in high school. From there, she was accepted into the country’s top theatre school, the National Theatre School of Canada, which boasts a number of notable of alumni including award-winning actress Sandra Oh.

Samantha Wan recently received a 2019 Canadian Screen Award nomination in the category of Best Comedy Series for her sitcom Second Jen.

Second Jen is a buddy comedy about two second-generation millennials making it on their own in the big city. Season 1 aired on the major Canadian network Citytv and Season 2 was later picked up by OMNI Television. The show was produced by Don Ferguson Productions, the production company famously known for creating the Royal Canadian Air Farce. Samantha developed the series with actress and screenwriter Amanda Joy. The two became the youngest televisions creators in Canada.

Samantha is also known for her role as Zoe Chow in the comedy-drama television series Private Eyes starring alongside Jason Priestley and Cindy Sampson.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

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The Order

Links: The Order, Season 1

From Ariana Romero of Refinery29:

Link: The Order Is The New Netflix Treat That’ll Dominate Your Weekend
Still missing Teen Wolf nearly two full years after it wrapped on MTV? Wish you didn’t have to wait months for new episodes of The Chilling Adventures Of Sabrina? Well, Netflix has heard your prayers and responded with The Order, the weirdo young adult supernatural drama you didn’t know you needed to while away the (hopefully) last few cold weather weekends of the year. Continue reading.

From Joel Keller of Decider:

Link: Stream It Or Skip It: ‘The Order’ On Netflix, A Horror Series About A School’s Secret Fraternity And A Whole Bunch Of Dead Pledges
The Order, created by Dennis Heaton (Ghost Wars) and Shelley Eriksen (Continuum), has got a lot going for it. It’s got the story of a working-class kid infiltrating the rich kids at a university’s most secret fraternity, and trying to defeat the evil performances from within. Continue reading. 

From Samantha Nelson of The Verge:

Link: Netflix’s dark fantasy The Order is an absurdist match for What We Do in the Shadows
The first episode of Netflix’s new horror series The Order, which premieres on March 7th, reads like a pretty straightforward supernatural drama with a touch of dark humour. The second episode starts to get a little weird, and by the third instalment, the show transitions into a flat-out hilarious mashup of college and horror comedy. Continue reading. 

From Charles Trapunski of Brief Take:

Link: Interview: The Order’s Sarah Grey
“This has all been really new and exciting for me. I hope that a lot of people watch this show and I hope that a lot of people enjoy it and have the same experience that we had filming it, which was such an amazing time.” Continue reading.

From Heather M. of TV Goodness:

Link: Rachel Langer talks Netflix’s The Order
“When he did send the creative, I thought it was the next best thing to having started my career early enough to write on Buffy. When I heard. ‘warring secret societies,’ I thought, ‘Oh, this is going to be so great. I’m very proud of the show because it’s so much fun.” Continue reading.

From Travis Clark of Business Insider:

Link: Netflix’s ‘The Order’ pits werewolves against dark magic, and is its latest original show off to a hot start
“The Order” is ranked fifth on this week’s “binge report” from television-tracking app, TV Time, based on its 12 million global users. The “binge report” tracks the top 10 streaming shows on various services. It’s the only Netflix show on this week’s list aside from “The Umbrella Academy,” which premiered last month. Continue reading.

From Heather M. of TV Goodness:

Link: Showrunner Dennis Heaton talks The Order’s creative team and casting
After this past week, I’d recommend a healthy dose of escapism TV and luckily Netflix is obliging with the new supernatural-themed, secret-society-in-college series The Order. Continue reading. 

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Masterchef Canada

MasterChef Canada returns with a special two-hour premiere, April 8 on CTV

From a media release:

Who will be named Canada’s next MasterChef? CTV today revealed the Top 18 MASTERCHEF CANADA home cooks competing for a chance to be one of six in the elite group of title holders and take home the $100,000 cash prize. A 2019 Canadian Screen Award nominee, Season 6 of MASTERCHEF CANADA kicks off with a special two-hour premiere on Monday, April 8 beginning at 8 p.m. ET/PT on CTV before settling into its regular Mondays at 9 p.m. ET/PT timeslot. Viewers can then stream all episodes anytime on CTV.ca and the CTV app.

Keeping the heat on high for this season’s Top 18 are esteemed judges Michael Bonacini (O&B restaurant empire), Alvin Leung (Bo Innovation in Hong Kong), and Claudio Aprile (Copetin Restaurant & Bar). With only a limited number of white aprons up for grabs, the home cooks have to prove they have the culinary skills to cut it in the MASTERCHEF CANADA kitchen. In a new twist this season, each judge selects six home cooks to invite to the Top 18, with each member receiving personal invitations delivered via courier.

Below are the Top 18 home cooks vying for a white apron and ultimately contending for the MASTERCHEF CANADA title.

  • Alyssa LeBlanc, Former Public Servant, from Tusket, N.S.
  • Andre Bhagwandat, Hospital Housekeeper, from Scarborough, Ont.
  • Chanelle Saks, Entrepreneur, from Calgary, Alta.
  • Cliff McArthur, IT Support Analyst, from Scarborough, Ont.
  • Colin Buckingham, Car Salesman, from St. John’s, N.L.
  • Cryssi Larocque, Former Airline Agent, from Thunder Bay, Ont.
  • Jamie Mayer, Healthcare Portfolio Manager, from Toronto, Ont.
  • Jennifer Crawford, Senior Policy Analyst, from Kingston, N.S.
  • Jenny Miller, Stay-at-Home Mom, from Havre Boucher, N.S.
  • Josh Miller, Youth Care Home Manager, from Regina, S.K.
  • Kimberly Fitzpatrick, Writer, from Ottawa, Ont.
  • Laurie Dingwall, Retired, from Lac Saguay, Qué.
  • Lena Huynh, Lash Technician, from Burnaby, B.C.
  • Marie Le Bel, Entrepreneur, from Westmount, Qué.
  • Mark Hamilton, Firefighter, from Mission, B.C.
  • Rozin Abbas, Digital Marketer, from Toronto, Ont.
  • Steven Lapointe, International Figure Skater, from Acton Vale, Qué.
  • Tony La Ferrara, Soccer Coach and Retired Teacher, from Whitby, Ont.

In each episode of MASTERCHEF CANADA, the home cooks have their culinary expertise tested through a series of Mystery Box Challenges, Team Challenges, and Pressure Tests, with the judges providing direction and feedback throughout the process. At the end of each episode, at least one home cook is eliminated from the competition until only two remain, culminating in a battle during the finale for a chance to take home $100,000 and the sought-after title of MASTERCHEF CANADA

Throughout the season, fans are invited to visit CTV.ca/MasterChefCanada for exclusive content, including background on the Season 6 finalists and the MASTERCHEF CANADA judges, as well as interviews, highlights, recipes, and more. CTV.ca also offers viewers a behind-the-scenes look at this season’s challenges, delectable dishes, victories, and defeats.

Before Canadians take a bite into the new season, CTV invites viewers to relive all the culinary action from previous editions of MASTERCHEF CANADA, now streaming on Crave and available on demand at CTV.ca and on the CTV app. New episodes of MASTERCHEF CANADA are available on-demand the day following the broadcast premieres on CTV.

The MASTERCHEF format and finished programs are represented internationally by Endemol Shine Group. This includes MASTERCHEF JUNIOR, which airs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT beginning March 12 on CTV2. With over 60 local adaptations broadcast in more than 200 countries, MasterChef is the world’s most successful cookery television format. MasterChef was created by Franc Roddam.

MASTERCHEF CANADA is produced by Proper Television in association with CTV. Proper’s Co-President Cathie James is the Executive Producer and Showrunner and Co-President Lesia Capone is Executive Producer.

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Featured, Reality, Lifestyle & Documentary

Preview: VisionTV’s The Big Downsize is an emotional journey on the road to decluttering

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Tidying up and decluttering isn’t a new thing—especially once spring arrives—and it’s reached new heights of awareness thanks to Marie Kondo and her Netflix series. I admit, I’ve used Kondo’s tip for folding t-shirts and it’s totally reorganized my dresser. But where it’s easy for me to clean up and get rid of my own stuff, the thought of doing it for someone else gives me the sweats and heart palpitations.

That’s where professional downsizer Jane Veldhoven comes in.

Premiering Monday at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT on VisionTV, The Big Downsize follows Veldhoven as she helps two Canadian families as they seek to declutter, clean up and ship out.

For the MacNeil family, that involves going through 50 years of accumulated things and memories in their childhood home in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia. With their mother passed away and their father living with one of his children, four of the five siblings have convened with thoughts of selling the family home. But to do that means a major cleanup.

It’s a daunting task, and not all of the MacNeil kids agree on how items should be divvied up. Throw in busy lives and nerves get jangled.

Meanwhile, Pam and Scott are on a different path. The Halifax couple is dissolving their marriage of over 20 years. The pair have a monumental task ahead: emptying a house full of items that were tied to them as a couple. Health issues have plagued Pam, adding another layer of stress to an already emotional situation. Things like key pieces of furniture are fairly easy to divide, but what about photos, clothing and the toys their son played with and, now, their grandkids?

“Even though downsizing seems like it’s just about getting rid of stuff, the stuff is usually a symbol of emotional chaos, something that’s happened in somebody’s life,” Veldhoven says during Episode 1. “In the end, that’s what we see physically but it doesn’t have a lot to do with that. People keep stuff for 20 different reasons.”

What sets the five episodes of The Big Downsize apart from other tidying-up television series or segments are the stories. This isn’t just about holding up a cracked old toy to the camera and wondering why it was kept. Tell Tale Productions, who previously made Growing Sense for AMI-tv, delves into the stories of these two families. The result is an emotional journey of togetherness, laughter, memories, tears and, ultimately, letting go.

The Big Downsize airs Mondays at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT on VisionTV.

Images courtesy of VisionTV.

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