Tag Archives: City

Between, Featured

Preview: Between good and bad

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What would you do if you were under 22 years of age, everyone older than you was dead and your small town had been quarantined from the rest of the world? That’s the premise of Between, City’s newest—and sometimes frustrating— original series.

Debuting tonight, the sci-fi program created by Michael McGowan (One Week), boasts strong performances by its young cast while being annoyingly rote with some early plotlines and dialogue. Let’s start with the good, shall we? Jeanette McCurdy is just fine as Wiley Day, a whip-smart, sarcastic young lass who has gotten herself into a little bit of trouble. She’s a teen mom, about to give birth, and her life is in disarray thanks to being, among other things, the daughter of Pretty Lake’s minister. Wiley’s best friend, Adam (Jesse Carere), is brilliant, plans to attend MIT next term and leave his small town behind. The two form Between‘s strongest—and to this point most likeable—young characters of the first episode. Justin Kelly (Open Heart) is OK as rich-kid Chuck, but he’s a little one-dimensional at this point and therefore easy to dismiss. That’s also the case with Ronnie (Kyle Mac) and Pat (Jim Watson), two brothers from the poorer side of town who, of course, run afoul of Chuck and his father, Mr. Lotts. (Yes, the most powerful man in Pretty Creek is named Mr. Lotts.)

The idea of having a mysterious virus descend on the picturesque burg and dispatch anyone 22 and older is interesting too. There is no rhyme or reason to who dies and when, other than they suddenly leak thick blood out of their mouths and collapse. There is no cure, no answers and the town is quarantined from the rest of the world while the government supposedly works on a way to save everyone as the body count rises. Between utilizes social media the same way Sherlock and Open Heart has, with messages, texts and hashtags popping up on-screen to aid in the storytelling, an effective move.

But what hooked me was offset by some niggling, worn TV tropes that constantly pulled me out of the story. Despite loved ones dying in front of them, the citizens of Pretty Lake seemed non-plussed. Wiley and her sister are concerned when they discover Dad dead, but don’t call 911. The same goes for Chuck when Mom oozes red goo and expires. If my parent passed away I would be screaming crying and calling for help, but no one does here.

And, as the list of the dead rises steadily from day to day, none of the townsfolk try to leave. It’s not until the military descends to erect an electrified fence on Day 5 that anyone questions escaping and by then it’s too late. Health inspectors, despite having no clue what kind of pathogen they’re combatting, wear no more than a face mask and medical gloves to prod cadavers. I’ve seen enough movies and shows like Helix to know you don full-body suits when an unknown entity is killing folks. The fact one Pretty Lake citizen caught on the outside of the fence and then is ALLOWED TO ENTER the quarantine zone is even more confusing.

The first hour was also packed with overused dialogue that caused me to cringe. A prison guard utters the line, “Is everything OK here?” when she arrives on the scene after a scuffle between inmates; a teacher says “You’re a smart guy,” to the kid headed to MIT; “It’s a pleasure doing business with you,” remarks one lad buying guns from a rough-looking dude; and “Do you know who I am?” asks Mr. Lotts.

The first episode of any new TV show is the roughest. Characters have to be introduced, major plotlines established and relationships established. They’re never the strongest instalment and a series shouldn’t be judged solely on that. I’m intrigued enough to stick around for the good and overlook the bad. For now.

Between airs Thursdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on City. Each episode is available on shomi every Friday.

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Featured, Package Deal

Package Deal and Meet the Family cancelled by City

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It’s the end of the road for Package Deal and Meet the Family.

On Monday afternoon, Vancouver’s Craigslist posted the following “Huge Set Sale”:

“Tons of chairs, bar stools and tables, banquettes, theatre chairs, church pews (!!) couches, lamps and other lighting, furniture, kitchen items, tea shop and bar paraphernalia, glassware, carpeting, clothing (no kids clothes) and those ever present knickknacks!

April 22nd, 23rd and 24th from 10am — 4pm (NO early birds)

Location: Unit 1B — 2350 Beta Avenue, Burnaby (Street Parking Only)

Don’t miss out on this fantastic opportunity to grab some amazing deals!”

Those listed items are the contents of the apartment, tea shop, courtroom and offices featured in the original sitcom during the last two seasons.

City confirmed Tuesday afternoon that both Package Deal and hidden camera sketch series Meet the Family would not return.

“Despite the strong teams behind both series and critical acclaim garnered to date, Package Deal and Meet The Family were unable to connect with the audience needed to continue,” said Nataline Rodrigues, Director of Original Programming of Rogers Media, in a statement. “We remain committed to Canadian originals, and we are proud to have provided our viewers with two fun seasons of both series; it was a real pleasure and privilege to work with the immense talent on these shows – on and off the screen.

Package Deal starred Randal Edwards as Danny, a successful lawyer who met and fell in love with Kim (Julia Voth). The problem? Danny’s two brothers, ne’er-do-well Sheldon (Harland Williams) and fastidious Ryan (Jay Malone), don’t like that Kim is taking Danny away from them. The multi-camera series was created by Andrew Orenstein (Malcolm in the Middle, 3rd Rock from the Sun) and shot in front of a live audience. Never able to score decent ratings (it was down to 72,000 viewers in mid-October) the second season finale was broadcast in December, and had the feel of a series finale to it.

The news comes the same day that Package Deal‘s production company, Thunderbird, announced both seasons are available for streaming in the U.S. on Hulu starting Tuesday.

Produced by Frantic films and based on the successful U.K. series, Meet the Parents threw unwitting folks into a uncomfortable situation: meeting the downright odd family of their girlfriend or boyfriend. The series starred Terry Barna, Liz Best, Hannah Hogan, Theresa Tova, Don Berns, Heather Hodgson, Ralph Small, Nicole Maroon, Peter Keleghan, Chris Wilson, Miguel Rivas and Matt Bernard.

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Featured, Young Drunk Punk

Preview: Young Drunk Punk a sweet, funny postcard from the 80s

In 1980, the year Young Drunk Punk is set, I was nine. Old enough that—previewing Wednesday’s debut episode on City—I recalled the fashion (spiky hair, striped jackets, pornstaches), the music (Loverboy) and, most importantly, the small-town vibe.

I grew up in the smallish city of Brantford, Ont., a 30-minute drive from Hamilton and a whopping 60 minutes from Toronto. I lived far enough from those metropolis’ that visits were a big deal for me, a window to possible dreams and promises in my future. Certainly bigger opportunities—I thought as I got into my early teens—than I could ever have in Brantford.

So I totally related to Ian McKay (Tim Carlson, Flashpoint) and Archibald Shinky (Atticus Mitchell, Fargo), two kids just graduating from high school in 1980 Calgary and without a damned clue what to do next. Created by Kids in the Hall veteran Bruce McCulloch and inspired by his life (the sitcom was shot in and around the same Calgary townhouse complex he grew up in), Young Drunk Punk is certainly a wistful look back, but it certainly isn’t dated. The issues Ian and Shinky deal with in the first 30 minutes are the same every high school kid wrestles with: fitting in, kissing someone, distancing themselves from their parents and deciding who they are as individuals.

Adding to the laughs in Season 1 are Ian’s dad, Lloyd (McCulloch), who is the head of security at the complex, Ian’s mom Helen (Tracy Ryan, Nancy Drew) and his sister, Belinda (Allie MacDonald, Lost Girl). Belinda plays a large role in tonight’s bow, as Ian is planning to move into her place until she shows up at the family home with all of her belongings; she’s left her boyfriend. Ian and Shinky attend a party where they try to fit in, don’t, and get chased by local punks. The humour is there, but it doesn’t hit you over the head like most shows today. Instead, it’s subtle, heartwarming and family oriented. You get the idea that McCullogh is looking back fondly on his past rather than mocking it.

Sandwiched between The Middle and Modern Family on Wednesday nights, I would have rather seen it paired with Sunnyside for an hourlong block of Canadian comedies on City. That may eventually happen, but in the meantime I’ll enjoy Young Drunk Punk for what what it is, and cringe every time I see a piece of clothing I used to wear.

Young Drunk Punk airs Wednesdays at 8:30 p.m. ET on City.

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Featured, Sunnyside

City celebrates the zany with wild, wacky Sunnyside

A man’s top hat gives him incredible luck. A coffee barista may be Satan himself. Babies duke it out in a mini-ring while adults bet on who will win. A house’s wall leaks blood. Townsfolk seek life advice from a disembodied voice echoing from a manhole. With all of those characters and story angles introduced in the show’s first few minutes, it’s hard to put a finger on just what Sunnyside is. So we asked star Pat Thornton.

“It’s like a sketch show that exists in a sitcom world,” he explains. “It’s all about the characters that live in the neighbourhood. Like The Simpsons, where you get to know everyone and you come back to see them. There’s no narrative that you have to follow. You just drop in and then move on.”

Created by Gary Pearson (This Hour Has 22 Minutes) and Dan Redican (The Kids in the Hall), Sunnyside boasts wild characters placed in even wilder situations. In Thursday’s debut episode, for instance, a young woman breaks off her relationship with a criminal who then goes on a shooting spree. The police arrive, and while in the midst of the firefight one female cop’s mom wanders over to chat. She’s hit by stray bullet, but keeps on talking to her daughter as if nothing has happened. In another, a husband tells his wife he’s taking their infant for a walk. Instead, he drops by a seedy warehouse to engage his daughter in Baby Fight Club. The scenes are so out of left field in their content that your first reaction is shock–how’d they come up with that??–before you break into laughter.

Sunnyside‘s cast is a who’s who from the Canadian comic and sketch world, including Thornton (Too Much Information and the Comedy Bar Comedy Podcast), Kathleen Phillips (Dan for Mayor), Alice Moran (Too Much Information), Kevin Vidal, Rob Norman (The Nut Job), and Patrice Goodman (Cracked), who assume the roles of such characters as Shaytan the devilish barista, Meth Kimmie, Handy Hank, hemp-wearing Ferg, Rookie Kerri the cop, and hot, hot yoga instructor Penny. Norm Macdonald checks in as The Hole, Sunnyside’s version of Google.

Turns out Pearson and Redican both had show pitches in to Rogers. Executives liked aspects of both projects and asked the pair to work together on what became Sunnyside.

“I know there’s a part of Toronto called Sunnyside, but this is a fictional neighbourhood,” Pearson says. “It’s kind of like Parkdale or Roncesvalles. It’s a neighbourhood in transition. There are rich people, yuppies and stuff, and some poor people, people of different sexual orientations and races and they’re all jammed together in this one place. We see their relationships and how they interact with each other, but at the same time there is magic in the neighbourhood and weird things happen.” (See: the bleeding wall.)

If ad time is any indication, City has high hopes for Sunnyside. The network has been splashing promos for the comedy series all over prime time, something Thornton isn’t used to, but welcomes.

“It was a huge vote of confidence,” he admits. “I like the angle that we take with this show. It’s just, ‘Let’s get weird.'”

Sunnyside is certainly that. And undeniably funny.

Sunnyside airs Thursdays at 8 p.m. ET on City.

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