Tag Archives: CTV

Review: Limited space and fancy footwork on The Amazing Race

Maybe five seconds. That was the time between Brian and Cynthia stepping onto the mat in Buenos Aires and Dana and Amanda doing the same. But while the former live to race another Leg, the same can’t be said for the latter: the two Newfoundland cops were eliminated from The Amazing Race Canada.

Is it just me, or have the Season 3 challenges been the most difficult in the franchise so far? I don’t recall past teams having such brutal tests thrown at them this early and often; kudos to the producers for upping the ante. The result has been some of the most compelling footage ever captured and the realization that no lead is safe.

Nic and Sabrina were certainly proof of that. The pair, who have been using their knowledge of Spanish to great effect so far, saw Nic’s past as a soccer player amount to exactly nada during the Blind Soccer challenge. He just couldn’t get it together, and after seeing their lead out of the Mentos challenge evaporate, the pair took a two-hour penalty in hopes other teams would stumble along the way. The move paid off, but just barely as they placed eighth, just ahead of Brian and Cynthia and Dana and Amanda. The secret to the soccer challenge was unveiled after Nic and Sabrina had departed the scene: Racers jumped up and down with the ball between their feet rather than kick it, giving everyone more control.

And while Brian and Cynthia outlasted the Newfoundlanders, they’ve got to tighten up their game play and learn some manners. Rebuffing Hamilton at the Mentos challenge means they won’t be getting that extra Express Pass. I’m all for being conniving and picking your place to be friendly on the Race, but being rude to a player with power is just plain stupid.

Here’s how the teams finished this Leg:

  1. Neil and Kristin
  2. Gino and Jesse
  3. Nick and Matt
  4. Dujean and Leilani
  5. Simi and Ope
  6. Brent and Sean
  7. Hamilton and Michaelia
  8. Nic and Sabrina (took two-hour penalty)
  9. Brian and Cynthia
  10. Dana and Amanda (eliminated)

Notes and quotes

  • I always learn something watching The Amazing Race Canada. This week it was that a totem pole stands in Buenos Aires, a gift from Canada carved by Stan Hunt.
  • “Do I have to dance with you like that?!” — Nick’s reaction to the Dance Detour was priceless
  • Brent and Sean took 26 tries to score the soccer challenge. I’d still be there trying. And crying.
  • With the price of gas continuing to climb, that six months of free fuel from Petro Canada is even more valuable.

The Amazing Race airs Wednesdays at 9 p.m. ET/PT on CTV.

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Preview: Spun Out’s second season formula works

Spun Out is barely into its second season—No. 2 goes tonight on CTV—so it’s a little hard (and perhaps unfair) to envision where the series is going for its sophomore season. But after snagging a preview of tonight’s new episode, I can say I’m impressed with how things are shaking out so far.

As showrunner Jeff Biederman told Anthony Marco during the latest TV, Eh, B Cs podcast, the writing is tighter this time around. The performances are better too, something that happens when writers and producers have a season to figure out what their cast’s strengths and weaknesses are. This year, Rebecca Dalton’s Stephanie is smarter and given more responsibility by Dave; in Tuesday’s “Under the Influencer,” she runs a focus group in a local bar to gauge reaction to a new beer/vodka mixed drink. Sure Stephanie makes some mistakes, but it’s nice to see her take the reins on something for DLPR. It should be said that Dalton has got a gift for physical comedy … at least I hope that’s what made her club dancing so darned awful.

This is the second week in a row that Bryce and Gordon have been paired up in storyline, and I’m digging it. The duo were keep separate in Season 1, but putting the weird characters together has made for some great comedic moments. Barb Hayne’s script involved Bryce becoming obsessed with Internet polls and videos—the fake quiz titles actually sounded real to me—and Gordon and Dave teaming for an impromptu intervention to get their co-worker offline. The trio worked really well together and I’m hoping they get more screen time this season.

For me, the weak spot so far is the relationship between Nelson and Beckett. The two don’t come off as the longtime friends they’re supposed to be. It may be that neither character is particularly smooth or confident, but their conversations always come off stilted and devoid of the chemistry and rapport friends share. The result? The scenes in tonight’s episode are awkward and in some cases a little cringeworthy.

But, like I said, looking at the broad strokes Spun Out has definitely made strides. The laughs are more natural (still hating the laugh track) and there’s a nice little groove happening. Last week’s first episode attracted around 400,000 viewers, not at all bad for a summer sitcom that was announced it was returning just days before it did.

Spun Out airs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on CTV.

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Review: The Amazing Race heats up in Chile

Having a specialized skill can really help during the marathon that is The Amazing Race Canada. That was certainly the case for Nic and Sabrina and Dujean and Leilani, who might have found themselves at the back of the pack if not for knowledge they brought into the Race.

Dujean and Leilani seemed destined for a total meltdown during the show’s second Leg in Santiago, Chile, when the exes resorted to screaming at each other while attempting to locate five specific outdoor paintings and take selfies in front of them. I admit I’d have lost my cool if someone kept yelling, “Come on, come on, come on,” at me like Dujean did, but deciding to just stop running in protest à la Leilani? Not cool. The pair were lucky the Motion part of Wednesday’s Detour involved dancing, something they both grew up doing. The result? A fifth place finish.

Nic and Sabrina’s prior skill set came into play as well. Their knowledge of language—something host Jon Montgomery told me about last week—came into play with everyone they met in Santiago, from cab drivers to the Emotion part of the Detour: reciting a poem by Gabriela Mistral. As Nic said in the cab on the way to the Pit Stop, they banged out that challenge in half an hour. The duo were also cagey during the art-inspired Detour: instead of running around the neighbourhood they used their cab. I wasn’t sure if that was allowed and half expected Montgomery to assess them a time penalty, but it was all good and they finished in fourth place.

The other high point of the second Leg was the revelation the Express Passes were coming into play. Hamilton and Michaelia were the first to complete the Road Block at the community centre and chased down the Express Passes at Patio Bellavista. The engaged couple quickly used their pass at the Motion Detour when Hamilton admitted the dance costumes were too skimpy for his transgender body. At first I was frustrated they’d used the Express Pass so quickly to advance to the Pit Stop at Cerro San Cristobal, but as Michaelia pointed out, other teams would play nice with them to score that second pass. And at least they used the pass, something other duos have failed to do and been eliminated.

Speaking of eliminated teams, Susan and Sharnjit fought to improve on their weak standing last week, but a bad cab driver and getting lost finding the artwork spelled doom … unless it was a non-elimination Leg.

Alas, it was not.

Here’s how the teams finished:

  1. Hamilton and Michaelia (used Express Pass)
  2. Brian and Cynthia
  3. Nick and Matt
  4. Nic and Sabrina
  5. Dujean and Leilani
  6. Neil and Kristin
  7. Dana and Amanda
  8. Brent and Sean
  9. Simi and Ope
  10. Gino and Jesse
  11. Susan and Sharnjit (eliminated)

Notes and quotes

  • Hey TARC producers, how do you decide what time teams will leave on the next leg?
  • “I already feel like I smell like B.O.” — quote of the night from Sean
  • I understand that sponsors need to be given props, but having someone say they’re paying for their flight with their “BMO Cash Back World Elite MasterCard” is still a little over the top.
  • I love it when the local taxi drivers get into the vibe of the Race and want to see their fares do well.

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

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Review: Russell Peters highlights Spun Out’s return

Better late than never. Five months after Spun Out was supposed to debut on CTV immediately following the Super Bowl, Dave Foley’s Canadian sitcom returned to the air. There’s been a lot written about the reason for the delay—co-star J.P. Manoux’s arrest—and the resulting burn-off of the sophomore sitcom over the summer months that was announced just two days ago.

Manoux grabbed a lot of headlines, but changes occurred on the show too. The first season was filmed in front of a live audience, but this second go-round jettisoned that. With a new way of filming and high-profile guest star Russell Peters dropping by, how did Episode 1 of Season 2 of Spun Out fare?

Written by Fraser Young and Nick Beaton and directed by Dave Foley, Peters brought great energy to “My Brother’s Speaker,” playing Ray, Nelson’s (Al Mukadam) DJ brother.

It didn’t take long to discern there was no love lost between Ray and Beckett (Paul Campbell) thanks to an arm bar and a chirp about living in your parents’ basement (“Remember your parents basement from this morning because you just left there because you still live there?”). But rather than fall back on an easy back-and-forth, episode long feud between Ray and Beckett, it was Nelson who ended up angry with Ray after he’d arranged for a DJ showcase and Ray didn’t bother to show up. The reason? Not because Ray was a jerk, but because he had a day job he was ashamed of.

Holly Deveaux—who I really enjoyed in Season 1—was given a lot more to do as Abby on Tuesday night, fully involved in a storyline where she and Stephanie (Rebecca Dalton) thought they were being hustled at poker by Bryce (Manoux) and Gordon (Darcy Michael). Stephanie was a portrayed as a vacuous blonde in Season 1 and it looks like the writers have backed off on that a bit, which is a welcome change. (Michael continues to be a bright spot too; his out-there comments as Gordon always make me laugh, though I wonder what skills he has to stay employed at DLPR.)

My biggest pet peeve about this new season of Spun Out is going to be the canned laugh track. Rather than just letting the jokes stand on their own merit, punchlines are juiced in post, something I hate because it assumes the audience doesn’t know when to laugh. Spun Out certainly isn’t the first show to do this, but I don’t think it’s needed.

What did you guys think? Comment below or via @tv_eh.

Spun Out airs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on CTV.

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Amazing Race Canada’s Jon Montgomery teases Season 3

Twisted ankles, wrenched joints and mild concussions are always a threat during an intense leg of The Amazing Race Canada. But show host Jon Montgomery acquired one in the most unlikely of places: the editing suite.

The Olympic gold medal winner and now-veteran host of CTV’s summer competition series—returning tonight—recently got his right thumb sandwiched between the telescoping parts of an office chair while doing voice-over work on future episodes. The swollen digit didn’t dampen Montgomery’s enthusiasm for TAR Canada‘s journey across the nation and selected countries around the world; the return bursts out of the gate in Quebec City before the 12 teams jet to Toronto for falls and tomfoolery at TSN’s headquarters.

“Every time I’m in Quebec City, I grow a little bit more fond of it,” Montgomery says from Bell Media’s downtown Toronto headquarters. “My first experience there was as an amateur athlete and Quebecers embrace that. They celebrate their athletes like nobody’s business and celebrate being outside and being part of a community. This trip I learned that the oldest patent in Canada was awarded just down the street from the Chateau Frontenac for a washing and pulling machine.”

Those history lessons, especially regarding Canada, have been an integral part of The Amazing Race since Montgomery yelled “Go!” at contestants in Season 1. This season’s group of teams are once again racing for the chance to win a $1 million grand prize, and it doesn’t take long for several pairs to make an impact. Hamilton, Ont., brothers Gino and Jesse are charming, funny and focussed; Newfoundland cops Dana and Amanda hearken back to Olympic hockey players Natalie Spooner and Meaghan Mikkelson; pro wrestlers Nick and Matt have the bulk to own physical challenges; and Max and Alias are perhaps the best-looking of the bunch.

We got Montgomery to weigh in on four teams that look like early favourites:

Nic and Sabrina
“Real smart and real physical. He’s a former professional soccer player and they’re really both quite bright. They have language abilities on their side. They both speak French and English, Fringlish, Italian and Fritalain and other language combinations that help with linguistic challenges. A team to watch out for.”

Hamilton and Michaelia
“Hamilton’s sexuality is just a part of who he is as an individual and not what he is. I love those two. They are the youngest competitors on the show and are so cute. Their relationship is beautiful. I think they will resonate with Canadians on a few levels given what we learned from Caitlyn Jenner. It’s not that transgender is new, it’s just that the exposure in mass media is new.”

Nick and Matt
“I love those guys! Pro wrestlers and Nick is a Grade 6 teacher! If he was my Grade 6 teacher, just with the beard I’d be intimidated. It looks like he draws it on every morning. Those guys know how to challenge each other and push each other and get the most out of one another because they do it every day.”

Dana and Amanda
“They are physically strong and mentally strong. They come from a strong lineage of people who serve and protect the peace in Newfoundland. They are gamers. They are full-on. They push themselves to their physical limits.”

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

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