Tag Archives: Featured

Featured, Podcast

TV Eh B Cs podcast 61 — Riding Along with Shelley Scarrow

Hailing from Sarnia and then from York University’s Theatre program, Shelley Scarrow has a diverse list of television credits to her name. Recent highlights have included showrunner/executive producer and writer on Ride and writing for Wynonna Earp.

She served as consulting producer and writer on both Lost Girl and Being Erica. She served as creative consultant and writer for the comedy series Sophie. Other credits include Flashpoint, Da Kink In My Hair, Instant Star and Degrassi.

Animation work has included writing and story editing for the upcoming girls’ action series, Mysticons.

[Please note: Mysticons does not have a Canadian broadcaster … yet.]

Listen or download below, or subscribe via iTunes or any other podcast catcher with the TV, eh? podcast feed.

Want to support TV, eh?’s work? Become a Patreon!

SUPPORT

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Facebooktwitterredditlinkedinmail
Featured, X Company

X Company 310: The end is nigh in “Remembrance”

After 27 episodes, CBC’s Second World War spy drama X Company comes to a powerful and moving conclusion tonight, as Aurora (Évelyne Brochu), Neil (Warren Brown) and Alfred (Jack Laskey) must turn to Faber (Torben Liebrecht) to take out Voigt (Kevin Griffiths).

Here is our preview of “Remembrance,” written by Mark Ellis & Stephanie Morgenstern, and directed by Morgenstern.

Full circle 
The finale brings the show’s concept full circle for series creators Ellis and Morgenstern. In 2001, the duo wrote and starred in a short film called Remembrance, about a man with synesthesia who is recruited into Canadian spy school Camp X by a beautiful woman. Like the film, tonight’s episode is called “Remembrance,” and also like the film, Morgenstern directs, having the opportunity to guide the characters she and Ellis created over 16 years ago on their final mission.

Morgenstern says she’s pleased with the way it all turned out—in her typically modest way.

“There aren’t any moments where I think, ‘Ah, if we could have just gone back and adjusted that or fixed that or written that differently,'” she explains. “I don’t think I’d be brazen enough to say it’s a piece of artistic perfection, but I would say I can’t think of what I would change if we had the chance or more time. I’m happy with it.”

My how they’ve grown
In a treat for long-time fans, there are several satisfying nods to Season 1 that show just how much Aurora, Neil and Alfred have grown since they first left Camp X.

Stunning work by the X Company cast
Morgenstern, a former actress, gets the most out of her cast as Évelyne Brochu, Warren Brown, Jack Laskey and Torben Liebrecht all give series-best performances. There is a scene between Brochu and Liebrecht that tops all their previous scenes combined, something I didn’t think was possible.

You will be satisfied (and teary-eyed)
After three seasons, X Company ends on a pitch-perfect note. “Remembrance” is a beautifully written, gorgeously lensed episode that was clearly made with love by all involved. A remarkable achievement.

X Company airs Wednesday at 9 p.m. on CBC.

Image courtesy of CBC.

Facebooktwitterredditlinkedinmail
Featured, Reality, Lifestyle & Documentary

CBC’s excellent Keeping Canada Safe showcases everyday heroes

Last fall, Force Four Entertainment and CBC teamed for Keeping Canada Alive, a poignant documentary that showed the breadth and depth of our country’s health care in a 24-hour period. (Give Diane’s review of that a read, won’t you?)

Both companies have partnered again for Keeping Canada Safe, a 48-hour whirlwind look—spread over eight half-hour episodes—of the emergency personnel (and sometimes animals) charged with ensuring our safety last summer. With news of walls going up and national security in the headlines of late, Keeping Canada Safe is certainly timely. What sets this series apart from, say Border Security, is the 60-plus cameras dispatched across the country. Rather than being focused on one airport or border crossing—production was granted access to more than 47 organizations in 34 cities across 10 provinces and two territories—the program is able to profile a cross-section of this country and the personalities of folks who do this.

The debut instalment, airing Thursday at 9 p.m. on CBC, wasn’t what I was expecting. With Border Security as my only reference, I assumed Keeping Canada Safe would spend most of the time at airports, borders and other high-profile transit points. After having seen Keeping Canada Alive, I should have known better. You do get those broader national security stories here, but Force Four connects with viewers by getting down to a local level, like an enraged Calgary man trying to break into his house as a police helicopter swoops overhead. That situation is used to explain the reason for a helicopter being in the air in the first place: it’s safer for police and citizens for a chopper to track a criminal in a car than a high-speed chase is.

Meanwhile, in rural Prince Edward Island, Lewie Sutherland is the police chief of Kensington and everyone calls him by his first name. Because of the small population—a mere 1,500—everyone knows each other, and the death of a citizen is felt by the community. It’s easy to assume Lewie’s life is easier than that of the guys working in Calgary, but I think it’s harder. In a metropolis, people can become somewhat faceless. But in PEI, a criminal or someone in danger could be your friend.

The most disturbing segment of Episode 1 is devoted to following Winnipeg’s Bear Patrol, a group of volunteers who strive to find missing women in the city. Within the span of mere broadcast minutes (but remember, this is filmed over just 48 hours), a handful of girls and young women are reported missing. The race is on to locate them in a neighbourhood known for violence and the sex trade.

Upcoming stories during the eight-episode run include an all-access look at Pearson International airport, including their K9 Unit, wildlife control with trained falcons and an emergency landing; a Kingston drug bust against a suspected meth dealer; and Ottawa scientists testing a compound of everyday chemicals and a bomb suit for first responders.

Beautifully shot and wonderfully written, Keeping Canada Safe really should be seen, both to be informed about the jobs being done behind the scenes for our security and to celebrate those who are doing it.

Keeping Canada Safe airs Thursdays at 9 p.m. on CBC.

Image courtesy of CBC.

Facebooktwitterredditlinkedinmail
Featured, Reality, Lifestyle & Documentary

History’s Yukon Gold digs into Season 5

Somehow I totally missed covering Season 4 of Yukon Gold. No matter, the guys and gals who seek out the shiny precious metal in the most inhospitable of places—the Yukon—have stuck with it and return on Wednesday with Season 5 of the History program.

“Strike While the Iron is Hot” kicks off the new season at 10 p.m. ET/PT with a quick recap of what’s happened since we last visited the hardscrabble territory. And while folks like Big Al McGregor and Nika Guilbault and Chris St. Jean are back for this bunch of storylines, Karl Knutson, Bernie Kreft and Ken Foy and Guillaume Brodeur are no longer a part of Yukon Gold. No matter, there are more than enough interesting people sluicing. And with gold at a five-year high—$1,700 an ounce—there’s urgency to find the stuff and fast before the 16-week season ends.

Big Al has set himself a lofty goal, aiming to dig up 1,000 ounces (over $1.7 million). But Al’s infectious laugh and positive attitude hides his two-year struggle, first with the death of his wife, Colleen, and then cancer that caused him to lose feeling in his hands and legs. The result? He’s walking with the aid of canes and soldiering on in Colleen’s memory. You can’t help but hope he’ll get those ounces he’s dreaming of.

Meanwhile, young Whitehorse prospectors Ed and Riley are getting into the big game for the first time. Their first task? Transporting their $250,000 sluice plant through the mountains to their claim on Rabbit Creek. A rookie mistake shuts down their convoy for a bit, cutting into precious work hours but providing viewers with awesome, sweeping camera shots of the rugged Yukon terrain.

They may come from different backgrounds and have different levels of success mining, but everyone featured on Yukon Gold agrees on one thing: they deeply love where they are. The allure of living in the wilderness, eking out a living with the bare minimum and removed from the issues a big city presents is an intoxicating cocktail they simply can’t pass up. And having a little bit of gold is just gravy.

Yukon Gold airs Wednesdays at 10 p.m. ET/PT on History.

Facebooktwitterredditlinkedinmail
Bellevue, Featured

Bellevue: Hello Little Light

Earlier episodes of Bellevue have had strong religious undercurrents. That trend does not continue tonight. Tonight focuses on connections. Connections within the cases, connections between the crimes.  Connection across time, and “connections.”

Two warnings underscore this episode. The first echoes from last week, “Don’t trust the guy with the fire in his eyes,” and the second is a memory Annie (Anna Paquin) recalls whilst she is reviewing her father’s psych report: “There is someone who THINKS he loves you …. He is dangerous, you wouldn’t know it to look at him. He might be watching right now.” With that in mind …

Peter (Shawn Doyle), is still Annie’s overprotective, overwrought superior and the protegé of her father, Clarence Ryder (Patrick Labbé). The Riddler warned her of a man with “fire in his eyes,” but is it Peter he is referring, or merely a coincidence? We see Peter get all up in the face of the perv who was the initial intermediary between Annie and The Riddler. He is put on notice: if he comes across The Riddler or any guy even sounding like The Riddler, he is to let Peter know. Clearly, Peter is not our creepy messenger, but is he connected in some other manner? We know Peter deliberately set the shed on fire, destroying evidence, but what of his garage? Or is it simply his duty to a mentor and “trust issues” when it comes to Peter and Annie?

Our suspect comes in the form of the renown drug-dealer Jed “Rainmaker” Martin (Neil Napier of Helix).  The police obtain a warrant to search Jed’s home for evidence after they discovered a large quantity of his trademark “Rainmaker” MDMA in Jesse’s room. Instead, they find Jesse’s boyfriend Danny (Cameron Roberts) crashing there. Police also find false eyelashes and size 13 boots they suspect belonged to Jesse. Is Jed engaging in inappropriate relations with minor boys from the reserve? Annie and Virginia (Sharon Taylor) track Jed down and question him while officers remain at his property continuing their search. They uncover a recently-buried tin containing the other pink Eiffel Tower earring and some sweetgrass. This significant find justifies bringing Jed in for questioning and he is later arrested for the death of Jesse. Despite being “low-lying fruit,” Jed believes he is being set up. A final questioning by Annie reveals Jed knew Jesse didn’t belong in the suit his family are planning to bury him in. The earring was who Jesse was. “She was a good kid.” Jed didn’t kill Jesse.

So how is Neil Driver (Andreas Apergis), father of Sandy Driver connected to everything going on? Suffering from schizoaffective disorder, he routinely confuses Annie for his daughter. Coincidentally, he has been back in hospital for 48 hours; the same period of time since Annie’s last message from The Riddler. Annie investigates his home and the entire house stopped at 12:13 on December 24, 1994. Newspapers from December 26, 1994 (the day after Sandy died), January 14, 1995 (the day of Sandy Driver’s funeral), and September 7, 1995 (when Annie’s father took his own life), are on the table with the words, “One day I will be free,” etched into the table top.

Seeing her name marked in the paper, Annie pays a visit to a forcibly-restrained Neil. Here in the hospital he gives Annie a watch that had been missing since the day Sandy was taken. Earlier that day a man approached him on the hospital grounds, gave him the watch, and then left via the woods. Now Neil is giving it to Annie. Neil is not The Riddler. Annie heads out onto the grounds, goes through the gate and discovers the only riddle of the night: “Time will tell if the bracelet fits.” Earlier, Daisy (Madison Ferguson) had given her mum grandpa’s old hospital band. Now, with this latest clue, Annie queries her daughter. Daisy found it not in the trash, as Annie had assumed, but rather on a pole waiting to be found. So what does this mean, “if the bracelet fit”? Was Clarence Ryder on the right track in his investigation?

Annie returns to the Driver home, and Neil has been released from hospital. He attempts to explain December 24, at 12:13. This is the time when life stopped for Neil Driver: he lost his temper with his daughter. He knew she has been up to something with her girlfriend Maggie (Victoria Sanchez). Is this the connection? “If she had just left us alone my Sandy would not have had to die.” Is the connection between Jesse and Sandy a form of retribution? And how did the person who had the watch know about 12:13?

Another interesting “connection”? The episode opened with Annie setting up some home surveillance and later someone taps into it, and begins to watch Annie.

“Hello little light.”

She disconnects the camera, but later reconnects it with the hope this will again strengthen the bond between she and The Riddler, and by extension may lead to the killer or killers.

A couple mentions: Bethany (Emilia Hellman) is the subject of cyber-bullying by her classmates. Eddie (Allen Leech) does not think the job he had been counting on is going to pan out and despite his feelings for Annie, he is spending a lot of time with Briana Holt (Amber Goldfarb) instead. Finally, did anyone else notice Annie making a connection with Brady Holt (Billy McLellan)? These two had a momentary truce followed by that awkward moment when both parties are asking, “What just happened here?”

Another episode absolutely stuffed, and it is difficult to get it all into one recap and keep it under 1,000 words, something which I oftentimes fail with miserably. This week I may have left out some details but I had to leave room.

FINALLY, I get to mention how beautifully the creators of Bellevue are seamlessly including the LGBTQ2 community within this storyline. Oftentimes, shows have a token gay or bi character and it feels forced; an afterthought, as though producers toss an under-represented character in in order to fill a quota. Bellevue has incorporated trans, gay, lesbian and those who are still questioning their sexual identity and/or preferences, and it feels utterly effortless. Those who are marginalized by society, are often the invisible ones never represented in television/media, or the characters embody only the ignorant stereotypes and are used to drive the storyline itself. Not here. These rich characters are merely a part of the landscape, included, and accepted by mainstream Bellevue. Some of the town may not understand it, but most are not judgmental. Here, it is those who are un-accepting that are the minority and even the suspects. People from the LGBTQ2 who are watching Bellevue are seeing themselves on primetime TV. It is about time.

Bellevue airs Mondays at 9 p.m. on CBC.

Facebooktwitterredditlinkedinmail