Preview: Omni’s Blood and Water returns for fantastic second season

Blood and Water

is one of the best—and groundbreaking—series on Canadian television. And, sadly, it’s been one of the hardest to find.

The second block of Season 1’s half-hour episodes were broadcast on Omni Television back in November of 2016 at 10:30 p.m. ET. Now Season 2 is set to bow … on Sundays at 7:30 p.m. ET/PT on Omni. It’s hard enough to gain traction as a television show in this country. But to throw in an almost two-year absence coupled with a 7:30 p.m. timeslot? It’s a shame, really, because Breakthrough Entertainment, creator and executive producer Diane Boehme and the cast and crew have created something really special and unique in this drama.

Blood and Water is the first trilingual series (English, Mandarin and Cantonese) produced by Canadian television and was celebrating diversity in its cast and storylines before Kim’s Convenience made such a splash. (Fun fact: Kim’s actor Simu Liu starred in Season 1. Listen to his 2015 podcast chat, along with then co-star Loretta Yu, with Anthony Marco.)

But enough of my bitching. Let’s get into Season 2.

Friday’s new adventure begins with a bloody, cold-blooded murder and a phone call from Teresa Fai (Loretta Yu) to Detective Jo Bradley (Steph Song). Teresa’s boyfriend, Jimmy (Andy Yu) witnessed the killing of his uncle and is now on the run. Can she look for Jimmy before he’s killed too? Jo and Detective Evan Ong (Byron Mann) help Teresa and, quickly, they’re pulled back into a case that involves a mysterious envelope and, once again, Ron Xie (Oscar Hu).

I continue to be amazed at how much evolving story and character development Boehme and her team can pack into just over 22 minutes of broadcast time. Once again, Song and Mann crackle on-screen; you can’t look away when they share scenes. New this season are cast members in Yu, Amanda Zhou and Selena Lee. Lee is a Hong Kong-born Canadian actress who has collected a bunch of awards and is a stalwart of TVB in Hong Kong. She’s wonderful here as Michelle Chang, a deadly and complicated character who factors into Jo and Evan’s investigation.

Add in a soundtrack that hints at dread around every turn and a  dark, spooky visual palette—via director of photography Fraser Brown and director Felipe Rodriguez—and Blood and Water is a feast for the senses. Please watch the second season. You’ll be glad you did.

Blood and Water airs Sundays at 7:30 p.m. ET/PT on Omni Television.

Images courtesy of Rogers Media.

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