All posts by Greg David

Prior to becoming a television critic and owner of TV, Eh?, Greg David was a critic for TV Guide Canada, the country's most trusted source for TV news. He has interviewed television actors, actresses and behind-the-scenes folks from hundreds of television series from Canada, the U.S. and internationally. He is a podcaster, public speaker, weekly radio guest and educator, and past member of the Television Critics Association.
Featured, Frankie Drake Mysteries

Preview: Frankie Drake Mysteries welcomes Wynonna Earp

It’s a new year and that means new episodes of Frankie Drake Mysteries on CBC! After a couple of weeks off for the holidays, Frankie, Trudy, Mary and Flo roar back with more crime-solving in Monday’s instalment, “Ties that Bind,” written by co-creator Carol Hay and directed by Eleanore Lindo, who also directed Monday’s episode of Murdoch Mysteries.

Here’s what the CBC has revealed with regard to an official synopsis:

Mary recruits Frankie and Trudy to find a missing teacher, but their investigation leads them to family secrets, Chinatown and murder.

And here are some tidbits we gleaned from watching a screener.

Wynonna Earp‘s Melanie Scrofano guest-stars
We’re used to seeing Scrofano kicking demon butt on Space’s rollicking series—heading into production on Season 3—so it was a bit jarring to see her decked out in 1920s fashion. Scrofano plays Jenny Smith, a voluntary English teacher who goes missing following a covert meeting in a darkened alleyway. Why was Mary trailing Jenny, and where did the young woman go? And how does Mary know Jenny?

TV critic gets acting gig
The Toronto Star‘s Tony Wong guests in a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it gig as an extra. He wrote about his experiences on Frankie Drake Mysteries in his latest column. Give it a read.

Nora returns
We’ve missed the sass and snark of Wendy Crewson’s performance, especially when she’s in a scene with Lauren Lee Smith as mother and daughter deliver verbal jabs at each other.

Frankie Drake Mysteries airs Mondays at 9 p.m. on CBC.

Images courtesy of CBC.

 

 

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Featured

Comments and queries for the week of January 5

Watching Heavy Rescue: 401 and it makes me mad when someone says highway 11 is access to the lakes in the north. It seems like everyone in the south thinks the world ends at Orillia or Barrie. Highway 400 is part of highway 11 and highway 11 is a large part of the Trans Canada highway system. —Roy

Blue Ant Media

Just finished watching Marty and Bam Bam [on Backroad Bounty] for the second time on Netflix then I can’t find it again. What happens to it and will there be more shows? I love these guys. —Rita

Sadly, there were only two seasons of Backroad Bounty made.

I loved the mix of the travelers trying to fit into the roles they rolled into [on Travelers]. The first season there were definitely priority to the missions from the director. The second season had some good fast-paced travelers-only missions, but there was more free time which was used to strengthen the bond between the team member and their inherited family and seeing their struggles. It prepared a solid base for a third season. A lot of potential and it probably will be used to bring them all stronger in the end. Probably with personal choices between love and knowing the partner is from the future. Just hope it won’t be any cliché twist. But I have faith after the writing of the last two seasons. —Rick

Got a question or comment about Canadian TV? Email greg.david@tv-eh.com or via Twitter @tv_eh.

 

 

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Cardinal

Links: Cardinal: Blackfly Season

From Bill Brioux of The Canadian Press:

Link: Billy Campbell on season 2 of CTV’s ‘Cardinal,’ feeling ‘spiritually Canadian’
The life of an actor isn’t always glamorous. Take Billy Campbell, for example. The lanky Virginian sits in a rundown mess hall on a remote and abandoned helicopter airfield. It’s late spring, cold, and raining hard. To kill time between shooting scenes on the CTV series “Cardinal,” he kills mosquitoes. Continue reading.

From John Doyle of The Globe and Mail:

Link: Season 2 of Cardinal is solid, but lacks searing sensibility
This season of Cardinal is still a solid crime drama and wonderful to watch at the start, but some mercurial ingredient used in the first season is missing. It’s a pity and the series is recommended this time with caution. Continue reading.

From Bridget Liszewski of The TV Junkies:

Link: Cardinal’s Billy Campbell says there will be personal ramifications in Season 2
“What they do have in common is that they are both very thorough, and even a little obsessive I think. They also both feel a lot, though they aren’t really very easily able to express their feelings.” Continue reading. 

From Debra Yeo of the Toronto Star:

Link: Canadian TV crime drama Cardinal returns to its elements
“There’s a lot going on under the surface and that’s really kind of what I like about him. . . . Last season, the ice was kind of a nice metaphor for Cardinal the person, that there was this layer of ice on top of what would be a lot going on underneath. And I just thought, ‘Here’s something that I haven’t had a chance to do and I think I can do it.’ ” Continue reading.

From Brendan Kelly of the Montreal Gazette:

Link: Karine Vanasse relishes her return to CTV’s ‘real and raw’ Cardinal
“I feel like in Season 1 we got to know who Cardinal was and we got to know who Delorme really was on a more human level towards the end of the season. I think we start Season 2 knowing more about who she really is. I think that in Season 1 people might at first have been wondering if she was just a driven police officer wanting to get higher in the ranks.” Continue reading. 

From Heather M. of The Televixen:

Link: Karine Vanasse talks Cardinal Season 2
“I like the fact that we have six episodes [so] that you can go in-depth with the characters. You don’t have that much dialogue. It makes a difference that the camera takes the time to get reactions from the characters, so even if words aren’t being said, you get to go in-depth [as a viewer], and as an actor you get to explore those characters.” Continue reading. 

From Bridget Liszewski of The TV Junkies:

Link: Cardinal’s Karine Vanasse on why Delorme is still questioning Cardinal in Season 2
“As we saw in Season 1, she loves her job and she loves to focus on her work. In regards to her journey in Season 2 and as far as Cardinal goes, there’s a level of trust that exists now. At the same time, he keeps a certain distance with her. For her, finding her place next to him is a little hard at first, and it is a little confusing for her to understand.” Continue reading. 

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Industry News

The Weekly with Wendy Mesley launches Jan. 14 on CBC

From a media release:

As first announced in July 2017, new CBC News Sunday morning show THE WEEKLY WITH WENDY MESLEY will launch Sunday, January 14 at 11 a.m. (11:30 NT) on CBC and CBC News Network, focused on the intersection of media, technology and politics.

In the new half-hour program, Mesley will put players from media, business and politics in the spotlight as she pushes for answers and transparency, and provides critical analysis on how the newsmakers of the week are delivering their messages.

From political pressure and corporate interests to technological manipulation and old-fashioned spin, the program will go behind the headlines to reveal the hidden and sometimes surprising forces shaping the news, providing a deeper understanding of what’s happening in the world by illuminating the influences at play behind the big stories of the week.

The show will broadcast live from CBC in Toronto and feature a wide range of Canadian and global contributors and guests.

 

 

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