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.

Podcast: Best Episode Ever, Season 7, Episode 9

I don’t just love Canadian TV. As a child of the 1970s and 80s, television was my babysitter, whether I was tuning in to Sesame Street and The Polka Dot Door or—during my formative years—checking out The Incredible Hulk, The A-Team, Magnum PI, Mork & Mindy, Three’s Company and Happy Days.

So it was a real treat to be asked to guest star on the Best Episode Ever podcast this week. Anthony Marco, Bob Goyetche and Dave Brodbeck get together (almost) every week to chat about three television series from the past. The discussions are informative and darned entertaining, and I was honoured to be asked on to discuss Simon & Simon. The full podcast can be found here for your streaming pleasure. Past instalments of Best Episode Ever can be accessed here.

In addition to a bunch other podcasts, Anthony co-hosts the weekly TV, Eh? podcasts with myself and Diane; those can all be found here.

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Link: Jared Keeso’s ‘Letterkenny’ carves out its own place on Crave TV

From Bill Harris of Postmedia Network:

Jared Keeso’s ‘Letterkenny’ carves out its own place on Crave TV
Here are three things you’ll need to feel the full effect of Letterkenny.

An open mind. An open ear. An open beer.

Letterkenny makes its debut on Crave TV – which is Bell Media’s online streaming service – on Super Bowl Sunday, Feb. 7. There are six new episodes commissioned by Crave TV, following a handful of independently made digital shorts titled Letterkenny Problems that existed prior to this. Continue reading.

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TV, eh? podcast episode 199 – Anne of Green Grassi Junior High

Reunited and it feels so good. Diane returns to the fold and she, Anthony and Greg go over the debuts, returns and season finales taking place over the next few weeks, including YTV’s Anne of Green Gables and History’s Vikings.

Then we switch gears to chat about Global’s latest original series, the six-part Mary Kills People, executive-produced by Tassie Cameron (Rookie Blue). Speaking of Rookie Blue, that series is mentioned during our breakdown of the key categories in this year’s Canadian Screen Award nominations.

Want to contribute to the discussion? Post links and discussion topics on our Reddit page.

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

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Link: X Company preview: Will Alfred break?

From Bridget Liszewski of The TV Junkies:

X Company preview: Will Alfred break?
After a frenetic Season 2 premiere that saw the action pick up immediately, X Company shows no signs of slowing down this week. With Alfred (Jack Laskey) still in the evil hands of Franz Faber (Torben Liebrecht) and company, the big question looming over everyone’s head is whether or not he’ll succumb to the pressure and break? Sinclair (Hugh Dillon) has also arrived on the ground in France. He’s got some hard questions for Aurora (Evelyne Brochu) about how and why Alfred was able to be kidnapped alive. Will she tell him the truth? Continue reading.

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Lucy Maud Montgomery drops by Murdoch Mysteries

If George Crabtree had had his way, Lucy Maud Montgomery’s beloved novel would have been called Dan of Green Gables.

Monday’s rollicking MM episode, “Unlucky in Love,” had a lot going on in it, what with a murdered husband, his bride among those accused in his death and Roland the cutest baby in primetime TV. Add to that a visit by Lucy Maud Montgomery and Lori Spring’s script was totally packed. In some ways that’s too bad, as seasoned actors like Leslie Hope and Mag Ruffman had to make due with limited screen time because of the massive LMM-George Crabtree B-story. An embarrassment of riches, I guess.

The latest real-life character to make their way into the lives of Murdoch Mysteries was none other than Lucy Maud Montgomery (Alison Louder), who signed up for George’s creative writing class because she’d just begun putting pen to paper on the life of a red-haired, freckle-faced girl. Trouble was, George didn’t think her story was exciting enough—or that it should even be a girl in the lead role. His suggestion that she make it Dan of Green Gables—and amp up the drama by inserting ghosts into the story—was enjoyable enough, but alleging LMM reworked the character to reflect George’s foundling background and “flights of fancy” imagination was just too good. (Did anyone else cheer when George got his smooch on with her?) It was, therefore, a wise decision by the producers to include a disclaimer the storyline was all in good fun and George didn’t really influence Maud’s tale because, well, he’s not a real guy. (As an aside, Anne of Green Gables is top of mind lately, what with YTV’s upcoming TV movie and CBC’s own Anne project in the works.)

Alas, despite Arwen Humphreys fans tweeting #MargaretMonday over the weekend, we were left with a bare few minutes of Toronto’s newest wedding planner. It’s always great to see Brackenreid’s spunky better half verbally sparring, but it all came to an end far too quickly. The lineup of potential suspects in the groom’s murder—the driver, the florist or the electrician—and eventual mastermind of the whole thing quickly pushed Margaret to the wayside. Fingers crossed she’s got more scenes coming before the end of the season.

Murdoch Mysteries airs Mondays at 8 p.m. on CBC.

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