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Featured, Murdoch Mysteries

Preview: Murdoch Mysteries, “Murdoch on the Couch”

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After a stellar Christmas episode, where it was revealed Julia is pregnant, Murdoch Mysteries returned last week with an interesting whodunit starring Mary Pickford and one John Brackenreid.

This week, the show welcomes more real-life historical figures in Doctors Sigmund Freud Carl Jung.

Here is the official episode synopsis for “Murdoch on the Couch,” written by Simon McNabb and Paul Aitken, and directed by Eleanore Lindo:

When Murdoch investigates the mysterious death of a colleague of Sigmund Freud, he receives unexpected psychoanalysis.

And, as always, here are some additional tidbits from me.

Guest stars galore
Sigmund Freud is played by veteran stage and screen actor Diego Matamoros, who I’ve been lucky enough to see perform many times at Toronto’s Soulpepper Theatre. His take on Freud is wonderfully dry, leading to many funny moments, especially when he starts to psychoanalyze members of Station House No. 4. Keep an eye out for Jeff Lillico as Jung (he first appeared on MM back in 2013 as Reginald Mayfair), and Trevor Hayes as Charlie Davidson (who also dropped by MM previously playing Frederick Fetherstonhagh in 2014).

A little bit of Julia backstory
It was revealed in a previous season that Julia and Freud knew each other. This is a nice callback that leads to some great scenes.

Watts investigates a murder
I always enjoy it when Watts is given his own crime to investigate, and this week’s is a doozy involving the aforementioned Charlie Davidson who shows up at the Station House to report a murder.

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

Images courtesy of CBC.

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Coroner, Featured

Preview: Coroner returns with fresh bodies, renewed energy for Season 4

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Coroner may be a crime/medical procedural, but its primary focus has always been on Jenny Cooper’s (Serinda Swan) personal mental health journey as she struggles with grief, childhood trauma and anxiety. That journey takes a turn—and the series gets an infusion of energy—in Season 4, kicking off Thursday at 8 p.m. on CBC. 

In “Emerge,” written by new showrunner Adriana Maggs (Pretty Hard Cases), Jenny is still reeling from the shocking loss of Liam (Eric Bruneau) in the Season 3 finale. On a sabbatical from work, she’s holed up in an Airbnb trailer on a rural farm, growing a garden and trying to take a break from all things death-related. She keeps in close contact with Ross (Ehrem Kassam), who is at home caring for Gordon (Nicholas Campbell) with the help of her recently resurfaced mom Peggy (Jennifer Dale), but is clearly in no hurry to return to the chaos of her life. 

Back in Toronto, Detective McAvoy (Roger Cross) is facing the opposite situation. After taking four months off to recover from his spinal surgery, he’s back at work and eager to prove he’s up to the job, especially to his partner Malik (Andy McQueen) and girlfriend Kirima (Sarah Podemski). Meanwhile, at the coroner’s office, rulebook-thumping replacement coroner Dr. Elijah Thompson (Thom Allison) is making life difficult for Jenny’s staff, who can’t wait for her to come back.

Just as we can count on Jenny having a new hairstyle each season (spoiler: it’s longer now), we know that a new case—probably one in the quiet community she’s seeking refuge in—will soon have her conducting post-mortems again. However, things are not quite business as usual once Jenny gets her groove back; altered relationship dynamics and fresh faces bring new vitality and direction to the series. 

Liam’s death upends Jenny’s healing process in unexpected ways, letting the writers and Swan dig into the confusing layers of compounded grief and survivor’s guilt, subjects TV procedurals rarely make time for. In addition, both Dale and Allison turn in great performances as they shake up Jenny’s world at home and at work; and McAvoy’s reaction to his health scare provides some early twists, adding new shades to his partnership with Malik and giving Cross more opportunities to shine. Overall, the series feels refreshed and like it has a lot more to say, which is quite an accomplishment for a fourth-year drama about death.

Coroner airs Thursdays at 8 p.m. on CBC and CBC Gem.

Image courtesy of CBC.

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Featured, Pretty Hard Cases

Preview: Sam and Kelly are back for more Pretty Hard Cases

In the Season 1 finale of Pretty Hard Cases, Detectives Sam (Meredith MacNeill) and Kelly (Adrienne C. Moore) had wrapped up a massive drug bust and collared big bad Bill (played to perfection by Kim Coates) in the process. And, rather than seeing the pair split up, Kelly was set to join Guns and Gangs meaning—Sam hoped—they would become partners.

That’s exactly what happened, we learn when Pretty Hard Cases returns Wednesday at 9 p.m. on CBC.

In “Pencil Skirts,” written by series co-creator Sherry White, Sam and Kelly take their partnership to new heights when they go undercover as flight attendants to infiltrate a Central American gang’s drug route.

As with the first season of Pretty Hard Cases, the camaraderie between Sam and Kelly is the hook. And, now that they’re partners, that chemistry is even better. As with most second (and third, and fourth, etc.) seasons of a show, the characters are established and the writing is tighter, meaning a smoother ride. Not that Pretty Hard Cases was rough out of the gate, but there’s a groove in Wednesday’s return instalment that is palpable.

There are also some tantalizing peeks at upcoming themes in Season 2. Kelly’s lunch date off the top of “Pencil Skirts” with her estranged sisters hints she’ll be questioning her past relationship decisions and what motherhood might mean to her, Sam and Naz’s relationship moves to a tentative (and, as expected, awkward) next level, and the addition of Rookie Blue‘s Ben Bass as the cost-cutting DS Brad Michaels and Sonja Smits as Sam’s mom, Judy, promise to add verve.

Pretty Hard Cases airs Wednesdays at 9 p.m. on CBC and CBC Gem.

Image courtesy of CBC.

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Featured, Workin' Moms

Preview: Workin’ Moms’ Kate struggles in Season 6 return

Workin’ Moms continues to work it, six seasons in. The story of female friends supporting each other through the trials and tribulations of life has been a truly enjoyable one, thanks to strong writing and performances from everyone involved.

However, I was concerned coming into Season 6. Returning Tuesday at 9 p.m. on CBC, this would be the first without Juno Rinaldi, who announced in September that she had exited Workin’ Moms. Would there be a massive hole in plotlines where Frankie used to be?

Well, no, because there were plenty of storylines to go around for everyone else. When we last left the show, the Season 5 cliffhanger suggested Nathan had a son no one knew about and Kate and Sloane’s relationship had come to a disastrous head.

In Tuesday’s return, “Kate Fosters,” Nathan and Kate are struggling with the realization Nathan may actually be Nathan’s son. How will he fit into the family dynamic? Does he fit into the family dynamic? Is Nathan really Nathan’s kid? A DNA test will confirm it, but the physical characteristics they’re showing have Kate convinced, particularly during a spaghetti dinner that is equally cringy and laugh-out-loud funny.

The office isn’t a respite for Kate either. Sloane’s mind games derail a meeting with a potential client, while Mo is raking them in.

By the episode’s end, things seem to be slowly getting back on track, but I have a feeling things won’t be any easier in the weeks to come for Kate. I look forward to finding out how things shake out for her, and the other ladies, in Season 6.

Workin’ Moms airs Tuesdays at 9 p.m. on CBC and CBC Gem.

Image courtesy of CBC.

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Featured, Still Standing

Still Standing returns for Season 7 on CBC

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I’ve been waiting for years to have Still Standing film in a small town close to me. And then, when it finally did, I missed the whole thing.

I’ll blame COVID-19 for that, as Season 7 of Jonny Harris’ cross country standup series had to adjust to changing audience numbers and community health recommendations on the fly. Returning on Wednesday at 8 p.m. on CBC, Harris and his crew drop in on Hope, B.C., where they divulge the history and people of that small Canadian community.

And, like hundreds of other television productions, the pandemic delayed everything and put the heart of the show—Harris’ live performances in front of the communities he was in—in jeopardy.

“At first, we were just grounded,” Harris says. “And then we were going to do shows, but the capacity was going to be greatly reduced, like 30 people in the audience. I was devastated. I thought, ‘It won’t feel like the show.’ And then, I turned on the TV, and there was Jimmy Fallon telling jokes, basically, in front of The Tonight Show crew. And I realized everyone had to eat some crow during the pandemic.”

Despite crowd restrictions and wildly fluctuating social distancing rules from province to province, Still Standing still looks great. Thanks to creative camera angles and editing, you really can’t tell how many people are in each audience. Those outside, community shots and interviews are still intact, weaving personal and business stories around small communities struggling to make ends meet.

As for the episode filmed in my area, the Wakefield, QC, instalment (just a 10-minute drive from my home) airs on January 19 and finds Harris traipsing around a community embracing its railway past to drive tourism to the area.

“It’s such a gorgeous area, and close enough to Gatineau and Ottawa that it’s accessible but far enough away that’s it’s never going to be a suburb.”

Still Standing airs Wednesdays at 8 p.m. on CBC and CBC Gem.

Images courtesy of CBC.

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