From Alex Strachan:
Rick Mercer was philosophical about being asked to host the Giller Prize. After all, it wasn’t as if the well-travelled raconteur and host of Rick Mercer Report expected to be home Monday, cocooning in front of the TV and munching on popcorn.
“No,†Mercer says over the phone, with his familiar wry laugh. “No popcorn for me. This time of year, when I’m in production on my show, there’s not a lot of sitting at home, munching on popcorn.†Continue reading.Â
Marketplace, CBC – “Faking It”
Just about everyone checks online reviews before buying anything. But how much can you trust those reviews? We reveal how cheaters pull it off… and fake you out.
The Fifth Estate, CBC – “Finding Emma”
A 26-year-old woman disappears from the streets of Victoria in 2012 and has never been seen since. Was it murder, suicide — or did she want to hide? In “Finding Emma†host Mark Kelley follows a mother’s determined journey to look for her daughter – and looks at how hard it is to find many of 60,000 people who are reported missing every year in Canada.
I literally jumped up out of my chair and applauded when Inspector Brackenreid laid down the law [on Murdoch Mysteries]: no leaving the church until the ceremony was complete. Finally! Now to get Crabtree & Edna Brooks together.–Sue
It seemed to me like they played the wrong music for Julia’s walk down the aisle. The one played was Mendelssohn’s “Wedding March,” which is usually played after the ceremony. But I loved the show!–CW
In a series where Murdoch’s faith seems to be an integral part of his actions, it struck me as extremely bad writing to have them talk all the way through their vows and tell the priest to hurry up! I could see them realizing who the culprit was and leaving the church in haste after the ceremony and everyone in the dark as to why they left, only to reappear at the reception with it all solved and taken care of.–Merle
Got a comment or question about Canadian television? Send it to greg@tv-eh.com!
I should have known the Darkside Seekers would be Duke’s last ditch effort when it came to solving the puzzle of Nathan’s … spirituality. Unfortunately, it was just Seth who arrived in town during Thursday’s episode, “Exposure” (no Anderson meant no possible Masterson family reunion) to communicate with Nathan and possibly cure what ailed him.
“I take it from your desperate phone call and baffled expressions that you are are in dire straits,” Seth began. “Fear not. The calvary has arrived.” He quickly explained that Anderson wasn’t there because of he’d become rich and moved on before the trio got down to business.
How far would you go to be reunited with the person you love? We’ve seen just how far Nathan will go, and “Exposure,” echoed his journey through Morgan, the dead guy who was supposedly helping Nathan get them back to the land of the living. I say supposedly, because Morgan had no interest in actually returning because it meant his cancer would consume his body again. So desperate to keep this from happening, Morgan killed Glenn and was focused on doing the same to Nathan. I definitely felt for the guy. Another sharp-eyed reviewer supposed that Amy, the woman taking pictures at the market, was not only behind the Trouble affecting these folks but was Morgan’s wife. That proved to be true on Thursday–the original Trouble had evolved from affecting an artist and his painting to photography–and Amy took a picture of Audrey so she could go in and help save Nathan.
“Why do you get to be with the one you love?!” Morgan screamed as his plan to reunite with Amy went downhill. It’s a fair point, and drove home to Nathan just how single-minded (and selfish) he’s been all along when it comes to Audrey.
Duke and Mara, meanwhile, had a drunken heart-to-heart discussion about the former’s memories of his mother so that the latter would reveal her take on the photography Trouble. And while I appreciated the writers giving us insight into Duke’s upbringing–his mom was a deadbeat who only showed up to collect welfare cheques–I was disappointed more time wasn’t spent on him. Duke is a fascinating character with a pretty screwed-up family (remember his serial killer brother?), and we haven’t had a lot of background into what really makes him tick. We did discover that he had to fend for himself from a young age, but that was pretty much it. How did he get his boat? Where does he get his black market supplies from? Does he have cable TV? Questions I wish we had answers to.
Maybe we’ll get more information later this season. “Exposure” was jam-packed with other stuff after all, including Dave and Vince freaking because the secrets of Haven may come out. Sending off a sample of Dave’s leg wound to a lab for testing prefaced the arrival of  Centre for Disease Control’s Dr. Charlotte Cross (Laura Mendell), who showed at the Grey Gull to lurch the Troubles story in a new direction.
 Notes and quotes
Haven airs Thursdays at 10 p.m. ET/PT on Showcase.
The Nature of Things, CBC – “Decoding Desire”
New discoveries are shattering old assumptions about sex and the sexes. Biologists are analyzing human and animal sexual behaviour from courtship to the catch, foreplay to consummation. Decoding Desire takes us on a voyage of discovery into the fascinating science of the mating game.
(High Definition where available)
Doc Zone, CBC – “Forgotten No More”
How a backyard discovery in France and DNA clues lead to the lost men of World War I’s 78th battalion.
Haven, Showcase – “Exposure”
Audrey is forced to call in some outside help to cope with harsh new realities: she is no longer immune to the troubles, and Nathan may be lost forever.
