TV, eh? | What's up in Canadian television | Page 458
TV,eh? What's up in Canadian television

DHX Media and Nickelodeon roll out Massive Monster Mayhem internationally

From a media release:

DHX Media (or the “Company”) (TSX: DHX.A, DHX.B; NASDAQ: DHXM), a leading global children’s content and brands company, and Nickelodeon are spreading mayhem worldwide with a new international broadcast agreement for season one of the original DHX Media series, Massive Monster Mayhem. Following the show’s successful premiere on Nicktoons in the U.S., Nickelodeon International has picked it up for air across more than 140 territories. Produced by DHX Media, Massive Monster Mayhem is co-created by Artur Spigel (founder of 7ate9 Entertainment) and Michael Chaves.

Massive Monster Mayhem is an original show for kids 6–11 that combines live action and CGI animation with real competition and comedy. Each episode features three real-life kid heroes competing in a gauntlet of Intergalactic Battle Alliance challenges to become Earth’s champion and face off against Master Mayhem’s league of monsters in the ultimate “Monster Mashdown.” The unique series combines cutting-edge, real-time CGI and pre-visualization technology.

Massive Monster Mayhem originally launched on Nicktoons in the U.S. in October 2017, garnering solid ratings among the network’s audience. As part of the new agreement, the mayhem will begin rolling out on Nickelodeon’s international channels beginning in 2018, with season one scheduled to premiere on the broadcaster’s Nordics, Australian and MENA channels in January. The series will roll out across remaining territories throughout the year.

Global distribution for Massive Monster Mayhem is handled by DHX Media, while licensing is managed by the company’s brand management and consumer products arm, DHX Brands. With its stunning visuals, which combine cutting-edge, real-time CGI and pre-visualization technology, and its host of exciting characters – like Master Mayhem, the self-proclaimed “Greatest Ruler in the Universe” – Massive Monster Mayhem offers significant appeal for young audiences and great potential for consumer products.

Produced by DHX Media, Massive Monster Mayhem is a brand-new concept in kids’ entertainment. Massive Monster Mayhem features live gameplay by kids in futuristic challenges against gigantic Monster Superstars for the chance to win prizes and save the planet from destruction. The series is executive produced by 7ate9’s Art Spigel, together with DHX Media’s Steven DeNure, Anne Loi, Ken Faier and Josh Scherba. The Massive Monster Mayhem Match App invaded the iTunes App Store and Google Play Store on October 2017 and was developed by Epic Story Interactive.

 

 

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Link: Mary Kills People actors on Ben and Mary’s relationship and the S2 power struggle

From Kelly Townsend of The TV Junkies:

Link: Mary Kills People actors on Ben and Mary’s relationship and the S2 power struggle
An odd twist of fate has led to Mary Harris’ (Caroline Dhavernas) life coming full circle since the death of last season’s nemesis Grady (Greg Bryk). First, his sister Olivia Bloom (Rachelle Lefevre) orders Mary to kill her husband Travis (Ian Lake), then when poor Mary is forced into the act through a powerfully convincing threat she runs into Ben (Jay Ryan), last season’s love interest and the man who almost threw her in jail. We last left off last week with the two coming face to face for the first time. Continue reading.

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Link: Sarah Dodd finds her niche on CTV crime drama

From Jeremy Shepherd of North Shore News:

Link: Sarah Dodd finds her niche on CTV crime drama
“All around us were index cards with plots twist and character moments and visual moments and all six episodes eventually up on those walls. The other offices were inhabited by mainly psychiatrists so we can only imagine what they were thinking. . . . We looked like A Beautiful Mind in there.” Continue reading.

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Preview: Burden of Truth blossoms in Episode 2

The first episode of a new television series is always tough on the creators and viewers. Within just 44 minutes for a drama (and 22 for a comedy) you need to create a world, introduce the characters in it and connect all of it for a new audience.

As I wrote last week, the pilot episode of Burden of Truth did it effortlessly. I immediately cheered for small-town lawyer Billy Crawford (Peter Mooney) when big-city litigator Joanna Hanley (Kristin Kreuk) switched sides and joined him in plotting to take down the big pharmaceutical company she was representing. I felt badly for Luna Spence (Star Slade), the young woman determined to fight the company because its drugs were making her and other girls sick. I enjoyed the community feel of Millwood, rife with secrets and ill-will towards Joanna, who left there when she was 14.

I was excited to see what creator Brad Simpson had in store, especially after CBC sent out this episode synopsis:

Joanna must reckon with questions over her family’s hasty departure when she was a teenager while attempting to convince the locals that she has, in fact, switched sides. After footing the bill for medical testing of the sick girls and running commonalities tests, Joanna suspects that the cause of the illness is an environmental toxin on the High School Athletic Field.

And here are more tidbits to tell you after watching a screener of “The Ties That Bind,” written by Simpson and directed by Jeff Woolnough.

Selkirk looks super
Thanks to stunning work by director of photography David A. Makin, the directors and location folks, Selkirk, Manitoba, is stunning as the fictional Millwood. Those wind turbines, waving crops and sun-touched brick buildings bring a whole new level to the production.

Joanna breaks the news to Alan
Almost lost in the shuffle of last week’s debut was Benjamin Ayres as Alan, Joanna’s boyfriend and co-worker at the firm. “The Ties That Bind” jumps right in with she calling he to drop a bit of a bomb in his lap.

Anti-vax
The whole reason Joanna was in Millwood was to combat the claim against the company making drugs. Now that she and Billy dig a little deeper into the evidence, they discover the vaccine may not be the culprit after all.

It’s not all about the big case
Billy may be working with Joanna on the major court case but he’s got a bunch of other situations to deal with. We get a ton of background on what Billy is up to, his standing within the community and the difference between doing legal work out of an office in a skyscraper and on country roads. Meanwhile, Joanna’s phone conversations with her dad don’t go so well … and hint at what drove him to leave Millwood 17 years ago.

Burden of Truth airs Wednesdays at 8 p.m. on CBC.

Images courtesy of CBC.

 

 

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Cardinal, Letterkenny and Kim’s Convenience top 2018 Canadian Screen Award nominees

Cardinal, Alias Grace, Murdoch Mysteries, Mary Kills People, Letterkenny, Workin’ Moms, Kim’s Convenience and The Disappearance—and many of those in the projects’ casts—are among the nominees for 2018 Canadian Screen Awards.

The announcement was made Tuesday morning at The Globe and Mail Centre in Toronto with Kim’s Convenience‘s Paul Sun-Hyung Lee, Cardinal‘s Karine Vanasse and Rise host Sarain Fox serving as hosts.

Here are the nominations in the key television categories. Here is a link to the full list of nominations.

Best Drama Series

  • 19-2
  • Anne
  • Mary Kills People
  • Pure
  • Vikings

Best Comedy Series

  • Letterkenny
  • Workin’ Moms
  • Nirvanna the Band the Show
  • Michael: Every Day
  • Kim’s Convenience

Best Variety or Sketch Comedy Series

  • The Beaverton
  • Baroness Von Sketch Show
  • Rick Mercer Report
  • This Hour Has 22 Minutes

Best Reality Competition Series

  • The Amazing Race Canada
  • The Bachelorette Canada
  • Big Brother Canada
  • MasterChef Canada
  • Top Chef Canada

Best Limited Series or Program

  • Cardinal
  • Alias Grace
  • The Disappearance
  • The Kennedys: After Camelot
  • Bruno & Boots: This Can’t Be Happening at MacDonald Hall

Best Children’s or Youth Program or Series

  • The Next Step
  • Odd Squad
  • Degrassi: Next Class
  • L.M. Montgomery’s Anne of Green Gables Fire & Dew

Best Lifestyle Program or Series

  • Dead Set on Life
  • Property Brothers
  • The Goods
  • Backyard Builds
  • Great Canadian Homes

CBC

Best Lead Actress, Comedy

  • Annie Murphy, Schitt’s Creek
  • Catherine Reitman, Workin’ Moms
  • Catherine O’Hara, Schitt’s Creek
  • Andrea Bang, Kim’s Convenience
  • Jean Yoon, Kim’s Convenience

Best Lead Actor, Comedy

  • Gerry Dee, Mr. D
  • Jared Keeso, Letterkenny
  • Paul Sun-Hyung Lee, Kim’s Convenience
  • Eugene Levy, Schitt’s Creek
  • Daniel Levy, Schitt’s Creek

Best Lead Actress, Drama Series

  • Amybeth McNulty, Anne
  • Caroline Dhavernas, Mary Kills People
  • Jennie Raymond, Sex & Violence
  • Tatiana Maslany, Orphan Black
  • Meaghan Rath, Rogue

Best Lead Actor, Drama Series

  • Brian Markinson, The Romeo Section
  • Richard Short, Mary Kills People
  • Christopher Heyerdahl, Van Helsing
  • Alexander Ludwig, Vikings
  • Shawn Doyle, Bellevue

Best Lead Actress, Drama Program or Limited Series

  • Sarah Gadon, Alias Grace
  • Maxim Roy, Bad Blood
  • Karine Vanasse, Cardinal
  • Camille Sullivan, The Disappearance
  • Helene Joy, Murdoch Mysteries: Home for the Holidays

Best Lead Actor, Drama Program or Limited Series

  • Kim Coates, Bad Blood
  • Edward Holcroft, Alias Grace
  • Billy Campbell, Cardinal
  • Alan Thicke, It’s Not My Fault and I Don’t Care Anyway
  • Yannick Bisson, Murdoch Mysteries: Home for the Holidays

Best Performance, Sketch Comedy (Individual or Ensemble)

  • Baroness Von Sketch Show
  • Rick Mercer Report
  • The Beaverton
  • This Hour Has 22 Minutes

Best Performance, Children’s or Youth

  • Ella Ballentine, L.M. Montgomery’s Anne of Green Gables Fire & Dew
  • Amanda, Arcuri, Degrassi: Next Class
  • Michela Luci, Dino Dan
  • Akiel Julien, The Next Step
  • Anna Cathcart, Odd Squad

 

The Canadian Screen Awards Broadcast gala airs live Sunday, March 11 at 8 p.m. on CBC.

Which shows and actors/actresses are you hoping will win big at the Canadian Screen Awards? Let me know in the comments below!

 

 

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