From John Doyle of The Globe and Mail:
Link: What Would Sal Do? Be crude, dumb and very funny
What Would Sal Do? (now streaming on CraveTV) is the latest entry in the arena and it’s darn funny without having quite the precision of Letterkenny or the intricately mad harmony of Trailer Park Boys, but it has a comic cultural specificity that is a delight to see. Continue reading.
If you’ve seen the teaser commercials for Heartland‘s season finale, you know Amy has the baby. But will “Greater Expectations” be a love-in all episode, with every character going goo-goo over the little sprite or would other storylines be featured? That was my big question before watching a screener.
Here’s what CBC had to say about “Greater Expectations,” written by showrunner Heather Conkie and directed by Dean Bennett:
Amy, Ty and the entire Heartland family are thrilled to welcome a new member into the fold. Meanwhile, the ghost horse returns and Amy disagrees with Georgie’s plan to capture and gentle him. Then, Lou changes her mind about a business deal but not before Mitch makes a surprising choice.Â
And here are some more non-spoiler bits about Sunday…
A Ghostly appearance
Ghost, that mysterious horse with the black spots returns, and Amy and Georgie are transfixed. Is Ghost a good luck charm or a harbinger of bad things to come?
Caleb ties the knot … with help from Ty
Tim voices his concern, but Caleb is adamant: he and Cass are getting married and Ty is supposed to be his best man. The only issue is that Caleb is currently unemployed … and that’s where Tim comes in. Is Tim willing to hire Caleb as an instructor at the rodeo school, or will he send this cowboy packing?
Georgie + Jack = good times
It’s not often that Jack and Georgie have their own storyline, but they get a doozy on Sunday. It involves Ghost. That’s all I’ll say, except that I hope the pair get more screen time together in Season 11.
Lou makes a decision about the business
Did Lou listen to Lisa’s advice, or did she partner with Peter? You find out on Sunday. Her choice has a ripple effect on what Mitch does next.
Let me know what you think of Sunday’s finale by commenting below after you watch it!
From Melissa Girimonte of The Televixen:
Link: The Saviour of Sudbury: On set with ‘What Would Sal Do?’ star Dylan Taylor
“I grew up in the east end of Toronto in a multicultural area, and I knew these guys as well. I didn’t realize how many Sals I knew, the general hard-headedness, the fact that they think they’re right and never wrong, and the arrogance and bravado that comes with it.” Continue reading.
From John Doyle of The Globe and Mail:
Link: Canada: The Story of Us is just pop history for kids
Canada: The Story of Us (Sunday, CBC, 9 p.m.) a peculiar production, laden and fraught. For a start, it all seems very, very official. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau opens the show with a cheery little speech about “co-operation and acceptance.†He encourages viewers to be, like him, “inspired†by the great Canadians we will encounter in the 10-part series. A lot of them, oddly enough, are actors, writers, performers and singers. Celebs, in other words. Continue reading.
So much has and will be posted about the Denis McGrath-sized hole left in the world after his death last night. A small part of his legacy is that without him, TV, eh? would likely not exist. In an alternate, Denis-less universe, one we’re struggling to imagine now, I most likely would never have thought about the issues that led me to create it, and even if I had, it would have ended with a whimper not long after its experimental launch.
The origin story of this website is that while covering television and movies online I became fascinated with the way TV is made, with so much control in the hands of the writer rather than the director. I started following TV writer blogs, including Denis’s influential Dead Things on Sticks, to learn more about the process. That lively comments section is where I met the online Canadian TV community and began to realize … there’s an online Canadian TV community?
Obviously I knew  Canadian shows existed but from Denis’s posts I realized there were a whole lot I’d never heard of, despite writing about TV. I wrote an article lamenting that fact, wishing for an online resource like a TVTattle or Futon Critic, and an anonymous commenter asked me why I didn’t start such a site myself — a question I immediately dismissed. I had no skin in this game. Just Denis’s voice in my head about the struggles of the Canadian TV industry.
I went to the Banff TV Festival to cover a David Shore (House) master class, among others, and while there I sat in a town hall discussion about how Canadian TV should appeal more to international audiences. I wondered why networks weren’t more concerned with letting me know about these shows first. Through it all Denis was a sounding board and a huge influence in my understanding of the issues at play, and he encouraged my attempts to write about them from the audience perspective.
That was when I quietly put up a bare-bones site and started posting stories and media releases about Canadian shows. I let a few people know, including Denis. I’m grateful to many but his support meant everything. He championed the idea from the first, and through his influence helped make it and me feel part of that Canadian TV online community almost immediately. What started as a whim suddenly felt valuable, because he saw value in it.
Through the years the TV, eh? charity auctions benefited enormously from his contributions, his bids, and his promotion. He harassed industry folks to donate and his followers to bid, helping raise thousands of dollars for Kids Help Phone. He was a tireless promoter of the fundraising campaign that helped relaunch the site after I’d closed it down a couple years ago. I don’t think anyone escaped his haranguing to contribute what they could.
We ranted at the crazy industry together and drove each other crazy at times. But he was always supportive and generous with the site and with me. We dated for a time, years ago, but long after that he continued to offer support and advice. Some of the nicest things anyone has ever said about me came from him. He valued some core things about me that others have occasionally tried to make me feel badly about, and I keep his voice in my head at those times. He had a big voice and a bigger heart, and he leaves an enormous legacy.
I wish everyone and every cause could have a champion like Denis McGrath. I wish for his wife, family, friends and colleagues some comfort that a Canadian TV community he helped create is grieving with them.
