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Featured, Murdoch Mysteries

Murdoch Mysteries goes to hell

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“Bl**dy H*ell” indeed. With just two episodes left in this season, Murdoch Mysteries rid itself of another villain intent on taking down anyone associated with Det. William Murdoch. OK, so it wasn’t a serial killer or Gillies back from the dead, but Chief Constable Davis was a wily fellow.

Where Chief Constable Giles became a character fans could feel compassion for, Davis was a straight-up jerk to the end, framing Brackenreid for racketeering when it was Davis who’d been shaking down businesses in Station House No. 5’s territory since he was a lowly constable. Unlike most Murdoch Mysteries episodes, Monday’s newest—written by Paul Aitken—got right into the action, first by having Rebecca rush to the aid of a man who’d fallen off a ladder and had a piece of glass pierce his chest and following with the arrest of a pawn broker selling stolen goods. Before long, Murdoch and Brackenreid were up to their eyeballs in corrupt cops led by Davis. But the moustachioed Chief Constable successfully stayed ahead of the two and Brackenreid was framed. Brackenreid quite understandably took the job in City Records—that meant he could keep his police pension—and ran into one of the show’s most colourful people not based on a real-life character.

David Hewlett was simply fantastic as the uptight Mr. Dilton Dilbert, the head of City Records whose Swear Jar was 10 cents richer mere seconds after Brackenreid had joined the office. Yes, putting Brackenreid in that spot was humorous, but it also contributed to the main story, as he uncovered deep corruption within the city. With help from Murdoch, Crabtree and Higgins, Brackenreid proved Davis was the one in charge of the racketeering ring and sent the bad cop packing … right into City Records. Bloody hell, indeed. (Favourite moment of the night? Higgins eating a spoiled sandwich to throw Davis off the trail. A close second? George going through his repertoire of Italian, Swedish and Hungarian voices to help identify the “woman” involved in the money drop plot.)

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

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Featured, Heartland

Lou’s love life brightens on Heartland

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Georgie’s right, once you open Pandora’s Box things will be changed forever. And, as the saying goes, it might seem like a small thing but it has far-reaching consequences.

In the case of Sunday’s new episode, “Pandora’s Box,” every small thing that happened on and off the ranch became bigger as the hour went on. And, I’m sure, will continue to loom larger as the season comes to a close. Lisa’s checkup turned into a medical scare that shadowed she and Jack until a follow-up phone call the next day relieved them both. But does Lisa’s pre-emptive plans to update her will hint at something sinister on the horizon?

Ty, who is seems has been gone from Heartland for weeks, was back and flip-flopping over whether to open the box his father had left for him. I knew he would eventually decide to take a peek inside and that cigar box held a flood of memories for Ty. His dad’s birth certificate confirming he lied about his age. A picture of Ty on the day he learned to ride a dirt bike. His mother’s engagement ring and a note explaining he’d scraped together enough money to buy it back after pawning it. Opening that plain paper wrapped parcel seemed small, but it held big significance for Ty: the man he’d painted as a criminal and scoundrel had tried to be a better person.

Georgie and Adam took a leap forward in their relationship. Yes, agreeing to “hang out” outside of studying appears to be minuscule, but it’ll change everything. Adam will be invited to those awkward family dinners that make me laugh out loud and Georgie will once again find herself under the gaze of Olivia, who I’m sure won’t be happy she lost Adam.

But perhaps the biggest box opened on Sunday was Lou, who took the plunge and made out with Mitch. The two have been bickering back and forth for weeks and I was silently thanking those guys for putting all of the dude ranch furniture on the roof because it forced Mitch and Lou to spend some time together. Once she realized he wasn’t a one-dimensional player, Lou dove in with both feet. After everything she’s been through, Lou deserves some happiness in the romance department. Of course, doing this opens up a can of worms. On the surface, how can they ever hope to keep their budding romance a secret from everyone? And in the larger scope, Lou’s decision affects Georgie and Katie, especially if she and Mitch get serious.

Speaking of serious, things get very serious next week when a suspicious-looking fire rages at the sanctuary, putting the animals and humans there in jeopardy.

Heartland airs Sundays at 7 p.m. on CBC.

Were you happy Lou and Mitch finally kissed? Think things will last between them? Comment below or on Twitter via @tv_eh.

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Featured, Masterchef Canada

MasterChef Canada’s first cut of the season

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With just three weeks of competition completed, we’re starting to see some trends from MasterChef Canada‘s latest group of home cooks. Sean can be counted on for enthusiastic yelling, timely quips and questionable wardrobe choices. Veronica supplies the cold confidence and seemingly unshakable opinion she’s the best. Matthew is creative and can somehow keep a hat precariously perched on his head while cooking. Dr. Shawn? Well, he might be Season 3’s winner.

The Montreal native set himself apart from the pack early on Sunday night during “At Home and Abroad” by winning the Mystery Box challenge. With key ingredients from all 13 provinces and territories at their disposal, Shawn decided to create a maple syrup cream tart. Shawn has never made a tart and never baked. Usually, admitting such a thing would has assured a quick exit from MasterChef, but Shawn wowed Michael, Alvin and Claudio with it, winning the test and saving himself from the Elimination Challenge. After choosing South American cuisine (Claudio’s background) as the theme of the week, Shawn also picked Terry and Vince to accompany him in the loft and be safe for the week. Shawn explained he chose them because they seemed like nice guys and hopes they’ll help him out in the future. Mary opined it’s because their friends.

Regardless of the reason, the Elimination Challenge proved to be devastating for three cooks. (Neither Mary nor April Lee were shown during judging, so I knew they were safe from elimination.) Jennifer, David and Veronica all felt the judges’ wrath, Jennifer for frittering away an hour of her time only to present churros, David for an un-Southern empanada and Veronica for bland stuffed tortillas. Jennifer was plagued by technical difficulties and David just plain admitted he had no clue what South American food looked or tasted like. Veronica, meanwhile, was confident her plate was a winner and seemed shocked things didn’t go her way. I’m sure Veronica is a nice person and all, but at this point in the competition I’d be happy if she went home. Her confidence comes off as arrogance and a lawyer background creates an unreadable poker face. As Chef Michael pointed out, she needs to cook from the heart to advance. Luckily for Veronica, she’ll get to do that for at least another week as New Brunswick carpenter David was instructed to pack up his tools and go home.

Next week, top home cooks Michelle and Matthew will be team captains as the squads prepare a barbecue meal for hungry firemen. From the looks of things, someone’s ribs gets burned. Who do you think has the best chance of winning? Comment below or via @tv_eh on Twitter.

MasterChef Canada airs Sundays at 7 p.m. ET on CTV.

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Featured

Comments and queries for the week of March 4

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Highway Thru Hell on DVD?
I would love to order all seasons of Highway Thru Hell on DVD. Can you help me on how I can? I live in the States and I have friends who live in Canada. I just love this show and would like to get all seasons of this show. —Gail

There’s good news and bad news. First, the bad news: at this time no seasons of Highway Thru Hell are available for purchase on Blu-ray or DVD. The good news? Four seasons of Highway Thru Hell are available for purchase via the iTunes store.

Let’s talk skinny basic

In December, don’t they have to completely unbundle? So what, $40 a month for FX, $5 a month for OLN? $80 for HBO, $2 for Comedy Gold? In theory, this was a good idea but so was eliminating three-year cell phone contracts. Did the consumers actually save money? No. Did Bell, Rogers and Telus recently raise their cell phone prices-again? Yes, but not everywhere. Where didn’t they? Manitoba, Quebec and Saskatchewan. What’s different about them? MTS Mobility, Videotron and SaskTel. I wonder why a lot of people want telecom competition? Anyone else see a lot of brands all linked to a few of the same names? Doesn’t that look like a problem? —Dan

Great article! I really liked it. I’m 33 and I’ve always been a cord cutter (or cord never had it). I watch Netflix, but that’s basically it. I’ve actually been watching YouTube more and more and I was curious what your thoughts are on that trend? 18-25 watches more YouTube than TV or Netflix combined. And 26-35 isn’t far behind I think. YouTube made $8B in ad revenue last year and with YouTube Red being the biggest app in the app store at the end of the year, it’s likely to continue. Thanks for the great article. I’ll be back on the site soon and have followed on Twitter. Definitely want to see more of your thoughts. —Somnia

These offers from the cable companies are not surprising, they are tailored to fit the flawed CRTC new rule which explicitly excludes equipment. If you get only a few OTA channels, it could be that your antenna is not up to the job. Before even looking at those cable packages, see if you can upgrade your setup. A new/better antenna, with installation (if required) may cost you a few hundreds, but it will quickly pay for itself. We cut the cord two years ago and switched to high-speed unlimited internet with VoIP landline phone and to a rooftop antenna connected to a Roku and a Tablo DVR. With 23 American and Canadian over the air TV channels, we never looked back. Our own setup was not cheap ($800) but was paid back in eight months. Not having any kind of cable package is by far the best way to respond to any cable company offer! —Jerome

Life imitates art for X Company‘s Sandra Chwialkowska

This show is the best show on television. These articles help bring it more and more into the light. Waiting for each new episode with anticipation is one thing but the ante is upped with each new insight, interview, and article that comes out. Yes, I await each glimpse into this masterpiece with almost the same excitement with which I await each new episode. With great pride I have nudged, nieces, nephews and friends toward this show, and with great joy share in their addiction of same. Thank you for this quality gift called X Company. —Linda

 

Got a question or comment about Canadian TV? greg@tv-eh.com or @tv_eh.

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Featured, Vikings

Athelstan returns to Vikings

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I’ve missed Athelstan, so it was great to see Ragnar’s Christian buddy show up in Thursday’s new episode. Yes, after being teased for weeks, Bjorn finally had his bloody showdown with the grizzly bear, but that bloody battle actually took a back seat (for me at least) to Athelstan’s guest appearance.

The episode’s title, “Mercy,” was the singular word Athelstan spoke to Ragnar, who took it as a sign he should release Floki from his cave trussing. The late monk appeared to King Ecbert too, in the chamber where Judith’s teachings have taken place. Both Ragnar and Ecbert pleaded for Athelstan to stay with them, but he quickly disappeared. The thing I love about Vikings is Michael Hirst’s ability to successfully interweave scenes of intense emotion with those of chaotic battle or violence. Athelstan’s visit came on the heels of Bjorn’s triumph over the bear, an awful affair that included claws, knives and a well-timed axe.

Bjorn, after skinning the beast, dove into the frigid lake water and emerged, screaming. The symbolism couldn’t have been more obvious: Bjorn plunged into the water a boy and emerged a man. (Did anyone else feel badly for the bear? I know it didn’t really die, but still…) Bjorn’s triumph over the bear should prepare him for his next challenge: surviving an assassination attempt by the berserker Kalf and Erlendur have hired.

Aethelwulf, meanwhile, was proving his own worth. He successfully delivered Kwenthrith and Magnus to the safe haven of Wessex and was rewarded for his troubles by a roll in the hay with Kwenthrith. Little does Aethelwulf know his father is sleeping with his wife. That’s going to make family meals an awkward affair, no?

As for Rollo, he’s still trying to figure out where he fits in in Paris. As he was in Season 1, Rollo is pretty much a laughingstock in France, unable to communicate and unable to win over Gisla. Pair her divorce demand with that priest calling him a savage, and Rollo’s having a pretty crap time in the City of Light. The thing is, you can never count the big man out. (And seeing as history documents a viking dude named Rollo being part of the Paris upper class, we know things are going to work out eventually.)

What did you think of Thursday’s new episode? How will Floki react when Ragnar tells him he’s free because of Athelstan? Let me know in the comments or via Twitter.

Vikings airs Thursdays at 10 p.m. ET/PT on History.

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