This week & next marks the "mid-season" launches of replacement shows on U.S. nets. I'll be checking out Emily's Reasons Why Not, Four Kings, Love Monkey, In Justice, and The Book of Daniel, to be sure.
But in Canada, January and February aren't really the mid-season, they're the start of the new season. Most Canadian shows run only 13 weeks (at most.) January and February are high TV viewing months in Canada, for obvious reasons. Though there's much to shake your head askance at in the decisionmaking process of Canadian Television, the idea that maybe we should get out of the way of the promotional juggernaut of the U.S. fall TV launch -- not a bad idea, rilly.
Not all the parties are taking part in the hootenanny, of course. CBC is going to roll out a number of new comedies, and comedy pilots, this week. Global has the launch of a Very Important Series, but CTV, who is the 900 pound gorilla of Canadian TV right now, doesn't have airdates for most of its homegrown stuff yet. (No wonder. They're making money hand over fist on their U.S. imports right now. CTV had the best shoppers this year. Good for them!)
Global's Falcon Beach, (see hotties at left,) a teen soap that premieres Thursday (and which will air later this year on ABC Family down in the USA) has been promo'd extensively on the network. It's supposed to be a Canadian O.C. I have mixed feelings about this one. Global has not done a lot of homegrown stuff in the last few years. Now there's a new team in place who are really trying to make a new identity for the channel, and that means developing signature shows. And that's the problem. Poor little Falcon Beach should just be able to try to be a diverting, soapy, trifling little show with a bit of wicked fun. But it's not. It's the bellweather of a whole network's emerging strategy. That's a lot of freight to pack into a tiny bikini. I remember hearing some strange things wafting through media circles about this show last summer when it was being shot, but hopefully they'll be able to pull it off. I'm rooting for Global on this one. Welcome to the 'Peg, beeyatch.(God I hope it has a more clever line than that. Or some kind of catch phrase. And that they do manage to capture some good adult storylines, so that it can draw on something other than the fickle teen audience. See? It's just not healthy to have so much riding on a show. Unless you actually worked on it.)
CBC is going to be throwing a whole bunch of new comedy shows and comedy pilots at the wall this week to see if anything sticks. That deserves its own post. Later.
3 comments:
You (and I) actually do know someone who worked on Falcon Beach, Denis. My friend Crystal studied under you at...I believe she said the Canadian Film Centre in Toronto, last year. She told me she really enjoyed her time there and learned a lot. While not a full-fledged member of the show's writing team, she did work with them on a daily basis -- and, no, not just getting coffee and donuts.
You brought me out of lurkdom, Kelly. I didn't study under Denis, we've just had a few drinks at those fantastic media parties that have open bars.
(Denis, I'm in the current Prime Time group. At Revival last month, we discussed the merits of INXS getting a new lead singer and you informed me that you're horrible with names. True to form, you forgot mine 10 minutes later...)
But I did work on "The F.B."
Now Crystal -- be fair. There were drinks. And If I remember correctly, I remembered it after a while. What's more, I think I actually have a name-to-face association built in now. I remember you're blonde, for instance. See? Eventually the monkey learns.
For godsakes don't dye your hair now, or I'm done.
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