Toronto Skyline

Toronto Skyline

Thursday, May 31, 2012

My Beloved Flashpoint is ending

The 5th season is currently in production in Toronto for My Beloved Flashpoint. An announcement has been made that this upcoming 5th season (airing Thursday nights at 10pm on CTV) will be the last for the SRU Team 1 crew.

I'm saddened by this news but also looking forward to it. Since it is the show that has decided to make this season it's final run, the writers can do amazing things to make these final shows something special. Also, when a show is ending at a good point, the writers can provide us fans with resolution and closure rather than the shows that are just not picked up for another season and are left with cliffhangers and questions.

If Flashpoint had ended unexpectedly last season (season 3) I would have lost it because there would have been no closure on Ed's being shot or on the psychologist Toth (the fabulous Mr. Victor Garber) and his thoughts on the team dynamic.

Season 4 ended on a good note with family and friends and happiness. No unanswered questions or drama, so what will season 5 bring? I can't wait to find out in September.

Is it too soon to start a countdown when the actual premier date hasn't been set?

Any Baggage?

Rookie Blue has returned. The saga of Sam Swarek and Andy McNalley is back. The first episode of Season 3 has started with a bang!

Season 2 ended with Sam asking Andy if she wanted to try "being normal" together. She said yes and got in his truck. Season 3 opens with Andy jumping out of a plane and then returning to Toronto for her suspension tribunal.

Arriving at the airport planning to catch a cab, she finds Sam (in uniform) waiting for her with a sign that reads "Dummy" like an old school chauffeur. In a move that had me laughing out loud, Sam asks "Any Baggage" and Andy responds "No!... yes..." it was great. First thought I had with the "No" was "he's right in front of you!", but the real baggage was the luggage that included a beautiful wooden canoe paddle. I want it for my next wilderness adventure! If there was a contest to win that paddle, I would do almost ANYTHING to win it (even though I'm probably too short for it to be functional).

There was a lot of action and investigation in the episode and some great partnering between Sam & Andy (they really do work well together). There was tearful emotional moments with guest star William Shatner, there were brief yet touching moments between Frank & Noelle, and the enigma that is the new rookie and the black hole that is his past with Peck.

In the end, Andy is reinstated and she and Sam have a conversation about finding a way to "Start". The best way to start is with a kiss!

Can't wait to see what happens next. We knew that things would never be easy with Sam and Andy and as fans can we really let it be that easy. The chase, the attempt, the tension and laughter is so fun and will make it so much more worth it in the end.

Now we just need to find a perfect someone for Luke and the world will be a happy place.

Rookie Blue is filmed in Toronto and airs on Global TV Thursdays at 10pm.

Time Traveling Terrorists

Last Sunday was the first episode of the new show Continuum on Showcase. The first episode was great and I'm looking forward to more of it this summer.

There was drama and loss from the main character Kiera as she is torn from her home and family in 2077 Vancouver,  pulled into the past by the terrorist group Liber8 as they execute their plan to change the future. Kiera has to find a way to understand their purpose, capture/neutralize them and protect others from their ruthless tactics. Without ruining the future, she needs to work with techno-genius Alec and 2012 Hottie Cop Carlos (Victor Webster - yummmy). It will be interesting to see what happens.

Our Liber8 antagonists are star studded as well. Their leader, still in 2077 is Tony Amendola (Bra'tac on Stargate SG1 and Geppetto on Once Upon A Time - both filmed in Vancouver) but the group in 2012 includes some faces that I've had fun watching before and look forward to getting to see more of. Screen time was limited for Terry Chen (Combat Hospital) but he was a scary bad-ass dude who threw a knife at someone's head and hit a mannequin instead, missing by inches with the response "I missed", dude, even with a miss, I don't want to be on his bad side. The other face I want to see is Lexa Doig (Andromeda and SG1), this character will be very different from those that I've seen her in before, so I'm excited to see her in a darker role.

Continuum has gotten off to a great start. There was a scene at the beginning that started me asking questions and it was (to a degree) touched on at the end but in a way that makes me want to see the rest of that story. The time scape has been used sparingly in the first outing and I'm looking forward to seeing how scenes from 2077 help answer questions and further the story.

At the beginning-ish of the episode, Kiera's husband is with a man ("Smoking Man" or "Cancer Man" from X-Files) watching the execution of the Liber8 terrorists and the husband freaks out when he sees Kiera inside the chamber. After arguing (we don't get to hear the content) with someone and gesturing towards Kiera, Cancer Man is looked at for an answer and after his head shakes, the someone declines the husband's request. Kiera then notices that a prisoner has something in his hand and rushes forward to enter the radius of those being transported to the past in the middle of a violent reaction which tears apart the chamber and kills some present. When the dust settles, Cancer Man is sitting in his seat, unmoved, smiling at the empty spot in the chamber where Kiera was seconds before. At the end of the episode Kiera is introduced to Cancer Man by her husband. This man is his boss Alec Saddler (the same tech-savvy kid who helped Kiera out through the episode).

2012 Alec advised the viewers through Kiera of 2 schools of thought on time travel. The 1st being, you go to the past, don't mess anything up because you're not supposed to be there and you could cause your existence to cease by one wrong move. 2nd school is that the time travel was supposed to happen because it already did in order for your time to develop and now you're taking the steps necessary to form your future in the right way.

Based on 2077 Alec's greeting to Kiera of "long overdue" I'm betting we're looking at the 2nd school at work.

Till next time, will you protect the future, or destroy it?

Continuum airs Sundays at 10pm on Showcase in Canada.

Sunday, May 13, 2012

14 days and counting

In 2 weeks a new show will premier on Showcase. I'm excited to see what the show brings to the table and how the story will grow. This new show is called Continuum and it will be borrowing the Sunday 9pm time slot that is normally held by Lost Girl.

Continuum is filmed in Vancouver but I won't hold that against them. Toronto is better, but I'm willing to let them slide. It means that I won't stumble upon the set one day and get to have my picture taken with the hunky Victor Webster but at Lear I can watch him on Sunday nights rather than re-runs of Mutant X or the final season of Charmed (mmm Coop, my favorite Cupid).

Here's to the countdown to a bright shiny new show and hoping it is as good as the anticipation.