People always look at me with a hint of skepticism and disturbance when I tell them just how much television I watch on a weekly basis. It’s true that the amount is substantially higher than that of the average passing university student, but there’s also the generations-old stigma attached to television that calls it an inferior art form and insists it is essentially trashy. What these people don’t seem to realize is that over the past few years television has changed drastically. New shows like Breaking Bad and The Good Wife present all the drama, profundity, and depth of character of cinema while others like Community take full advantage of their self-aware medium and present smart, funny comedy on a weekly basis. With the end of the calendar year, mid-season schedule changes will replace old shows that were floundering in the ratings (among them Glee and, unfortunately, Community) with these new, exciting, television programs:

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Now that school’s over and I’m all refreshed and relaxed and able to type long texts without feeling anxious, depressed and tired, I figured it was about time I wrote a second part to my wanderings on Nostalgia Crescent. Besides, I’m sure that it’ll help recover some of our souls from the institution known as the University of Toronto. In my last post, many of you mentioned a lot of old TV shows we used to enjoy as children. Now, again, this will not apply to you if you did not grow up in Canada in the 90s, so I welcome you to write your own post. In any case, I’ll try and think up as many shows as I can. I’ve already mentioned a few anime titles, such as Pokemon, Digimon, Dragonball Z and Sailor Moon in my last trip down memory lane, so I’ll refrain from mentioning them again. Anyways, let’s start the second part of our journey down Nostalgia Crescent with… (more…)

As December rolls right in, we are constantly reminded of our material desires as shopping malls are filled with Christmas trees, deals and stores with gift-wrapping services for the gift-wrapping-challenged. Nonetheless, although I can’t personally give presents to every single one of the wonderful readers at blogUT, I shall offer this article, which will hopefully offer fond memories and just maybe, reclaim the soul that you lost when you came to U of T. Think back to your childhood days as you slept in and had free time, do you remember asking for these things (or paraphernalia relating to these things) for Christmas/Hanukkah/name your winter holiday? (Warning: if you were not born in the late-80s or early 90s, these things may not apply to you. If that is the case, I entitle you to shake your head and mutter, “Crazy kids, back in my day…” and then write an entry on your own childhood fads and phases.) (more…)

Image from CBC

After seeing ads all around the subway, I discovered that the CBC would be doing a new show about skating. I had no clue what it would be all about but I knew that figure skating somehow fit into the equation. Since seeing Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir, my love for the sport had rekindled and I hoped that my schedule would allow for me to watch the program, which I did.

If you were wondering what the show is all about, it’s actually rather simple. Eight pairs, composed of a famous male hockey player and a female figure skater would skate in a figure skating competition. Each pair will do one routine per week and viewers will have to call to vote for their favourite couple; a format similar to So You Think You Can Dance. To help viewers with the technical aspect of the sport, a panel of judges (Sandra Bezic, Dick Button and a guest judge) will give their comments along with a score in the archaic 6.0 format where skaters are given points out of 6. The winning couple will win $100,000 for a charity of their choice (very Canadian, eh?) and the title of… Canada’s favourite skaters? (I just made that up.)

Although the competition sounds rather interesting, what really got my attention were the competitors. They are listed in their pairings as follows: (more…)

Being a fan of the reality television series, Jon and Kate plus 8, I obviously couldn’t escape the flood of tabloid and news concerning the couple’s maritial troubles. (If you have no clue what the show Jon and Kate plus 8 is about, it’s just a TV series about this family of ten — two parents, a set of twins and a set of sextuplets.) Whenever I go to the supermarket or drugstore, I am bombarded with pictures of the family with giant headlines saying that Jon cheated on Kate or vice versa.  No, I do not read these articles, but oddly enough, you always seem to get the gist of everything that is written in a tabloid magazine by looking at its cover. There is also the fact that you can’t help but think that people actually took the time to write complete and utter… poo. (more…)

picture courtesy of Second City Toronto

A couple of weeks ago, I had the privilege of attending my first Second City performance. Boy was I impressed, especially considering my growing disappoint of Saturday Night Live. Albeit, I must say it has gotten slightly better since the Sarah Palin sketches. Nevertheless, Second City is way better. Not having seen the original Chicago show, I have no real other comparison to draw from other than SNL.

So what makes Second City better than SNL? First, I have to of course include the fact that the sketches are indeed longer and therefore, I guess, easier, to pack in more funny than it would be for shorter SNL sketches. Secondly, I would like to point out that the actors in the sketches were oftentimes the ones who wrote the sketches, and can therefore present the sketches they way they intended to. Unlike SNL (where big corporate owners control everything since it’s broadcast on live television), Second City (I am assuming of course), has more liberty as to what they want done. Lastly, Second City is pretty much a different show altogether, but for the purposes of this article I equate the two simply because they’re both sketch comedy shows.

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Photo from nationalpost.com

Wild Roses, which airs on CBC TV Tuesdays at 9pm, is definitely more mild than wild.  I’d call it a classic soap opera with love triangles and forbidden love, back-stabbing, filthy rich white people and the working class, and shamelessly tacky dialogue. The twist however is that it’s set in Calgary, a renowned Cowboy oil-rich city, which I guess sets it somewhat apart from other soap operas in the US.  The tragedy however, is exactly that: it is just another soap opera. It’s not really different from any other show in terms of predictable story plots and outcomes, corny lines and very good looking people.

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