As we noted last week in our CBC television fall preview, the autumn in 2024 is rather desolate for Canadian TV on both sides of the border. This makes the debut of Murder in a Small Town all the more intriguing.
Rossif Sutherland and Kristin Kreuk head the mostly Canadian cast in the new drama on Fox and Global. Both outlets carry the show Tuesday nights at 9 pm Eastern. Global will simsub the show in Canada.
Sutherland plays a detective in Gibsons, BC where Kreuk plays a local librarian. The cast is filled with Canadians, such as Stana Katic, Mya Lowe, Savonna Spracklin, Aaron Douglas, and Fritzy-Klevans Destine. James Cromwell is the honourary American.
Cromwell did star in Still Mine (2012), a rare Canadian film set in New Brunswick. Michael McGowan directed and co-wrote the film.
The September 24 episode is a special 90 minute episode at 8 pm Eastern. The October 1 episode also runs at 8 pm before moving to 9 pm Eastern.
Murder in a Small Town has something in common with Family Law, Global's only other independent Canadian TV production. Both are set and shot in British Columbia; the latter show is set and shot in Vancouver. They filmed Season 4 of Family Law from March to June of this year. The CW aired Season 3 this winter. We don't have a date for Season 3 on Global.
We aren't kidding about the dearth of Canadian TV on over the air networks in the fall. Bell Media keeps the best stuff for Crave instead of CTV. Children Ruin Everything (Season 4), Sullivan's Crossing (Season 3), and Sight Unseen (Season 2) have new episodes on CTV in 2025. All of these shows run on The CW.
Hudson & Rex is back in the winter on Citytv for Season 7 as is Law & Order Toronto: Criminal Intent for Season 2.
Good laughs and great adventures are in store, as the previously announced inaugural season of @CTV Original comedy docuseries MARK MCKINNEY NEEDS A HOBBY airs Wednesdays at 9 p.m. ET/PT, beginning Oct. 2 on CTV, https://t.co/85grarWPYz, and the CTV app. From birding and fly… pic.twitter.com/9MFTOGD4Ca
— CTV PR (@CTV_PR) September 16, 2024
Mark McKinney Needs a Hobby debuts on October 2 on CTV at 9 pm Eastern and Pacific. The Kids in the Hall star travels throughout Canada and the United States in search of people with interesting hobbies. Season 1 has 10 half-hour episodes.
The debut episode has Mark McKinney on the Canadian shores of Lake Erie to learn about birding and birdwatching.
If you are one of those in Canada who has Crave but not CTV, each episode will be available for streaming the next day (Thursdays).
Looking for more Canadian programming on over-the-air networks? CTV is airing Saturday afternoon CFL games at 3 pm Eastern.
2024 Canadian TV upfronts highlights
The CW will air Season 2 of Sullivan's Crossing starting October 2 at 8 pm Eastern. CTV aired Season 2 last spring.
The Nova Scotia scenery is one of the best actors on the show. A bit of sarcasm. Not my cup of tea but we still talk about shows we don't watch. The show would be a bit better if the entire program was in Nova Scotia instead of the inane Boston subplot.
Speaking of Nova Scotia, we are slowly catching up on Season 2 of Moonshine online through The CW. Our Canadian friends can see a beautiful part of Canada by watching all 3 seasons on CBC Gem.
Have watched 3 episodes of Season 2. Jennifer Finnigan's character is definitely enjoying Season 2 doing scenes with Allan Hawco. Her son has disappeared. The other characters have subplots but none of them are interesting. Season 1 was too intriguing and Season 2 is like someone hid the pepper mill.
CBC aired Season 3 more than a year ago. We have literally heard nothing about a Season 4 in Canada or Season 3 in the United States.
Allan Hawco is in both shows, though in highly limited roles.
Loss of 'Run the Burbs' a death knell for Canadian TV (Toronto Star)
Canadian TV notebook: Run the Burbs done after 3 seasons
There is a part of us that is still upset that Hulu didn't pick up Season 3 of Mary Kills People. Lifetime carried the Global TV program in the States yet bailed for Season 3.
Run the Burbs got picked up by Hulu. So far, the U.S. streaming service hasn't picked up Season 3 of the CBC comedy.
Your humble narrator doesn't want to relive the whole debate between Children Ruin Everything and Run the Burbs. Let both Canadian TV comedy shows live on both sides of the border.
Canadians can catch up with all 3 seasons of Run the Burbs on CBC Gem.
2024 CBC television fall preview
Those with Crave on the Canadian side should look into Don't Even. The show has been dropping 2 new episodes each Friday since August 23 and will debut on APTN later this fall.
Don't Even follows best friends in late 1990s in Winnipeg. The show features Leenah Robinson, Victoria Turko, Joel Oulette, Gail Maurice, and Jennifer Podemski.
Maybe Americans can visit friends in Canada who subscribe to Crave.
CanadianCrossing.com Canadian TV coverage
Television viewership is dropping on both side of the border. Canadian TV networks are struggling with declining popularity of U.S. shows as well as Canadian shows. The CW's co-production approach may be ahead of its time and relevant now.
One intriguing oddity between the 2 countries is that to watch a CTV, Global, or Citytv show, people have to log in with a cable or satellite provider. They are over the air networks. U.S. viewers can log in to the site of an over the air network and watch TV shows on their computers or phones.
As an example, when I was in Canada, I could watch Shelved on Crave but not through CTV.ca without a cable password. There is an irony to American watching Sullivan's Crossing online but Canadians can't without a cable password on CTV.ca.
Eugene Levy and Dan Levy became the first father-son duo to host the Emmys Sunday night on ABC and CTV2. We had a mini Schitt's Creek reunion with Annie Murphy on stage with the Levys just before Catherine O'Hara presented the final award of the night for Best Comedy Series.
A bonus with a crowd shot of Emily Hampshire in the audience.
Schitt's Creek received 19 Emmy nominations and 9 Emmys in 2019 and 2020, the final 2 seasons of the 6-year run.
2024 CBC television upfront preview
CanadianCrossing.com television coverage
These doctors are scrubbing back in.
— NBC Entertainment (@nbc) September 19, 2023
NBC's #Transplant premieres October 12 9/8c on NBC. pic.twitter.com/gDcAcNKjdn
This tweet is from last fall to promote Season 3 of Transplant on NBC. The U.S. TV market is waiting on Season 4 of Transplant on the U.S. network. We know the fall schedule does not have the program. The U.S. network went 15 months in between Season 2 and Season 3. The Season 4 finale aired on CTV in Canada on January 19 of this year.
NBC hasn't been in a rush to get that program to its television audience. The network's enthusiasm was more apparent during a worldwide pandemic.
Winter should find some progress on a lot of Canadian TV fronts, maybe even Transplant.
photo credits: Murder in a Small Town (x2); 2024 Emmys/ABC
Twitter captures: @CTV_PR; @nbc
