There’s an exciting exhibition opening tonight at Ontop/Above (our show’s soon-to-be venue) and all of the artwork will become part of our show’s set as we share the space! The exhibition is titled “More Than a Feeling” and features new work from Knoah Bender, Danny Woodrow, Lisa Wilson and Michael Young. You may know some of these people (Michael’s work has been shown in The Rooms art gallery), but either way, come down tonight to meet them in person. I guarantee you’ll want to after you see their art at O/A, and we are honoured to share our work along side of theirs. We sneaked in earlier and took a peak, but we are heading back later tonight to hear live music from Pap Pap and Run to the Rocks. You should go, too! Our friend Sarah from The Scope wrote a great piece on O/A that you can read here, and she also gave a kind shout out to EP!

Enjoy your St. Patrick’s weekend, and we hope to see you all at our show next weekend! Have fun!

I love homages to classic movies. They’re meant to honour great cinematic achievements, to prove that a film is still as relevant as the day it was released. So when I saw the title and synopsis for this week’s Republic of Doyle, I got excited. “One Angry Jake” is an homage to 12 Angry Men, the 1957 Sidney Lumet film that showed 12 jurors working through a murder case, with one of the jurors trying to corrupt the rest into giving a “guilty” verdict.

Unfortunately, this week’s Doyle started with that great idea and lost the thread in the first 10 minutes. It devolved into another tangle of secondary characters, implausible scenarios and far too much plot. It’s always a shame when good ideas go sour, but in the case of “One Angry Jake”, I’m sentencing the episode to be promptly forgotten.  

We find ourselves in the deliberation room of the courthouse, where Jake is a member of a jury considering the case of Sabrina (Kandyse McClure), suspected of murdering her husband. The jury’s foreman, Luke Shaw (Kevin Hanchard), is pushing for a guilty verdict. Jake believes the woman is innocent, and sets out to prove it by sending the rest of Doyle & Doyle Investigations out to find the evidence that will exonerate Sabrina.

The whole hostage bit with Sabrina was implausible and silly

Meanwhile, the episode is stuffed with side-stories involving Sabrina escaping from custody at the courthouse and Kathleen planning a mysterious trip. Contrary to what the writers must have thought, these extra storylines did nothing to flesh out the episode. They only served to make “One Angry Jake” feel like a scattershot attempt to “check in” with each series regular and guest star. It complicated the main story and offered no chance for the characters to actually develop.

But let’s deal with the 12 Angry Men “tribute” first. One of the core strengths of Lumet’s film was that the camera only leaves the deliberation room for 4 minutes of the movie’s 96 minute running time. We’re trapped in there with the characters as they debate and betray one another. Rather than stick with that compelling approach, “One Angry Jake” finds a bunch of ways to get Jake out of the room.

See that look on Malachy's face? That was me for most of the episode.

Not only does this eliminate the chance for tension and character development, it’s totally implausible. How are we supposed to believe that Jake can repeatedly outfox the security measures meant to keep the jury sequestered? At one point, Sabrina takes Jake out of the courthouse at gunpoint. We don’t see how she was able to escape the building – best not to worry about that, I guess. Somehow, I don’t think you can waltz out of there with a hostage in tow and go totally unnoticed.

The scenes that happen outside of the courthouse are no better. It took me forever to wrap my head around the unnecessarily confusing murder case. I still don’t fully understand who was in love with who and what the brewery and the disgruntled employee had to do with anything. I think I even heard the victim’s name change from “Todd” to “Tom” at least once.

Kathleen Doyle is my new pick for "Most Annoyingly Underused Character" award.

Complicating matters was the attempted Kathleen Doyle side-story. Remember when Leslie Bennett was getting on my nerves for being a wasted character? Now Kathleen is my top pick for the “Most Annoyingly Underused Character” award.

She doesn’t seem to exist outside of the Doyle house and the Duke pub. She appears to have dozens of things she tries to hide from her family that we’ll likely never hear about.  Now the writers are ready to stow her away somewhere without ever justifying her appearance in the first place.

The overstuffed story barely gave any time to the comedic talents of Andy Jones.

Just like the failed homage to 12 Angry Men, the writers’ handling of Kathleen proves they’re terrified to do anything that messes with their formula. What they do instead is tease us with ideas that could make real stand-out stories, and (to borrow a critque from my former editor Ryan Belbin) they sweep it all under the rug. When it comes to TV (especially episodes that reference classic movies), that’s an indictable offense if I ever saw one. “One Angry Jake” gets one and a half stars out of four.

What did you think of Episode 10 of Republic of Doyle Season 3? Like/Dislike? Were you disappointed by how Doyle handled the Lumet source material? Or did you see it as a fluffy tribute to the classic movie? Join the conversation in the comments, and catch up on the rest of my Doyle reviews here:

Ep 1: “Streets of St. Johns” | Ep 2: “Head Over Heels” | Ep 3: “Hot Package”

Ep 4: “Rusted Steele” | Ep 5: “Dead Man Talking” | Ep 6: “The Dating Game”

Ep 7: “High School Confidential” | Ep 8: “Two Jakes and a Baby” | Ep 9: “Mirror, Mirror”

Rizzoli and Isles with Republic of Doyle: I think this would be best set in St. John’s, with our Boston gals Jane and Maura travelling there on a cross-border case that coincides with a case that Leslie is working on. Hijinks will, of course, ensue. During the course of the investigation, Jake flirts with Maura (who is flattered by his Nfld charm) and Des gets goofy over Jane (who is irritated by him), while Leslie, Tinny and Rose look on with a combination of amusement and embarrassment. As usual, Malachy thinks Jake and Des are both eejits.

Lost Girl with Once Upon A Time: Seeing as both shows could use a light, fun episode, this pairing of mythical worlds juxtaposed with our everyday world has promise for some big fun. Bo and Emma Swan swap places via some magical object (not a body swap, but a location swap), where they each must join forces with the other’s allies to discover the mystery of the object, and get back to their respective homes and friends. Bo hanging out with Henry and Mary Margaret, and duking it out with Regina, while Emma works with Bo’s intrepid  Scoobies – awesome potential!

Glee with Smash: Rachel and Kurt move to NYC during their summer break before starting theatre school, where they become roommates with Sam and last-minute additions to the Marilyn! workshop ensemble. Kurt is attracted to Sam and struggles to be true to Blaine, who has decided to stay and work in Lima before attending college in Boston. Rachel becomes pals with Karen and helps Karen find her inner diva.

Have any cross-overs you’d like to see? Give ‘em a shout out in Comments.

More theatre for me tonight; this time, it’s Soulpepper’s production of Eugene O’Neill’s A Long Day’s Journey Into Night. Back with the scoop on that tomorrow.

Whenever I hear that Gordon Pinsent is going to be on Republic of Doyle, I get a little excited. Everyone who knows Pinsent would probably refer to him as a Canadian icon (he even made fun of that idea in this 22 Minutes sketch). Pinsent sauntered into his third appearance on Doyle this week, reprising his role as villainous rumrunner Maurice Becker. In classic Pinsent style, the episode “Mirror, Mirror” was better for it.

Without the Becker character, this would have been a ho-hum Season 3 entry. As a result, the roll Doyle has been on over the past few weeks is intact – for now.

“Mirror, Mirror” demonstrates my theory that Republic of Doyle episodes are always stronger when they start out in media res – in the middle of the action. The episode begins with a little framing narrative: Jake and Becker are in police custody and are being questioned about a mysterious set of events that ended in a shootout.  Jake and Becker have very different recollections about the details of the story, and their bickering is driving Leslie Bennett up the wall.

Leslie is very impressed by the handsome Guy, a cop with the Sûreté du Québec.

Apparently, Becker is on the run from a cop with the Sûreté du Québec, while also trying to reconnect with his wayward niece (Julia Taylor Ross), who’s been running her uncle’s smuggling ring. Jake, meanwhile, tries to keep Becker on a leash while fending off the Québécois cop’s interest in Leslie and dealing with Walter and Kathleen’s current tryst.

To be honest, I enjoyed this setup. Becker is enjoyable in large part because he’s one the craftiest recurring villains on Doyle. There’s a sense that he really challenges Jake, and it’s refreshing to watch the show when the villain at least knows how to outwit Jake in a way that doesn’t (always) involve blunt force trauma.

The desaturated footage didn't add much to the flashback scenes.

The framing narrative was clever, too. To see Jake and Becker tell different sides of the same story was kind of entertaining, especially when Becker’s flashbacks portrayed Jake as even more dull-witted than usual. What I didn’t like was the execution of the flashbacks: Becker’s were presented through sepia-toned photography, and Jake’s were in a sort of heavily desaturated footage. For me, this approach didn’t add anything to the episode. More often than not, I found it distracting because it was so unnecessary.

The little side narrative about Jake coming to terms with Kathleen dating Walter was short and to the point. I didn’t have much stomach for a lengthy arc where Jake was mad at Walter, and so I’m glad the episode wrapped up the conflict nicely. I’m still disappointed by the use of Kathleen in the season so far. Is there nothing for her to do but smirk and bounce from guy to guy? Why not pull her into one of the main cases?

The side-story with Jake finding out about Walter and Kathleen was summed up nicely.

I can’t believe I’m saying this, but we could have done without Des this week. The love triangle with his character is very tired at this point, and so I don’t have any patience for the will-they-or-won’t-they drama between him and Tinny. What’s more, the editors made the mistake of playing out part of their scene in a Becker flashback, when Becker couldn’t possibly know what Tinny was saying over the phone. “Mirror, Mirror” could have been a leaner, meaner episode without the youthful relationship drama.

As much as I like Becker being the smarter villain, the climax between he and Jake was poorly handled. At the helipad, Becker brags about his plan and Jake claims to have been one step ahead of him. At no point during the episode did I get the sense that Jake was doing any real detecting – it was your standard menu of fistfights, chases and Jake cracking wise.

The climax at the helipad didn't work, because we never saw Jake doing any detecting.

So when Jake says he knew what Becker was up to the whole time, I called “b.s.” If Jake is going to pretend to be Hercule Poirot, we’d better see him noticing clues and making connections, or else the whole private detective thing feels like an afterthought. As it is, “Mirror, Mirror” gets two and a half stars out of four.

What did you think of Episode 9 of Republic of Doyle Season 3? Like/dislike? What could the show be doing better? Are you excited for next week? Let me know in the comments section. If you’re behind on my Doyle reviews, catch up by browsing through the links below:

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Episode 1: “Streets of St. Johns” | Episode 2: “Head Over Heels” | Episode 3: “Hot Package”

Episode 4: “Rusted Steele” | Episode 5: “Dead Man Talking” | Episode 6: “The Dating Game”

Episode 7: “High School Confidential” | Episode 8: “Two Jakes and a Baby”

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I think I need to go to Newfoundland.

My interview with him was published in the Feb. 27 edition of the Gazette.

Here’s a video clip of part of that interview shot at Hurley’s Pub in Montreal. I meant to post it sooner. But life got in the way. As it so often does.

It looks like Republic of Doyle is on a roll. This week’s episode “Two Jakes and a Baby” was the strongest installment yet, delivering a kidnapping story that was both plausible and entertaining. It also included some noticeable character work, a rare feat for a series that likes to keep its characters in one place, for fear of disrupting its successful formula.

“Two Jakes and a Baby” really worked for me because it tried to break out of the Republic of Doyle mould. Too often, Doyle “erases” the progress it makes with its characters. While they still fall prey to this habit at the end of this entry, the episode should be a model for the rest of the season.

We check in with Jake three weeks into his latest stay at Her Majesty’s Penitentiary. A local deadbeat has stolen Jake’s identity and turns up dead at the scene of a kidnapping. Sergeant Bennett (Kristin Pellerin) and Staff Sergeant Hood (Steve O’Connell) recruit Jake and another inmate (William MacDonald) to help track down the suspect, in exchange for early release.

Jake is offered early release from jail if he and another convict help with a case

Things go snaky when Logan the inmate reveals that he’s mixed up in the plans of the kidnapper. Then a mysterious woman turns up at the Doyle residence claiming to be the mother of Jake’s daughter. Jake has to get on top of all these developments while still watching out for Leslie, whose job depends on placating her new superior officer, Staff Sergeant Hood.

What sold me on the episode was the opening scene, which started out like a sequence from one of Jake’s dreams. Suddenly, we learn it’s Leslie who’s dreaming, the first time we’ve been inside her head on the show. It was refreshing to see Doyle do something with Leslie that didn’t involve her yelling at Jake for something trivial.

A mysterious woman (Jessica Kennedy) claims Jake is the father of her child

From there, like in the Valentine’s episode, story bits and jokes simply connected. The episode devoted a good bit of time to the “Jake as a father” side-story, but it didn’t distract from the main case. I actually became interested in the secondary characters – a fairly novel experience with Doyle. And the show finally took a step back from the Des-Tinny-Chandra triangle to let the other stories breathe.

I’ve got to say, I didn’t expect that bit between Walter and Kathleen. While I won’t ruin the scene, as soon as Walter spent an extra 30 seconds in that room, I could tell where the writers were going with it. It made sense, given what we know about the two of them. Now I’m waiting for when Jake inevitably finds out, which should make for some very funny material.

Logan Hicks (William MacDonald) worries about his fatherly responsibilities

What helped the episode pull together was how the side-story about the baby informed the main case. Logan the convict has his own problems with his daughter, and when he asks Jake, “What kind of father am I?”, it felt like the first time a side-story on Doyle had shared a theme with the main tale. With that kind of synergy, I felt far more immersed in the episode.

The only part I didn’t like about “Two Jakes and a Baby” was the structure of the ending. The climax happened early, leaving the other strands of the story enough time to unravel slightly before the episode ended. There was about 10 minutes at the end where we revisit the convict character and then work through the paternity of the baby, and it felt like we were dragging our heels.

Plus, any episode with Des frantically waving his arms gets instant points

Even though Doyle did come up with a way to “explain away” the baby, it was exciting to think that the show was going to let Jake be the father. The scene where he finds the baby in the office hooked me in. Unlike what the show has done with other character “developments”, it didn’t introduce the possibility and then promptly rip the rug out from under our feet.

For its solid storytelling and improved character work, “Two Jakes and a Baby” gets three stars out of four.

What did you think of Episode 8 of Republic of Doyle Season 3? Anything you’re excited about for next episode? Does it feel like the season is going somewhere all of a sudden? Would you like to see the series get renewed for a fourth season? Join the conversation in the comments section. If you’re new to my Doyle reviews, browse through these links to catch up:

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Episode 1: “Streets of St. Johns” | Episode 2: “Head Over Heels” | Episode 3: “Hot Package”

Episode 4: “Rusted Steele” | Episode 5: “Dead Man Talking”

Episode 6: “The Dating Game” | Episode 7: “High School Confidential”

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I have to say, this week’s Republic of Doyle was another pleasant surprise. After a better-than-average Valentine’s-themed episode last week, Doyle kept its momentum in Episode 7. “High School Confidential” filled out some of Jake’s backstory by introducing us to a couple of characters from Jake’s teenage years, and implicated them in a tangle of failed dreams, money troubles and jealousy.

This was all done in the same lighthearted spirit that makes Doyle an entertaining, if inconsistent, show. Situations as diverse as narcolepsy, adrenaline overdose and a suggested threesome fuelled some very funny scenes in this episode. Read on for my full review of “High School Confidential”, including my ranking out of four stars!

The episode opens with what looks like an open-and-shut case for the Doyles. Clyde Cowley, a former high school enemy of Jake, is falsifying a claim of worker’s compensation. As Jake and Malachy get deeper into the case, they find out Clyde (Luke Kirby) has fallen from the glory he enjoyed in high school: he’s lost his job, his house, his wife and is in debt up to his ears with a local loan shark.

Jake's high school enemy Clyde Cowley suffers from bouts of narcolepsy

As much as Jake wants to bask in the schadenfreude from seeing his high-school tormentor on the outs, he and Malachy decide to help Clyde when they discover he might have been scammed.

What really makes this episode work is the shambling, strangely mercurial performance by Luke Kirby as Clyde. (Wow – I never thought I’d use the word “mercurial” in reference to Doyle.) The Doyles discover that Clyde is narcoleptic, meaning he falls instantly asleep whenever he’s stressed. This causes a series of funny moments where Clyde goes out cold in the middle of an exciting encounter.

If this were your closet, would you be this oblivious?

The supporting cast was stronger in this episode than much of Season 3 – Kevin Jubinville was slimy as Vallis, the banker who pulls the scam on Clyde, and Natalie Brown had some believable scenes as Jessica, the former high-school hottie who hooked up with Clyde and can barely remember Jake.

By contrast, some of the staging in this episode didn’t quite connect. There’s a scene where Jake and Clyde hide in Jessica’s closet when she comes in to change outfits. The woman is standing inches from Jake and Clyde and she doesn’t notice a thing. If it were me, I’d be a little more aware of my surroundings.

As funny as the bank scene was, it depended on a weak premise

Then there’s the “bank robbery” that Jake accidently participates in – Jake’s waving a gun around, terrifying the customers and staff, and he never thinks to drop the weapon. While both of these scenes led to some laughs, it made it hard to suspend my disbelief – just when the episode was doing so well in that department.

I liked that the writers decided to take Clyde’s side in this story. It would have been too easy to make him into a cartoonish villain who returns from Jake’s past to annoy him again. And the plot involving Clyde’s conniving ex-wife Jessica and the sleazy loan shark Chili Power (Ron Lea) was actually plausible – far more so than the all-too-frequent murder mysteries of past episodes.

Des was a hilarious blur of energy in this scene

Quelle surprise – my favourite bits of “High School Confidential” were Des’ scenes. The sight of Mark O’Brien suggesting, “Why don’t we have a three-way?” was the perfect way to break the tension after a cringe-inducing sequence between Tinny and Chandra. Later in the episode, the scene where Des is jumping around after overdosing on adrenaline from an EpiPen was fantastic. If there was ever a scene from Doyle to make into an animated .gif, it’s that one.

As entertaining as Episode 7 was, there wasn’t any sign of the truly top-notch writing that I know Doyle is capable of. It still feels like the series is biding its time until the end of the season. Oh well – all the more reason to look forward to the finale, when Republic of Doyle really has to impress to win itself a fourth season. “High School Confidential” gets three stars out of four.

What did you think of Episode 7 of Republic of Doyle Season 3? Are you still following the show, or will you tune back in when the stakes rise for the finale? What’s your favourite moment of the season so far? Share your thoughts in the comments section below. If you’re behind on my Doyle reviews, catch up by following these links:

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Episode 1: “Streets of St. Johns” | Episode 2: “Head Over Heels” | Episode 3: “Hot Package”

Episode 4: “Rusted Steele” | Episode 5: “Dead Man Talking” | Episode 6: “The Dating Game”

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When the thorn in his side from his high school days needs help, Jake is on the case. Des goes from having no women to having to choose between two.

http://www.wupload.com/file/2666600347/Republic.of.Doyle.S03E07.HDTV.XviD-TWG.avi

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https://rapidshare.com/files/1942498250/republic.of.doyle.s03e07.hdtv.xvid-twg.avi ]]> http://robertsnow.wordpress.com/2012/02/18/review-republic-of-doyle-the-dating-game/ Sat, 18 Feb 2012 17:00:09 +0000 Robert Snow http://robertsnow.wordpress.com/2012/02/18/review-republic-of-doyle-the-dating-game/

Now we’re getting somewhere. After a string of mediocre installments, Wednesday’s Republic of Doyle was a return to the fluffy action/comedy we remember. Jokes worked, the story flowed, and we made some real progress with the characters.

I don’t know if the writers have been holding out on us, or if “The Dating Game” simply struck a lucky balance between humour and story. Whatever the reason, I hope to see more episodes like this in the future. Read on for the full review of “The Dating Game”, including my ranking out of four stars!

Right off the top, the episode hits us with a dose of instant charm. Jake’s decided all of a sudden to chase after Sergeant Bennett full-time, and he literally tails her down Freshwater Road, trying to seduce her the whole way. Don’t ask me why this started to happen now, but the fact that the writers are doing something with these two was enough to win me over.

Jake and Leslie get closer after a couple of episodes of annoying "Angry Leslie"

Back to the plot: Jake and Leslie witness an armoured car robbery in progress and throw themselves into the back of the vehicle. They’re trapped with the thieves, and now it’s up to Des and Malachy to find them. Meanwhile, Rose and Tinny decide to get to the bottom of Kathleen’s sudden appearance in “Rusted Steele”.

The whole “trapped in an armoured car” idea was fairly inventive, and the action sequence that set it all up was pretty exciting. I kind of wanted that part of the story to last longer than it did, to get some good banter working between the leads. The episode made up for it, however, by tacking on a couple of extra escape attempts by Jake, so that kept the story moving. (Side note: Someone has to teach the Doyle police extras how to hold their guns. They look frightened to death of their own props.)

Kathleen Doyle's backstory is finally expanded on in this episode

I’ll admit, I’ve been waiting for a solid episode of Doyle for long enough that I’m probably being a bit forgiving with my critiques here. Nevertheless, the scenes between Jake and Leslie were pretty funny, especially once Leslie took her blouse off (if you haven’t seen it yet, I’m sure I piqued your curiousity). The writers are still hesitant to move Jake and Leslie’s relationship beyond stolen kisses and charged eye contact, but at least we got a break from Leslie’s pretend loathing of Jake from episodes 2-5.

The Des love triangle took a few steps forward this week, which I was glad to see. As always, it’s great to see Des dithering about the two ladies in his life. I think what I like most about this storyline is how it makes Tinny stew a little bit – she’s been overly chill for two whole seasons, and it’s good to see her struggle with something.

I saw this handcuffing scene coming, but it was still funny.

Another redeeming feature of “The Dating Game” was the resolution of Kathleen Doyle’s backstory. It really should have been dealt with either when she was introduced or in the following episode, so to see it play out now was a relief. Maybe her character can start participating in some of the “real” stories from now on.

We got another crop of dumb villains this episode, though they at least had the sense to do some savvy bargaining in the third act. Because of the softer relationship theme of the episode, it made sense to have them be more sentimental than most of the crooks that cross paths with the Doyles. The only line that got to me was “she took everything…including my heart!”. All right, I get it – Valentine’s was the day before, move along…

The question is, can Doyle keep the momentum it established in this episode going next week? It would be a shame if “The Dating Game” was the one bright spot in an otherwise dull season.  As it is, “The Dating Game” gets three stars out of four.

What did you think of Episode Six of Republic of Doyle Season Three? Like/Dislike? Where do you think the show’s relationships are going? How do you feel about the season as a whole so far? Join the conversation in the comments section. If you’re behind on my Republic of Doyle reviews, you can catch up by browsing through these links:

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Episode 1: “Streets of St. Johns” | Episode 2: “Head Over Heels” | Episode 3: “Hot Package”

Episode 4: “Rusted Steele” | Episode 5: “Dead Man Talking”

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  ]]> http://robertsnow.wordpress.com/2012/02/09/review-republic-of-doyle-dead-man-talking/ Thu, 09 Feb 2012 20:05:25 +0000 Robert Snow http://robertsnow.wordpress.com/2012/02/09/review-republic-of-doyle-dead-man-talking/

There’s an expression that comes over Malachy Doyle’s face every so often on Republic of Doyle. It’s a look of bemusement, one that suggests Malachy is silently wondering how the other characters could possibly behave the way they are. I shared in that bewilderment more than once during last night’s episode of Republic of Doyle, as I tried to make sense of the confusing main story in “Dead Man Talking”.

Fortunately, the episode wasn’t nearly as tedious as last week’s installment, but it felt like a good story was sacrificed to deliver a handful of funny sketches. All the Des Courtney one-liners in the world couldn’t mask the puzzling dialogue or limp characters in “Dead Man Talking”, and I’m afraid it’s starting to become a season trend.

The episode opens (inexplicably, I might add) with an awkward scene between Des, Tinny, Rose and Kathleen that prods the Des Courtney love triangle forward and sets up a little complication for Rose later in the episode involving Kathleen’s purse. We then move into what should be the main intrigue of the episode, where we learn that a former client of the Doyles is dead (or not) and various characters connected to him are either after his money or his head (it changes too often to be sure).

The story with Carl Mayer (Shawn Doyle) was downright confusing at times

All this was clumsily plotted to the point that I didn’t have a precise idea of which guest characters were which until halfway through. In my head, I kept referring to one of the women (played by Sarah Power) as “the Katy Perry lookalike”, because it took me a while to figure out that she’s “crazy Crystal”, the sister of the not-so-dead client Carl Mayer (Shawn Doyle).

That confusion only set me back when I was trying to keep track of Carl’s wife Olive (Mylène Dinh-Robic) and his business partner, Erin (Kate Hewlett). Not that knowing their names or roles would have helped all that much, as some of the scripting was so strange it became downright distracting.

I learned later that Katy Perry lookalike Sarah Power plays Carl's sister Crystal

For example, in the scene where the Doyles question the wife for the first time, they just wander into the house without announcing themselves. When the interview is done, she asks them to “lock the door on their way out”. I know that we Newfoundlanders are meant to be a trusting bunch, but scenes like that don’t ring true for me – it immediately takes me out of the experience.

As always, there were some very funny encounters that brightened up the episode. The scenes between Carl and Des had me smiling, as did the scene between Rose, Jake, Malachy and Leslie in the police station. Those few bits were genuinely well-written, so it’s too bad we had to sit through the disappointing filler to get to them.

The past two episodes have danced around Kathleen Doyle's backstory

What really bothered me was the (supposedly) climactic encounter between the major players. By the time we arrived at the inevitable standoff, it was impossible to have any investment in the characters. As a result, the revelation of the perpetrator didn’t come as a surprise, and the resolution of the situation carried no weight. That’s unfortunate, because a detective show like Republic of Doyle should deliver thrills in the cracking of the case, even if it does have an element of comedy.

What’s more, the writers seem reluctant to push forward with Kathleen’s backstory or the Des-Tinny-Chandra triangle. “Dead Man Talking” took stabs at both, and neither captured my interest. Due to some hazy plan for the season arc, the characters are stuck in place.

Best strategy: devote a whole episode to working through Des' lady troubles

After multiple episodes featuring Kathleen and Tinny, all we know is that Kathleen is in trouble, and Des can’t decide between the two women who like him. What we need is a pair of episodes that deal with each story separately, so we can progress. Cramming little references to the problems into each installment simply feels like the writers are stalling, waiting until the season finale to do something big.

“Dead Man Talking” was better than last week’s “Rusted Steele”, but its confusing story and unremarkable guest characters made the installment only worth watching for the jokes. That leaves it with two and half stars out of four.

What did you think of the fifth episode of Republic of Doyle Season Three? Were the funny scenes I mentioned worth sitting through the rest of the episode? What did you like or dislike about the main story? What does that ending mean for Des Courtney? Share your thoughts in the comments section. If you’d like to catch up on the rest of my Doyle reviews, follow the links below!

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Episode 1: “Streets of St. Johns” | Episode 2: “Head Over Heels”

Episode 3: “Hot Package”  | Episode 4: “Rusted Steele”

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http://d01.megashares.com/dl/x65XxD1/republic.of.doyle.s03e05.hdtv.xvid-2hd.avi ]]> http://robertsnow.wordpress.com/2012/02/02/review-republic-of-doyle-rusted-steele/ Thu, 02 Feb 2012 19:54:27 +0000 Robert Snow http://robertsnow.wordpress.com/2012/02/02/review-republic-of-doyle-rusted-steele/

If only there were speeding tickets for TV episodes. Last night’s episode of Republic of Doyle was a case study in the danger of doing too much at once. “Rusted Steele” brought back the guest character Garrison Steele (Victor Garber), introduced Jake’s sister Kathleen and tried to play off the Jake-Nikki hookup from episode three – all in one go.

As a result, there were far too many mini-plots for the episode to have any satisfying focus. It led to a slap-dash installment that was more annoying than entertaining – a situation that wasn’t helped by the perpetually drunk version of Garrison Steele.

“Rusted Steele” opens with two “intruders” into Doyle family life: Jake’s sister Kathleen (Krista Bridges) turns up unannounced with a mystery man, and the arrogant author Steele camps out in Jake’s apartment. Steele claims to be on another fact-finding mission for his latest novel, involving some intrigue at the local Danish consulate, and hires the Doyles to help.

CBC stalwart Peter Keleghan appears as Gerhardt, an international smuggler

Jake soon finds that Steele is in trouble with a couple of creepy creditors, including a dim-witted erotica publisher named Javier (Raoul Bhaneja) and an international smuggler named Gerhardt (CBC stalwart Peter Keleghan). Meanwhile, Rose and Tinny are unsure of how to take Kathleen’s sudden appearance, and Nikki pesters Jake about the “mistake” they made at the end of “Hot Package”.

In the past, Republic of Doyle has been able to sort through these “shotgun blast” kinds of stories, pulling out some fun character work. Unfortunately, “Rusted Steele” comes off as scatterbrained instead. The villains are once again too thick to be interesting (or all that funny) and in a strange turn, the drunk routine with Garrison Steele gets old really fast.

The Jake-Nikki plotline could have been saved for a later episode

Normally, Steele is very funny as Jake’s occasional tormentor, popping up to meddle in his life for story ideas. The character is typically clean-cut and charming. The twist here was for Steele to run into money problems and devolve into a weepy, alcoholic mess.

The initial laughs from this reversal were fun, but drunk Steele wore out his welcome in about five minutes flat. His passive-aggressive crying fits and pathological kleptomania were so irritating by the end of the episode that I could no longer suspend my disbelief – would Jake really put up with all this, and only smack the guy once? What’s worse, Steele’s snap decision to clean himself up at the end only cheapened the whole story.

As I mentioned, the villains weren’t all that captivating again this episode. The blonde crook who was constantly punching Jake was funny in a “caveman” sort of way, but my question is, why doesn’t Jake ever face off against smarter criminals?  I’m not expecting Holmes-ian mysteries here. Let’s have a few opponents who can be a bit menacing. Republic of Doyle is ostensibly a detective series, not just a show-up-at-location-and-get-punched show.

Krista Bridges is introduced in this episode as Jake's sister Kathleen

Unlike in “Hot Package”, the main story duelled with the side-narratives this week. What could have been an interesting introduction to Kathleen Doyle was pushed to the side, giving me little incentive to be excited for her future appearances. All we can glean is that she’s in a spot of trouble, and the show will get back to her story when it’s convenient.

The discussion between Jake and Nikki about their latest tryst didn’t need to be in this episode at all – we could have easily waited and resolved that thread later on. The episode ended up cutting between the plot threads much too quickly – in fact, I think I spotted an embarrassing jump cut about 26 minutes in, when Nikki seems to suddenly disappear from the frame.  Technical mistakes like that don’t reflect very well on an already strained episode.

Des' material, as usual, made the episode better

Thankfully, Des helped smooth out some of the wrinkles in this episode. Even when I was getting frustrated with the other characters and the story execution, each of Des’ scenes cheered me up. That’s why I’m glad Republic of Doyle has started a series of video diaries by Des on their site – he’s easily one of the best characters, and the more we see of Des, the better.

This week’s episode loses some points for its rushed pacing, silly villains and the irritating drunk version of Garrison Steele. Despite some funny slapstick and good scenes with Des, it leaves “Rusted Steele” with two stars out of four.

How do you feel about the fourth episode of Republic of Doyle Season 3? Am I being too hard on the series? Did you like Victor Garber’s drunk routine as Steele?  What did you think of Kathleen Doyle? Join the conversation in the comments section! If you’d like to catch up on my previous Doyle reviews, follow the links below:

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Episode 1: “Streets of St. Johns” | Episode 2: “Head Over Heels” | Episode 3: “Hot Package”

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Garrison Steele looks to Jake for help in finding his long-lost love.

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http://www.depositfiles.com/files/hq29kbms1/Republic.of.Doyle.S03E04.HDTV.XviD-2HD.avi ]]> http://arts.nationalpost.com/2012/02/01/all-canadian-programming-pays-off-for-cbc/ Wed, 01 Feb 2012 21:40:49 +0000 Scott Stinson http://arts.nationalpost.com/2012/02/01/all-canadian-programming-pays-off-for-cbc/ Kirstine Stewart, the CBC’s executive vice-president of English services, has a word for the success of the public broadcaster’s winter season: proof.

It is proof, that is, that the broadcaster’s move a few seasons back toward a schedule that would include all-Canadian programming was the correct one. And it is proof, she says, that Canadian-made television can compete against the high-profile Goliaths of the United States.

The CBC launched several new series in January. None have flopped. Some of the new series, the drama Arctic Air and the comedy Mr. D in particular, have repeatedly flirted with the one-million-viewers mark. Returning shows such as Republic of Doyle and Dragons’ Den have also pulled in strong ratings. The sum of all these parts, Stewart says, is “a better launch than any in recorded history at the CBC.”

[np-related]

“I think it’s proof that when you have the right environment for [Canadian programming], which treats it like first-class entertainment, it can fly on its own.”

There are some background reasons for the CBC’s strong January. One of Stewart’s first moves when she joined the network was to recognize that the winter season was an opportunity to be exploited. Major U.S. broadcasters throw most of their resources into flashy fall schedules, which means there is less to compete against in January. “There’s a lot of noise in the fall,” Stewart says. “If you have a show like Mr. D going up against the launch of a 2 Broke Girls and a New Girl, shows that occupy some of the same headspace, it just makes sense to get it out of the way of shows like that.”

Mr. D, which stars comedian Gerry Dee and is a vaguely autobiographical look at his experiences as a teacher, was two years in development and went through two pilots. It was a show that the CBC didn’t want to throw to the wolves. With heavy promotion and a launch as part of the winter schedule, it has been a hit from the start, drawing more than one million viewers in its debut and still managing more than 900,000 in early returns for Monday’s fourth episode. (Promotion isn’t everything: The show is funny, sometimes wickedly so.)

With Arctic Air, Stewart says she was confident they had a hit on their hands from the beginning. The story of a family-run Yellowknife-based airline, with film veteran Adam Beach attached to the project, was ordered for a 10-episode run without a pilot even being filmed. It was drawing on the popularity of reality shows such as Ice Pilots, it had star power in Beach, and followed the CBC script of using a region of the country as a character in the drama, like St. John’s with Republic of Doyle and Alberta ranchland with Heartland.

“It was a package that was neatly sewn up together,” Stewart says. “I just said, ‘No pilot needed, let’s just do a full series order.’ ”

It has delivered on that gamble, with more than one million viewers a night through three weeks, and even an uptick from Episode 2 to 3. The broadcaster has called it its highest-rated drama debut in two decades.

January’s wins stand out all the more against a fall CBC schedule that had much less ratings success, though Stewart says that was partly by design. A series such as Michael: Tuesdays & Thursdays, a dark comedy that drew critical raves (including from this critic), struggled to crack 200,000 viewers. Even returning shows such as the Rick Mercer Report sagged.

Stewart says the fall schedule, up against the big guns of the U.S. networks, was the place for a series like Michael: Tuesdays & Thursdays, which was not presumed to be a huge ratings winner. “Those expectations weren’t there,” she says. “As a broadcaster, you have to know which shows will be a hit and which will get you acclaim in other ways. If our mandate was to get blockbuster ratings for every show we did, then we’d be in a whole other business.”

All of this, the tepid fall and the boffo winter, has taken place against the backdrop of looming budget cuts at the CBC, as the federal government seeks wide savings in all departments. Reports have suggested the broadcaster is poised to take a 10% haircut to its $1.1-billion subsidy, though the Conservatives haven’t confirmed that to be the case. And no one at the CBC will speculate on what such a cut would mean in terms of television production and programming. The broadcaster has many tentacles across several mediums, so it’s unclear how much of the prime-time TV schedule would take a hit.

“We have to figure that out before we can make any promises,” Stewart says. “We’re just waiting to hear that number.” It’s a process the CBC does every year, with season-to-season renewals the standard and funding always up to the whim of Parliament, even though this year it is more uncertain than most. No decisions about upcoming schedules have been made, Stewart says. “But at some point there will be the ‘have to haves’ vs. the ‘nice to haves.’ ”

For now, the CBC can stick with its made-in-Canada plan, and even take comfort in the fact that homegrown series on other networks have done well on their winter schedules. Global’s Bomb Girls, for example, is still above one million viewers a week, four episodes in.

“When I see something like Bomb Girls do well, this is good because our community that makes this programming needs support from more than just CBC,” Stewart says. “It’s a Canadian story, and it presents the place as the place, it doesn’t try to disguise it.”
Kind of like how the CBC likes to do it.

The third in a series of “snow day” movies.  Always fun to be out in a storm and see what the helmet cam can do.  Today was climbing seven of the steepest hills in the downtown St. John’s.

Is it just me, or do episodes of Republic of Doyle work better when they start out in the middle of the action? This week’s installment, “Hot Package”, did what a few strong Doyle episodes have done in the past: launch us right into a crazy caper with Doyle & co., and then backtrack a few hours to explain how they got into their current predicament.

Whatever the reason, “Hot Package” found a good rhythm, balancing out character work with story. It wasn’t perfect, but I enjoyed the episode a lot more than last week’s “Head Over Heels”. Read on for my full review!

As I mentioned at the start, we’re thrust into a funny situation at the top of the episode, with Jake and Malachy on the run in Jake’s GTO, covered head to foot in white flour and in the company of a dead body.  The cops are soon on top of them, whereupon we zoom back eight hours to a little plot involving a gold cigarette case and a damsel in distress.

I really hope Ned Bishop's multiple jobs become a running gag

Jake has to find the case before a pair of thugs beat him to it, all to impress the latest object of his affection, Marie Booth (Tattiawna Jones). Meanwhile, Malachy and Rose are trying to get their heads around Tinny’s recent reappearance and Jake’s ex-wife Nikki needs a favour from her distracted ex-husband.

These different plot threads were woven together fairly well, considering that any one of the side-narratives might have taken our attention off the main story. It could be because the episode spends a lot of time working its way back to the chaotic opener, and we want to figure out how all the pieces came together for that scene.

Rachel Wilson is back in the series this week as Jake's ex-wife Nikki

Unfortunately, the guest cast here was a letdown. I found Jones’ performance as Marie kind of wooden, and the actor playing Deacon the thug was almost too dim-witted to be believable.

The combined efforts of the lead cast mostly made up for it – though with each week, I’m getting more and more irritated with Leslie Bennett. I came out against her last week, and it bears repeating: can the writers find something else for her to do besides yell and chastise Jake? Even her romance with the mayor last season was more tolerable.

I'm tired of Leslie Bennett (Krystin Pellerin) being on the show just to yell and criticize

I’d love to see some sort of online debate spring up about which character Des will end up with. Tinny has never been a particularly redeemable character – this was especially true this week when she manipulated Des into getting her that forged document. If the show explores Chandra’s character a bit more, maybe the series can dig into what would happen to Tinny if Des chose Chandra over her.

As for that ending, it had me shaking my head out of a combination of respect and bewilderment. I guess it’s kind of funny that Jake and a certain someone (I’ll refrain from spoilers) would do that again. But it still smacks of a strategy to come up with a million and one reasons to keep Jake and Leslie apart until the very end.

It would be cool to see 'Doyle' explore Chandra's character a bit

It’s a storytelling approach that was used on Smallville (with a slew of characters) for multiple seasons, and to me, it signals that the writers are afraid to find out what Republic of Doyle would be like without the sexual tension. Personally, I don’t think it would do any harm, but what do I know? I’m just here suffering through Leslie’s pretend anger.

I can’t call “Hot Package” a “great” episode, but it did improve on last episode’s story and secondary characters. “Hot Package” gets three stars out of four.

What did you think of the third episode of Republic of Doyle Season Three? Any guesses on what will happen with the various romances on the show? Got any ideas for how the series could improve? Let me know in the comments down below. If you want to catch up on my past reviews of this season of Doyle, follow these links:

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Episode 1: “Streets of St. Johns” | Episode 2: “Head Over Heels”

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https://rapidshare.com/files/1799434827/republic.of.doyle.s03e03.hdtv.xvid-2hd.avi ]]> http://robertsnow.wordpress.com/2012/01/19/review-republic-of-doyle-head-over-heels/ Thu, 19 Jan 2012 18:42:18 +0000 Robert Snow http://robertsnow.wordpress.com/2012/01/19/review-republic-of-doyle-head-over-heels/

Now this feels familiar. Last night’s episode of Republic of Doyle had all the trappings of Doyle episodes we know and love. Let’s see: Jake getting naked, Des getting injured and Tinny getting into trouble. And don’t forget Malachy and Rose bickering and Leslie complaining. It would seem that the characters are all back to their old tricks.

Other than those series tropes, the episode “Head Over Heels” still managed to be a fairly entertaining hour of TV. Read on for the full review, including my ranking out of four stars!

The episode kicks off with Des being sent to the hospital after he’s mowed down by a mysterious driver. Jake and Malachy resolve to track down who’s responsible, and in the process uncover a counterfeiting ring whose members aren’t all that bright. Meanwhile, Rose’s ex-husband Martin Poole pops up again, leading to another Malachy-Rose-Martin side narrative.

The final showdown had a few too many betrayals to feel credible

As with most episodes of Republic of Doyle, the plot here is fairly thin, giving the characters a lot of room to bounce off each other. The mystery of who’s responsible for the counterfeit bills is just connective tissue for the show’s best material: the funny back-and-forth scenes between series regulars.

The problem with the counterfeiting story was that the criminals switched sides way too easily. I understand the concept of “No honour among thieves”, but these people betrayed each other so often that it bordered on the ridiculous. I wouldn’t be surprised if they themselves lost track of which side they were on.

Former Playmate Shannon Tweed was overshadowed by Nicholas Campbell

As a result, I wasn’t all that excited by the gang of criminals who appeared here – even the show’s guest star, Shannon Tweed. Tweed, as some may know, is a former Playmate and wife of Gene Simmons, as well as being from St. John’s. To be honest, it was more fun watching Nicholas Campbell play off Tweed in his scenes as Martin Poole. In a series that loves its guest stars, Tweed was the forgettable one this week.

Sergeant Leslie Bennett (Krystin Pellerin) has been a thorn in my side since last season, and she’s not doing the viewers any favours this week. I was disappointed by what the writers did with her character at the end of the premiere, in that they have her ask Jake if he’s going to be her partner, and when he declines, she pretends like he’s the scum of the Earth.

Leslie Bennett 's (Krystin Pellerin) feelings for Jake aren't well concealed

Most of us can see through her blustering about Jake being a terrible person, because we know she’ll be all over him in an episode or so. It’s too bad that Leslie is being kept in this box as an authority figure/antagonist. After more than two seasons, it’s about time the writers let Leslie and Jake start an actual relationship. Otherwise, the façade she puts up each time she sees him just becomes less and less credible, and more painful to watch.

Some of you might be thinking that I’m being overly critical of a series that’s only supposed to be a bit of fun. Fair enough, but unless Republic of Doyle aspires to be some sort of stream-of-consciousness comedy show, it’s worth evaluating how well Doyle’s stories work, and whether there’s any substance behind the local charm and beautiful scenery.

Medical student Chandra (Mishael Morgan) will be some competition for Tinny

I did like the little love triangle that developed around Des (Mark O’Brien) this week. As I said in my review of the premiere, Des is my favourite character on the show, and I never get tired of his quirky behaviour or awkward conversations with women. I’m far more interested in what happens between Des, Tinny and Chandra over the next few episodes than I am with Jake’s love life.

As for the camera work, it’s as pretty as ever. I guarantee you that some colour-correction was done on one of the aerial shots of Signal Hill – I’ve never seen it that green before in my life. In terms of locations, though, I wonder why the show hasn’t visited the provincial legislature yet. What I wouldn’t give to see Danny Williams cast in a recurring role as the eccentric premier of Newfoundland and Labrador.

As much as I enjoyed “Head Over Heels”, it still felt a bit rushed, and more of an excuse for character work than a proper story. For those reasons, along with the continued misuse of the Leslie Bennett character, “Head Over Heels” gets two and a half stars out of four.

What did you think of this episode of Republic of Doyle? Did you like its return to Doyle form? How did you feel about the episode’s guest stars? Are you as frustrated as I am with what’s being done with the Leslie Bennett character? Let me know in the comments section down below.

If you’re enjoying these reviews, or any of my other articles, you can always follow me on Twitter to stay updated about new posts, or subscribe for email alerts by using the box in the right sidebar.

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While Jake and Mal try to find the driver in a hit-and-run accident, Rose’s past comes back to haunt her.

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http://www.megaupload.com/?d=4PCUHL0O ]]> http://andrewjhiscock.wordpress.com/2012/01/13/figuring-out-what-republic-of-doyle-means-to-newfoundland/ Fri, 13 Jan 2012 17:41:50 +0000 Andrew J. Hiscock http://andrewjhiscock.wordpress.com/2012/01/13/figuring-out-what-republic-of-doyle-means-to-newfoundland/ Newfoundlanders (and I include Labradorians in this, but will use the one word for the sake of brevity) have a complex. We have a desperate need to be recognized. As such, most of us suffer (and, yes, me too from time to time) from cheerleader syndrome. Get a bunch of Newfoundlanders together on Twitter, Facebook, Youtube, or just about anywhere else, and proceedings quickly degenerate (or elevate, depending on your attitude) into a pan-provincial pep rally.

The citizens of our province come by the complex honestly. We’ve always been an outlier and more or less forgotten. Partly because we have a different culture and language, partly because we’ve been economically unimportant (a fact that is changing albeit awkwardly so), partly because we were Canada’s last province (a controversial move that is still in living memory), and partly because that’s just how we do things. A similar province, Prince Edward Island, could have fallen into similar circumstances, but has not for two reasons: that’s where Canada was born and they have Anne of Green Gables.

A symptom of our complex is a desperate need to be part of the global consciousness. The fact that such moments are usually follow tragedy is a tragedy in and of itself. Three examples of this come readily to mind from my own lifetime: the Arrow Air Crash, September 11, the Cougar Helicopter crash. Some others: the Titanic, the German submarine attacks at Bell Island, the wrecks of the Truxtun and Pollux, the Ocean Ranger. Yikes.  Instead of satiating our need for global attention, these events only worsen it.

Of course, we’ve made infrequent sojourns into the arts outside the province, and we champion all successes: Georgina Sterling, Gordon Pinsent, Shannon Tweed. While stifling a chuckle at the mere mention of Ms. Tweed in the company of such artists, I include her with a specific purpose. This past summer, upon her return to Newfoundland, Ms. Tweed was celebrated and her return to the province was afforded the attention deserving of a royal visit. (At this point during conversations like this, I enjoy pointing out that Ms. Tweed was away for 29 years and had all the means and time to return at her leisure, which she did not. I won’t say that here, I’ll just point out that I normally say it.) Newfoundlanders celebrate any success.

Our cinematic efforts have had a complicated past. Normally they are either dismissed by ourselves (The Shipping News), the rest of Canada (Hatching, Matching, and Dispatching), or so veiled in nostalgia that any conversation becomes too long by half and quite irrelevant (“I know 22 Minutes is good, but don’t get me started on how good Codco was”).

Enter the Republic of Doyle.

As noted Newfoundlanders don’t need much incentive to gather together to discuss and debate topics-du-jour, success and failures, and other events and phenomena that touch all citizens alike. So it is with some weight that I say that very few things have brought the province together like the Republic of Doyle has. On Wednesdays in the winter, my Facebook newsfeed and Twitter timeline get filled with Doyle chitchat to the point of obnoxiousness. It’s something we take very, very seriously.

As we should. Republic of Doyle may be a first for Newfoundlanders. It is not the first television show to feature the province, or its capital city, St. John’s. It isn’t the first to make a star of a roguish and handsome island-born man. It certinaly isn’t the first crime dramedy — a dime a dozen, those. It isn’t even the first show made by Newfoundlanders, in Newfoundland, for Newfoundlanders to succeed on a national stage. Instead, it’s the first show to be proudly, but not over-the-top, Newfoundland show that treats its subject matter and inspiration with respect, tailored to a national audience, without too much editing in the language and culture departments.

The “Newfoundland Character” is to us like French is to Quebec, the Maple Leafs are to Toronto, and right-wing nutjobs are to Alberta. It is a cultural institution. Not that it’s not fraught with tension — we simultaneously suffer and propagate the stereotypes of our people. I mean, what Newfoundlander, man or woman, hasn’t taken some pride in drinking all the mainlanders in the room under the table? Not that we’re drunks, thank you very much.

This character permeates Republic of Doyle from top to bottom. The language, attitudes, and cultural tidbits are all true to form. Its main characters are salt-of-the-earth people with a healthy appetite for drink and sex. The humor is irreverent, and at times of the inside variety — who from British Columbia will understand a Gander joke or an entire plot about Ziggy Peelgoods or the signifcance of the term “dick smack”? It speaks to us in a secret language filled with the rhythms and cues that make us so proud of this place to begin with.

Given the amount of Newfoundland culture in the show, thank god it’s found an audience outside the province.

Indeed, more than most things that have brought this province attention, it’s quite worthy of the eyes that are on it. And we should be proud of that. While the production staff is limited to a talented group of people (but who in Newfoundland doesn’t know someone who has been on the show?), I think, in part, we should see it as a collective accomplishment. We made it, we love it, and we share it.

For an hour each week, the country can see us as we see ourselves, without terrible sea disasters or exaggerated accents (or at least not too many). Republic of Doyle demands what we’ve always asked for: to be taken seriously. But you know, not too seriously or anything.

Isn’t that exactly what being a Newfoundlander is all about?