Kevin Newman recently announced on his Twitter account that August 20, 2010 will be his last day as Global National anchor.  Newman has anchored the half-hour newscast since its debut on September 3, 2001.

Newman has been active in television broadcast news since 1981, initially in an on-air role for Global Toronto’s Sportsline.  Newman’s anchor credits include ABC’s World News Now (1994-97), Good Morning America (1996-99) and CBC’s Midday (1992-94.)

Newman’s Twitter post mentions “rest and renewal,” a sentiment The Canadian Press parrots.  I honestly think Newman means this.  He’s managed morning, afternoon, evening and late-night news shifts, picking up two Geminis, two Emmys and a Peabody in the process.  What’s left for the 50-year-old to do?

I don’t think Newman should return to news anchoring.  CTV News is too stuffy for his personable approach.  Nothing can save CBC News, now that it’s embraced superficiality.  American television news is mediocre at best.

Either Kevin Newman’s leaving Global at just the right time, or he’s leaving North American network journalism at the right time.  He’s a talking head, but a damned professional one.  Personally, I’ll miss Newman.

Being Erica and Flashpoint are currently in production on their third seasons.  Flashpoint currently airs on CTV and CBS, while Being Erica airs on CBC and SOAPnet.

CTV has not officially renewed Flashpoint for a third season, but it’s obvious the show will be back.  Its Canadian ratings are strong, so a third season is assured.

CBC won’t announce the bulk of its show renewals until May, although Bill Brioux has hinted at renewals for 18 to Life and Being Erica.  Being Erica‘s second season was watched by an average of 582,000 Canadian viewers.

The Cultural Post first mentioned production on Flashpoint‘s third season, while TCP and Mike’s Bloggity Blog have hinted at a renewal order for Being Erica.  The Cultural Post has Ontario Media Development Corporation’s ‘In Production’ page to back its claims up.  Mike’s Bloggity Blog has…”a very reliable email.”  Can you guess which site I actually respect?  Go on.  Guess.

As an aside, does CBC Television know how to cancel a show?  Despite poor-to-fair ratings, I doubt CBC will touch its comedy festivals, 18 to Life or Little Mosque on the Prairie.  When Kids in the Hall: Death Comes to Town can’t do better than The Rick Mercer Report‘s Friday rerun, something’s terribly wrong with the network.

EDIT (April 27, 2010) | Being Erica doesn’t start shooting its third season until May 17, while Flashpoint has been shooting since January 13, 2010.  I apologize for not clarifying this detail.

As mentioned in the last Canadian TV-on-DVD Roundup, Alliance Films Home Entertainment is unleashing a torrent of its television titles.  The titles being monetized for late June-July 2010:

Andromeda: Season 1 (July 13, 2010)
BeastMaster: Season 1 (July 13, 2010)
Earth: Final Conflict: Season 2 (July 27, 2010)
Emily of New Moon: Season 3 (June 22, 2010) | Season 4 (July 20, 2010)
Lexx: Season 2 (July 20, 2010)
The Outer Limits (1995): Season 4 (July 6, 2010)
PSI Factor: Chronicles of the Paranormal: Season 1 (July 13, 2010)
RoboCop: The Series: Season 1 (July 27, 2010)
TekWar: Complete Series (July 13, 2010)

The only shows I’m interested in are The Outer Limits, RoboCop: The Series and maybe TekWar.  No Made in Canada yet?  I’m sure that show is in Alliance Films’ catalogue.  Hell, so is CODCO.  AFHE might want to take hints here.

For those following URBMN, BeastMaster and Andromeda had sets put out by ADV Films.  I’m not sure about the American home entertainment rights to Alliance Films’ shows, as these releases are Canada-only.

On a related note, Gord Lacey of TVShowsonDVD.com has reviewed Relic Hunter‘s first season.  He doesn’t like the video quality and hates the packaging.  Three discs per panel?  Yikes.  Captions and subtitles are also absent.

Thanks to TVShowsonDVD.com for breaking the news on Alliance’s TV-on-DVD slate.  I don’t know how that site can stand all the news it gets.  There’s only so much enthusiasm you can fake for shows like Jon & Kate Plus 8 and Real Housewives of West Mifflin, Pennsylvania.

This is the first Canadian TV-on-DVD Roundup since September 5, 2009.  There are three reasons for this.  One, the TV-on-DVD market is almost dead on its ass.  Two, iTunes and on-demand are sure to take over at some point.  Three, I’ve transitioned to more dedicated news stories.

I don’t plan on continuing the Canadian TV-on-DVD Roundups for too much longer.  They will eventually be replaced by TV-on-Demand Roundups or whichever new trends come down the pike.

I’ve missed out on titles like Wonderful Grand Band due to URBMN’s format shift.  Frankly, Wonderful Grand Band whizzed right past everyone.

Here’s a clip from WGB.  I’ll probably never mention the show on URBMN again, so…here you go.  Mileage may vary depending on how much you like Tommy Sexton.

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Alliance Films Home Entertainment will release a job lot of TV-on-DVD titles this spring and summer.  AFHE is releasing titles originally offered by Koch Vision in the early-to-mid-2000s.

Titles include the following, all Canadian shows or co-productions:

Emily of New Moon: Season 1, Season 2
Lexx: Season 1
Relic Hunter: Season 1, Season 2, Season 3
The Hunger: Season 1, Season 2
The Outer Limits (1995): Season 1, Season 2, Season 3

I’m most interested in The Outer Limits.  It’s uneven, like most anthologies, but the show lasted seven seasons for a reason.  I hope Alliance Films Home Entertainment can continue the series sets, as Koch Vision crapped out after Season 3.

The Hunger is a weird choice, as Koch Vision released the first two seasons less than a year ago.  Seriously, The Hunger is that important that it needs a re-release?

I hope Alliance Films Home Entertainment will bring out more series in the near future.  This is a good time to put out North of 60 season sets.  Not everyone can stand Relic Hunter, you know.

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For the French-speaking Quebecers, Bob Gratton: Ma Vie, My Life has its third season come out on DVD May 18, 2010.

Bob ‘Elvis’ Gratton (Julien Poulin) is a racist, pro-American federalist/Walter Mitty figure.  He’s been an Elvis impersonator, pop star and media magnate.  His creation ties into the late Pierre Falardeau‘s Quebec separatist beliefs.

I list Bob Gratton: Ma Vie, My Life to show that French-speaking Quebec has its own Borat figure.  Hell, Gratton’s been around since 1981.  The man’s a long runner, even after death.

Having said that, I wonder if URBMN readers have ever heard of Gratton.  Well, you have now.  You can’t unremember him, at least not without drinking paint thinner or braining yourself with an I-beam.

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The Best Years‘ second season will come out June 15, 2010 through E1 Entertainment.

The Best Years‘ second season was produced specifically for The N (now TeenNick.)  The late, unlamented E! network aired the second season in April 2009.

Truth be known, I’m surprised The Best Years is out on DVD in its entirety.  The show has a fanbase, but this is Exhibit A of why Canada needs to better schedule its programs.  At least the show hasn’t been off-and-on as much as Paradise Falls…yet.

Sorry for lumping stories in like this.  I usually don’t, but Canadian television news hasn’t been this active since URBMN began talking about these shows back in 2008.  I’ve fallen behind a bit.  Apologies if you’ve read this before.

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Rookie Blue, the cop show formerly known as Copper, will debut Thursday, June 24, 2010.  The show will air on both Global and ABC at 9:00 PM ET/PT.

Rookie Blue focuses on five newbie cops learning the ropes in the generic world of “big-city policing.”  It is unknown whether the show will contain vomiting.

Rookie Blue is an odd name for a show.  Copper, while generic, makes more sense.  I guess ABC and Canwest are banking on people remembering NYPD Blue and Hill Street Blues.  This show has never had a good name.

Yeah, yeah, Cra$h & Burn, but that’s different.  See, the character’s named Jimmy Burn, and he’s an insurance claims adjuster.  The title fits the show.  What Canwest and ABC have done is swap ambiguities.  It’s like taking Cybersix and calling it A Girl and Her Panther.

I don’t have high hopes for Rookie Blue.  One doesn’t schedule a surefire hit in the middle of June.  At least the show’s out.  I hope it gets promoted.

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Living in Your Car will debut on HBO Canada Friday, May 7, 2010, at 9:30 PM ET/MT.  The show follows Steve Unger (John Ralston), a business executive charged with fraud, obstruction and racketeering.  After cutting a deal to escape prison time, Unger loses everything aside from his sedan.  This explains Living in Your Car‘s title and premise.  See how this works, Canwest?

Here’s a ninety-second preview of Living in Your Car.  Star John Ralston might be more familiar to viewers as Derek Venturi’s father on Life with Derek.  He also played Ming the Merciless on the 2007-08 Flash Gordon reboot.  Ralston gets around.

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Continuing with the subject of HBO Canada, NSI Canada has announced that Less Than Kind will get a third season.

It’s not a detailed story, and HBO Canada hasn’t formally announced a third season for Less Than Kind.  At the same time, I can’t see why the National Screen Institute would falsify the renewal of a show it helped develop.

Congratulations to Less Than Kind.  I thought the show would die after its second season.  It’s not often that I can write about a Canadian show’s renewal, rather than its untimely death.

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Two upcoming shows in the pipeline: CTV/Bravo!/Showtime’s The Borgias and Showcase’s Lost Girl.  Lost Girl is set to debut “Fall 2010″ (*snort* heard that one before), while The Borgias will air in 2011.

Lost Girl is in production.  It’s about a succubus on a path to self-discovery.  The Borgias, which is still in pre-production, is about the Italian/Spanish House of Borgia and its path to self-destruction.  I’m sure sex will feature heavily in both shows.

The Borgias‘ cast includes Colm Feore, Jeremy Irons and François Arnaud.  Director/screenwriter Neil Jordan (The Crying Game, Ondine) will write and direct The Borgias‘ first two episodes.

The Borgias intrigues me.  I hate The Tudors with a passion, but this show might be different.  Neil Jordan might focus The Borgias more on politico-religious themes than trying to sex up history for a premium-cable audience.  As long as François Arnaud doesn’t eat up scenery like Jonathan Rhys Meyers, the show will do fine.

I’m not as sold on Lost Girl.  It comes across as a gender-swapped Blood Ties.  If the show is a detective drama WITH DEMONS!, I’m bailing.

Horror, fantasy and sci-fi themes are invading mainstream television with increased regularity.  Supernatural, The Secret Saturdays, Ugly Americans, True Blood, Dead Set, Being Human…it gets to be a bit much after a while.

I’m not saying Lost Girl will suck, but the show might get lost in the shuffle.  Add to that Canwest’s wanting to turn its cable channels into virtual Global clones…on second thought, I don’t want to think about that.  I value my sanity.  I hate Canadian television so much.