Todd and the Book of Pure Evil will debut on SPACE Wednesday, September 29, 2010.  The first two half-hour episodes will air back-to-back, from 9:00 PM to 10:00 PM ET.  The show stars Dark Oracle‘s Alex House as the title character.  Maggie Castle, Bill Turnbull, Melanie Leishman, Chris Leavins and Jason Mewes also star in the series.

SPACE is pimping Todd and the Book of Pure Evil rather heavily, with a Todd-centric InnerSPACE special airing September 22, 2010 at 9:00 PM.  The show will also be previewed at FanExpo Canada on August 28, 2010, at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre.

As for Lost Girl, it debuts on Showcase Sunday, September 12, 2010, at 9:00 PM ET/PT.  The show stars Anna Silk as nascent succubus Bo.  Also appearing are Ksenia Solo as Bo’s best friend Kenzi, Kris Holden-Reid as shapeshifting homicide detective Dyson, and Zoie Palmer as Lauren the human.

A current trend in television is to take monsters and set them against a modern relationship drama or sitcom backdrop – Being Human, Ugly Americans, True Blood, Neighbors from Hell, this.  I’m generalizing a bit, but a lot of shows are embracing and/or subverting horror conventions.

I’m looking forward to Todd and the Book of Pure Evil more than Lost Girl.  Todd and the Book of Pure Evil doesn’t do itself any favours by the “Evil Dead meets The Breakfast Club” self-comparison.  At least the press bumf contains the words “vengeful penis monster.”  I can’t get a bead on what this show will be like.

As for Lost Girl, I’m on the fence with this series.  It uses the basic “human-like cryptid learns of her secret past” plot.  I’ve also obtained two scripts from the series.  Nothing stands out for me.  Lost Girl takes itself so damned seriously for a show about faeries.

I don’t want Lost Girl to be Troma-level dumb, but Todd and the Book of Pure Evil might be the smarter proposition here.  I never thought I’d say that about a show starring a slacker and his magic evil book, but there we are.

After three episodes, Rookie Blue has been given an early second-season order by both Global and ABC.  The Tassie Cameron series has been given the order after strong overall ratings over three weeks.

In Canada, Rookie Blue debuted to what Global terms “2.1 million viewers,” though the preliminary viewership was closer to 1.8 million.  The show followed this up with 1.4 million viewers on Canada Day, and 1.7 million viewers on July 8.

Meanwhile, American figures are strong enough that Rookie Blue is ABC’s highest-rated new summer drama series in six years.  It’s Canada’s most popular crossover hit since Flashpoint, which is produced by…Tassie Cameron.  Imagine that.

Canwest is being disingenuous about the “critics’ accolades” it mentions in the Rookie Blue press release.  Metacritic gives the show a 52/100, with a user score of 5.1/10.  The critics are more kind to ABC’s Boston Med and BBC America’s The Choir.

I’m actually surprised Rookie Blue has staying power.  Meanwhile, The Bridge has died over at CBS.  Gee, I wonder why a well-promoted Thursday night show has better traction than a show CBS can’t wait to burn off on Saturday nights?  Americans must not get The Bridge.  Yeah, that’s it.  That sounds like a plausible enough excuse for failure.

Etan Vlessing pretty much spilled the beans on June 29, but Canwest recently announced its 2010-11 production slate.  The newly announced shows are as follows:

Blackstone (January 28, 2011)
Combat Hospital (2011-12)
Kenny Hotz’s Triumph of the Will* (Spring/Summer 2011)
King (Spring 2011)
Single White Spenny (Spring/Summer 2011)
Untitled Belleville Brothers Project* (Spring/Summer 2011)
XIII (Spring 2011)

Backdoor pilots include:
Befriend & Betray (Spring 2011)
Jack of Diamonds (Spring 2011)
Rave Squad (Spring 2011)

Previously announced programming:
Endgame (Spring 2011)
Lost Girl (Fall 2010)
Shattered (Fall 2010)
The Drunk and on Drugs Happy Funtime Hour (Winter 2011)

*working title

In addition, Rookie Blue has already debuted, while Haven will debut July 12, 2010 on Showcase.  Rookie Blue is a hit, albeit more on Global than on ABC.

Blackstone has already been announced for APTN, but airdates on APTN haven’t been given yet.  I really don’t count Blackstone as a “new” show for Canwest, since Canwest is giving Blackstone a second broadcast window.

I’m curious to know why both Kenny Hotz and Spencer Rice have new shows.  Single White Spenny will be produced by Breakthrough Films & Television.  Howard Busgang has been mentioned in relation to the series.

Both John Morayniss and Kenny Hotz will executive-produce the new Hotz series for E1 Entertainment.  The show may or may not be called Prize or Punishment.  Spenny’s trying to be Larry David, while Hotz is being his usual tasteless self.  Sounds about right.

Based on Canwest’s 2010-11 slate, I get the feeling most of the shows will be offloaded to Showcase.  Showcase wants to be a mainstream drama channel now, so it’s beefing up its drama holdings.  I don’t know why Combat Hospital is even on this list, as it won’t debut for another year.

I think Showcase is treated better than Global.  It sure gets the lion’s share of Canwest’s homegrown drama content.  That doesn’t surprise me.  Cable rot is turning Showcase into a haven for reruns of the XIII miniseries and Beyond Loch Ness, but Showcase is launching more original series than ever.  It’s a strange dichotomy.  I wonder why Showcase hasn’t launched a Loch Ness series yet.

Addendum (July 12, 2010) | The media release for Blackstone, which has just been released, states that the show will air on both APTN and Showcase come “early 2011.”  No word on whether Blackstone will be simulcast.

Further Addendum (November 29, 2010) | Changes to Shaw Media’s (formerly Canwest’s) lineup will be underlined.  Info is from Shaw Media publicist Jessica Gold and, in the case of Kenny Hotz and Spencer Rice’s shows, showcase.ca.

Untitled Belleville Brothers Project is somehow still Untitled Belleville Brothers Project.  It’s also been known as Masters of the Plazaverse and The Strip.  The name changes are confusing.  I’ll be surprised if the show doesn’t debut as Untitled Belleville Brothers Project.

Further Addendum to the Further Addendum (December 20, 2010) | According to this press release, Blackstone will debut Friday, January 28, 2011 on Showcase…at 11:00 PM ET/PT.  It will not be simulcast with APTN, as if Showcase giving Blackstone a timeslot of death hasn’t made this obvious.  The listing has been updated to reflect this change.

Not much to report on Day Two of Canwest’s upfronts, except that I talked briefly to Natasha Dunkley at the video presentation and pilot screenings.  Dunkley is the publicity coordinator for Canwest’s dramatic channels, which includes Showcase.

According to her, The Drunk and on Drugs Happy Funtime Hour will air in the winter of 2011, with no date yet specified.  This pretty much confirms what Metro Halifax reported on May 28.

As for whether Testees or Pure Pwnage will get second seasons, that’s apparently up to the production teams to decide.  Testees fans will have longer to wait for a second season, almost a year after FX’s John Landgraf stated that the show would continue airing in Canada.

It’s tough to speculate on Testees.  Either the show is dead, or it’s the male comedic version of Paradise Falls.  Both scenarios are possible in Canadian television.  The industry is funnier than Derek Edwards.

As announced today at a Canwest press conference, Shattered will debut on Global as part of the 2010-11 fall season lineup.  It will be one of seven new shows in Global’s lineup, and the only Canadian show to make its fall schedule.  Hi, ACTRA!

Shattered is a cop drama starring Callum Keith Rennie as a homicide detective with multiple personality disorder.  It will air Fridays at 9:00 PM ET/PT.  The show was originally meant for Showcase’s 2009-10 season.  Canwest must have faith in the show, even considering the Friday timeslot.

As for cable fall debuts, Haven will air on Showcase Diva starting September 2, since a female-oriented digital cable channel is the best place for a show based on a Stephen King novel.  Lost Girl will debut on Showcase three days later, at 9:00 PM ET/PT.

I’m just going to link to the specialty debuts as regards reality fare.  It’s not that I’m lazy, but the two most hyped reality shows (Wipeout Canada and Top Chef Canada) air in the spring of 2011.

Canwest’s lineup has a few holes in it.  Where the hell are The Drunk and on Drugs Happy Funtime Hour and Producing Parker?  I’ll find out tomorrow, as I will attend the Canwest upfront video presentation.

Also…Cra$h & Burn on Showcase Diva?!  That makes as much sense for Showcase Diva as Haven.  Canwest just slays me at times.

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.

Canwest Broadcasting and Lone Eagle Entertainment have announced an English-Canadian version of Wipeout.  The Endemol Group format has contestants run obstacle courses that aren’t cribbed from Takeshi’s Castle and Sasuke, oh no.  No further details about Wipeout Canada have been announced, aside from a 2011 airdate.

This isn’t the first version of Wipeout to hit Canadian shores.  Wipeout Québec, which debuted in 2009, currently airs thrice-weekly on V.  This has previously been mentioned by Steve Faguy, who points out the basic flaw in the Wipeout Canada press release.

I have a feeling Wipeout Canada will be cut-rate, given Lone Eagle Entertainment’s game show past.  The company is going from You Bet Your Ass, Inside the Box and Game On to Wipeout Canada.  Wipeout is a far cry from dinky podiums and a slumming Stewart Francis.

Wipeout Canada is a better fit for GameTV, which needs higher-profile shows than Love Handles and, uh, Supermarket Sweep.  GameTV is such a quaint channel.  Reruns of The Mad Dash and Just Like Mom sound far more appealing than a second season of Carlawood.  Maybe it’s just me.

XIII: The Conspiracy, the France-Canada co-production which aired on NBC in February 2009, will be coming to DVD and Blu-ray February 9, 2010.  The miniseries stars Val Kilmer, Stephen Dorff, Jessalyn Gilsig and Stephen McHattie.  XIII: The Conspiracy will be released by Phase 4 Films for North American consumption.

XIII: The Conspiracy is based on the Franco-Belgian comic book series about an amnesiac searching for his past.  The miniseries centres around a conspiracy theory tied to the assassination of the President of the United States, Sally Sheridan (Mimi Kuzyk.)  XIII refers to a tattoo, the only thing identifying Dorff’s character.

XIII: The Conspiracy first aired on France’s Canal+ in October 2008.  In Canada, XIII: The Conspiracy aired on Showcase and Mystery TV.  I’m not even sure if Canwest aired XIII: The Conspiracy on Global.  XIII: The Conspiracy was announced for Global, but that was in the days when E! existed and Canwest wasn’t yet a crumbling media entity.

Considering Jay Firestone’s Prodigy Pictures helped produce the series, this is CanCon, albeit of the co-pro variety.  XIII: The Conspiracy isn’t bad, but it felt at the time like NBC’s belated attempt to cash in on the success of Fox’s 24.

A XIII: The Conspiracy regular series has been announced, although there’s not much information about the series beyond that.  If anyone knows more about XIII: The Conspiracy, please comment on this blog entry.  I won’t be convinced the series exists until XIII: The Conspiracy has a cable channel or network behind it.