APTN has recently released its September 2010 schedule, as it debuts its 2010-11 season.  Of note is its Tuesday night schedule, which begins on September 7:

9:00 PM ET: The Candy Show
9:30 PM ET: Bionic Bannock Boys
10:00 PM ET: CAUTION: May Contain Nuts
10:30 PM ET: Arbor Live

CAUTION: May Contain Nuts and Arbor Live are in their second seasons.  Bionic Bannock Boys and The Candy Show will make their debuts.  Arbor Live is the only non-comedy, though The Candy Show and Arbor Live are both variety shows.

CMCN‘s second season has already debuted, albeit in the form of two episodes aired during the Olympics.  In the meantime, CMCN has posted material to Funny or Die.

I have reviewed Bionic Bannock Boys‘ pilot.  I’ll probably give the show another look, just to see if BBB has improved since then.  There are a couple of trailers for the show, found here and here.

As for The Candy Show, I was actually surprised to see CBC News mention it back in April 2010.  Host Candy Palmater has done some pieces for CBC Radio One’s Definitely Not the Opera, which I don’t hold against her.

Arbor Live features mainstream acts like Joe Satriani and Velvet Revolver alongside aboriginal artists, though the musical guest lineup is rather disjointed.  Eric Schweig is on the show for some odd reason.

At the same time, CBC doesn’t mount shows like Arbor Live.  Joe Satriani and Velvet Revolver aren’t the freshest of acts to feature on a music variety show, but at least APTN tries.  When was the last time CBC mounted an actual variety show?  ZeD?  Rita and Friends?  Devin Townsend would be perfect for a variety show.  I’m just saying.

As mentioned on APTN’s Twitter account, Blackstone will receive an eight-episode season.

Neither APTN nor Prairie Dog Film & Television have officially announced the series order, aside from APTN’s Twitter post.  No time or date has been set for Blackstone‘s series premiere.

Blackstone was one of the potential series in APTN’s Pick a Pilot project.  In my opinion, it is the best pilot to come out of that project.

Blackstone‘s pilot has good dramatic tension and incites controversy.  I’ve wanted for this show to become a series since it first aired.  Blackstone focuses on political corruption at a First Nations reserve, which is a tough subject to handle without being alarmist or heavy-handed.

I hope Blackstone isn’t watered-down from its pilot.  I’m honestly looking forward to it more than any other Canadian drama of 2010-11.  Blackstone has the potential to really mean something.

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.

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Wolf Canyon‘s fate is less clear than Blackstone‘s.  According to Wolf Canyon co-creator and writer Tim Stubinski, APTN has passed on Wolf Canyon as the sole first broadcaster of the series.

This doesn’t mean Wolf Canyon is dead.  Tricon Films and Television currently distributes the property, and is trying to sell other broadcasters on its merits.

APTN might air Wolf Canyon in a shared-first-window or second-window capacity.  In layman’s terms, APTN will team up with another network/cable channel or air Wolf Canyon secondhand.  Stubinski chalks this decision to “economics.”

Wolf Canyon made a killing at the 2010 Leo Awards.  The show won five of seven Leos, winning in every category it was nominated in.  The Leos apply to shows and films shot in British Columbia.

I’m sure Wolf Canyon will find another broadcaster.  Kevin Sorbo has his fans, while the Leos help the show’s cause.  WC even has a respectable rating on IMDb.  This show will find a home.

Keep in mind, Blackstone hit big at the 2010 Rosie Awards, winning in five categories.  The Rosies are to Alberta what the Leos are to British Columbia.  Whatever APTN’s doing, it’s working.

Cashing In, a series set around a casino and the First Nation community that houses it, will begin its second season March 2, 2010 on APTN.  The show will air 8:00 PM ET on APTN East, and 8:00 PM MT on APTN West.

Cashing In aired on APTN and Showcase in March 2009.  Showcase has bowed out of airing Cashing In‘s second season, leaving APTN to go it alone.  Cashing In‘s second season will have thirteen episodes, a luxury compared to last year’s six-episode run.

Cashing In‘s USP is that the aboriginals running the North Beach Casino are, by and large, financially successful.  This talking point formed the basis for an article in The Walrus.  Canada is weird this way.

Cashing In is well-shot and at least competently acted.  The main problem with the first season is that it tries to tell too many stories in too little time.  Cashing In doesn’t click like it should, given its premise.

Cashing In is mislabeled as “dramedy.”  From what I’ve seen of the show, it’s more-or-less light drama with a few comedic moments.  People just call Cashing In a dramedy due to its thirty-minute time slot.

The show has never been a must-watch for me, but Cashing In has the potential to be better in its second season.  If nothing else, Eric Schweig is good in both this and Blackstone.  He needs to be more exposed in Canada.