When I published an article about Tangled (CBC: CBC/Shaftesbury Films/Colossal Entertainment/Salient Point Productions Ltd., 2010) last week, I figured it would get a slightly above-average number of readers for a day, then flatline.  Pilot news and reviews generally don’t do well on URBMN, with the exception of B Team.

Tangled is by far the most-searched-for program this month on URBMN.  The article promoting Tangled has 13 comments (not including mine) so far.  Think about it – thirteen comments for a pilot aired in the dead of summer.  I’m usually lucky if one person gives a tinker’s piss about an unsold pilot on CBC, never mind thirteen.

Tangled is the sort of show that fits with CBC’s desired female demographic, yet can also attract a decent male audience.  Aside from the budgetary restrictions that can hobble a show like Tangled, I have no idea why CBC would reject this.  Foreign references are copious, but The Tudors gets away with worse.

Sarah Wayne Callies is Sally or Chloe – it depends on which part of her life one follows.  A sham marriage is planned around Sally/Chloe and Nick Hobbes (Bill Ward.)  Hobbes is seen as a rogue freelancer/former CIA golden boy stealing intel from Sally/Chloe’s employer, the North Atlantic Intelligence Agency (NAIA.)  NAIA is also trying to nail down main antagonist Oleg Gasparian.

Needless to say, there are the twists and turns common to an espionage show.  It’s all familiar stuff, but Tangled at least couches the espionage in proper human drama.  As a pilot, Tangled gives viewers a reason to care about Sally/Chloe’s life, convoluted as it is.

Callies is a bit stiff and monotonous as Sally/Chloe, but serviceable enough as a lead.  Ward plays Hobbes almost effortlessly.  Leslie Hope plays Sally/Chloe’s sister Marlene rather well, understandably miffed that Sally/Chloe has been playing dead for twelve years.  Hope doesn’t have a big part in the pilot, but she makes the most of her role.

I’m not exactly fond of the acting in Tangled.  The acting is a bit underplayed in general, aside from Ward’s character and a few minor characters I can’t name.  At the same time, the balance of action and drama sells Tangled.  Had Tangled made series, I’m sure it would have found its own level.

This isn’t the best pilot I’ve seen on CBC in 2010.  The Cult ranks highest on my list, for its excellent acting and choice of subject matter.  Tangled is still very good, better than the bet-hedging of the concept would suggest.  I sincerely hope Shaftesbury Films sells the series to another network or cable channel.

Tangled, the Shaftesbury Films pilot starring Sarah Wayne Callies and Leslie Hope, will air on CBC July 21, 2010 at 9:00 PM ET/PT.  As mentioned earlier on this site, CBC has passed on the pilot.

CBC’s website summarizes the show’s concept as a spy attempting to “remake herself and rediscover her own humanity, even as the bullets fly.”  It’s a female-oriented series, but CBC rarely mounts action shows.  It will be interesting to see how Tangled works on television.

Sarah Wayne Callies will soon appear on AMC’s The Walking Dead, a television adaptation of Robert Kirkman’s long-running zombie comic.  Callies will play Lori Grimes, wife of lead character Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln.)

As for Hope, she guest-stars as Kristina Frye on The Mentalist every so often.  She also appears on Lifetime Movie Network’s Seven Deadly Sins.  Both actors have their fans, so I see at least a torrent for Tangled.

Aside: if Tangled had made series, it would have had to change its name.  Disney will soon debut a film with a similar title.  Maybe Tangled should have changed its name to Being Alias.

The Border has been cancelled by CBC after three seasons.  Etan Vlessing first mentioned the cancellation through The Hollywood Reporter on February 26.

CBC scheduled the third season of The Border after Doc Zone.  Doc Zone is a perpetually low-rated documentary block.  It’s a weak lead-in, despite Doc Zone being one of the most underrated hours on CBC.

The Border has never attracted great ratings.  An average of 700,000 viewers is decent for CBC, but The Border has never been a breakout hit.  This isn’t like CBC killing jPod or Wild Roses, now.

As for Republic of Doyle, the ratings are decent enough for renewal.  The show has dipped to around 500,000-600,000 viewers by now, but so has 18 to Life.  RoD‘s where The Border was two seasons ago.

As a result of Republic of Doyle‘s renewal, Shaftesbury Films’ Tangled will not make series.  Sarah Wayne Callies and Leslie Hope are in the pilot, at least according to an EW.com interview.

Callies is best known for her role as Dr. Sara Tancredi on Prison Break (2005-09.)  Hope is best known as Teri Bauer on Fox ratings behemoth 24 (2001-  .)  Hope also played Lisa Cohen on ABC’s short-lived Line of Fire (2003-04.)

I suspect Tangled will be tossed into a June timeslot of doom, a fate met by most unsold CBC pilots.  I’d rather see Jack Bauer’s dead wife and Dr. Tancredi‘s severed head than a Leah McLaren biopic.  Wouldn’t you?

The Movie Network and Movie Central will debut Bloodletting and Miraculous Cures through its HBO Canada multiplex channel on January 10, 2010, at 8:00 PM ET/MT.  This is the first Canadian show to debut on HBO Canada, which came into being October 30, 2008.

The series is based on Vincent Lam’s Giller Prize-winning 2006 short story compilation.  It centers on three young medical professionals as they balance surgeries, medical emergencies and emotional baggage.  The phrase “sea of emotion” is used in the media release.

TMN and MC are promoting Bloodletting and Miraculous Cures heavily.  Beginning December 22, 2009, the first episode can be viewed online through hbocanada.com, themovienetwork.ca and moviecentral.ca.

Bloodletting and Miraculous Cures‘ first episode will debut December 22 on TMN OnDemand, and through Bell TV’s TMN OnLine service.  Western Canada will have to wait until December 29 for Movie Central On Demand to follow suit.  DVD samplers and Air Canada’s in-flight entertainment network also figure in promotion.

This is a Shaftesbury Films series, Shaftesbury fast becoming a household name in this country.  The company has its hand in Murdoch Mysteries, The Listener, ReGenesis, Life With Derek and The Summit, among other series/miniseries.  It’s even sold a Ken Finkleman series to TMN/MC, something I didn’t know was possible.

I hope Bloodletting and Miraculous Cures is good.  The Movie Network/Movie Central has been on a roll with The Line, Durham County, Sanctuary and ZOS: Zone of Separation.  If the show fails, it won’t be due to lack of marketing.  Considering Shaftesbury’s track record, I’ll be surprised if an American cable channel doesn’t snap B&MC up in a heartbeat.

The Listener (CTV/SPACE/NBC: premieres June 3, 10:00 PM ET on CTV, 7:00 PM ET on SPACE; in regular timeslot starting June 4, 10:00 PM ET on CTV, 7:00 PM ET on SPACE; two-hour premiere June 4, 9:00 PM ET/8:00 CT on NBC) is the type of filler CTV used to air quite a bit of in the 1990s.  It fits right in with FX: The Series, La Femme Nikita and John Woo’s Once a Thief – watchable enough that it should acquire a fan following, but lightweight.

What amazes me is that NBC bought the show for its summer schedule.  I’m not saying Canadian television is superior to American television – for every Slings and Arrows there are five to ten Gutter Ball Alleys.  The Listener was bought by NBC due both to the WGA writer’s strike and its abandonment of the traditional development process.

The Canadian shows floated on American networks aren’t the best, either – Flashpoint is workmanlike and entertaining, but it’s a cop procedural in a sea of cop procedurals.  The Listener seems more suited for a SciFi (I’m sorry, SyFy) airing than a summer slot on NBC.  Of course, NBC’s prime-time ratings are almost the lowest they’ve ever been, so any edge, I guess.

Toby Logan (Craig Olejnik) is the central protagonist of the series.  The first episode sets up Logan’s world – his coming to terms with his mind-reading, his relationship with mentor Dr. Ray Mercer (Colm Feore), his personal life and day job as a paramedic.  The Listener establishes its premise, gives the viewer a few characters to love/hate and fucks around for an hour.

It’s standard dramatic sci-fi television, Early Edition with mindreading taking the place of a magic newspaper.  I also get a Millennium vibe from Logan’s mind-pictures.  The Listener could have easily debuted in 1996, so well-worn is its premise.

The second episode, which NBC decided to pair with the first on the same night, strengthens Logan’s relationship with Detective Charlene “Charlie” Marks (Lisa Marcos), a tough cop who can’t discern how someone like Logan is able to anticipate events better than she can.  Small spoiler: someone falls from a large height in both episodes.  The Listener is the very definition of cookie cutter.

Aside from Dr. Mercer and fellow paramedic Osman Bey (Ennis Esmer), The Listener‘s characters aren’t very interesting.  Feore and Esmer do what they can with their material, as they are the only two convincing actors on the show.  Olejnik isn’t horrible as the lead character, but he’s too slight to focus on week after week.  He’s only there as The Listener‘s main himbo.

NBC is placing a lot of faith in The Listener since it recently gave the show a two-hour block to debut in.  Despite this, I wonder about The Listener‘s success.  Either NBC’s hoping for The Listener to become a summer hit or it’s burning the show off like flash paper.

CTV has joined in the rescheduling madness, so I’m leaning towards the former scenario.  Hell, I’m hoping The Listener hits big.  I just wish The Listener was a less generic, more interesting show, but that’s the American prime-time bran tub for you.