THIS WEEK’S TOP TV TIPS
SATURDAY
Untamed China
For those of you who have access to the specialty channel, this new six-part series, which follows Nigel Marven as he explores remote areas of China, is worth a look. China is the fourth largest country on earth and one of the most ecologically diverse. The opener focuses on Yunnan Province where Marven explores the ancient city of Dali and meets some deadly reptiles. Next week’s episode explores the country’s three vast deserts.
Discovery World
SUNDAY
Family Guy
It is the 200th episode of this long-running cartoon, and a special one-hour episode is followed by a retrospective in which fans get a behind-the-scenes look at the comedy’s outrageous moments through interviews with the cast. They will also enjoy a glimpse of the crew’s celebratory party. In the new episode, Brian uses Stewie’s time machine to impress women he meets in bars, but accidentally causes time to run in reverse, leading to a potential crises that could leave Stewie unborn.
Fox, Global
WE Day
Hedley, Nelly Furtado, K’NAAN and One Republic are among the musicians taking part in the 2012 edition of WE Day – Canada’s trendsetting youth movement, which saw nearly 20,000 students in cities across the country banding together to work towards a better tomorrow. The event is led by international children’s rights activists Marc and Craig Kielburger, founders of Free The Children charity. Exclusive interviews and footage of events lead up to the premiere.
MuchMusic
MONDAY
Leverage
The band of criminal dogooders is back for a fifth season, putting their energy to good effect in an ongoing attempt to secure justice for society’s underdogs. Led by former insurance investigator Nate Ford (Timothy Hutton) and including a grifter, retrieval specialist, tech wiz and off-centre thief, the team goes after a global aviation executive in the premiere episode – attempting to convince him that they can get hold of Howard Hughes’ vintage aircraft, the Spruce Goose.
Super Channel
TUESDAY
Gold Rush: Million Dollar Season
It’s taken two years for them to get this far, but now the four competing gold mining crews have hit the big time, setting up a high stakes season. After finding 35 ounces of gold last year, worth $50,000 US, 18-year-old Parker Schnabel has to prove that he has got what it takes to be a real Alaskan gold miner. So he hires a new crew, mines new land and rebuilds his wash plant from the ground up. It pays off: in one week, Parker gets more gold out of Big Nuggett than he did all of last season.
Discovery Channel
WEDNESDAY
Titanic: Blood and Steel
It’s getting near the end of the road – or should that be voyage – for the fans of the series, as the Titanic is finally launched, with much pomp and ceremony but unfortunately with iron rather than steel rivets. Mark’s ( Kevin Zegers) relationship with Sofia ( Alessandra Mastronardi) becomes public knowledge, and his search for his daughter runs into stormy waters. The 12-part series has been chronicling the largely untold story of how the ship was built, but will stop short of a re-creation of the actual sinking.
CBC
Arrow
This new series based on the DC Comics superhero, Green Arrow, has become something of an instant hit. It follows billionaire playboy Oliver Queen ( Stephen Amell) who, as a teen, was shipwrecked on a desert island for five years. Back home, Oliver wants to make amends for things he did in his youth and creates the Arrow, a vigilante character who fights the wrongs of his family and the ills of society by night. In this new episode, Oliver decides to think beyond his father’s list and help the citizens at large, after an off-duty police officer is shot in a bank heist.
WGN, WPIX, CTV2
THURSDAY
Crossfire Hurricane
It’s not easy to cover off 50 years in the life of the quintessential rock band, The Rolling Stones, in just under two hours, but this new documentary contains some excellent concert footage as well as reminders of how the world evolved over the years. In the beginning, the Stones were regarded as the bad guys – while the Beatles were the darlings – and shots of the hostile middle-aged critics make for fun viewing. Both Mick Jagger and Keith Richards had a hand in the production.
HBO
Doc Zone
Tonight’s episode deals with cheating in high schools and delivers some surprisingly innovative ways in which students make the grade with a little help from cellphones, Bluetooth devices, and ‘spy store’ surveillance equipment. What’s even more surprising is that mum and dad are forking over the cash to enable them to do it. Moral values seem to have fallen by the wayside.
CBC
FRIDAY
We Will Always Love You
This salute to Whitney Houston stars Jennifer Hudson, whose stunning rendition of Houston’s most famous song was the highlight of last February’s Grammy Awards. Also saluting the dead singer are Céline Dion, Usher, Yolanda Adams and CeCe Winans. There is lots of archival footage of the singer.
CBS