Cutthroat Kitchen heats up
The TV universe is constantly expanding and new channels and shows vie for attention just as much as old favourites. Here are the best bets on the box.
SATURDAY
Cutthroat Kitchen
Before one of them makes it to the grand finale, Montreal-born chef Nadia G., Brian Malarkey, Marcel Vigneron and Justin Warn e r face sabotages including a very high prep table, cooking in a popcorn machine and getting a hand stuck in a cookie jar in the new episode Superstar Challenge: Heat Two. Alton Brown hosts. (Food Network)
Movie: Tremors
Horror gets a somewhat comedic twist in this offbeat 1990 film starring Kevin Bacon, Fred Ward and Reba McEntire in her acting debut. The action takes place in a remote town threatened by huge, wormlike creatures that stalk prey from beneath the surface. Airing Saturday on AMC as part of a marathon — wormathon? — that includes, immediately following, Tremors 2: Aftershocks, Tremors 3: Back to Perfection and Tremors 4: The Legend Begins. (AMC)
Movie: Scooby-Doo!
Stage Fright
Some testy critics carped this 2013 direct-to-video animated sequel played like an unholy alliance of Phantom of the Opera and American Idol. That’s a fair assessment to some degree, since the story finds Fred and Daphne (voices of Frank Welker and Grey DeLisle) competing on a hit TV show, broadcast from an opera house with a dark history. After they reach the finals, a vengeful phantom curses the show, forcing the Mystery Inc. team to investigate. Matthew Lillard and Mindy Cohn lend their voices as, respectively, Shaggy and Velma. (Toon)
Movie: Big Driver
While taking an ill-advised shortcut on a remote New England road, thriller writer Tess Thorne (Maria Bello) is stranded when a tire blows out. Relief when a stranger (Will Harris) stops and offers assistance quickly turns to horror as the man savagely assaults her and leaves her for dead. Making her way home, Tess tries to pull herself together enough to find her assailant and get revenge. Olympia Dukakis and Joan Jett also star in this 2014 chiller adapted from a story in Stephen King’s collection Full Dark, No Stars. (Lifetime)
Movie: Twitches
Sister, Sister twins Tia and Tamera Mowry star as Alex and Camryn in this 2005 original movie. Born in the magical land of Coventry, they are separated at a young age to avoid falling prey to evil. Separately raised by adoptive parents and guarded by protectors (Jennifer Robertson, Pat Kelly), Alex and Camryn meet on their 21st birthday and set out to find their birth mother. (The Family Channel)
SUNDAY
The Simpsons
In the new annual spooktacular Treehouse of Horror XXV, after Bart reads a set of Aramaic symbols on the underside of his desk, he and Lisa are hurled into a demon-filled alternate universe. In a parody of A Clockwork Orange, Dum (Homer) wants out of Moe’s vicious gang to please his new girlfriend (Marge). Finally, the Simpsons are visited by the cruder versions of themselves from The Tracey Ullman Show in a send-up of The Others. Dan Castellaneta, Julie Kavner and Nancy Cartwright head the voice cast. (Fox, Global)
Janet King
In the new episode Natural Justice, Janet (Marta Dusseldorp) decides to go all-out for a conviction in the case against Dianne Vaslich (Deborah Kennedy), after getting over her initial reservations the evidence isn’t strong enough. Elsewhere, Erin (Ella Scott Lynch) deals with the aftermath of a traumatic drive-by shooting. (CBC)
Satisfaction
Somewhat more sexually frank than most other original basic cable dramas, this series follows a young couple who yearn for more personal fulfilment despite all their creature comforts. In the Pilot, banker Neil Truman (Matt Passmore, The Glades) gains a completely unexpected new perspective on his life and marriage when he discovers his wife, Grace (Stephanie Szostak), is seeing a male escort (Blair Redford). (Showcase)
Madam Secretary
When a crafty Elizabeth (Téa Leoni) is called upon to negotiate with Iran regarding their escalating nuclear program, she is determined to do so peacefully instead of following the president’s (Keith Carradine) preferred go-to strategy of military intervention. Meanwhile, Jason (Evan Roe) interviews his father (Tim Daly) for a school report in the new episode Blame Canada. (CBS, Global)
Resurrection
In the new episode Old Scars, Margaret (guest Michelle Fairley) pushes Lucille (Frances Fisher) to host a dinner celebrating the return of Jacob (Landon Gimenez). What starts out as a vaguely uncomfortable gathering, however, quickly becomes even more tense with the arrival of some unexpected guests that strain family relations to the breaking point. Elsewhere, Rachael (guest Kathleen Munroe) gets some troubling news about her baby, while Bellamy (Omar Epps) continues his research on the mysterious bones. (ABC, CTV)