Many things may come to mind when people think of Canada, including maple syrup, a beautiful environment, icy winters, and, of course, its hospitable people. Another skill that Canadians excel at is producing quality television programs.
Although it is frequently forgotten about when it comes to television, there are still many excellent Canadian TV shows. The TV show industry in Canada is diverse, with anything from hilarious animated series like Total Drama to engrossing historical dramas like The Tudors. Check out some of Canada’s top television programs.
Alias Grace
You’ll be captivated by the historical drama Alias Grace from the first installment. The same-titled 1996 novel by Margaret Atwood was adapted into a six-part miniseries. The program centers on the trial and conviction of Grace Marks (played by Sarah Gordon), an impoverished young immigrant from Ireland who worked as a domestic worker for Thomas Kinnear and Nancy Montgomery in 1843. The story of Alias Grace is portrayed in flashbacks, from her 1843 arrest and trial through her later life in 1859, when she is examined by Dr. Simon Jordan, a psychiatrist.
In order to determine what transpired and whether Grace is innocent, Dr. Jordan questions Grace about her past and the occasions leading up to Kinnear’s death. The show immerses viewers in a complicated web of class conflict, female power dynamics, and Grace’s repressed memories. Grace tries to piece together her jumbled memories of the incidents over the entire series in order to comprehend her part in the killings.
Anne with an E
If you enjoy coming-of-age tales with a lovely backdrop, Anne with an E is the ideal program for you to watch. Based on Lucy Maud Montgomery’s classic book Anne of Green Gables, Anne with an E follows 13-year-old orphan Anne Shirley (Amybeth Mcnulty), who is sent to live with her elderly spinster siblings Marilla (Geraldine James) and Matthew Cuthbert (R.H. Thomson) in the made-up Prince Edward Island town of Avonlea.
Through the course of the series, Anne sets out on a journey of self-discovery and adventure, juggling her interactions with the locals, learning what family is, and figuring out her true position in the universe. Sadly, Anne with an E was not renewed for a third season despite its enormous fan base and favorable reviews; nevertheless, you may watch the first two seasons on Netflix.
Can You Hear Me (M’entends-tu?)
Since Canada is a French-speaking nation, any list regarding Canadian TV shows does its readers a disservice if it lacks any Francophone presence. Three friends who live in a low-income Montreal area, Ada (played by Florence Longpré), Carolanne (played by Marie Landry), and Fabiola (played by Mélissa Bédard), are the subjects of the French-Canadian television series Can You Hear Me or (M’entends-tu?)
The trio faces the daily grind of working low-paying jobs and figuring out their position in the world as they traverse their twenties while also trying to figure out life and love. The characters in the story encounter a variety of challenges and eventually come to rely on one another for assistance. With a blend of humour, drama, and heart, the series explores the actual concerns affecting young people today, such as sexuality, family, and mental health.
Continuum
A science fiction television program called 12 Continuum Continuum ran from 2012 to 2015 for four seasons. In the show, Rachel Nichols plays Kiera Cameron, a police officer from the year 2077 who is unintentionally sent 65 years into the future to defend the present from the Liber8 terrorist organization. Kiera joins the Vancouver police force in an effort to stop Liber8 and gain access to inside knowledge about their operations. Alec Sadler, a seventeen-year-old tech genius from the future played by Erik Knudsen, and Carlos Fonnegra, a police detective, assist her.
They must work together to prevent the terrorists from changing the course of history and guarantee that the future of 2077 is unharmed. Kiera struggles as the story goes along with the idea that her choices now will have a significant impact tomorrow. Continuum should be on your list of must-watch movies if you enjoy police dramas and action movies but want something with a distinctive spin.
Degrassi
Degrassi can appear to the unassuming eye to be a conventional coming-of-age teenage drama series. Degrassi is more than that, though. Degrassi is a show that many Canadian teenagers find to be unafraid to tackle challenging topics that concern them. The teen drama series made its debut in 1979, and over the years, different character alterations have been done. The story revolves around a group of adolescents attending the made-up Degrassi Community School.
Bullying, relationships, mental health, sexuality, school violence, drugs, and alcohol are just a few of the topics the show addresses. Degrassi is well-liked not only in Canada but also abroad due to its accurate depiction of contemporary teen difficulties.
Frontier
One of the least-discussed aspects of Canadian history that Frontier illuminates is the North American fur trade. Frontier is a historical drama series that is set in the late 18th century and centers on Declan Harp (played by Jason Momoa), a part-Irish, part-Cree outlaw who is determined to end the Hudson Bay company’s monopoly and power over the North American fur trade.
Momoa’s portrayal of Declan Harp is superb, keeping viewers glued to their screens the entire time. Frontier is co-produced by the Discovery Channel, therefore it aspires to present a historically accurate depiction of the North American fur trade in addition to being full of intrigue and adventure.
Heartland
Heartland is a family drama that chronicles the life of the Fleming-Bartlett family as they attempt to preserve their virtually bankrupt ranch. It is set in the fictional town of Hudson, Alberta. The show, which is based on Lauren Brooke’s books of the same name, follows the family as they navigate the difficulties of maintaining a ranch while also addressing their personal issues.
Heartland has grabbed the hearts of many viewers and established itself as a fan favorite thanks to its beautiful depiction of family, love, and friendship. Heartland’s 16 seasons are now streamable on Netflix if you’re searching for a new show to binge.
Kim’s Convenience
Kim’s Convenience, a hilarious sitcom, portrays the lives of the Kims, a Korean-Canadian family who own and operate a convenience shop in downtown Toronto. The Kims are your typical nuclear family, consisting of a controlling mother, a rigid father, and two grown children. The program has won praise from critics for its deft use of humor while tackling relevant topics like immigration, identity, relationships between generations, and the value of family. Five seasons of Kim’s Convenience have been released, with season six being shelved owing to production problems.
Letterkenny
There’s a reason why Letterkenny has received such high praise from critics. Jordan Kreeso is the creator of the show, which includes 11 seasons and 74 episodes. Crave eventually adapted the humorous Letterkenny for television from its origins as a web series on Youtube called Letterkenny Problems. The character of Wayne, played by Jared Kreeso, is the focus of the television series, which is situated in the made-up little town of Letterkenny. Wayne is a good-old-boy who manages his farm and takes pride in being the “toughest guy in Letterkenny.”
Wayne’s friends include Squirrely Dan (K. Trevor Wilson), who is smart despite having a vocal tic, Daryl (Nathan Dales), who is Wayne’s sister and the group’s “townie,” and Daryl (Nathan Dales), a dairy farmer who frequently bears the brunt of the jokes. The humor of the program makes numerous allusions to small-town life, hockey, Canadian culture, and idioms. The way that the series portrays rural Canadian communities has received appreciation.
Murdoch mysteries
Murdoch Mysteries checks off all three requirements for a successful detective show: a quirky investigator, a likeable sidekick or sidekicks, and a compelling mystery to solve. In order to solve crimes in the city, William Murdoch (played by Yannick Bisson), a police detective for the Toronto Constabulary, employs cutting-edge forensic methods like fingerprinting, blood testing, surveillance, and trace evidence.
Murdoch investigates a number of mysteries, many of which have an intriguing twist, with the help of his coworkers Inspector Thomas Brackenreid (played by Thomas Craig), Constable George Crabtree (played by Johnny Harris), and Dr. Julia Ogden (played by Helen Joy).
Orphan Black
Prepare yourself for an encounter on the edge of your seat with this astounding sci-fi thriller with a twist. The tale of Orphan Black centers on Sarah (played by Tatiana Maslany), a streetwise con artist with a troubled past, whose life changes after seeing her doppelganger commit herself. Sarah learns that she is a part of a covert cloning operation that poses a threat to her and the other clones after adopting the identity of the deceased woman.
The show gains an intriguing new dimension when Sarah’s clone sisters, including the eccentric scientist Cosima Niehaus and the street-smart Alison Hendrix, join her in her search for the truth. Maslany’s portrayal of the several clones garnered her numerous honors, showcasing her brilliance and ability to switch between personas with ease.
Rookie Blue
The police drama series produced by Morwyn Brebner, Tassie Cameron, and Ellen Vanstone will be a treat for Grey’s Anatomy fans. Five rookie police officers who have just graduated from Toronto’s police academy are the subject of Rookie Blue. The rookies quickly discover as the series goes on that no amount of instruction could have adequately prepared them for what being a cop in the real world is actually like. The program immerses viewers in the fast-paced lives of the rookies as they discover the demands of their new positions and duties.
Schitt’s Creek
The comedy series Schitt’s Creek was developed by Dan and Eugene Levy, and it is both endearing and entertaining. The program ran on CBC for six seasons, from 2015 to 2020. After becoming suddenly bankrupt owing to an embezzlement scandal and being forced to live in Schitt’s Creek, a little village they originally bought as a joke, it chronicles the life of the wealthy Rose family. Formerly wealthy video store magnate Johnny Rose (played by Eugene Levy), his wife Moira (played by Catherine O’Hara), their two children David (played by Dan Levy) and Alexis (played by Annie Murphy), and other family members must adjust to life without money and their opulent way of life.
They relocate to a lesser-quality motel in Schitt’s Creek than their previous home. The Roses’ once-luxurious lives in ruins, they must confront their newfound poverty and learn to live without the comforts they once enjoyed. The family finds surprising laughter in the unlikeliest of places as they get used to their new lifestyles, and they become closer as a family in ways they never imagined imaginable. Schitt’s Creek consistently surprises viewers by being better than the previous episode, which led to a record-breaking number of Emmy nominations for its final season.
Sensitive Skin
Sensitive Skin explores the topic of growing older by examining how it’s simple to feel lost as the years pass. The dark comedy-drama is a Canadian rendition of Hugo Blick’s British program of the same name. After relocating from the suburbs, Davina (played by Kim Cattrall, a woman in her fifties) and her husband Al (played by Don McKellar) are the subjects of the movie Sensitive Skin. Davina sets out on a voyage of self-discovery as she faces aging, mid-life crises, and shifting interpersonal dynamics.
The program investigates the limits of what it means to be a woman of a particular age and how to appreciate life’s beauty and fragility. Sadly, a third season of the show was not ordered, although the first two seasons are still accessible on HBO.
The Tudors
Devoted followers of royal dramas like as The Crown and Reign will be pleased to learn that there is yet another royal drama to get lost in. The Tudors focuses on King Henry VIII of England and his interactions with the Roman Catholic Church, the Pope, and his six wives, as well as his political connections with his courtiers. King Henry III becomes fixated on the stunning Anne Boleyn when he is unable to have children. Though it was illegal at the time, Anne declines to wed him unless he divorces his wife. King Henry III begins the divorce process because he wants Anne for himself, which leads to a conflict with the Roman Catholic Church.
The television show guides viewers through the intrigues and power conflicts at King Henry VIII’s court. The Tudors’ cast is nothing short of spectacular in their portrayal of England in the sixteenth century. The Tudors may not always get the historical details correct, but its excellent cast and exciting storyline more than make up for it.
Total Drama
Total Drama is the ideal fusion of drama, comedy, and reality television. Without a doubt, one of Canada’s top television programs is Total Drama. The 22 teenagers in the animated reality TV show attend Camp Wawanakwa, a made-up summer camp. The contestants compete to be the last one standing and win the $100,000 grand prize after a series of eliminations and twists.
The challenges, which can be both physical and problem-solving in nature, are typically tied to the episode’s theme. Additionally, the contestants are urged (and occasionally required) to form alliances, vote one another off the island, and sabotage one another. It’s no surprise that the show has received praise from critics for its humor and innovation given its amusing narration by the host Chris McLean and its wide range of fascinating characters.
Trailer Park Boys
Once again, Canada demonstrates its ability to create amusing and enjoyable television. A follow-up to the 1999 film of the same name, Trailer Park Boys is a Canadian mockumentary television series developed and directed by Mike Clattenburg. The program centers on the misadventures of three best friends and minor offenders who reside in the fictional Sunnyvale Trailer Park in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia: Ricky (Rob Wells), Julian (John Paul Tremblay), and Bubbles (Mike Smith).
The trio frequently avoids the police as well as their vengeful park superintendent Jim Lahey and his assistant Randy in their attempts to generate money through various illegal activities and get-rich-quick schemes. All 12 seasons of Trailer Park Boys are accessible on Netflix if you wish to watch them.
Travelers
In the science fiction series Travelers, a team of elite agents from the future have their consciousnesses brought back in time to inhabit humans in the twenty-first century in order to avert an impending global catastrophe. The travelers have the capacity to “jump” into hosts’ bodies and seize control of them. To avoid interfering with the effects on the future, the hosts are specially picked since they are soon to pass away. Time travel may be one of the oldest and most popular TV themes, but Travelers offers a distinctive perspective that is interesting to see.
Workin’ Moms
Any working mother is aware that there are many different ways to manage the complexities of parenthood. This concept was taken on by Catherine Reitman, and what resulted is a famous sitcom on the difficulties of contemporary parenthood. In the television series Workin’ Moms, four friends struggle to maintain a healthy work-life balance while adjusting to motherhood.
The program is not only humorous but also has a stellar cast that vividly depicts the problems faced by working mothers in real life. The difficulties of contemporary motherhood, friendship, and relationships are accurately and frequently hilariously portrayed in the television show Workin’ Moms.
Wynonna Earp
Fans of Western movies have undoubtedly heard of the fabled Wyatt Earp. The Beau Smith comic book series served as the inspiration for the supernatural Western horror television series Wynonna Earp. It centers on Wynonna Earp, the illustrious lawman Wyatt Earp’s great-granddaughter, who is portrayed by Melanie Scrofano.
Wynonna Earp returns to Purgatory, her homeland, after a long absence in order to grudgingly assume Wyatt Earp’s former position. Her goal is to eliminate the revenants—the dead but still alive souls of the criminals Wyatt Earp previously killed. Wynonna Earp is a movie worth watching since it has a strong female heroine and a supernatural horror premise.
