Since its inception, "CanCon"--the 35% quota for Canadian content on television and radio in Canada, has been a proverbial thorn in the side of stations across the country, as they have been forced to limit their creativity to allow for artistic contributions from Canadians as their first priority; everything else comes second. Canadian viewers haven’t shared the negative views of network executives, until now, when there appears to be a dwindling number of quality Canadian shows as opposed to just a few years ago. For years, Canada has been the place for many great television shows: classics such as The Beachcombers, The Littlest Hobo, Forever Knight, Club Six, Danger Bay, NightHeat; even great shows for kids such as Fred Penner’s Place, The Racoons, Mr. Dressup--the list goes on and on. But the list for Canadian programming in the year 2002 appears to be much shorter...or is it?

Canadian-made shows seem no longer to stand-out from their American counterparts. Perhaps the slick Hollywood productions filmed in Canada have rubbed off on Canadian filmmakers? Or maybe “the Canadian way” is just passé? Whatever the case, many Canadian shows made today do not lack as much in quality as it would at first appear; in fact, very little about them even stand out as "Canadian." Two great examples I’ve noticed are CTV’s Cold-Squad, a forensics show in the vein of the super-popular CSI: Crime Scene Investigation (although Cold-Squad is three years its senior) filmed in Vancouver; and the other example, YTV’s Radio-Active, a show set mostly in a high school radio station run by students, like WKRP for kids.

Cold-Squad’s production level is high quality, not reminiscent of NightHeat, another Canadian cop-show from the ‘80s that had a noticeably lower standard of production. Cold-Squad follow police detectives who crack open the "cold" (or unsolved) murder cases and thus showcase the newest crime solving technologies. I was delighted to find that the characters were distinct, complex, and interesting. The filming techniques are innovative and add to the freshness of the show. I first noticed it as a Canadian show when a slight reference to Stanley Park was made; before that, I thought I had stumbled upon a small American TV show that hadn’t made its big break yet. What surprises me even more is how dark the show is, with episodes dealing with murders of prostitutes, and gay-bashers, all hard facts of life. One of the first things that comes to mind as to what makes Canada special is how peaceful a country it is considering its proximity to “The War Zone” (aka The United States). Cold-Squad seems to contradict this image of Canada’s peacefulness--maybe where Vancouver is headed more than where it is right now--possibly to make it a strong sell south of the border. Regardless, it is well-done, and the numbers speak for themselves. It is difficult to attract people to tune into their televisions on Saturday night because they’re usually elsewhere, so most shows don’t last in that slot. Yet Cold-Squad has survived there for the past four seasons.

Cold-Squad and Radio-Active do count as CanCon, but as for being "Canadian," they could’ve been made anywhere. Now what is Canadian has been explored many times over, to death almost, but two recently shows--The Buzz and The Trailer-Park Boys--take a new angle in the examination of what makes Canada special.

First up, The Buzz is a show the Comedy Network created to replace their departed hit The Tom Green Show which left the network for MTV in the United States. What Tom Green had in shock value but lacked in sensibility, The Buzz counters with twice the shock and five times the senses. Hosted by Daryn Jones, an in-your-face and somewhat geeky guy, and Mista Mo, an almost real rapper, the segments the two come up with are more hilarious than Tom Green ever thought of. Such skits include: "Mr. Harassment," a painted hand (of Daryn Jones) who asks to grab women’s asses; impromptu limo rides for anyone willing to take a ride somewhere; invasions of MuchMusic where Daryn speaks some Japanese he learned while repeating “I have diarrhoea!!!"; and the best segments, Mista Mo’s music videos, parodying gangsta rap, and hillbillies, all at the same time. Now what makes this show a good example of Canadian television? First and foremost, the innovative humour. Even though it is meant to be a replacement of The Tom Green Show, Tom Green was never terribly original--more like Dave Letterman on LSD--but The Buzz is more of a hardcore version of SCTV (a Canadian version of Saturday Night Live for those of you too young to remember). The Buzz is also not afraid to rise to its challenges. Replacing Tom Green wasn’t the last, but making itself noticed in the United States is a continuing effort. In the simple “Star Talk!” segment, the hosts pester American stars such as Brad Pitt, Anthony Kiedis of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, and The Rock. Just when you think Canada’s done funny, something even funnier comes down the drain that manages to be even simpler in design at the same time.

So there it is, Canadian Content at its finest: four high-quality shows that probably don’t get as much credit as they deserve. All a viewer has to do is search for such things, and they’ll be found. On a good day, such shows would be easy to find, but these aren’t the good days for CanCon. There’s a load of garbage out there, but there’s an even bigger load being produced in the United States--it’s just a cyclical business. What won’t change is the massive industry using Canada as a playground where American productions kidnap the scenery. But the belief that nice scenery is all Canada is good for is just a big myth, so let the Americans have it. We’ve got the heart that just can’t be forced out through quotas or money.

Da Vinci's Inquest : Filmed in Vancouver and co-starring Donnelly Rhodes formerly of Danger Bay (pictured right). It is undoubtedly the best television program filmed in Canada to date.

This Hour Has 22 Minutes: Original and popular news parody television show on CBC television.

Cold-Squad : CTV's forensics crime-drama.

Radio-Active :YTV's answer to WKRP.

The Buzz :The Comedy Network's answer to Tom Green.

Trailer-Park Boys: Showcase's answer to....a budget?