This Is Wonderland
Canadian legal comedy-drama television series From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Canadian legal comedy-drama television series From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This Is Wonderland is a Canadian legal comedy-drama television series that premiered on CBC on January 12, 2004. The series was created by George F. Walker, Dani Romain, and Bernard Zukerman.
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This Is Wonderland | |
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Genre | Drama |
Created by |
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Starring |
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Theme music composer | Varouje Hagopian |
Country of origin | Canada |
No. of seasons | 3 |
No. of episodes | 39 |
Production | |
Executive producers |
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Running time | 45 minutes |
Production companies |
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Original release | |
Network | CBC |
Release | January 12, 2004 – March 15, 2006 |
The second season premiered on January 25, 2005, and the third season on November 23, 2005. On February 13, 2006, CBC declined to order a fourth season, effectively cancelling the show. The final episode aired on March 15, 2006.
Alice De Raey, played by Cara Pifko, a young criminal lawyer fresh out of Osgoode Hall Law School, is thrown into a chaotic justice system. She encounters characters ranging from the truly desperate to the bizarre. Alice, with a good-natured openness that cloaks a tenacious, committed spirit, finds herself on a journey that constantly tests her patience and compassion. Alice has a distinctive habit of muttering to herself.
Set in the courtrooms of Toronto's Old City Hall, cast regulars include Michael Riley, Michael Murphy, Michael Healey, Siu Ta, Eric Peterson, Janet-Laine Green and Kathryn Winslow. Jayne Eastwood and Ron Lea joined the cast in 2005.
In addition to Alice's education in the real world of low rent criminal justice, distinctive features of the Wonderland courtroom include respectful treatment of the mental health concerns of both defendants and the authority figures (judges and lawyers) faced with the contradictions of the system and the multicultural nature of Toronto society. Events in many of the characters' lives overwhelm their ability to emotionally cope and the shortcomings of the "blunt instrument" of the judicial system to address those situations are fully explored. Language and cultural barriers routinely figure into the course of justice, raising questions about the ability of the judicial system to respond to the needs of a changing society.
No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
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1 | 1 | "Pilot" | Bruce McDonald | George F. Walker & Dani Romain | January 12, 2004 |
2 | 2 | "Episode 2" | Bruce McDonald | George F. Walker & Dani Romain | January 19, 2004 |
3 | 3 | "Episode 3" | Unknown | Unknown | January 26, 2004 |
4 | 4 | "Episode 1.04" | Unknown | Unknown | February 2, 2004 |
5 | 5 | "Episode 1.05" | Keith Behrman | George F. Walker & Dani Romain | February 8, 2004 |
6 | 6 | "Episode 1.06" | Keith Behrman | George F. Walker & Dani Romain | February 9, 2004 |
7 | 7 | "Episode 1.07" | Unknown | Unknown | February 16, 2004 |
8 | 8 | "Episode 8" | Unknown | Unknown | March 1, 2004 |
9 | 9 | "Episode 9" | Anne Wheeler | George F. Walker & Dani Romain | March 8, 2004 |
10 | 10 | "Episode 1.10" | Unknown | Unknown | March 15, 2004 |
11 | 11 | "Episode 1.11" | Scott Smith | George F. Walker & Dani Romain | March 22, 2004 |
12 | 12 | "Episode 1.12" | Unknown | Unknown | March 29, 2004 |
13 | 13 | "Episode 1.13" | Unknown | Unknown | April 5, 2004 |
No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
14 | 1 | "Episode 2.01" | Unknown | Unknown | January 25, 2005 |
15 | 2 | "Episode 2.02" | Chris Grismer | George F. Walker & Dani Romain | February 1, 2005 |
16 | 3 | "Episode 2.03" | Unknown | Unknown | February 8, 2005 |
17 | 4 | "Episode 2.04" | Unknown | Unknown | February 15, 2005 |
18 | 5 | "Episode 2.05" | Scott Smith | George F. Walker & Dani Romain & Reni Walker and Bruce Mitchell | February 22, 2005 |
19 | 6 | "Episode 2.06" | Scott Smith | George F. Walker & Dani Romain and Joseph Kay | March 1, 2005 |
20 | 7 | "Episode 2.07" | Anne Wheeler | George F. Walker & Dani Romain | March 8, 2005 |
21 | 8 | "Episode 2.08" | Unknown | Unknown | March 22, 2005 |
22 | 9 | "Episode 2.09" | Unknown | Unknown | March 29, 2005 |
23 | 10 | "Episode 2.10" | Unknown | Unknown | April 5, 2005 |
24 | 11 | "Episode 2.11" | Unknown | Unknown | April 12, 2005 |
25 | 12 | "Episode 2.12" | Unknown | Unknown | April 19, 2005 |
26 | 13 | "Episode 2.13" | Unknown | Unknown | April 26, 2005 |
No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
27 | 1 | TBA | Unknown | Unknown | November 23, 2005 |
28 | 2 | TBA | Unknown | Unknown | November 30, 2005 |
29 | 3 | TBA | Unknown | Unknown | December 7, 2005 |
30 | 4 | TBA | Unknown | Unknown | December 14, 2005 |
31 | 5 | TBA | Unknown | Unknown | January 4, 2006 |
32 | 6 | TBA | Unknown | Unknown | January 11, 2006 |
33 | 7 | TBA | Unknown | Unknown | January 18, 2006 |
34 | 8 | TBA | Unknown | Unknown | January 25, 2006 |
35 | 9 | TBA | Unknown | Unknown | February 1, 2006 |
36 | 10 | TBA | Unknown | Unknown | February 8, 2006 |
37 | 11 | TBA | Unknown | Unknown | March 1, 2006 |
38 | 12 | TBA | Unknown | Unknown | March 8, 2006 |
39 | 13 | TBA | Unknown | Unknown | March 15, 2006 |
Within Canada, reruns of This Is Wonderland were broadcast on CBC's specialty channel Country Canada[1] (later rebranded as Bold).
The syndication began airing on South African network M-Net Series on July 7, 2009.[2] The series also became available on VisionTV.[3]
During the series' run, four Gemini Awards were awarded to members of the cast. Michael Murphy (as Judge Maxwell Fraser) won Best Performance by an Actor in a Featured Supporting Role in a Dramatic Series in 2004 and 2005; Cara Pifko (as Alice DeRaey) won Best Performance by an Actress in a Continuing Leading Dramatic Role in 2005; and Michael Riley (as Eliot Sacks) won Best Performance by an Actor in a Continuing Leading Dramatic Role in 2005.[4]
This Is Wonderland received twelve Gemini nominations, including Best Dramatic Series (in 2006).[5][6][7]
The first season was released on DVD in Region 1 on September 6, 2005.[8] Seasons two and three have not been released on DVD.
In 2017, the series had been released online for free on Canada Media Fund’s Encore+ YouTube channel. The channel ceased operation as of November 30, 2022.
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