Right now, the world is all about 90s nostalgia. From Girl Meets World to every 90s boy band and girl group reunion, there was something about that time we’re trying to recall.
But you know what was really great about the 90s? Canadian TV shows for kids. Remember coming home from school to watch YTV? If you’re too young to remember that, then I’m just super old. Shows like Student Bodies and Breaker High were silly fun and Uh-Oh was a game show I was and remain desperate to be on (blue team, always — Ed. note: they always won).
So let’s take a trip down memory lane…
Uh Oh! was the game show to end all game shows. It had slime, a host named Wink Yahoo who had crazy hair, A PUNISHER (!!), teams named after primary colours, an insanely catchy them song (“uh oh, uh oh…”) and a spinning wheel. What more could you possibly ask for on a Canadian game show? It was like a very safe and kid-friendly version of Fear Factor meets Survivor meets Wheel of Fortune. Uh Oh! ran for seven season on YTV and though I was never able to compete on the show, I wish to die with my audition tape.
Who wants to start a Kickstarter to bring this gem back? Student Bodies spoke to me like nothing else – it got me. Student Bodies was about a bunch of high-school students who ran the school’s newspaper and dealt with a ton of relatable, adolescent problems mixed with cartoon drawings thrown into the mix. It was boss.
Now, Breaker High was never really my jam (as you can see from above, I was busy watching Student Bodies) but it was high school on a boat so I got it and I watched it regularly. Again: it was about a high school on a cruise ship (soak that in) and shockingly only lasted for one season and also featured Ryan Gosling as the wannabe player with a heart of gold. Ladies, you’re welcome.
If there was ever a true definition of 90s Canadian TV programming, it would be Radio Active. It was about a group of teenagers who had their own radio show and chaos would ensue, naturally. It was really silly and they all had weird hair. And Gleeks, this is where Sugar (Vanessa Lengies) got her start.
Horror movies come and go, but the opening credits for Are You Afraid of the Dark? remain the scariest thing ever produced. Are You Afraid of the Dark? revolved around a group of kids who referred to themselves as “The Midnight Society.” They met once a week on my TV to tell scary stories and make sure that I did not fall asleep. It’s not a master-class in horror but for a super low budget Canadian TV series, it was and remains enjoyably spooky. It also featured Ryan Gosling.
Of all the shows on this list, ReBoot was and will forever be my no. 1. The animation was super low budget but I swear, it was really good. The show basically took place inside a computer system, known as The Mainframe, and followed Bob, Dot and Enzo as they dealt with the drama inside your dusty hard drive.
Goosebumps was both a Canadian and American production so I’m kind of cheating here but this is my list and I can do what I want to (plus it was filmed in Toronto, so that helps!). The show was, of course, based on the book series of the same name by author R.L Stine and featured episodes that revolved around mummies, pumpkins coming to life and attacking people, and vengeful blobs—you know, the usual. It, too, featured Ryan Gosling.
Canadian TV during the 90s really had it all. The kids today do not know what they’re missing. Growing up, I took the movie and TV nerd route rather than the video game nerd route, but when I was younger, Nintendo 64 was my main bae so of course I wanted to be on Video & Arcade Top 10. It was basically a video game competition show for kids. The kid contestants were always super nervous and awkward and made for some fun TV.
The Hit List ran for 14 years on YTV and went through a roster of hosts that include Tarzan Dan (yes) and eTalk’s very own Danielle McGimsie. The Hit List was like the Canadian version of TRL, but minus the windows over looking Times Square. One time the Backstreet Boys appeared on it right before they broke big! Look at us! Canada made the Backstreet Boys, basically.
So let’s take a trip down memory lane…
Uh Oh!
Uh Oh! was the game show to end all game shows. It had slime, a host named Wink Yahoo who had crazy hair, A PUNISHER (!!), teams named after primary colours, an insanely catchy them song (“uh oh, uh oh…”) and a spinning wheel. What more could you possibly ask for on a Canadian game show? It was like a very safe and kid-friendly version of Fear Factor meets Survivor meets Wheel of Fortune. Uh Oh! ran for seven season on YTV and though I was never able to compete on the show, I wish to die with my audition tape.
Student Bodies
Who wants to start a Kickstarter to bring this gem back? Student Bodies spoke to me like nothing else – it got me. Student Bodies was about a bunch of high-school students who ran the school’s newspaper and dealt with a ton of relatable, adolescent problems mixed with cartoon drawings thrown into the mix. It was boss.
Breaker High
Now, Breaker High was never really my jam (as you can see from above, I was busy watching Student Bodies) but it was high school on a boat so I got it and I watched it regularly. Again: it was about a high school on a cruise ship (soak that in) and shockingly only lasted for one season and also featured Ryan Gosling as the wannabe player with a heart of gold. Ladies, you’re welcome.
Radio Active
If there was ever a true definition of 90s Canadian TV programming, it would be Radio Active. It was about a group of teenagers who had their own radio show and chaos would ensue, naturally. It was really silly and they all had weird hair. And Gleeks, this is where Sugar (Vanessa Lengies) got her start.
Are You Afraid of the Dark?
Horror movies come and go, but the opening credits for Are You Afraid of the Dark? remain the scariest thing ever produced. Are You Afraid of the Dark? revolved around a group of kids who referred to themselves as “The Midnight Society.” They met once a week on my TV to tell scary stories and make sure that I did not fall asleep. It’s not a master-class in horror but for a super low budget Canadian TV series, it was and remains enjoyably spooky. It also featured Ryan Gosling.
ReBoot
Of all the shows on this list, ReBoot was and will forever be my no. 1. The animation was super low budget but I swear, it was really good. The show basically took place inside a computer system, known as The Mainframe, and followed Bob, Dot and Enzo as they dealt with the drama inside your dusty hard drive.
Goosebumps
Goosebumps was both a Canadian and American production so I’m kind of cheating here but this is my list and I can do what I want to (plus it was filmed in Toronto, so that helps!). The show was, of course, based on the book series of the same name by author R.L Stine and featured episodes that revolved around mummies, pumpkins coming to life and attacking people, and vengeful blobs—you know, the usual. It, too, featured Ryan Gosling.
Freaky Stories
Canadian TV during the 90s really had it all. The kids today do not know what they’re missing. Growing up, I took the movie and TV nerd route rather than the video game nerd route, but when I was younger, Nintendo 64 was my main bae so of course I wanted to be on Video & Arcade Top 10. It was basically a video game competition show for kids. The kid contestants were always super nervous and awkward and made for some fun TV.
The Hit List
The Hit List ran for 14 years on YTV and went through a roster of hosts that include Tarzan Dan (yes) and eTalk’s very own Danielle McGimsie. The Hit List was like the Canadian version of TRL, but minus the windows over looking Times Square. One time the Backstreet Boys appeared on it right before they broke big! Look at us! Canada made the Backstreet Boys, basically.
