Combat Hospital
Encyclopedia
Combat Hospital is a Canadian
medical drama
television series, filmed in Toronto
, that debuted on Global
on 21 June 2011. The series was known for a time by the working title
The Hot Zone before reverting to its previous title, Combat Hospital.
The first season finale aired on September 6, 2011. Global has yet to announce either a renewal or cancellation.
, Afghanistan
in 2006, the series revolves around the life and work of doctors and nurses from the ISAF
, specifically Canada
, United States
, United Kingdom
, Australia
, Germany
, and other allied countries at a military hospital.
). After the show was picked up for development Oujla-Chalmers travelled to Afghanistan to research on location what it is like at a Role 3 hospital. Oujla-Chalmers and Steinberg brought the show to Sienna Films who agreed to produce it and set up funding as a Canadian-British co-production with Artists Studio and Lookout Point of the UK.
Canwest announced on 9 July 2010 that Combat Hospital was slated for production in the 2011-12 season. The budget for the first season was reported to be $2 million per episode. During pre-production Morocco
was considered as a possible location for filming the series. Production on the series began in March 2011. The series is filmed at the former Consumers Glass factory in Etobicoke, Ontario. The property has been converted into a 17,187 square metre indoor/outdoor set that recreates portions of the NATO Role 3 Hospital at Kandahar Airfield
and its surroundings. Filming was scheduled to continue through 27 July 2011. Post-production work is done in London
. Combat Hospital is a production of Sienna Films of Canada, Artists Studio of Wales, and Lookout Point of England. Daniel Petrie, Jr.
is the showrunner. The first season has 13 episodes.
of The Globe and Mail
said that the show is neither the new M*A*S*H for its lack of "snarky chat about the stupidity of war and governments that encourage war" nor is it Grey's Anatomy
-on-the-front-lines as there are no "lurid romantic entanglements". Doyle goes on to say, "It's the horrors of war and the awfulness of a combat hospital seen emphatically through the prism of TV drama." In concluding his review Doyle said, "In the matter of Afghanistan and military life there, if you want a gruelling experience, watch the news. Combat Hospital is the entertaining version."
Matthew Gilbert of The Boston Globe
found the show "is completely divorced from anything resembling real life." He said the premise is "exciting and, to some extent, incendiary" but that with "amateurish acting and paint-by-numbers writing" Combat Hospital and Rookie Blue "are summer filler of the laziest kind."
David Wiegard of the San Francisco Chronicle
found Combat Hospital "makes a pretty compelling attempt" at portraying "the bloody reality of war" while also having all of the typical characters of a medical drama.
announced that the series will be simulcast
in the United States by ABC. Outside of North America the series is being distributed by Sony Pictures Television.
On 24 August 2011 ABC announced that they were skipping the eleventh episode of season 1 and moving the season finale date by one week, from 13 September 2011 to 6 September 2011. The eleventh episode was still shown in Canada, along with episode 12 on 30 August 2011.
Shaw Media will be showing the series on both Showcase and Showcase Diva
beginning in early September 2011.
ABC announced that it would not be renewing Combat Hospital for a second season.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
medical drama
Medical drama
A medical drama is a television program, in which events center upon a hospital, an ambulance staff, or any medical environment.In the United States, most medical episodes are one hour long and, more often than not, are set in a hospital. Most current medical Dramatic programming go beyond the...
television series, filmed in Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, that debuted on Global
Global Television Network
Global Television Network is an English language privately owned television network in Canada, owned by Calgary-based Shaw Communications, as part of its Shaw Media division...
on 21 June 2011. The series was known for a time by the working title
Working title
A working title, sometimes called a production title, is the temporary name of a product or project used during its development, usually used in filmmaking, television production, novel, video game, or music album.-Purpose:...
The Hot Zone before reverting to its previous title, Combat Hospital.
The first season finale aired on September 6, 2011. Global has yet to announce either a renewal or cancellation.
Plot
Set in KandaharKandahar
Kandahar is the second largest city in Afghanistan, with a population of about 512,200 as of 2011. It is the capital of Kandahar Province, located in the south of the country at about 1,005 m above sea level...
, Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
in 2006, the series revolves around the life and work of doctors and nurses from the ISAF
International Security Assistance Force
The International Security Assistance Force is a NATO-led security mission in Afghanistan established by the United Nations Security Council on 20 December 2001 by Resolution 1386 as envisaged by the Bonn Agreement...
, specifically Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, and other allied countries at a military hospital.
Cast
- Michelle BorthMichelle BorthMichelle Borth is a American actress who portrayed characters on The Forgotten and critically acclaimed HBO cable television series Tell Me You Love Me, a role for which film.com proclaimed her "the nakedest person in TV history."...
as Canadian ForcesCanadian ForcesThe Canadian Forces , officially the Canadian Armed Forces , are the unified armed forces of Canada, as constituted by the National Defence Act, which states: "The Canadian Forces are the armed forces of Her Majesty raised by Canada and consist of one Service called the Canadian Armed Forces."...
Medical Officer, Major Rebecca Gordon, Canadian Army; - Elias KoteasElias KoteasElias Koteas is a Canadian actor of film and television, best known for his roles in The Prophecy, Fallen and the live-action Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles films.-Early life:...
as Canadian Forces Medical Officer, Commanding Officer Colonel Xavier Marks, Canadian Army; - Terry ChenTerry ChenTerry Chen is a Canadian movie and television actor.Chen was born to ethnic Chinese parents originating from Taiwan and mainland China in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. After an education at schools in his hometown and in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, he attended college in Calgary and...
as United States Army Captain Bobby Trang, trauma team leader; - Arnold Pinnock as Canadian Forces Nursing Officer, Chief of Nursing, Commander Will Royal, Royal Canadian NavyRoyal Canadian NavyThe history of the Royal Canadian Navy goes back to 1910, when the naval force was created as the Naval Service of Canada and renamed a year later by King George V. The Royal Canadian Navy is one of the three environmental commands of the Canadian Forces...
; - Deborah Kara UngerDeborah Kara UngerDeborah Kara Unger is a Canadian actress. She is known for her roles in the films Crash , The Game , The Hurricane , White Noise , Silent Hill and 88 Minutes...
as Australian Army psychiatrist, Major Grace Pedersen; - Luke MablyLuke MablyLuke Mably is an English actor, best known for playing Scott Lucas in Sky One's Dream Team, Prince Edvard in The Prince and Me and White in the 2009 thriller Exam. He attended the Birmingham School of Speech and Drama.-Movie career:Mably portrayed White in the thriller Exam under the direction...
as British neurosurgeon, Doctor Simon Hill; - Ellen Wong as Canadian Forces Nursing Officer, Major Suzy Chao, Canadian Army;
- Hamza Jeetooa as Vans, Afghan translator;
- Gord Rand as Canadian Forces Medical Technician, Regimental Sergeant-Major, Chief Warrant Officer Graham Kelly, Canadian Army;
- Karan OberoiKaran OberoiKaran Oberoi is an Indian television actor, anchor and singer, who acts in Hindi TV serials and TV commercials, most notably popular TV series Jassi Jaisi Koi Nahin . He was also part of the Indipop boy band, A Band of Boys, formed in 2001, along with Sudhanshu Pandey, Sherrin Varghese , Siddharth...
as United States Air Force Pararescue Jumper, Talwar Mehra; - Dwain MurphyDwain MurphyDwain Murphy is a Caribbean-born Canadian actor. He is best known for playing Eric in Degrassi: The Next Generation, Giles in The Line, and Bishop in How She Move.-Biography:Murphy was born in the small Caribbean island of Dominica...
as United States Air Force Pararescue Jumper, Terrel Ford.
Production
Jinder Oujla-Chalmers came up with the concept for Combat Hospital in 2008 and with Douglas Steinberg pitched the show to Canwest (now Shaw MediaShaw Media
Shaw Media is the television broadcasting division of Shaw Communications. Shaw Media owns the Global Television Network, which broadcasts via 11 television stations, as well as various specialty channels including HGTV Canada, Showcase, Food Network Canada, and History Television.Despite also...
). After the show was picked up for development Oujla-Chalmers travelled to Afghanistan to research on location what it is like at a Role 3 hospital. Oujla-Chalmers and Steinberg brought the show to Sienna Films who agreed to produce it and set up funding as a Canadian-British co-production with Artists Studio and Lookout Point of the UK.
Canwest announced on 9 July 2010 that Combat Hospital was slated for production in the 2011-12 season. The budget for the first season was reported to be $2 million per episode. During pre-production Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
was considered as a possible location for filming the series. Production on the series began in March 2011. The series is filmed at the former Consumers Glass factory in Etobicoke, Ontario. The property has been converted into a 17,187 square metre indoor/outdoor set that recreates portions of the NATO Role 3 Hospital at Kandahar Airfield
Kandahar Airfield
Kandahar International Airport is located 10 miles south-east of Kandahar City in Afghanistan. The airport was built by the United States in the 1960s, under the United States Agency for International Development program. It may have been intended to be used as a possible U.S...
and its surroundings. Filming was scheduled to continue through 27 July 2011. Post-production work is done in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. Combat Hospital is a production of Sienna Films of Canada, Artists Studio of Wales, and Lookout Point of England. Daniel Petrie, Jr.
Daniel Petrie, Jr.
Daniel Petrie, Jr. , the son of Daniel Petrie, Sr., is perhaps best known as one of the screenwriters of the mid-1980s hit movie, Beverly Hills Cop and The Big Easy as well as the director of Toy Soldiers....
is the showrunner. The first season has 13 episodes.
Reception
John DoyleJohn Doyle (critic)
John Doyle is one of the two television critics with Canada's The Globe and Mail newspaper. Doyle also covers major football events for the paper....
of The Globe and Mail
The Globe and Mail
The Globe and Mail is a nationally distributed Canadian newspaper, based in Toronto and printed in six cities across the country. With a weekly readership of approximately 1 million, it is Canada's largest-circulation national newspaper and second-largest daily newspaper after the Toronto Star...
said that the show is neither the new M*A*S*H for its lack of "snarky chat about the stupidity of war and governments that encourage war" nor is it Grey's Anatomy
Grey's Anatomy
Grey's Anatomy is an American medical drama television series created by Shonda Rhimes. The series premiered on March 27, 2005 on ABC; since then, seven seasons have aired. The series follows the lives of interns, residents and their mentors in the fictional Seattle Grace Mercy West Hospital in...
-on-the-front-lines as there are no "lurid romantic entanglements". Doyle goes on to say, "It's the horrors of war and the awfulness of a combat hospital seen emphatically through the prism of TV drama." In concluding his review Doyle said, "In the matter of Afghanistan and military life there, if you want a gruelling experience, watch the news. Combat Hospital is the entertaining version."
Matthew Gilbert of The Boston Globe
The Boston Globe
The Boston Globe is an American daily newspaper based in Boston, Massachusetts. The Boston Globe has been owned by The New York Times Company since 1993...
found the show "is completely divorced from anything resembling real life." He said the premise is "exciting and, to some extent, incendiary" but that with "amateurish acting and paint-by-numbers writing" Combat Hospital and Rookie Blue "are summer filler of the laziest kind."
David Wiegard of the San Francisco Chronicle
San Francisco Chronicle
thumb|right|upright|The Chronicle Building following the [[1906 San Francisco earthquake|1906 earthquake]] and fireThe San Francisco Chronicle is a newspaper serving primarily the San Francisco Bay Area of the U.S. state of California, but distributed throughout Northern and Central California,...
found Combat Hospital "makes a pretty compelling attempt" at portraying "the bloody reality of war" while also having all of the typical characters of a medical drama.
Broadcast
In early January 2011 ABC was in talks to purchase broadcast rights to Combat Hospital. On 20 January 2011 it was reported that ABC had purchased broadcast rights to the then-untitled project. On 25 March 2011 Shaw MediaShaw Media
Shaw Media is the television broadcasting division of Shaw Communications. Shaw Media owns the Global Television Network, which broadcasts via 11 television stations, as well as various specialty channels including HGTV Canada, Showcase, Food Network Canada, and History Television.Despite also...
announced that the series will be simulcast
Simulcast
Simulcast, shorthand for "simultaneous broadcast", refers to programs or events broadcast across more than one medium, or more than one service on the same medium, at the same time. For example, Absolute Radio is simulcast on both AM and on satellite radio, and the BBC's Prom concerts are often...
in the United States by ABC. Outside of North America the series is being distributed by Sony Pictures Television.
On 24 August 2011 ABC announced that they were skipping the eleventh episode of season 1 and moving the season finale date by one week, from 13 September 2011 to 6 September 2011. The eleventh episode was still shown in Canada, along with episode 12 on 30 August 2011.
Shaw Media will be showing the series on both Showcase and Showcase Diva
Showcase Diva
Showcase Diva is a Canadian English language Category B specialty channel owned by Shaw Media. The channel airs programs aimed toward women in the form of films and dramatic television series.-Noted series:*About a Girl*Blue Murder*Bones...
beginning in early September 2011.
ABC announced that it would not be renewing Combat Hospital for a second season.
Episodes
| # | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | Canadian viewers (million) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|