About a month ago I wrote about a new CBC program called Little Mosque on the Prairie, the first North American comedy about Muslims. I said that it was funny, but trying too hard and too obviously CBC.
It is time for an update. The show has gotten better with time. The actors still seem to think they're on a stage (exaggerated facial expressions and so on) but they aren't mugging for the camera nearly as much. I especially like the way the imam's relationship with the Anglican priest is developing.
Here is the latest episode, sans commercials for Tim Horton's. A bit of background is in order: The characters live in Mercy, a small town in the Canadian prairies, and the Anglican church is renting its basement to the local Muslim congregation. This works well for both sides, because the Muslims need a mosque and the Anglicans need the rent to pay their monthly bills. In this episode, the archdeacon, who knows nothing about the mosque, shows up for his regular inspection. This episode also has a nod to the other network's show about life in the prairies: the archdeacon mentions that he just shut down a church in Dog River, but nothing was happening there, so he went straight to Mercy.
I ought to mention that I have never met an archdeacon who demands payment, threatens to close churches, or who is nearly as funny as Colin Mochrie.
Sunday, February 25, 2007
If Dad says this is suicide, so be it
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4 comments:
Wow.
This was a shock. We lived in Canada for ten (happy) years, but I never saw CBC television.
The exaggerated patriotism of the U.S. seems mild, compared to the exaggerated Political Correctness of the CBC.
Give me guns and global warming, anyday.
Yes, and this is the new and improved version of the show!
I love Colin Mochrie, though.
I liked his sermon.
Tell me, do Canadians actually watch CBC dramas?
I'm not talking about Rick Mercer and all that - - and of course, they'd have to watch CBC news -- but do they watch "Little Mosque on the Prairie"?
Yes...and no. "Little Mosque" gets decent ratings for a CBC program, which isn't saying much. The earlier shows were promoted to death, so people watched, but they were not that great.
CBC News has been lagging in the ratings for a while. There are two other national networks and a bunch of local stations. CBC still makes the best documentaries and current affairs shows, though.
Rick Mercer is a Canadian gem. People do watch his show -- it is sort of like The Daily Show in format and style. Colin Mochrie took over on "22 Minutes" after he left, but then went on to other things.
CBC dramas are generally terrible.
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