Out of Pod Experience

You know, I love Corner Gas. My mother was born and raised in a farm in Saskatchewan, and I've had a love for the land of the Flat and Square (long joke) since I was a kid. The show is a unique slice of Canadiana, and very uniquely Saskatchewanian.

For those that are first-time vistors tp this pristine corner of the Praerie Province, here's a synposis of the series:

Dog River is a small town in the middle of Saskatchewan (about halfway across it, according to the residents). The population includes Brent (the owner of the only gas station in town) Brent's parents (who ran the station before him), Hank (a dumb-but-endearing mechanic), Wanda (who runs the station with Brent and has a several PhDs, but works at the station because it pays better), Lacey (a Toronto girl who inherited the Ruby diner), and the underworked police officers Karen and Davis.

Over the course of six seasons, Dog River steadfastly remains a place where 'there's not a lot going on'. Most of the mishaps and comedy come from the misunderstandings and petty squabbles of the town residents (for example, the day everyone tries to 'owe a favor' to everyone else, while simultaneously avoiding 'being owed' by anyone else).



Movie synopsis:

The movie catches up ten years later: Dog River is still the town where 'nothing happens'. Hank is still weird, Oscar is still a confused grouch, Wanda is still working at the gas station....

Until, one day, the town runs into power and water issues. Serious power and water issues. As in, 'the mayor invested all of the town's money in real estate in Detroit' power and water issues. It's up to the town of Dog River to save itself -- if they can only stop squabbling long enough to actually do anything.


The Good

Dog River is back for one more round!

Nothing has changed: Dig River is still the weird small town it was years ago. The writers (very wisely) decided not to hire a big-screen writer and kept it to the formula that made Corner Gas one of the most-watched shows on Canadian television.

Sure, you get a few 'expanded' views of places the series never visited, including a memorable visit to Wullerton (*spit*), but other than that, it's still the town viewers remember (right down to the pointless town meetings that are always called for no reason).

The cast and crew came back with a flourish, as though nothing had happened since the last episode of the series (and that, by the way, is gloriously lamp-shaded early in the film). The writers consciously decided to write that way -- this sleepy little town hasn't changed a bit (and trust me, most real small Saskatchewan towns don't change much, either).


The Bad

It's not so much 'bad', but sort of...meh. It's an enjoyable film -- it's great to hear Oscar's bitter (and often hilariously confused) complaints; we finally see the resolution of Brent and Lacey's relationship, and we discover that some things do change in Dog River.

The 'meh' is that....while it's still Dog River, and it's still funny, there aren't really enough character moments. The ones that do occur are wonderful, but at times the plot seems a bit too 'bizarre', even for a day in Dog River.

Davis and Karen, the town's two under-worked and very bored RCMP officers, are split up early in the film (and I felt that the set-up for the split was weakly presented), which is a bit of a disappointment; they were better as a comic duo, and breaking that partnership up disrupts the timing of the rest of the characters.

Some of the comic bits go on slightly too long, or are continued past their 'laugh-by' date, and at times the humor is too elaborate for the setting. The movie misses several chances to re-play the best running jokes from the series, which would have helped the humor quite a lot.


Final Verdict:

Rent it if you've never seen the series, or buy it if you're a fan. Either way, you'll find out how much you missed Dog River.