Men with Brooms: Quitting Time

So, where is the show headed at this point? Are we in for a prolonged romantic chase between Gary and April? Will it be a Seinfeldesque show about nothing?

Three episodes in, I can say that there is almost certainly a psychology major on the writing staff. Last week's primary storyline vaguely followed a stages of grief track and this week's focused on addiction issues. What's next? Dream analysis?

The characters and their relationships are starting to come into sharper focus but I'd say there's still work to do. Unfortunately, I don't find Gary particularly likable. He is portrayed as both insecure and manipulative - not inspiring qualities for a leading man. Matt actually comes across much better in this week's "Diet Pop Withdrawal" saga. Not that likability is everything. If Mad Men has proven anything, it's that one can build a compelling show around utterly detestable characters. But Don Draper, Sam Malone and other flawed leading men like them occasionally have heroic moments which preserve them in our esteem enough to care about what happens to them. I have yet to see that in Gary. Plus, he really only has developed relationships with two of the other characters: April and Matt.

The female characters could use some development as well. Despite her female lead status, we don't know a whole lot about April yet. She's an accountant. She's from Edmonton. She's addicted to caffeine. I think more interactions with the other female characters would help to develop her more. Furthermore, Tannis and Rani are portrayed as little more than nags.

I am more comfortable with where the other three characters seem to have settled. Matt is the goofy yet dependable confidant. Pramesh is the lovable nerd. Bill is the dumb slob.

I was pleased to see more curling in this episode. Pramesh, ice shy from his fall in the "Yurk!" story with Bill, is replaced for the game by Stevie, performed by Benjamin Beauchemin who definitely has a Daniel Radcliffe quality to him. I would have to say, however, that Gary's shoddy treatment of Stevie before he got his diet pop fix fell short of the Spirit of Curling.

Canadian English lesson: it seems they say pop in Canada rather than soda. Or at least they do in Winnipeg, where the show is filmed. I suppose it's not surprising that midwestern Canada would have some of the same lingo as the midwestern US.


The Link

Episode 3 - Quitting Time (viewable only in Canada)

Men with Brooms: Death of the Birth Tree

First, a Canadian English lesson...

A twoney is a two-dollar coin.

One advantage of an ensemble cast is the fact that within a 22-minute show, it is possible to have 2 or more relatively simple story lines going on at once. It also provides an opportunity to group characters in different configurations in order to develop one-to-one relationships.

The primary storyline in "Death of the Birth Tree" is a character-development tale for the protagonist - standard stuff for a second episode. In this week's story, Gary must come to terms with the fact that various symbols of his youth are vanishing one by one, particularly a tree in the front yard of his childhood home. This sense of loss inspires great sympathy in new love interest, April. I have to admit that I was a little worried at first that the story would follow the use-sympathy-to-gain-personal-advantage angle to the end. That's a plot straight out of Situation Comedy Writing for Dummies. The chosen path was less predictable and I like that.

The second storyline to be introduced was the "Luck Sponge" tale between Tannis and Alex. This story wasn't as well-developed as the rest of the show (more on that in a bit) but I suspect it served mostly to establish a secondary love-interest possibility for the series.

The third storyline was the most fun: "Smugglers Kablam" as played out by Pramesh and Bill. This is not unusual for sit-coms. Go back and watch Friends now that you know how Ross/Rachel and Monica/Chandler ultimately work out. You know what were the funniest stories on that show? The Phoebe and Joey stories - almost invariably.

The story between Pramesh and Bill this time is a great one - the cool guy and the nerd find common ground over a ridiculously complicated board game. My first laugh of the episode was Pramesh's complaint that the Mouse Trap game set at the club contained only a real mouse trap. I love epic board games and was admittedly a sucker for this one. I didn't clock it but I'm guessing that in the end, this third story got more air time than the "Luck Sponge" saga. No doubt, it was an editing decision after filming but I'd say a great one. I hinted at this last week: Pramesh has that certain something. If there's a second season, I'll bet he gets a more prominent role.

Rani got short shrift in this episode, playing only supporting roles in two of the stories: Matt's confidant in Luck Sponge and twist-provider for Smugglers Kablam. Seven's an awkward number for an ensemble cast, I think. Most don't go above six and there's good reason for that. Let's hope she gets a more prominent story role in the near future.

I have a complaint about this episode: no curling! Yes, the club provides the main setting but I'm looking for more. It looks like the boys will be back on the ice next week.

The Links

Episode 2: Death of the Birth Tree (viewable only in Canada)

Webisode 2: Doughnuts

Trailer for Episode 3: Quitting Time

Men with Brooms: Pilot

Photo via TV, eh?

Let me begin by saying that I believe the TV show works better than the film did, much as I expected. I think the 22-minute format is better suited for the concept. As I said in my review of the film, I felt that the story was trying to be too many things at once. The show, at least with one episode to judge thus far, seems to have settled on a more basic idea: quirky romantic comedy with a bit of curling thrown in for extra quirk. Start simple, then build. That's the path to success for every sitcom ever that was any good.

All shows take a while to find themselves. It takes time to establish characters, relationships, story lines and so forth. The first episode of Cheers ("Give Me a Ring Sometime") is just about as tidy as one could possibly hope for a half-hour show to be and yet even it is rough around the edges compared to later installments. In the MwB pilot, we meet all of the principals: the four members of the rink (all male), their main supporters (all female) and the narrator, Paul Gross, who also makes an on-screen cameo reprising his role from the film. The men are all rather clumsy and insecure whereas the women are more capable - not to mention far more attractive. As is often the case in a show's premier, a budding romance is introduced between protagonist Gary (played by Brendan Gall) and new-to-town April (Siobhan Murphy - I love the name Siobhan). So far, pretty standard stuff.

The show is genuinely funny, always a good sign for a situation comedy. My first out-loud guffaw came as Gary's ex lit up a blow torch. I watched the show twice and actually found it funnier the second time - definitely a positive.

I will be very interested to see to what extent curling plays a meaningful role in the show. In "Pilot," it provides a context for a first date. The club provides the primary setting. The men's interest and the women's indifference helps to establish the tension in their relationships. Right off the bat, there's an attempt to cast the game as metaphor for life. The writers have found clever and subtle ways to acquaint the uninitiated with the rules, culture and jargon of the game. In particular, I'll be watching for how well the show lives up to The Spirit of Curling...

SPOILER ALERT!!!

I find the fact that the rink decides to throw the game in the "meatspiel" a bit disappointing - falling a bit short of The Spirit. However, I really like the fact that the rink that beat them shared some of the spoils - very much in The Spirit. Net zero - the jury's still out.

END OF SPOILER

Generally, I am encouraged by the show's first offering. The concept has promise. The writing is good but as yet uneven, not unlike the film. That is certainly not unusual for a pilot and I hope future installments will flow better. The acting is generally strong, though someone needs to tell Aliyah O'Brien (the stunning actress who plays Tannis) that she could stand to speak a bit more slowly. Anand Rajaram (Pramesh) seems destined to become a fan favorite. His performance in "Pilot" is a little over the top but he obviously has show-stealing capability and could ultimately become the face of the show, I think.


The Links

Episode 1 - Pilot (only accessible in Canada)

Some of the CBC extras are accessible State-side:

Webisode 1 - The Crushers

Episode 2 promo - Death of the Birth Tree

Episode 1 Trivia (I scored 10/10)

Sports Flicks: Men with Brooms

My Wife loves me. Of this, I am quite certain.


Image via UNO PARK

As I have written before, the 2002 Canadian film Men with Brooms has been adapted into a television series to air this season on CBC. As a novice curling fan, I am greatly intrigued. I must confess, however, that I had never actually watched the film before tonight. With My Wife's blessing, I bumped it to the top of the Netflix queue so I could watch it before the series starts. She even watched the film with me, bless her heart. The TV series is scheduled to begin Monday, October 4th, 8:30 pm eastern time.

It is, predictably, a highly quirky film. We'll start with the positives...

- It is a very affectionate view of the sport and does a nice job of explaining the basics to the uninitiated.
- The soundtrack is pretty good, including a wonderful rendition of the Canadian folk song "Land of the Silver Birch."
- There are some pretty funny moments - not roll on the floor funny but pretty funny.
- I love the wandering herd of beavers. I'm fairly certain that beavers don't travel in packs and at least the ones in Vermont don't typically wander into town. They clearly have deep symbolic importance within the story. What that importance is, I could not for the life of me tell you.
- I like the main character's name: Cutter. I'm working under the assumption that it was inspired by the Cutters in Breaking Away (a far superior film, of course).
- The film is well cast. I am especially impressed with the casting of Michelle Noldin and Molly Parker as sisters. They're not related but they could pass.


Image via Folio

However, there are problems...

- While the intentions are good, the film doesn't hang together very well. Is it a comedy? Is it a romance? Drama? Inspiring sports movie? what? Not that a decent film can't contain elements of all but this one's spread too thin, not really achieving any of its intended ends satisfactorily.
- The cast is good but maybe needed to sink their teeth into something a bit more substantial.
- I admire anyone who writes, directs and stars in a film but I found Paul Gross uninspiring.

In the final analysis, I'll probably give it a 3 on Netflix, but if I were allowed decimals, it would be about a 2.8. I'm glad I watched it but I'm not sure I'd go so far as to recommend it to someone else.

But that's the film. I think there is room for a decent TV series in there. Telling the story in 23-minute chunks might be just the sort of limitation that Men with Brooms needs. Apparently, the show involves all new characters. Gross's on-screen role is limited to narration and occasional guest appearances reprising his character from the film.