Like most people when I first saw this show I thought it was just another mindless low budget comedy series aimed at the dim-witted pot smokers among us. Then I watched it more and became mesmerized by the underlying brilliance, everything was not as it seemed, from the beautifully languid intro music, to the ingenious documentary style of filming. Much like SCTV, it uses the low budget quality of the show, and turns that into a bonus. THe shaky hand-held camera, the occasional boom mic shot all blend perfectly with the mostly improvised dialogue. There's something uniquely Canadian about this, making the best out of the fewest resources, and it demonstrates the greatness of the show that it does not need huge production values to make you laugh your ass off. And laugh you will as you watch the main characters, Ricky, Julian and Bubbles stumble their way through life. We have all met people like this, much like in the movie "Fubar", people who are completely ignorant and emotionally underdeveloped, yet very much content with their position in life. Both Fubar and TPB, the key is not to make fun of these people in a condescending way, look equally at their naive stupidity but also at their loyalty and innocence and genuineness.
The 80's had SCTV, the 90's Kids in the Hall, for Canada, the 00's belong to the Trailer Park boys.
The 80's had SCTV, the 90's Kids in the Hall, for Canada, the 00's belong to the Trailer Park boys.