The fall TV premiere season is in full swing, with shows like The Good Place, How To Get Away With Murder and This Is Us airing brand new episodes to soothe our hiatus-strained souls. But if you’re looking for a new sitcom to binge in the meantime while you wait for next Thursday night to roll around, look no further than Letterkenny, a Canadian show that’s quickly gaining a cult following in the States.
If you’re sitting there thinking, “Okay Grace, just tell me what this stupid show is about already,” allow me to explain. Set in a tiny town in the Ontario countryside, Letterkenny follows the daily grind of Wayne and Katy, two siblings who run their family farm with the help of their friends Darryl and Squirrely Dan (don’t ask how he got his nickname). If you think this show is all about Canadian politeness, think again. Our lovable hicks are constantly feuding with the other crews in town, like the bro-y hockey players, the chaotic skids and the lone-wolf tough guys. There’s almost always an epically-shot fistfight in every episode, and ~spoiler alert~: Wayne almost always wins.
Courtesy: Rolling Stone
Speaking of Wayne, he’s played by Jared Keeso, a comedian from Ontario who moved to L.A. in the early 2000s to start his career in comedy. Unimpressed with the vapidness of the L.A. entertainment scene, he moved back to Canada and began producing his own comedic web series poking fun at small-town life, titled Letterkenny Problems. The series gained so much local popularity that Canadian broadcasting channel CraveTV optioned to develop it into the TV series that we now know and love, and Hulu picked it up last year as a Hulu Original. As one of Letterkenny’s main stars, producers and writers, it’s safe to say that Keeso is currently living the dream.
Courtesy: Cultured Vultures
So what makes Letterkenny so endlessly watchable – and rewatchable? Two things: the writing and the characters. The R-rated dialogue on the show manages to be realistic, clever and completely ridiculous all at the same time. The conversations go back and forth so quickly, it’s almost whiplash-inducing. The cold opens are legendary and often feature Wayne’s adorable German Shepherd puppies. One character will make a pun, and they’ll all chime in to keep the joke going for way longer than you’d think it should be able to. All the hilarious catchphrases are peppered in the script just enough so that you’ll start to find yourself saying them in real life…ferda. It’s written totally unlike any other show I’ve ever seen before but in the best way possible. Pro tip? Subtitles are a must.
Courtesy: Letterkenny Wikia
Although the script is truly iconic, the thing that really gives the show its heart is its characters. Admittedly, some of them can take a while to grow on you. Like Gail, the overly-sexual bartender or McMurray (who’s just…weird AF), but no matter how outlandishly they may act, they all feel like authentic people. Despite the show being a sitcom, the writers treat viewers to some surprisingly sweet and tender moments between characters that you’d never expect. Some unexpected loyalties are formed across clique lines, such as the short-lived romance between a hick and a skid (no spoilers!), further driving home the point that no matter our differences, there are things that still connect us no matter what.
Courtesy: The Loop
Something else I really appreciate about Letterkenny is its diversity and the way it tackles social issues. Indigenous rights are a contentious topic in Canada, and the show features several well-known Indigenous actors that play the Natives from the local reservation (most notably Kaniehtiio Horn as Tanis, their badass leader). The Natives’ storylines are fleshed-out and complex, highlighting important Indigenous issues while still being funny at the same time. There’s even a scene in one of the later seasons in which the Natives beat the living crap out of a gang of vicious neo-Nazis that will make you laugh and give you chills at the same time. In addition, the show also features a large handful of well-developed LGBTQ+ characters such as Glen the pastor, Roald the skid and even Katy, whose queerness is explored in a lot of interesting ways.
Courtesy: Letterkenny Wikia
Should you give Letterkenny a shot? If you like weird, fast-paced humor and Canadian accents, then yes, absolutely. And if you’ve got a problem with those things, then you’ve got a problem with me, and I suggest you let that one marinate.
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