Canadian television can be frustrating at times. On one hand,it is capable of producing interesting programming; on the other, it is so blatantly safe and politically correct. More often than not, it's the latter.
When I finally sat to watch Little Mosque on the Prairie one month after its debut, I had an idea how the CBC would approach it. After viewing my first episode, I was proved right. For such a unique and potentially explosive idea, the dialogue is, well, safe and light in a Canadian way. The CBC obviously sought to strike a balance, and they came up with an inoffensive comedy. That's not necessarily a bad thing either. The issues raised in the show are new to North American viewers. Assuming Americans - most likely border states - can get the CBC.
The show is basically about how Muslims and Canadians interact in a prairie setting. The prairies are all the rage now. Wheat is in, urban is out. I got the distinct feeling that the writers are very careful not to offend anybody. Who can blame them considering the context under which the show has been aired? By this I mean in a post 9/11 world. Gotta give them credit for the boldness of their timing. Imagine if Italians, Germans, and Japanese programming came out during the Second World War? Uncomfortable, I know. Just musing out loud.
Despite this, the show does accord itself some provoking moments.
For example, in one scene, a father opposes his daughter from partaking in Halloween on the grounds that it is not a Muslim activity. Despite this, he ends up chaperoning her. What he soon discovers, while dressed in traditional Muslim attire, is that people mistake him for being "Osama" or a "Taliban" and this oddly makes him feel accepted. Later you see him running around scaring kids and telling them he was a terrorist. I laughed at that.
Article comments
1 - Canuck
I too watched the Halloween episode of Little Mosque this week, it was funny.
Correction: Wheat & Muslims are now IN.
2 - alessandro nicolo
I stand corrected. Regardless, Corner Gas has the wheat market cornered.
3 - Heloise
That's funny. I've spent some time in Canada. The Indian population there (from India) is huge. Indians can be muslim, hindu or sikh. I happen to know a lot of sikhs. They have basically taken over parts of large Canadian cities because of their economic prowess. I am surprised it is not about Indians there specifically.
Heloise
4 - alessandro nicolo
True. However, I think Indians, while scattered everywhere, live more in Western Canada - particularly Vancouver. The most famous Indian Hindhu on TV is Apu. ;<)
5 - Diane Kristine
Plus humour tends to come from specificity, and focusing on Muslims gives them a great hook and an identifiable and cohesive core group. (Though I'm not a fan of the show - I don't find it very funny. Still, I'm happy it's doing so well.)
6 - alessandro nicolo
Diane, it's not that funny, I agree. I suppose because they are guarding themselves. Thus, they allow some "moments." Comedy, like literature or any art form, shouldn't have boundaries.
7 - Ziyaad
This show is just another show, whether about muslims or not. It doesnt make muslims say "it's so true!" and "Hey, that's so you, Os!" ... except maybe a few weird ones. What is sad is that many of my non-muslim family and friends looked forward to learn about the muslim community based on that show and maybe 10% is true about the reality * the rest is just exageration, which is good for a comedy like all other comedy shows
8 - alessandro Nicolo
Ziyaad you're right. But it does, and this is a positive, at least put a human face to a community we know little about. As for the "it's true" thing - that's satire. It was meant to be humourous. It's a pop culture thing. Homer Simpson is fond of using it.
9 - Nancy
Wish we could get it on the US east coast. It sounds interesting.
10 - tvwatcher
I want to respond to the person who mentioned surprise that this is not a show about people from India.
For the record, Muslims are from various ethnic backgrounds. I don't believe there is any Indian main character on this show. The Amar is from Pakistan. Yasir is from the middle east, I believe. Fatima is from Nigeria. Sarah is a caucasian born in Canada.
11 - MTR New York
For any New Yorkers reading this -- The Museum of Television & Radio in NYC is hosting an evening with the cast and creators of "Little Mosque on the Prairie" on May 17, 2007. Details below!
A First Look at Little Mosque on the Prairie
Thursday, May 17; 6:00 to 7:30 p.m.
Tickets: $30 / $15 for students using discount code STUDENT at mtr.org
This hit Canadian sitcom from the CBC, centered on a Muslim community nestled in the wilds of rural Saskatchewan, has debuted to strong ratings and curious speculation: is it possible to find humor in Muslims interacting with suspicious North Americans in a post"9/11 world? Members of the cast and creative team will discuss the challenges that arise when sensitive social and political issues provide the context for a traditional comedy show.
In Person:
Mary Darling, Executive Producer
Kirstine Layfield, Executive Director, Network Programming, CBC Television
Anton Leo, Creative Head, Comedy, Arts & Entertainment, CBC Television
Sheila McCarthy, "Sarah"
Zarqa Nawaz, Creator, Consulting Producer, Writer
Zaib Shaikh, "Amaar"
12 - Frieda
I am a radio producer working in the South Asian market in Toronto. My audience is a good reprentation of the community - If you speak and or understand Urdu and are a South Asian living in Toronto you have probably heard us.
I got lots of messages - e-mails and voice BEFORE the show aired. Many of the calls centered arouns concern about Little Mosque - will they be fair?. Guess what. Since the premiere - not a peep. Not on the radar.
Myself, I think it isn't funny. It should be - the idea is catchy with lots of cacet - but sadly not funny. Actors mugging all over the place, stilted writing - I felt sad actually. I was looking forward to a comedy about Muslims in Canada and I respect the Director and creator. It just isn't funny.
Frieda
13 - AmericanGirl
i wish i could see it here in new York. i saw some episodes online and totally loved them. i was so not offended, being muslim myself
14 - samir
for anyone who wants to see it, all the episodes are available on www.youtube.com. Just type in little mosque on the prairie or LMOTP.
15 - Bill Gibbons
Canadians are't funny. Their so called "comedy' shows" stink. Americans are funny. Brits are funny. Their comedy shows throughout the decades are still worth watching. In America its Taxi, Happy Days and Third Rock from the Sun, not to mention Mork & Mindy and Frasier to name just a few. In the Uk its Rising Damp, Steptoe and Son, Only Fools and Horses and Fawlty Towers, etc.
Canadians are bloody boring. they are terrified to be funny in case they offend some special interest group. I suffered from insomnia before Corner Gas cured me. Little Mosque on the Prairie is so utterly vile I was almost physically sick. according to the script writers, Muslims are nice, cool, hip and smart. They follow the "religion of peace" you know.
Whoever wrote this tripe isn't living in the real world.but then again, neither does the CBC.
16 - Jordan Richardson
Bill:
SCTV.
If you really think Canadian comedy is limited to Corner Gas and Little Mosque, you simply don't know better. And comparing those shows to Taxi is really stupid. That's like comparing the American Pie movies to Airplane!.
17 - El Bicho
Bill Gibbons doesn't know much about comedy, especially if Happy Days is supposed to some sort of litmus.
Some funny people from Canada: Dan Aykroyd, Samantha Bee, Jim Carrey, Phil Hartman, Norm MacDonald, Lorne Michaels, Mike Myers, Leslie Nielsen, and the entire SCTV cast and The Kids in the Hall.
18 - alessandro
Well, Bill some of those shows you mentioned had Canadian writers. In fact, you should take a closer look at Canadians in Hollywood.
It is indeed an irony that our image is boring but this country has produced some of the best comedy writers and comedians in North America. We're not much but we sure know how to laugh. Cripes, isn't The Red Green Show immensely popular in the USA?
As for this piece, Billy boy, read it carefully. It's not my favorite. WKRP was. Heh.
Jordan and El Bicho only touch the surface. The thing is that Canadians go to the States for fame and it's virtually impossible to tell the difference between an American and Canadian. One of my personal favorites was Newsradio - vastly under rated, that show clearly had a Dave Foley (of Kids in the Hall) influence.
El, you're right about SCTV but one member; Andrea Martin was actually born in the States. But Eugene Levy and John Candy - that's funny.
19 - alessandro
I should be careful: at different points Canadians writers/producers have had an impact on many shows. Should make a list. But not now. I'm tired and hungry.
20 - alessandro
One last point, the point of this article was not to grade its comedy but to discuss a show about Muslim culture in a comedic context in a post 9/11 world.
21 - Bill Gibbons
Canadians produce outstanding actors and make great movies. No argument there! but their "comedy" shows are boring.
El Bicho, just look at how Fawlty Towers has stood the test of time and is probably THE funniest show of all. I buy them all on DVD. I even asked some Muslims I know what they thought about Little Mosque and they not only thought it was very UNfunny, but they didn't even watch it. But like I said it's Canadian. If you want a good laugh, just watch the CBC evening news. or better still, a Jack Layton speech. Now there's a funny guy!
22 - alessandro
Aw man, The Jack Layton Show! Or The Jack Layton Comedy Hour. Now THAT would be hilarious.
Canada doesn't do comedy that well here because we're so damn "safe," "egalitarian" and "PC."
If I would be a "content director" of Little Mosque I'd push the envelope. Good luck convincing the bureaucratic behemoth CBC though.
23 - Ed Plashke
I see an interesting juxtaposition on this board; Bill Gibbons (a non-Muslim) dislikes it, AmericanGirl (a Muslim) likes it. To satisfy Bill Gibbons, we'd have to push it into non-"p.c." territory. But if we did that, AmericanGirl would then probably be offended.
So what are you supposed to do? You're damned if you do, damned if you don't.
As for British comedy, yes it pushes the envelope. But don't forget, "persons-of-colour" (is that 'p.c.'?) in British comedies are, well, Brits. They're Brits, first and foremost. That is, they speak with the same British accents as 'non-visible' Brits (gee, now I'm even losing myself in p.c.-ness), emulate the same idioms, live the same lifestyle, quaff the same bitters, etc. (Example: Entwhistle on "Last Of The Summer Wine") In other words, they fit in seamlessly. That's not really pushing the envelope, now is it.
The only Brit show where there's some 'specificity' on the issue of visible minorities is "Little Britain", and even then, in only 1 skit that I can think of (the weight-loss group; if anybody knows what I'm talking about). And what happened? Well they have been criticised for precisely that too.
So please don't go pretending that Brit comedies go where Canadian comedies don't, on the issue of race. Come to think of it, neither do American. Well there you go -- it is official, no comedies are willing to push the envelope in this delicate area.
24 - alessandro
Hence my overall criticism: we play it safe. We certainly don't go where South Park and Family Guy go in animation. Heck, Futurama, The Simpsons or King of the Hill for that matter.