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Wednesday, April 17, 2013

I am beginning to appreciate Canadian humour more fully

My first introduction to Canadian humour really was the sketch series 'The Kids in the Hall' that aired on Comedy Central years ago. It was funny, odd, and surreal at times. Now YKWIA and I have been watching a comedic horror series called 'Todd and the Book of Pure Evil', which is somewhat like the American show 'Reaper' but just so wrong. Todd is a stoner who encounters a book that makes people's desires come horribly true. His sidekick is Curtis, a guy with a prosthetic arm who seems to have a thinly-veiled crush on Todd. Together with Jenny (who oozes attitude) and Hannah (the brains), they fight evil with mixed results. The whole town (Crowley) is full of Satanists who want the book, and there is a prophecy out there about the Pure Evil One, who might be Todd, or might be someone else. A cabal of Satanists direct the guidance counselor to get the book, and the counselor is convinced he is the Pure Evil One. Almost every person who uses the book dies horribly, consumed by their own desire. A fat girl might wish to be thin and then her shed fat engorges other girls. A gay guy wants the whole school to understand what it's like, and when all the guys turn gay, he winds up the straight one, still the outsider and bullied. An ueber-eco-queen squelches technology and the students revert to cavemen, with her turning into a giant tree goddess, until she is stopped. There are two seasons. It is being streamed on Netflix, and I think it's also being shown on Fearnet here in the States. You might want to check it out. It's not what I'd call absolutely brilliant, but it is pretty damn funny.

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