Hiccups

I'm Canadian. I understand references to Canadian culture whether they are topical or not. I was a fan of Brent Butt's stand up comedy long before his sitcom days and I was a fan of Corner Gas, especially during the first few years. Then the humour became stale and forced. Hiccups, in a sense, cuts out the middle man. It starts off being stale and forced without first being funny. I've seen only two episodes and I have no plans to see more. The show has a long way to go before it can be considered mediocre let alone good.

The problem with this show lies in the writing. The actors are talented but what can anyone can do with a lame premise and lame lines? Because of the status that Butt and Robertson enjoy in Canada this sitcom may be back next year but, judged on merit and not reputation, it needs to be terminated as soon as possible.

Yes, I was a Corner Gas fan, too and yes I was not ready for Hiccups. I needed time to heal and blah, blah, blah.

But, come on, this is a really good show. The over-the-top main character, Millie Upton, is a joy to watch and Nancy Robertson delivers in every episode. Since the genre of man-child movies and sitcoms (commercials, etc.) has forever been (obviously) a No Girls Allowed Club, it's great to see a woman take on a "chronic child" character and nail it.

The supporting characters that orbit around Millie's planet are well-developed and likable. Yes, the stories are sometimes far-fetched and unbelievable but so were the story lines on Curb Your Enthusiasm (yet another man-child show) and it didn't stop that show from being a huge hit.

The writing and comedy style still has notes of the wry, understated nature that was common on Corner Gas. But even though this is not Corner Gas, it's still a good watch.

I'm hoping for a Season 3!

Delightful and funny. Canadian television shines again. Nancy Robertson plays Millie Upton, a successful children's book author. She sees the world as a child. She overacts to difficult situations with what her editor calls hiccups, these hiccups inspire her books. To deal with her hiccups she hires a life coach, Stan (Brent Butt), who has no formal training has his hands full trying to defuse her hiccups and help her understand them and why she reacts the way she does. Her overreactions are how most of wish we could say or do. Nancy Robertson is as wonderful as she was in Corner Gas. Kudos to the writers on creativity and freshness and not relying on vulgar offensive language, violence and nudity to tell a story.

I really did want to love this show after being a huge Corner Gas fan for years, but I couldn't. I did like it though. It didn't capture the magic that Corner Gas had for so long, but I think it's a little bit too early to decide that the show is going to be amazing or fail miserably. I started watching Corner Gas in season 4, and going back to watch season 1m I discovered a very different show. I love watching Nancy Robertson playing a nut-case because, though Millie is over the top sometimes, she is still fun to watch. Some of the show seems unrealistic and forced, but I think things will settle into place over time. If you are a Corner Gas fan, at least give the show a chance to become really excellent.

Guys this show isn't perfect. Nobody should've thought it would live up to corner gas. But it's not by any means a bad show either. It's not hilarious but it's not worth cursing at either. It has some lovable characters and some funny moments so it's not worth getting so angry at. Overall a pretty good show which, because of its short time on the air, is worth watching.