Lance et compte - Nouvelle génération

The first episode of Lance et Compte, the 10 week series, which I viewed last week (Feb. 20, 02) I found intriguing, introducing several story lines and interesting characters. The main character, Pierre Lambert, played by Canadian actor, Carl Marotte, is a hockey coach & at loggerheads with his client's father. The series is about hockey, of course, giving the plot dramatic entanglements. The actor Carl Marotte I've seen before in several Canadian and American movies. He is always the versatile & brilliant craftsman & I love to watch him.

15 years ago, the "Lance et Compte" series spawned a cult following. The elements of drama into the tough world of ice hockey were put in a great way, with recognizable caracters with whom we share the victories and defeats in their lives...

It is now 2001, 15 years have passed since Pierre Lambert (Carl Marotte), a junior rookie, was drafted by the Quebec National of the NHL (a copy of the former Nordiques) and thus, help them win the Stanley Cup. Now, he's a sports agent and has hockey players as clients. Many of his former teammates and staff have now various businesses...

In this story, we discover that hockey isn't a team game anymore, but mostly a business were money comes first and can generate inflated egos if the sum is not in front... And even bring out individualism and selfishness to those who are paid too much...

That's the world that Pierre Lambert must face. Not only he has to cope with family problems (he's a widower...) but has to solve a major problem: his major client, Dany Bouchard, is harassed by his father and his girlfriend to join another sports'agent, Jerome Labrie (Raymond Bouchard), who promises a shady bonus if he joins his stable...

And the Quebec National isn't what it used to be: no more team play, individual players who act like fat cats, especially Mike Ludano, an arrogant, selfish overpaid player who spends more time on booze and girls rather than on the ice...

Sadden that the team has become so lame, former star player Marc Gagnon (Marc Messier) returns as coach of the National. In his side, Pierre Lambert tries to round up some prospects, especially a lovely lady coach, Michele Beliveau (Maxim Roy), who was trown away from the Canadian Female Hockey team to assist him. Plus bringing back some old friends like Nounou (Michel Daigle), Mac Templeton (Eric Hoziel) and Robert Martin (Robert Marien) to motivate the troops and inspire the team...

But can Pierre Lambert spare a crush for assistant coach Beliveau, as he was already in love with a lawyer (Julie LaRochelle), stuck with her mentally handicapped brother ? A question that can be answered as well as the final playoff game between the Quebec National and the Montreal Canadiens, which makes this excellent series end...

At least, the tempo is held up, good acting and well-written dialogue is kept. And of course, a new generation of the mock Quebec team (the real team is in Colorado now...) is ready to hold the torch... all the way to the next series due in 2004...

The first 3 seasons of the show were in the 80s. With season 4 (or The New Generation) it jump to 2002 so it can also pretty much work as a new start for the show. You don't really need to have seen the 3 first seasons altough it is preferable of course. But they introduce every characters and the links they have with each others nicely.

Overall i think the arc they made for this season (the then glorious National now being the worst team of the league due to various problems) worked very well.

The only part wich i was not as much a fan was when it comes to the character of Jessica Lambert, Pierre's oldest daughter. She's supose to be insuferable so i guess the actress did a great job, and the arc she goes trough is indeed something that can very well happen in real life, its just personally she was getting on my nerve and i couldn't wait that it goes back to stuff around the Team and hockey.

Otherwise everything was pretty great about this season.