Tales From Dog River 01.26.08: Corner Gas - Episode One

Posted by Randy Harrison on 01.26.2008

A new retro-review that looks at the funniest show to come from North of the Border...well ever. Corner Gas gets the royal treatment starting with Episode One, The Ruby Reborn.



Welcome to the first edition of Tales From Dog River, a retro-review of one of the funniest shows on Canadian television today Corner Gas. I'm Randy Harrison, full-time contributor in the MMA zone, part-time contributor in the wrestling zone, and self-professed #1 fan of this show. I'll be looking at each episode from the beginning all the way through to the end of the fourth season on DVD ( with the fourth season being the most recent release). I'll review the show, give some of the best quotes from the episode in a segment entitled Dog River Speaks, and then close out with the award for Most Valuable Gasser, the character who did that little extra to make the episode funnier. First off though, for those who may not have heard of the show or those who aren't super-fans, a little backstory on the show, the folks of Dog River and the town itself.

Corner Gas premiered on January 22, 2004 on the Canadian television channel CTV, and drew a million-plus viewers with its premiere episode and has yet to dip below a million viewers since that inital episode. The show is set in rural Saskatchewan and town of Dog River is played, in real life, by a small town named Rouleau, Saskatchewan which has seen a huge boom in tourists since the show's debut. Much like "The Real Cosmo Kramer" tours that were done by Kenny Kramer during the height of Seinfeld, people take vacations to this desolate Prairie outpost, just to see the "real Dog River" and view all of the sights that are featured in their favorite TV show. The show has consistently been one of the highest-rated shows on Canadian television and recently has been picked up for syndication in the United States as well, with Superstation WGN out of Chicago airing repeat episodes of the show on numerous days of the week. Reviews of the show since its US debut have been extremely positive with Gannett News Service calling it "one of the season's best new shows", while the McClatchey News Service said "the funniest show coming to television this fall is not The Big Bang Theory or Chuck... the knock-down winner is an obscure little show from Canada called Corner Gas". Heady praise to be sure, and something I feel is well-deserved for a show that's smartly written and well-produced.

As for the cast of characters, they are much like you'd find in any small town, and that is one of the reasons that this sitcom which (mainly) features "Canadian" humor is so accessible to people across Canada and now across the United States as well. Anyone who has lived in a smaller town or knows someone who has lived in a small town will be able to relate to the characters of Corner Gas because they are the same type of folk that you could more than likely expect to see at your local bar or restaurant or yes, even a gas station. The quirks of these characters are universal and go beyond any national borders to prove that funny is funny, whether it be in a small town in rural Saskatchewan or a big city like Los Angeles or New York. And just who are these cast of characters you ask?

Cast of Characters



The proprietor of Corner Gas, the station which lends the series its name. He works, sort of, but mainly spends his time at the register reading comic books, or over next door at the Ruby coffee shop, connected to the gas station, discussing the minutiae of daily life with whoever may be there at the time. He seems to have an unhealthy obsession with chili cheese dogs and is the son of Oscar and Emma Leroy, who we'll get to shortly. In his pre-sitcom career, Butt was one of Canada's most popular stand-up comedians before penning and starring in Corner Gas, and is married to one of his co-stars, Nancy Robertson.



Lacey is originally from Toronto, Ontario, but she comes "home" to Dog River in the debut episode to take over The Ruby coffee shop after the death of her aunt. One of Brent's closest friends, she tends to be a terrible liar and seems to be in a constant state of confusion at how much different life is in a small town compared to the hustle and bustle of the big city. Gabrielle Miller, the actress, has the distinction of being one of the few actresses to play roles in three different series that were running concurrently, which she did in 2004. She's also appeared on shows like The X-Files and Frasier.



Hank is Brent's best friend and, despite his big heart, he may be the dumbest person in Dog River. His profession seems to be milling around town or hanging out at Corner Gas pestering Brent for money. He's constantly borrowing money from most of the town residents and has rarely, if ever, been seen without his customary backwards baseball cap to cover his "bad hair days". Ewanuick has had roles in TV shows like Dark Angel and Tru Calling and may be best known for his role in the movie Just Friends as Clark, the hometown best friend of main character Chris Brander (Ryan Reynolds).



Wanda works at Corner Gas under Brent and is generally regarded as the smartest person in town. She's a single mom with a young son named Tanner, who is known throughout town as being a terror on all babysitters. She's the only resident of Dog River to go to university and has a degree in linguistics. In real life, Robertson is married to series creator and star Brent Butt and has had smaller roles in movies like Are We There Yet? and television shows like Dead Like Me.



Oscar is Brent's father and is possibly the stubbornest and angriest man in all of Dog River. He's frequently flustered with everyone, proclaiming all who disagree with him to be "jackasses" and is generally known as the town curmudgeon. The former owner of Corner Gas, he still mills in from time to time to do some shopping, hide from his wife Emma, or just to annoy his son. Eric Peterson is a well-known, award-winning dramatic actor in Canada and this role was seen as a bit of a stretch for the award-winner but he's consistently proven to be one of the funniest actors on the show.



Emma is known as the backbone of the Leroy family, generally having to clean up after Oscar's messes, and maintaining a strong bond with Brent, despite his age. She's mostly low-key, except when dealing with Oscar, and is seen more often than not crocheting or knitting at home during the show. Wright is known for being a theatre director as well as an actress and has had roles in TV shows such as Monk, and in movies like A Perfect Storm.



Known for keeping the peace as the senior police officer in Dog River, Davis is also sensitive, almost to a fault when it comes to his performance and also has a habit of mis-spending or over-spending the police budget. He also believes that the original Battlestar Galactica may have really happened. The actor portraying Davis, Lorne Cardinal, may be best known for his role in the Robin Williams movie Insomnia, and has been known across Canada for being one of the best Aboriginal (Native Canadian) actors there is.



Last, but not least, we have Karen, the overly ambitious and overly neurotic junior police officer in Dog River. The youngest character on the show, she's known for being a good cook and is a hackey-sack enthusiast, despite most of the town not knowing what a hackey-sack is. She is regarded as being Davis' conscience and keeps him from straying too far off course while on duty. Spencer-Nairn has had numerous roles in both Canada and the United States on the small and big screens. She's known best outside of her Corner Gas appearances for her role as Kim Gretzky in the Canadian TV movie Waking Up Wally: The Walter Gretzky Story, a movie based on the life of hockey legend Wayne Gretzky's father.

Now that we're all caught up on the town and the lovable cast of characters let's get underway with the first installment of Tales From Dog River, as we look at the premiere episode "The Ruby Reborn"

Episode One: The Ruby Reborn (Originally aired on January 22, 2004)

We start the show and the series outside of Corner Gas, with a car pulling into the pumps for a fill-up. The driver remarks that he's never driven through Saskatchewan before and that he noticed that it's very flat. Brent points out that the man has only technically driven halfway through Saskatchewan and wonders if the driver means flat in the topographical sense. Hank, leaning outside the station, helpfully tells the outsider that there's lots to see, and nothing to block your view, which Brent agrees with. Brent then turns and wonders who stole the majestic mountain range that was on the horizon earlier in the day, prompting the outsider to note the sarcasm and point it out to Brent. Brent, of course, replies that it's Saskatchewan, what else is there to do. The first of what is sure to be many great customer service moments from Brent Leroy folks.

We cut back into the station with Hank complaining about the quality of the station's coffee and Brent noting that Hank has yet to pay for said coffee. They both wonder when the coffee shop is going to reopen with Hank fearing that Lacey is going to turn it into a snooty big-city restaurant. Hank questions just who this Lacey person is and what she's like and Brent points out that she's Ruby's niece from Toronto and that's all that anyone needs to know. Hank wonders about Lacey's past and thinks that she could be a criminal or a drug dealer for all they know. Brent shoots all of this down and points out that it's hard enough for Lacey to move from the big city to such a small town and to try to fill the shoes of her aunt, whom the entire town loved, without Hank giving her a hard time. Hank professes that Dog River is a great town and that everyone will be more than willing to give her a chance as we cut to the front page of the local paper, The Dog River Howler, with a picture of Lacey next to the headline "Big City Woman Destroys Landmark". You've got to love the optimism of this town.

Lacey comes into the station reading the paper with the slanderous headline and Brent immediately apologizes for it as Wanda notes that Lacey's arrival is the biggest thing to happen in Dog River since the "space rock" that hit a farm just outside of town. We see the headline from the Howler that says "Death From Above" as Brent points out that they tend to sensationalize the news just a tad in Dog River and that Lacey has nothing to worry about. Lacey agrees and figures that it could have been much, much worse, and in a funny twist, she then meets Hank, who gives his condolences to Lacey on her aunt. He also mentions that Ruby's apple crumble was as addictive as crack cocaine. A subtle and fantastic attempt by Hank to figure out if Lacey is indeed a drug dealer like he suspects.

We're out on the main street of Dog River now and we see Davis leaning back and resting comfortably in his car before the radio squawks and Karen calls him from the other car, deep undercover, hiding behind the "surveilance bush". They end up in an argument over which car is Car #1 before we move back to the station just in time for Oscar to pull in. He notices Brent hanging a sign and of course criticizes the job Brent is doing. After he's done criticizing, he realizes what the sign says and wonders why Brent is hanging a sign for video rentals when the gas station doesn't rent movies. Brent tells him they do and Oscar complains that it's a gas station, not a movie house, while Brent points out that it's a gas station/convenience store and that driving all the way into Wullerton (spit), the next town over isn't very convenient. Oscar accuses Brent of wanting to be Ed Sullivan, complete with a horrible impersonation and asks Brent what the hell he's thinking. Turns out that Brent is thinking that the old man's Sullivan could use some work. HAH!

Back inside the station, Lacey is considering suing the Howler for their slanderous headline, when Hank points out that they aren't really big on lawsuits in Dog River. We get quick cuts to various random acts of vandalism being perpetrated on the Howler offices and the news van (why does a newspaper have a news van is what I want to know), with all of the various acts being suggested by Hank, of course. Oscar makes his way back to the station just in time to see Brent hanging a movie poster behind the front counter and as usual over-reacts, claiming this is the first step in turning the gas station into a family fun park with "movies and ferris wheels and circus elephants blowing up balloons". Emma makes her first appearance, wanting to do a little shopping in Corner Gas and immediately both of the Leroy men try and pull her to their side of the argument. She initially ignores them and continues talking to Wanda about the things she was wanting to buy before finally getting into it and playing peacemaker. She gets Oscar to admit that he's retired now and should let Brent run things the way he wants, while getting Brent to realize that after all the years Oscar put into running the station that maybe he should at least PRETEND to respect Oscar's opinion. Brent suggests that Oscar rent a movie and see what it's all about before shooting it down but Oscar is reluctant to try anything new, at least until Emma gives them both "the look" and in the staredown she throws her weight around, essentially scaring them both into agreeing to the movie rental.

Davis brings Karen in from her surveillance post behind the bush for a serious emergency with "the new girl". It turns out that she's brewing some fresh coffee and wouldn't you know Karen comes speeding in with her siren on from out of town. HAHA. Brent and Oscar are outside and they finally agree it's time to rent Oscar a movie. Brent gives him a hard time about a membership card, asking for Oscar's name and address, just to get under the old man's skin. It turns out that they both forget the house address despite Brent growing up there and Oscar living there for decades. Brent decides on Jaws for his dad and Wanda wonders if it's the best idea for someone as excitable as Oscar can be.Turns out that Brent knows that Oscar doesn't have a VCR so it's a bit of a moot point.

This brings Oscar storming back to the store to give Brent the business for not having a VCR, and of course, Brent takes full advantage of the situation. He offers to rent a VCR out to Oscar, asks to see his membership card again, and gives the old man another hard time about needing the 200 bucks for a deposit for the machine. Wanda again points out that Jaws might be a bad idea for the Oscar, seeing as he's wound tighter than a coiled spring, but Brent keeps the faith, noting that it'll be a million years at least before Oscar is able to get the VCR hooked up.

We're inside the newly renovated and redecorated coffee shop now with the entire town inside buzzing. Emma notes that she loves it and barely recognizes the place while Oscar, Brent and Wanda seem a little less enthused. Lacey welcomes them in and asks what they think and funnily enough the three complainers change their tune. Lacey's glad they all like it, since she was worried about the new look after being "attacked by the media". Emma tells her that the Howler is barely the media and that she doesn't think that they've ever gotten a story right, which leads to another Howler headline "Moose Jaw Gets NBA Franchise". Emma thinks that people will get used to the change, and besides it's not like they're going to drive all the way to Wullerton (spit), just for coffee. Lacey's touched..sort of, and wants to get a mop for all of the spit. Alright, explanation time! You see, the story is that Dog River and Wullerton are in a bit of a feud, as is usually the case with two small towns close together. So much so, that every time someone in Dog River says the name "Wullerton" they spit on the ground in disgust. Hence, the spitting and the need for poor unknowing Lacey to grab her trusty mop.

The four of them head into a booth to sit down when Hank makes his way in. He seems a litle less than happy, noting that the salt shakers aren't clear anymore so he can't see what's in them. He's flustered by the art on the walls and the "weird cloths on the table" and generally just hates the new look of the place. Hank has two words for everyone, "boy, cott" and he's going to refuse to come into the coffee shop and put it out of business. Wanda, Emma and Brent joke about all of the companies that are still in business despite Hank's refusal to use them, listing off things like dandruff shampoo, toothbrushes, deodorant, and books. Oscar of course doesn't get the joke and yells out "pickup trucks".

It's a little later that night now and Brent's decided to take Lacey to the "finest drinking establishment in Dog River", the bar inside the Dog River hotel where Lacey asks for an imported beer and gets a look from the waitress like she has three heads. Brent asks how she thinks the day went, and Lacey says that a few people didn't like the place but for the most part it was alright, despite Hank hating it. Oscar comes strolling by and Brent reminds him about the video rental being due or he'll owe a fine. Brent quizzes Oscar on the movie after wondering if he was even able to set up the VCR and begins making up things that have never happened in Jaws, including a shark/dinosaur fight, which Oscar ends up agreeing was the best part. Those two are so mean to him and yet it just seems so right.

The following day comes and Hank is still protesting the new coffee shop, going so far as to walk a one-man picket line outside the place. Brent tells Lacey he'll go out to talk some sense into his best friend. Sadly, I think that Hank is WAY past anything involving common sense. It looks like Brent has a way with words as he tears up Hank's sign, breaks the handle and gives him a good whack upside the head.

We're back at the Leroy house and Oscar is still trying to hook up the VCR, with what looks to be every tool he owns on the floor. Emma explains the concept of red, white and yellow to him, going EXTRA slowly and Oscar notes that the Japanese models are the ones that do the plugs like that and poor Emma thinks that Oscar is getting dumber by the day. Back inside the coffee shop, Hank is not going to be deterred from his protest by Brent and his "strong-arm tactics" causing Brent to wonder if Hank thinks he's Lech Walesa. Brent rightly points out that Hank is over-reacting and Hank freaks out that the walls are pink and that Brent is drinking his coffee in a "Barbie dream house". Brent defends Lacey and says that there aren't going to be anymore changes, which Lacey doesn't exactly agree with, leaving Brent wondering what's next.

At Casa de Leroy, Oscar, now watching Jaws, is convinced that Emma set the VCR up wrong because he's not seeing the swordfight or the dinosaur that Brent was talking about, prompting him to razz Emma about which one of them is stupider now. Poor Oscar. Back at the coffee shop with everyone outside as Lacey signs for a delivery and announces that the last change has been made. Brent thinks that if Hank still boycotts the place after this change that he's going to break more than Hank's sign and it turns out that Hank agrees, offering to buy a round of coffee for the town (saying that by round he meant Brent and himself and that everyone else is on their own), as we pan up to see the new sign, naming the coffee shop The Ruby, after Lacey's late aunt.

At the counter, Lacey wonders if Hank always gets so worked up over such little things and Brent assure her that it's almost always. He orders himself a chili cheese dog but unfortunately Lacey's decided to take them off of the menu. This prompts Brent to head outside with his own protest sign "Save The DOGS!" as the show comes to a close.


Dog River Speaks

While referring to Lacey as the new girl in town...

Hank: Hey Wanda, what do you know about this Lacey person?

Wanda: I know she doesn't have cataracts so you don't stand a chance.


Regarding Lacey's apparent "drug use"

Brent: Maybe, she doesn't want us in the coffee shop because she's turning the whole place into a methamphetamine lab. Get the town kids hooked on the meth and the crack cocaine, cause once they're hooked on that, you know what's next. Marijuana, then jazz music..forget about it.


Lacey on her "fair shake" from the newspaper editor...

Brent: He tends to sensationalize, so don't panic, it's not that bad.

Lacey: Yeah, I suppose. I mean, they could have run a photo of me in a Hitler mustache, tossing puppies into a wood chipper.

Hank: Does such a photo exist?


Brent and Oscar regarding Oscar's short fuse...

Emma: What are you two on about?

Oscar: Your son is turning the gas station into a movie theatre!

Brent: Bear in mind that Dad has a tendency to overstate things.

Oscar: I have never overstated a single thing in the history of the planet!

Brent: Yeah. Um, remember when I suggested we get some uniforms? Some nice, simple Corner Gas uniforms? You said people would think we were Nazis.

Oscar: I said, they MIGHT think we were Nazis!


Most Valuable Gasser

The MVG for the debut episode has to be Brent Leroy. He's the main character and in the first episode everything was centered mainly on him, as well as the new coffee shop opening. We got a good feel for Brent's sarcasm and his quick wit, along with his patience in dealing with Oscar. A few solid one-liners thrown in along the way and Brent is definitely the choice for Most Valuable Gasser for the first episode of the series.


Leaving The Station
Well, that wraps things up from Dog River for this week. Be sure to come back next week as we take a look at Episode Two, one of my personal favorites, The Tax Man, with former Kids In The Hall alum Kevin McDonald guest starring as the aforementioned Tax Man. Thanks for reading everyone and remember that Dog River might be 40 kilometers from nowhere and way beyond normal, but the people of Dog River, and fans like me, sure seem to like it that way.

The 411: A great first episode and a great start to the series. Not the funniest episode of the show ever, but really what show is at its peak in the first episode? The groundwork is laid for almost everyone in town and their characters and the stage is set for the comedic fireworks to come later in the season.

Final Score:  7.0   [ Good ]