I admit it, I bought into the hype.
Maybe it was the name or the fact that it was covered by the New York Times and CNN. Nevertheless, I was in front of the television to watch the premier of Little Mosque on the Prairie. It's hard to form an opinion on the show after just one episode. However, I've decided to share my thoughts on the show, and then compare them after watching a few more episodes.
The best way I could describe the program is Corner Gas meets King Of The Hill. C.G. in the sense of location and supporting characters; and K.O.T.H in the sense of the emphasis on stereotypes. There are two groups of characters; the Muslim population and the rest of the town of Mercy's citizens. Both groups can then be subdivided into two smaller groups: Those who think sensibly and those who think insensibly.
With the Muslims, you have those who think in a progressive way. This would include Amaar, the new Iman, and Rayyan, the daughter of Yassir. You also have Muslim characters who think in a very strong Conservative and traditional way such as Baber, the old Iman, and Fatima. The Conservative Muslims are the ones who refuse to let any type of Western influence into their life. Case in point, Baber's sermon when he exclaims, "How can the Desperate Housewives be desperate when they are only fulfilling their womanly duty?"
Then, there are the town's folk. Most of whom are paranoid and somewhat ignorant. This includes everyone from the Mayor to the local radio talk show host. Ironically, the only person who is actually open and respectful to the Muslims, is the town's Priest. There are also characters who have a presence in all the groups. Most notable of this is Yassir and his non-Muslim wife, Sarah.
The foundation of the program is having these groups and their respective sub-groups, clash with each other. The results of the clash can vary. Sometimes you'll be laughing (i.e.: cucumber sandwiches vs. goat curry); and other times, you feel very uncomfortable (i.e.: everything said by the talk show host).
Does Little Mosque live up to the hype? Again, only the first episode has aired. However, it did reach my expectations. Is it funny? You will certainly get a few good laughs. Personally, I was hoping for humour that was smart and bold (such as Arrested Development and The Newsroom). Instead, I would describe the humour as "safe." Is it the best Canadian sitcom? That remains to be seen.
I'll certainly be watching the next episode.
What are your thoughts on the show? Feel free to post them.
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-Cheap plug time: Check out Episode 24 of The Audio Circus-
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5 comments:
The show was NOT funny. I actually found it offensive. Having been in a mosque, I witnessed muslim women using their own door to enter, and sitting by themselves, segregated from the men. Will this idealogy be used in a script? When will the show examine sharia law? How about the real fear... contempt for the west?
The scene where the iman was in line at the airport (talking about suicide, bomb, etc.) was preposterous. I don't know anyone so stupid, as to be so careless and cavalier towards others. Or maybe that's just a muslim thing.
Well, it's good to see the bigots and hate-mongers have found the site. I personally found the shows portrayal of muslims more realistic (at least in terms of the muslims I know) than any other television comedy or drama I've seen. Perhaps that's because the show's creator is a Canadian muslim woman? I felt I should point that out for anyone who, having read the ill-informed and cowardly statement above, thinks the show is trying to gloss anything over.
As to the show itself, it was good - in a Corner Gas kind of way. For me that means it's not must-see TV, but I won't automatically turn the channel if it comes on either. (for me only 5-10% of prime time network programming falls into the 'won't automatically turn the channel' category).
Anyway, congratulations to the CBC and everyone involved. It is, so far, a hit and the CBC definitely needs one badly.
The program drew close to 2.1 Million viewers. That's huge!
I should point also out that there is usually three "sects" per religion: Reform, Conservative and Orthodox. Each sect celebrates and honours their religion, thier own way. The Mercy Muslims looked to fit in the Conservative category.
"Little Mosque" depends of offensive stereotypes for its humour.
Also, while at times funny, I do wonder about how "real" the situation is. I once saw a show about how the Nazis made two propaganda films about the conflict between the British and the Irish. The films, at least according to those who were interviewed who had seen them were quite good. The only problem was that the people in the movies were not Irish. What I mean by that was that the culture of the Irish portrayed in the films in no way reflected actual Irish culture as I guess the Germans who wrote, produced, and acted in the movies never took the time to get to understand the traditions and feel of the Irish people. It just wasn't important to them because in the end it had nothing to do with the Irish. It was as one commentator of the movies said "Germans talking to Germans".
And that is kind of what I am getting with the "Little Mosque" show. In the end it isn't really about small town Saskatchewan or Muslim communities living within small town Saskatchewan. In the end what it comes down to is just Liberal Urbanite Canadians talking to Liberal Urbanite Canadians, with their political message being far more important to them than whether or not the situation portrayed reflects a real situation in the country accurately enough.
By the way, why does "The She Mayor" remind me so much of the mayor on South Park?
The only problem I see with your argument Tom is that in this case the "Irish" created the show. The shows creator and exect producer is a muslim woman. The show may rely on stereotypes, but sometimes those stereotypes come from somewhere and while they may be overdone for the purpose of television comedy, at least according to the muslim woman who created the show, there is some truth in them.
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