Last term, I interviewed Lawrentians about what pieces of entertainment and media got them through the summer of lockdown and isolation. This term, I’m doing the same thing, except it’s my turn. Each week, I’m giving my comfort food, pop culture and art suggestions for the dreary winter we’re facing. What’s something you can watch, read or listen to that can take you to a new world? Well, let me tell you.
The editors of this publication have titled my column “Let Me Tell You,” which is apt, as it is just me word vomiting about the things I like every week. Granted, there is a loose theme of “fun things to watch or listen to because the world sucks,” but it is very much “This is what I want to talk about this week, and you can’t stop me!” But if you have lived in North America for the past year and a half, I do not believe that I am the first person to tell you about “Schitt’s Creek.”
Created by father-son team Eugene and Daniel Levy, “Schitt’s Creek” is a single camera sitcom that follows the Roses, a once outrageously wealthy family who lose everything except for a small town in the middle of nowhere called Schitt’s Creek. The episodes are just 21 minutes long, and with 13 episodes per season, it is perfect for a good cozy binge.
Over six seasons, the Roses learn how to live and enjoy their life in a dump such as Schitt’s Creek, realizing the value of non-material things like friendship, self-worth and love. It is a heartwarming story without being preachy or obnoxious. The Levys’ writing manages to portray the growth of the Rose family in an honest manner, one that cannot help but melt even the most hardened of hearts.
The jewel in the crown that is “Schitt’s Creek,” however, are the central cast of actors, led by the legendary comedic actors, Eugene Levy and Catherine O’Hara as the uptight Rose parents: Moira and Johnny. Daniel Levy and Annie Murphy are their spoiled and persnickety offspring: David and Alexis. Rounding out the team is a collection of notable Schitt’s Creek locals, including Mayor Roland Schitt, played by Chris Elliot, his wife Jocelyn, played by Jennifer Robertson, and David’s eventual husband, Patrick, played by Noah Reid.
The cast is just magical. “Schitt’s Creek” is truly a show carried by the performances and, boy, are they a treat to watch. Catherine O’Hara becomes Moira Rose, with all her bizarre quirks and idiosyncrasies. The affection you develop for this privileged, rich lady really creeps up on you, and before you know it, you will be saying bébé and wearing wigs as hats too. The younger Levy and Murphy really stand out as David and Alexis as well, with their contentious yet loving sibling relationship providing fun moments of conflict and resolution nearly every episode. Eugene Levy’s Rose family patriarch is the straight man to the rest of his family, brilliantly anchoring the series by exemplifying one of the most basic rules of acting: acting is reacting. That man can make you crack with just the slight raise of an eyebrow.
I am not the only one to sing the praises of this show. At the 2020 Emmy Awards, for the most prestigious awards in American TV, “Schitts Creek” swept the comedy categories. Each of the four main actors won an acting award with Lead Actor and Actress going to Eugene Levy and O’Hara and their supporting counterparts going to Daniel Levy and Annie Murphy.
I will concede that the first couple of episodes are a bit slow, so, give the show a little time to gain its footing. All it is doing is setting you up for some of the best funny, feel-good TV shows of the 2010’s. Enjoy your time in Schitt’s Creek and say hi to David and Patrick for me.