Corner Gas Countdown, #10

#10: "Safety First"
Karen gets suckered into doing a lame book on bike safety. Why? Because she couldn't "get dorkus to do it". Unfortunately, Karen can't draw. Brent can, but editorial issues require Wanda to take over. Meanwhile Hank has discovered his astrological sign isn't what he thought it was, and in Hank's world this naturally requires him to become an accountant (after a brief disasterous busboy career). Completely overwhelmed, Wanda has to help him out as well. Of course, all this extra responsibility is a little much for our poor Wanda, and pretty soon the bike safety goes out the window ("when you come to a 4-way stop just roll on through!") and the town's financial records are a mess. Epsiode highlights naturally have to feature Hank as the town auditor ("Here are the books. I think you'll find they're very fiscal!") and his interplay with Fitzy. The first speaking role for Josh, Lacey's busboy, comes unexpectedly at the beginning, and then Brent's immortal line: "I didn't even know he could talk". The Oscar/Davis subplot of being perpetually being stuck on roofs wasn't the greatest, but also had its moments. "Now I'm stuck on my own terms".

Honourable Mention: Littlest Yarbo
The "David and Carol" firefighters gag wasn't all that funny, but Hank and Oscar's dog interplays were. The Brent/Lacey-conflict-of-the-week was the usual fare, which isn't necessarily a bad thing. In the end though, the classic moment of the episode is the full playing of "Maybe Tomorrow" as the "Littlest Hobo" steals Brent's steak and has an enjoyable romp through rural Saskatchewan.

#98: The Eight Samurai
And now our "first of the worst". Dog River and their Japanese counterpart exchange gifts. While Hank's terrorist-inspired gift ideas were funny ("Just a little taste of Dog River: some gasoline from Corner Gas, some fertilizer from the field, and the battery from my truck") and the opening gag with Hank comparing Corner Gas's service to big city stations was entertaining, but other than the early rip on David Suzuki ("it really opened my eyes" Lacey tells Brent, but in flashback we discover that his TV special pre-empting Pretty Woman merits an "oh crap") the episode was a wash. Wanda as the bartender was a usual Wanda scene: she gets really whiney and annoying, and that's supposed to be part of the gag but it gets painful to sit through. Shmaltzy fun Wanda is probably worse than acerbic Wanda. Same with Emma's constant stalling the Twinning Committee while she tries to find the missing sword.

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