Sounds like Jian
Cats: CBC Radio|No one is more surprised than this typist to hear how good the new CBC Radio arts program is sounding. Q is hosted by Jian Ghomeshi weekday afternoons at 2 pm on Radio 1.
Launched a couple of weeks ago, the show covers the arts, entertainment and popular culture. Being CBC its focus is (and should be) Canada, but it doesn’t limit itself to these borders. Q replaces the very lame Freestyle which replaced something even lamer a few years back. Q is intelligent and engaging without trying to be too hip, as Jian seemed last summer when he hosted Sounds like Canada for Shelagh Rogers.
I’ve only heard bits and pieces thus far but everything has been interesting and entertaining.
Yesterday, Q featured a piece on why Canadian satirists don’t measure up to those in the US (ie Rick Mercer vs. John Stewart or Colbert Report vs. Air Farce). Toronto comedian Rebecca Addleman argued that Canadian political satire seems lame and stale next to cutting-edge US shows because Canada is muzzled by defamation laws take a “guilty until proven innocent” approach. As a result Canadian production companies are scared away from biting political satire and stick with soft “Canadian humour” like Corner Gas and Little Mosque. You can see Addleman’s article in the present issue of Walrus Magazine.
Recently segments also included the new urban-hipster trend of wearing the keffiyeh, the black and while scarf that represents the Palestinian struggle. The piece explored the appropriation of political symbols by fashion, and the appropriateness of a Toronto hipster wearing the revolutionary symbol to be cool.
The show is new and can be forgiven for a Southern Ontario focus thus far. With time it should get out of Toronto into the into the rest of the country.
April 26th, 2007 at 7:00 am
Poppycock. Canadian comedy rules, at least the satire. However, Air Farce has always been bad and will rarely even get me to smirk. The Colbert Report is lame, and I’ve never heard of John Stewart.
Newfoundland deserves most of the credit. People don’t even tell jokes in BC!
April 26th, 2007 at 7:56 am
No Canadian comedy does not rule!
The comedian interviewed was right.It’s the defamation laws but it’s more than that. There are funny people but they don’t get a chance because production companies play safe and cautious.
Other problem is that production companies don’t know when to stop. They beat a dead horse to pulp - Air Farce for example - 17 years! Predictable. Lame. Boring. Ugh!
22 minutes was brilliant in the early days but is now 14 years old and the format is also predictable. According the Walrus article, he producers are proud that they’ve never been sued. And this is cutting edge?
Mercer is smart but seriously discredited himself by going south to make fun of dumb americans. Such an easy target for a smart guy. More smug than funny. And his show is also getting too soft and more “feel good”.
Good satire takes risks and pushes the envelope. Codco, Kids in the Hall were the Glory Days of CanCon Humour. Trailer Park Boys is some of the best CanCon humour now but it probably isn’t quite satire.
If you want good satire go to the US or Britain or Australia. But Canada! Not so much.
April 26th, 2007 at 12:04 pm
I’ve never watched Air Farce, I think it’s skewed towards maybe a more mature audience (I say this with love, people, relax).
I like Rick Mercer a lot but it’s true that picking on Americans is too easy.
And really someone hasn’t heard of Jon Stewart? Hm, that’s interesting.
I think Jon Stewart and Steven Colbert are brilliant and excellent, and let’s not forget they’re doing DAILY/NIGHTLY shows, not weekly, so they really have to work a lot more.
I haven’t listened to Q yet, but I like that Jian a lot. He’s cute - oh, wait, he’s on the radio, so I don’t actually SEE him, but I’ve seen pictures.
April 26th, 2007 at 1:53 pm
I guess humour is a subjective thing. But “Canadian humour” is in the news these days. A few weeks ago The Globe’s John Doyle criticized Canadian TV political satire for being soft on its prey and not that funny.
And last summer the CBC Radio show The Contrarians discussed the
question: “are Canadians as funny as they think they are”. The panel of Canadian comics said, no, Canadians aren’t as funny as they think. They said rep. for being funny comes from people who left canada for the US. This would support the argument that something in Canada isn’t good fertilizer for biting satire.
But maybe softer humour is what people want. As Blair Mac said, Air Farce has just been renewed for a 17th year. Go figure.
April 28th, 2007 at 8:09 am
We’re funny so suck it everyone. I like Jian whatshisname too and I’m glad he’s back on the airwaves. Maybe this will encourage me to turn the radio back on. Or at least download the podcast if there is one. I loved CodCo and Kids in the Hall too.
April 28th, 2007 at 7:01 pm
dunno if the new jian program is a podcast. should check
June 6th, 2007 at 6:25 pm
yeah, I like his shows, I used to follow his TV show play back couple of years ago; he ain’t on TV no more right?