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‘Trailer Park Boys’ returns to comfortable ground

Trailer Park Boys is basically the Little Engine that Could of international TV. Despite being hugely popular in its native Canada, Americans took awhile to catch on. But when we did, thanks in part to Netflix, we went all in. The show is nowhere near as popular here as it is in its homeland, but the Sam Goody next to Wal-Mart carries Trailer Park Boys throw blankets. That fact speaks for itself. 

The series follows the daily lives of 3 petty criminals (Ricky, Julian and Bubbles). The trio spends their timeout of jail in a Nova Scotia trailer park where they plan get rich quick schemes, grow weed, and argue. Think The Office, but with more Canadian accents, 80s hair, and white guys from your high school who thought they could rap. 

Season 10, which premiered March 28, begins with the camera crew coming back to the park in order to get a look at Julian's new bar. Julian, completely convinced that he and his buddies have made it, is so manically stoked about the whole thing that it's hard not to suffer a little secondhand embarrassment when you realize that this venture, just like many others before it, is probably going to crash and burn. Still, it's not hard to see why he's feeling optimistic. He's in charge of the park, he's got two (much younger) girlfriends, his bar is popular, and Bubbles' ever-present legion of cats is doing great. Meanwhile, Ricky and his (on-again) partner Lucy are discussing the idea of having another baby. Things are going relatively well between them, at least as far as past episodes go. Their daughter Trinity is now a mother herself, in one of the least depressing cases of teenage pregnancy on television (the kid's full name is The Motel, in case you were wondering). 

Still, it's impossible not to be skeptical. They may have sworn off jail, but for these guys, jail is like a magnet.  

So all in all, nothing much has changed. The guys look a little older, seeing as the series had its debut in 2001, but their lives are largely the same. Trailer Park Boys is not the type of show that needs a lot of explaining. It's nothing if not formulaic, but that's part of what makes it great. This show is a friendly sort of formulaic; the kind of show you put on when you're sick or in a bad mood and just need a good laugh, even if it's just at the accents. It's comforting, because no matter how badly you did on your last test, at least you're not locked up in jail or blowing anything up. Or maybe you are, but as Ricky so eloquently puts it, "don't quit just because you suck at something." 

Ten seasons is a long run, but for this show, it's a worthwhile one. I'd recommend it to anyone who likes dark but goofy comedies. And if anyone is interested in sending that throw blanket my way, you know where to find me.