As sure as God’s got sandals, “Letterkenny” is back for a second season.
Fans who have been waiting since February for more snarky small-town Ontario adventures from Wayne (Jared Keeso), Daryl (Nathan Dales) and Squirrelly Dan (K Trevor Wilson) are getting a nice gift in their Christmas stocking. Six new episodes premiere on Christmas Day on CraveTV.
“Letterkenny” seems to thrive on holidays and big occasions. It premiered last February after the Super Bowl and The Comedy Network later scored with a “Letterkenny” marathon on Canada Day.
Producer Mark Montefiore thinks the Christmas drop is brilliant.
“If it was two years ago and it wasn’t on Crave, I would have been, ‘You’re out of your mind.’ Now, I think we’re the first to ever do this. It’s awesome.”
Anticipation for the new season is keen. A promotional clip is already up to over a million views on CraveTV’s Facebook page.
Even though the series isn’t on a U.S. carrier yet, there are fans stateside who are also saying, “Pitter-patter, let’s get at ‘er.”
One viewer from “southern Canada aka Wisconsin” left the comment “Ready for Season 2” on the “Letterkenny” Reddit page.
“The traction it has gotten in the States is mind boggling,” says Keeso, who co-created “Letterkenny” with writer/director Jacob Tierney (“The Trotsky”).
Keeso’s not too concerned at this point if Americans are streaming the series illegally.
“I’m just happy some Americans have got their eyes on it and grow the show and create more demand for it.”
A sale to the U.S. is the goal of most Canadian producers and New Metric Media co-president Montefiore says he’s working on it; so is distributor DHX Media. These new episodes — plus an additional six that go into production in February — will help. Even in this age of shorter series runs and binge viewing, 18 episodes are easier to import than six; outside markets always like to know there are more episodes coming.
For now, Montefiore and Keeso and the others are simply thrilled “Letterkenny” has had such an impact on CraveTV. In today’s competitive world of “Peak TV,” a buzz-worthy original such as “Letterkenny” is an important programming tent pole.
“We sold a lot of Crave subscriptions last year,” says Wilson, who was told at one point that one in three people tuned in to CraveTV were watching “Letterkenny.”
In season 2, hockey dudes Reilly and Jonesy (played by Dylan Playfair and Andrew Herr) get some new competition and Wayne is looking for love.
“We stick to our strengths,” says Keeso. “What we feel we excel at is laughs on a second-by-second basis.”
The vulgarity of many of the show’s jokes make them hilarious (and relatable) to some viewers but difficult to share in print. Many come at viewers in rapid fashion and are spat out like sunflower seeds. The hockey dudes describe their world as “forecheck-backcheck-paycheck, bro.”
Cranking out scripts has been a challenge for Keeso, who shares writing duties with Tierney. Up until now, “Letterkenny” was shot around Keeso’s other series, “19-2.” But with that Montreal-based cop drama having just wrapped for good (the fourth and final season will premiere on Bravo in 2017), Keeso can now concentrate on “Letterkenny.”
The cast and crew head back north to Sudbury, Ont., to start work on season 3 in February.
“Yeah, we’re going to do a winter season,” says Keeso, who bases “Letterkenny” on his hometown of Listowel, Ont.
“Growing up in Listowel, snowmobile culture is massive, massive, massive,” he says. “It’s not just about what kind of snowmobile you have; it’s also the jacket.
“The snowmobile jacket is as much a statement as the sled itself. In Listowel, they’re wearing them everywhere. The hicks in high school wear them in class. That’s a statement; people know what sled is matched to what jacket.”
Keeso doesn’t just rely on memories. He messaged his pals back in Listowel and asked for their “snowmobile slang trail stories.” Many were used; few will be printable.
— Bill Brioux is a freelance TV columnist based in Brampton, Ont.
