Review: Corner Gas Animated “Hedge Your Debts”

Brent is calling in his IOU’s

Overview:

Wanda is putting on the laser focus to assure that the gas stations finances are in order.  When Oscar discovers that Brent has been allowing multiple IOU’s, he takes his son around town to collect his dues.  But, with Davis and Karen setting up shop in The Ruby temporarily and recruiting Lacey to help their cause, Oscar’s underhanded methods may not work out in his favour.

Meanwhile, Hank is helping Emma trim her hedges, and he manages to pull off a piece of art in the foliage.  Appreciating his skills, she takes him around town to create more pieces.  However, when he is enlisted by the town to make a project downtown, he needs to find a way to admit that he has been fluking his way through.

Our Take:

So far this season of Corner Gas Animated– and, it’s strange to think that we are at episode 4 after just two weeks- I have discussed the significant improvements that the series has made between two seasons.  There are many subtle changes and larger ones that have helped to turn this show from good to brilliant.  Whether it is the tightened animation or the crossing plotlines, there is a lot to be hyped about.  But, one of the more overlooked differences is the focus on established characters that we have seen so far this year.  This episode in particular showcases these beloved characters in a fresh yet familiar light.

For one, we have Hank, and his newfound artistic abilities.  He is always one of those characters that you believe has more behind him than the outer moronic form that he shows.  There must be some hidden talent in there somewhere.  This has been the premise of many plots in the past, but for him to have untapped artistic skill always makes sense.  The way this is presented and then retconned by the end of the episode is handled skillfully.  Not only is this side plot say a lot about Hank, but also the talented writers working on this series.

Lacey also plays a unique part in this episode.  Often an underrated character, she has suffered from going from the new face in town to becoming Brent’s love interest.  With so much going on, it held her back from developing a strong character that wasn’t driven by everyone else.  With the animated series, they have done their best to keep her and Brent apart, with just one or two instances in season one where there was even a hint that there was potential between the two.  With tonight’s episode, she receives her own side story that would often be reserved for characters like Wanda or Hank.  It’s nice to see her step out a bit and establish her as her own fun player.  And, she has clearly settled into Dog River and become a local.

Aside from substantial character work, this was probably the least exciting episode we have seen thus far this season.  Brent and Oscar hunting down IOU’s were funny, but there was so much more that could have been done with the plot.  Wanda had some of the best scenes of the episode, but her story wasn’t followed through from start to finish.  And, even Hank’s adventures in hedge trimming, while appropriate to the character, lacked the humour of the rest of the show.  So, while this episode is still miles ahead of the ones we received last year, compared to the expectations brought on from the first few shows this year, it doesn’t hold up.