Strays (TV series)
Strays is a Canadian television sitcom, which premiered on CBC Television in 2021–22.[1] A spin-off of Kim's Convenience, the series centres on Shannon Ross (Nicole Power) as she embarks on a new career in Hamilton as executive director of an animal shelter.[2]
| Strays | |
|---|---|
| Developed by |
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| Starring |
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| Country of origin | Canada |
| No. of seasons | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 10 |
| Production | |
| Executive producers |
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| Producers |
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| Production locations | Hamilton, Ontario, Canada |
| Editor | Aren Hansen |
| Production company | Thunderbird Entertainment |
| Release | |
| Original network | CBC Television |
| Picture format | 1080i (HDTV) |
| Original release | September 14, 2021 – present |
| Chronology | |
| Preceded by | Kim's Convenience |
The cast also includes Frank Cox-O'Connell, Tina Jung, Nikki Duval, Kevin Vidal, Tony Nappo, Paula Boudreau and Emily Piggford.[3] The series is produced by Thunderbird Entertainment.[3]
The series had been planned to start production in 2020, but was delayed until early 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada.[1] It premiered on September 14, 2021.[4]
Production
The show initially faced some criticism for the implications of the fact that Shannon, the only white character in the core cast of Kim's Convenience, was being given her own spinoff over any of the show's Asian characters.[5] John Doyle of The Globe and Mail noted the complexities of the situation, explaining that since all of the other major characters in Kim's Convenience were drawn from Ins Choi's original theatrical play, and Shannon was the only character who had been newly created specifically for the television series, she was the only character who was the intellectual property of the show's producers and thus the only one who could be spun off without Choi's participation.[6]
Cast
- Nicole Power as Shannon Ross
- Frank Cox-O'Connell as Kristian
- Tina Jung as Joy
- Nikki Duval as Nikki
- Kevin Vidal as Liam
- Tony Nappo as Paul
- Paula Boudreau as Aunt Peggy
- Emily Piggford as Lara
Episodes
| No. | Title [7] | Directed by | Written by | Original air date [7] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Cat Condo" | Pat Mills | Clara Altimas and Kevin White | September 14, 2021 |
| 2 | "The Snowball Effect" | Pat Mills | Anita Kapila and Zlatina Pacheva | September 21, 2021 |
| 3 | "New Neighbours" | Renuka Jeyapalan | Anita Kapila and Kevin White | September 28, 2021 |
| 4 | "Trivial Pursuits" | Pat Mills | Clara Altimas | October 5, 2021 |
| 5 | "Girls Night" | Renuka Jeyapalan | Anita Kapila | October 12, 2021 |
| 6 | "Hot for Pappa" | Pat Mills | Kevin White | October 19, 2021 |
| 7 | "Empty Nesters" | Joyce Wong | Rosamund Small and Kevin White | October 26, 2021 |
| 8 | "Speak Your Truth" | Joyce Wong | Clara Altimas and Allana Reoch | November 2, 2021 |
| 9 | "Animal Passion" | Aleysa Young | Clara Altimas and Anita Kapila | November 9, 2021 |
| 10 | "Eggs Anyone?" | Aleysa Young | Anita Kapila and Kevin White | November 16, 2021 |
Critical response
Doyle favourably reviewed the first episodes of the series, writing that "The sheer energy of Strays is admirable. It's gags galore and it can be fiendishly clever contrivance, often anchored in the style of that theatrical staple, the British bedroom farce. At the same time, it's a distinctly contemporary Canadian series, with a diverse cast, and if there's a tincture of subtext that subtext is tolerance. But you'd hardly notice with all the exuberance on display. Besides, there are cute animals almost everywhere."[8]
References
- Houpt, Simon (March 26, 2021). "The abrupt end of Kim's Convenience: Why did CBC let its beloved sitcom close up shop?". The Globe and Mail.
- Alexandra Del Rosario, "‘Kim Convenience’s Andrew Phung & Nicole Power Set New Comedies At Canada’s CBC". Deadline Hollywood, March 26, 2021.
- "Kim’s Convenience’ stars Nicole Power and Andrew Phung getting their own CBC shows". Red Deer Advocate, March 27, 2021.
- Greg David, "CBC sets fall schedule and unveils 2021-22 programming slate, including over 35 original series from Canadian creators". TV, eh?, June 2, 2021.
- Christi Carras, "‘Kim’s Convenience’ stars decry ‘overtly racist’ storylines, lack of representation". Los Angeles Times, June 7, 2021.
- John Doyle, "Bitterness abounds: More fallout from Kim’s Convenience". The Globe and Mail, June 4, 2021.
- "Strays". Zap2it. Retrieved September 7, 2021.
- John Doyle, "CBC's Strays: The funny, unlucky cousin of Kim's Convenience". The Globe and Mail, September 28, 2021.