Opening the Dore to comedic possibilities

Jon Dore finally gets his own television show

Tina Hassannia, CUP Arts Bureau Chief

OTTAWA (CUP) — It’s hard to find funny shows on television outside of talk shows or cartoons these days. It’s even worse with Canadian television.

Viewers’ insatiable thirst for reality television has replaced the era of the sitcom. Corner Gas and Little Mosque on the Prairie appeal to mass audiences because they depict Canadiana so well — the former because of its rural stereotypes, the latter because religious humour is universal — but it’s hard to find Canadian comedy that actually pushes the envelope.

Truly original comedy is more easily found in a comedy club than on the couch.

Jon Dore, a once-Ottawa-based comedian, is hoping to change that with his new Comedy Network show, aptly named The Jon Dore Television Show.

Dore is well known in the nation’s capital for his work as a stand-up comic and a stint as the host of Rogers Television’s Daytime. Dore now lives in Toronto and has made a national name for himself after providing comic relief in Canadian Idol.

With his own show though, Dore is moving above and beyond the mainstream appeal of his Canadian Idol gags, but he says to compare the two shows would be comparing apples and oranges.

“[Idol] helped me form a relationship with the network and the production company [Insight], and it was a hell of a lot of fun to be part of that show,” Dore said.

“You can’t compare the two.”

There’s no point in trying to categorize Jon Dore’s kind of humour, either, because it can’t really be classified as a typical situation- or sketch-comedy show. The show’s premise revolves around Dore exploring a different aspect of his life in every episode.

“It’s usually trying to make myself better, or finding out why I am the way I am,” Dore explained.

He interviews real people to get their perspective on the subject — like doctors, priests and even his real-life aunt — to make some important life decisions, which then result in bizarre shenanigans.

A few of the episodes explore topics like happiness, smoking, STDs and proving he’s not a problem drinker after peeing in his friend’s patio flowerpot.

In the first episode, Dore is told by his Aunt Kathy — a registered nurse — to get tested for infertility, because Dore had to get “nut surgery” as a child thanks to a testicle that failed to drop.

Dore then ponders some deep questions — does he want children at all? Does God mind if he masturbates to get a sperm sample for a fertility test? God does respond, but Dore shuts him up when he realizes he doesn’t believe in God anyway.

The show is funny in a snickering way, rather than outright guffaws. There is an amusing, awkward nature to his “real” interviews. They are staged, to a certain degree, though you can tell that Dore occasionally improvs his answers. This style of interview is akin to Da Ali G Show or The Colbert Report, but Dore is able to create a fictitious storyline.

For those familiar with Dore’s style of stand-up — intelligent wordplay peppered with rapid-fire improv — expect much of the same in Jon Dore, but in a television format and with the contributions of three other writers. When asked what kind of comedy influenced the writing, Dore said it was a combination of everything he’s done.

“You have to have some kind of base knowledge of television, because the writing is totally different,” Dore said. “You’re not writing set-up punchline jokes . . . you’re trying to misdirect the audience.”

Perhaps the funniest moments on Jon Dore come from the little pop-culture comments, like referencing child-lit author Judy Blume when he greets God with “Are you there, God? It’s me, Margaret,” or when he decides to become the “Mother Teresa of fathering.”

They might be misdirections, but these clever quips give the show a subtle, unique touch, though that is not to say the show doesn’t resort to vulgarity every once in a while.

When asked why people should watch his show, Dore replied, “ ’Cause our show has farting, and vomiting and, uh, it also has music,” before trailing off.

Jon Dore is not for fans of Canadian Idol, nor advocates of Little Mosque on the Prairie. When asked why people should watch his show rather than the Muslim comedy, Dore seemed flabbergasted that it was even asked.

“Because we have farting and vomiting,” Dore repeated. “And people in costumes, and swearing and re-enactments of [a] 10-year-old me [with] a beard.”

Fair enough. There’s also the fact that Jon Dore seems better written than Little Mosque, which is more than enough reason to watch the show — past the body sounds and fluids being emitted on screen, of course. Here’s hoping Jon Dore will develop a niche audience and prove there is still room for off-the-wall humour on television.