Son of a Critch
| Son of a Critch | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Genre | Sitcom |
| Created by | |
| Based on | Son of a Critch by Mark Critch |
| Starring |
|
| Narrated by | Mark Critch |
| Country of origin | Canada |
| No. of seasons | 3 |
| No. of episodes | 39 |
| Production | |
| Executive producer | Andrew Barnsley |
| Producer | Andrew Barnsley |
| Production location | St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador |
| Production companies |
|
| Original release | |
| Network |
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| Release | January 4, 2022 – present |
Son of a Critch is a Canadian comedy television series, created by Mark Critch and Tim McAuliffe, that premiered on January 4, 2022 on CBC Television.[1] Based on the memoir of the same name by Critch, the semi-autobiographical series follows an adolescent Mark as he grows up in the 1980s in Newfoundland and Labrador.[2]
Premise
The series is a coming of age story based on the childhood and adolescence of Canadian comedian Mark Critch. At the start of the series, 11-year-old Mark is growing up in 1980s Newfoundland, where he navigates starting junior high school, making friends, and connecting with the small collection of people in his limited world.[3]
Cast
Main
- Benjamin Evan Ainsworth as Mark Critch, a semi-fictionalized version of the comedian, entering junior high school at the start of the series
- Mark Critch narrates the series as his adult self
- Mark Critch as Mike Critch, Mark's father and reporter for radio station VOCM
- Claire Rankin as Mary Critch, Mark's mother
- Malcolm McDowell as Patrick “Pop” Critch, Mark's grandfather
- Colton Gobbo as Mike Critch Jr., Mark's older brother
- Sophia Powers as Jennifer Fox, called "Fox", a female student in the same grade as Mark, who is part of a family of bullies that share the "Fox" nickname. She appears to have a crush on Mark, but hides it by bullying him.
- Mark Rivera as Ritche Perez, Mark's best friend, and also the only person of color at the entire school
Supporting
- Petrina Bromley as Sister Margaret, Mark's homeroom teacher
- Nora McLellan as Sister Rose, the Principal at Mark's school
- Daisy Harris as Tina, a female student in the same grade as Mark
- Richard Clarkin as Dick Dunphy, Mike's coworker at VOCM
- Nicole Underhay as Suzanne, Fox's mother
- Susan Kelsey as Gertie, Secretary at VOCM
Development
Conception
In 2018, Critch published a memoir about his childhood in Newfoundland.[4] Following its release, McAuliffe suggested developing the book into a television series, which led to him and Critch creating scripts to pitch to various networks.[5] In June 2021, CBC announced they had ordered Son of a Critch to series.[2]
Production and distribution
The series made its Canadian broadcast premiere on CBC Television on January 4, 2022, as well as CBC's streaming platform, CBC Gem.[6]
Production companies involved with the series include Project 10 Productions, and Take the Shot Productions. Lionsgate distributes the series outside Canada. On February 28, 2022, CBC renewed the series for a second season.[7]
On March 23, 2023, the series was renewed for a third season[8] with The CW joining CBC and Lionsgate to co-produce.[9]
Episodes
| Season | Episodes | Originally aired | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| First aired | Last aired | |||
| 1 | 13 | January 4, 2022 | April 12, 2022 | |
| 2 | 13 | January 3, 2023 | March 28, 2023 | |
| 3 | 13 | January 9, 2024 | April 2, 2024 | |
Season 1 (2022)
| No. overall | No. in season | Title | Directed by | Written by | Original air date | Canadian viewers | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | "Old Soul, New School" | Renuka Jeyapalan | Mark Critch & Tim McAuliffe | January 4, 2022 | 941,000[10] | |
| 11-year-old Mark goes to junior high in 1986 St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador. Mark meets Ritchie, a Filipino Canadian, and the only visible minority student at the school. Mark also meets a female bully named Fox, who comes from a family of bullies that all share the same nickname due to their red hair. Mark eventually defeats his bully with words rather than physical force. Mark is forced to stop watching The Raccoons by his father. | |||||||
| 2 | 2 | "Lordy, Lordy, Look Who's Dead" | Renuka Jeyapalan | Mark Critch & Tim McAuliffe | January 11, 2022 | 836,000[11] | |
| While at a funeral parlour, Mark meets Tina, a classmate. They hit it off and Tina kisses him on the cheek. She later calls him to meet at the park. Mark's friend Ritchie tags along, helping Mark use the bus system. Fox is on the bus and decides to tag along as well. At the park, Mark and Tina hold hands again and Tina again kisses Mark. Later that night, Tina calls Mark to break up with him, at the instigation of Fox, who is standing outside Tina's house, threatening to punch Tina. | |||||||
| 3 | 3 | "Cello, I Must Be Going" | Renuka Jeyapalan | Mark Critch & Tim McAuliffe | January 18, 2022 | 906,000[12] | |
| 4 | 4 | "Cucumber Slumber" | Renuka Jeyapalan | Mark Critch & Tim McAuliffe | January 25, 2022 | N/A | |
| 5 | 5 | "Royal Visit" | Deanne Foley | Mark Critch & Tim McAuliffe | February 1, 2022 | 710,000[13] | |
| 6 | 6 | "Candyland" | Deanne Foley | Anita Kapila | February 22, 2022 | N/A | |
| 7 | 7 | "Father Critch" | Deanne Foley | Mark Critch & Tim McAuliffe | March 1, 2022 | N/A | |
| 8 | 8 | "Merry Critch-mas" | Deanne Foley | Heidi Brander | March 8, 2022 | N/A | |
| 9 | 9 | "Acting Normal" | Jay Baruchel | Anita Kapila | March 15, 2022 | N/A | |
| 10 | 10 | "Misty" | Jay Baruchel | Nadiya Chettiar | March 22, 2022 | N/A | |
| 11 | 11 | "Particip-action" | Anthony Farrell | Cathryn Naiker | March 29, 2022 | N/A | |
| 12 | 12 | "Circus" | Anthony Farrell | Romeo Candido | April 5, 2022 | N/A | |
| 13 | 13 | "Save the Last Dance for Me" | John Vatcher | Anita Kapila | April 12, 2022 | N/A | |
| As the school year ends, Mark plans to ask Fox to the school dance, but is confused when he sees Ritchie spending time with her; he only later finds out that Ritchie was helping Fox study math so she can pass the grade. Claire is upset when she discovers Mike Jr. wants to move away to attend the University of New Brunswick, but eventually supports his plan. Mike Sr. worries for his job after Dick tells him that the station would be introducing an all-music format, but it turns out the format is for VOCM's new FM station. | |||||||
Season 2 (2023)
| No. overall | No. in season | Title [14] | Directed by | Written by | Original air date [14] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 | 1 | "Growing Apart" | Renuka Jeyapalan | Mark Critch & Tim McAuliffe | January 3, 2023 |
| 15 | 2 | "You're Dead After School" | Renuka Jeyapalan | Mark Critch & Tim McAuliffe | January 10, 2023 |
| 16 | 3 | "Feast or Famine" | Renuka Jeyapalan | Perry Chafe | January 17, 2023 |
| 17 | 4 | "Beer Necessities" | Renuka Jeyapalan | Mark Critch & Tim McAuliffe | January 24, 2023 |
| 18 | 5 | "Family Tree" | Deanne Foley | Mark Critch & Tim McAuliffe | January 31, 2023 |
| 19 | 6 | "Who Dares Dare Hudaro?" | Deanne Foley | Nadiya Chettiar | February 7, 2023 |
| 20 | 7 | "The Perfect Storm" | Deanne Foley | Heidi Brander | February 14, 2023 |
| 21 | 8 | "Spirit Week" | Deanne Foley | Amanda Joy | February 21, 2023 |
| 22 | 9 | "European Vacation" | John Vatcher | Mark Critch & Tim McAuliffe | February 28, 2023 |
| 23 | 10 | "Old Friends, New Friends" | John Vatcher | Heidi Brander & Justin Rawana | March 7, 2023 |
| 24 | 11 | "Pope Visit" | John Vatcher | Amanda Joy | March 14, 2023 |
| 25 | 12 | "Details are Scanty" | Vanessa Matsui | Anita Kapila | March 21, 2023 |
| 26 | 13 | "Halley's Comet" | Renuka Jeyapalan | Mark Critch & Tim McAuliffe | March 28, 2023 |
Season 3 (2024)
| No. overall | No. in season | Title [14] | Directed by | Written by | Original air date [14] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 27 | 1 | "That Was Me in Grade Nine" | Renuka Jeyapalan | Mark Critch & Tim McAuliffe | January 9, 2024 |
| 28 | 2 | "Reach for the Top" | Renuka Jeyapalan | Mark Critch & Tim McAuliffe | January 16, 2024 |
| 29 | 3 | "You're Full of It" | Deanne Foley | Mark Critch & Tim McAuliffe | January 23, 2024 |
| 30 | 4 | "Growing Pains" | Renuka Jeyapalan | Story by : Tim McAuliffe Teleplay by : Mark Critch | January 30, 2024 |
| 31 | 5 | "Bonfire Night" | Renuka Jeyapalan | Mark Critch | February 6, 2024 |
| 32 | 6 | "My Funny Valentine" | Deanne Foley | Perry Chafe | February 13, 2024 |
| 33 | 7 | "Go into the Light" | Deanne Foley | Amanda Joy | February 20, 2024 |
| 34 | 8 | "Thanksgiving" | Deanne Foley | Mark Critch | February 27, 2024 |
| 35 | 9 | "The Ghosts of Christmas Presents" | Vanessa Matsui | Kerri MacDonald | March 5, 2024 |
| 36 | 10 | "How to Succeed in Business" | Vanessa Matsui | Justin Rawana | March 12, 2024 |
| 37 | 11 | "Airing Out" | John Vatcher | Anita Kapila | March 19, 2024 |
| 38 | 12 | "Cabaret" | John Vatcher | Heidi Brander | March 26, 2024 |
| 39 | 13 | "Forever Young" | John Vatcher | Mark Critch | April 2, 2024 |
Reception
On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the first season has an approval rating of 100% based on six critic reviews.[15]
Son of a Critch was watched by an average of 941,000 viewers on its January 4, 2022 Canadian debut, and was the 28th most-watched program in Canada that week.[10]
International broadcast
Paramount+ acquired streaming rights to the series in the British Isles in 2022.[16]
In the United States, the series premiered on July 24, 2023, on The CW (although some US markets near the Canadian border who receive CBC Television are ahead in episodes). Season two premiered on October 26, 2023.[17] Season three premiered on January 25, 2024.[18]
References
- ^ Hadaya, Margot. "CBC announces Winter 2022 premiere dates". CBC.
- ^ a b "Son of a Critch! New CBC Comedy series based on Mark Critch book coming soon". CBC.
- ^ "Son of a Critch". CBC.
- ^ Ahsan, Sadaf. "Comic Mark Critch on reliving childhood in his father's shoes in 'Son of a Critch'". Saskatoon Today.
- ^ Hullender, Tatiana (31 December 2021). "Mark Critch, Malcolm McDowell & Benjamin Evan Ainsworth Interview: Son Of A Critch". ScreenRant. Retrieved 19 January 2022.
- ^ Escandon, Rosa. "Lionsgate And The CBC Team Up For 'Son Of A Critch'". Forbes.
- ^ White, Peter (28 February 2022). "'Son Of A Critch' Renewed For Season 2 At Canada's CBC". Deadline. Retrieved 28 February 2022.
- ^ Goldbart, Max (23 March 2023). "'Son Of A Critch' Renewed For Season 3 By CBC". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved 23 March 2023.
- ^ Mittovich, Matt Webb (14 July 2023). "Son of a Critch: The CW Acquires Hit Canadian Comedy for Summer Run". TVLine. Retrieved 8 May 2023.
- ^ a b Top Programs - Total Canada (English) January 03, 2022 - January 09, 2022 - numeris
- ^ Top Programs - Total Canada (English) January 10, 2022 - January 16, 2022 - numeris
- ^ Top Programs - Total Canada (English) January 17, 2022 - January 23, 2022 - numeris
- ^ Top Programs - Total Canada (English) January 31, 2022 - February 6, 2022 - numeris
- ^ a b c d "Son of a Critch – Listings". Zap2It. Retrieved December 9, 2022.
- ^ "Son of a Critch: Season 1". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved March 7, 2024.
- ^ Whittock, Jesse (August 5, 2022). "Paramount+ UK & Ireland Taps Lionsgate, NBCU, Sony & Dynamic Television For Scripted Series". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved May 18, 2023.
- ^ White, Peter (8 May 2023). "The CW Moves Into 'Schitt's Creek' Territory With Acquisition Of Canadian Comedy 'Son Of A Critch'". Deadline Hollywood.
- ^ Pedersen, Erik (2023-12-12). "The CW Midseason Premiere Dates Set For New & Returning Series, 'I Am' Documentaries". Deadline. Retrieved 2023-12-12.
