Set in Canada's northernmost territory among the Indigenous Inuit people, 'North of North' on Netflix is a charming comedy with elements of rom-com.
Set in Canada's northernmost territory among the Indigenous Inuit people, 'North by North,' premiering Thursday on Netflix, is a charming small town comedy, with — as is so often the case in small town comedies — a generous portion of rom-com stirred in.
From the first episode, given its bright tone — this is the Arctic of long sunny days rather than endless dark nights — one senses that the long arc will be predictable in just the ways one wants it to be, but unpredictable enough in the short run to keep things interesting. Big feelings, turbulence and life-changing dilemmas abound, but most of all the show wants to make its people, and you, happy. We are in Ice Cove — 'think of the furthest place north you've ever been, now keep going, keep going,' says our heroine, Siaja , 26, 'a modern Inuk woman, whatever that means,' who, as spring breaks on the still snow-packed tundra, has decided to change her life: She married 'town golden boy' Ting , right out of high school and had a daughter with him, Bun , now a hyperkinetic 7-year-old, and after years of coming third in her life, tells us, 'I'm putting myself first.' We're given just enough reasons not to like Ting, or at least to understand why Siaja has outgrown him, and to understand that, in this narrative arrangement, he is toast. But she admits he's a good father. Siaja also labors in the shadow of her mother, Neevee , a recovered alcoholic and former wild child, whom one citizen calls 'slutty,' 'shameless' and godless, but Siaja's friend Colin — Maori, gay — considers a 'legend.' Neevee, who runs a general store, is tough but likable, and an excellent, playful grandmother to Bun. Like its protagonist, Ice Cove struggles; it's the poorer cousin to a better-heeled community down the road with which it's competing to become the site of a new 'polar research center.' This brings on to the stage Alistair , a white 'Southerner' up from Ottawa, on a contract to assess the suitability of the location, and his assistant Kuuk , obviously shaped as a potential new romantic interest for Siaja, who has broken up with Ting. 'I just feel like we're all a bit starved for connection, you know,' she tells Kuuk on their first meeting at a spring festival — she is circulating a petition to extend the festival into year-round 'cultural programming' — and we see from his face that, yes, he is a bit starved for connection himself. Less easy to see is that Alistair, ruggedly handsome in a way common to northern-set comedies, will turn out to be the father that Siaja has never met, and beyond knowing she had to have one, knew nothing about. His return to a place to which he'd promise he'd never return means that he and Neevee have some things to talk about — cue secondary rom-com thread — when not avoiding talking about them. After a one-day job hauling large objects to the dump, and an underwater vision of the sea goddess Nuliajuk , Siaja becomes an executive assistant to piece-o-work town manager Helen , unaware that Helen runs through assistants like I run through similes. A cheerful credit grabber, Helen identifies with the community and as a Northerner, in ways that are comically ironic, given that she's white — though in some ways, she's closer to it than Siaja, who speaks Inuktitut with difficulty and, apart from oddball friends Colin and purple-haired Millie , can seem a stranger in her own home town. 'Thanks, but only white people can get away with drinking on the job,' Siaja demurs when Helen suggests champagne to celebrate her hiring. 'I love that you feel safe enough to make white people jokes around me,' says Helen. Apart from the evolving love and family stuff, as Siaja, Neevee, Kuuk, Alistair and Ting get along like bumper cars, it's as episodic a series as, say, 'Northern Exposure.' Across the season's eight episodes, there's partying, search-partying, dancing, drinking, some random sex , a sort of baseball, and a fire at the dump that locals attend like a pop concert. Along with shining star Lambe , creators Stacey Aglok MacDonald and Alethea Arnaquq-Baril, hail from the Nunavut, the territory where 'North of North' is set. Produced in conjunction with the CBC and the Aboriginal People's Television Network, it bears some comparison to 'Reservation Dogs' as a multigenerational comedy set among Indigenous people, filmed in the evocative right place and made by people who know the neighborhood. 'I see life and beauty everywhere,' says Siaja, who has never held a job, to express her qualifications for one. Not the least pleasure of 'North of North' is seeing the world through her eyes.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Canada's new prime minister visits country's Arctic region to assert sovereigntyNew Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has arrived at the edge of the Arctic Circle in an effort to assert sovereignty over the increasingly contested region. Carney will make a defense announcement in Canada’s far north while in the capital city of the Inuit-governed territory of Nunavut.
Read more »
Canada's new prime minister visits country's Arctic region to assert sovereigntyPresident Trump has threatened economic coercion to make Canada the 51st state and his constant talk of annexation has infuriated Canadians.
Read more »
Canada and Australia will develop new military radar system in the ArcticCanada and Australia are planning to jointly develop a new military radar system in the Arctic amid a global surge of interest in the region, according to Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, who warned that Canada’s “adversaries are increasingly emboldened.
Read more »
North Cumbria and North East highest for repeat lung admissionsA study finds 4,490 patients visited A&E five times or more in a year - the highest in England.
Read more »
Netflix’s new Inuit comedy ‘North of North’ has serious originsAward-winning documentarian Alethea Arnaquq-Baril was drawn into a comedy collaboration with her good friend Stacey Aglok MacDonald.
Read more »
Anna Lambe Brings the Arctic to Netflix With ‘North of North’Anna Lambe captivates audiences as a Inuk woman in Netflix’s comedic series 'North of North,' set in the Canadian Arctic.
Read more »