Strays

Refreshing laughs in an easy to watch show. So far so good. Only two episode so far. And the second is better than the first. I hope that continues. But can't really give it a solid review until I see more. And more is what I would like to see.

Honestly so far all the characters are enjoyable to watch and you get a lot packed into only a half an hour. I'd say I'm a fan. Who knows when this season is over I may change my review and be back.

For a half hour show, refreshing and easy to watch. And pets at the centre of it, I would give this show a shot. Who knows where this could go!

Strays is what happens when you rush the development of a show. The concept has potential . Nicole Power is the only funny person in the show. The rest of the show is poorly cast.

CBC panicked to develop a new show for Nicole. The result is a bad sitcom with poor writing & few laughs.

I doubt it will last more than one season. Nicole has the talent to star in a great sitcom. They could have added Nicole as a crazy mom on Workin' Moms where she would have been a great addition to the cast.

Every memorable sitcom involves 12-24 months of development, casting, ect. CBC cranked this show out in a couple of months with little effort is casting & writing. That's why the show is boring & barely watchable.

Feel sorry for Nicole. The writing is horrible and very bland. She is an excellent talent but she is left with nothing to deliver. The 2nd episodes cold open was the only time I chuckled (rubbing back of ears) Nikki I'm sure is an excellent talent but so far her place on the show is to irritate viewers and say predictable lines.

In fact...most of the cast seem talented, the writing, the dialogue seems rather simple minded.

Be wise to come up with a strong storyline and have it carry over for a few episodes so people get interested and come back. Right now...there's no reason to.

Sorry Nicole. You deserve better.

Strays replicates much of the humour and charm of Kim's Convience, but never quite lives up to the original. As a standalone series, it's a solid addition to pad the CBC lineup, but isn't going to be sweeping any awards shows.

The show takes a few episodes to pick up, but shows a lot of potential in its diverse cast of characters and solid premise.

It's hard not to compare this show to Kim's Convenience and given the abrupt, unexpected and rather strange way the latter ended, leaving fans frustrated and upset, many may be unfairly harsher in their reviews of Strays. I was a huge fan of Kim's but I will try to stay objective in reviewing. To be honest, I was actually looking forward to watching it, as I always found Shannon very funny and the trailers were promising so I was quite disappointed with the first episode. Shannon is still funny but her new environment and cast mates just not as interesting. They come across as slightly boring stereotypes from old office sitcoms instead of a believable group of people working at the same place. The cousin character, probably the worst of the bunch, is the cardboard-cutout slacker cliché and is mostly annoying rather than funny. And the Asian character being good with numbers and computers...really!?

What made Shannon a great character in Kim's convenience was her trying to be the nice, accessible and (cheesily) funny boss at a place where there is a clear hierarchy between manager and staff. That aspect is so far missing from the new show which dulls out a key part of her character.

It's too early to form a definite opinion of the show and I'm willing to give it a chance and watch the rest of the season but I would rate the first two episodes as average to below average.