Now first off let me start by saying that many NZ attempts at situation comedy are, at best, woeful. Can no-one forget the dire "Melody Rules"? I wish I could! OK there have been some gems ("Gliding On") but generally they are over-acted and end up as something approaching French farce. I approached "Sunny Skies" with this in the back of my mind. And I was pleasantly surprised to be wrong. OK the actors are a bit laboured in line delivery (apart from a sparkling performance by Ian Mune), and it isn't roaringly funny but it had some good moments. The uptight Pakeha and the laid back Maori was a bit cliché (would have been funnier the other way around) but the actors gain a pass for what they did. The show has a great setting (we all remember the highs and lows of camping) so the potential material is huge, the characters are people we all know well (if a bit overdone) and the production is quite well done. I guess my main point is that after the first two episodes it gets a C+ from me with a "could do better". I am hoping that it improves over time and I will continue to watch and grade it accordingly.
