Trailer Park Boys: Countdown to Liquor Day [Blu-ray]

After the season 7 finale, which seemed to tie the show up in one big happy ending, it certainly was a surprise that one additional episode ("Say Goodnight To The Bad Guys") and one final movie would be tacked on to send the Trailer Park Boys out in style. While I was perfectly satisfied with the "happy" ending provided in season 7, I suppose that this is the TPB, and there's no such thing as happy endings for Ricky and Julian.

It is two years since the events of "Say Goodnight..." and the Boys are about to get out of jail. Bubbles is bailed first and returns to Sunnyvale trailer park to find the place in a state of abandonment. His cats are gone, the kittie door to his shed has been mysteriously boarded up, and Phil & Jacob Collins are hightailing it out of there. What happened?

Lahey, sober as a judge, came into some money and invested in a new park called Lahey's Luxury Estates. However, now Julian is back, and he wants to turn his old trailer into a legit business, a garage, employing old friends Ricky, Bubbles, J-Roc and T. He just needs to commit some crimes for some start-up money. And Lahey needs that trailer. The sewage for the new park is going to go right through where it stands....

This setup is all that is needed to bring Lahey back to the liquor, send Randy into a tailspin, and bring Ricky and Julian loads of trouble that they did not ask for, but are going to get anyway.

Highlights of this movie, for me, included:
1. Cameos by Brian Vollmer of Helix (presumably as himself, who the boys seem to recognize from their previous encounter) and Alex Lifeson in drag as an undercover cop.
2. Bubbles' mission to rescue his cats with new friend Jenny.
3. J-Roc, whose career in the rap game takes a surprising turn.
4. Rickyisms hit a brand-new low (which only makes them funnier).
5. Lahey is drunker than ever, and gets his just desserts.

It's not all laughs, however. One major flaw with Countdown To Liquor Day is the near-absence of the supporting cast. J-Roc and T play a substantial role, but Barb Lahey, and of course Corey and Trevor as well, are nowhere to be found. There are also no Corey & Trevor substitutes or "jail cover" which was crucial to the humour of previous episodes. Lucy and Sarah play no important role, and neither does Trinity who appears all grown up and gothed out. Basically, the cast has been reduced to the three Boys, plus J-Roc and T, vs. Randy and Lahey and that is it. For a show that was originally supported by a large cast and supporting characters, this did not feel like classic TPB.

Having said that, TPB is a decent movie. It's just not the movie I wanted the Boys to go out on. To me, season 7 was a much more suitable goodbye. While all loose ends are indeed tied up (it is quite clear by the ending that this will be the last documented adventure of the TPB), it is not the happy ending that season 7 was. Perhaps only Bubbles ends up in a better place than he was. And Lahey? He got what he deserved!

The DVD for this movie is excellent, with a great alternate ending that has aspects that should have been incorporated into the film. While the film's original ending had brief cameos by Sam Losco and officers Green & Johnson, the alternate ending is expanded to include those plus Cyrus, Terry and Dennis. Since Terry and Dennis hadn't been seen since season 5, that was very cool. However why was "Say Goodnight To The Bad Guys" not included? It is a direct prequel to this film, and is completely unavailable on any DVD of any kind.

I recommend Countdown To Liquor Day to all Trailer Park Boys fans who don't mind change. Because in this trailer park, the times they are a changin'.

5 stars.

After the season 7 finale, which seemed to tie the show up in one big happy ending, it certainly was a surprise that one additional episode ("Say Goodnight To The Bad Guys") and one final movie would be tacked on to send the Trailer Park Boys out in style. While I was perfectly satisfied with the "happy" ending provided in season 7, I suppose that this is the TPB, and there's no such thing as happy endings for Ricky and Julian.

It is two years since the events of "Say Goodnight..." and the Boys are about to get out of jail. Bubbles is bailed first and returns to Sunnyvale trailer park to find the place in a state of abandonment. His cats are gone, the kittie door to his shed has been mysteriously boarded up, and Phil & Jacob Collins are hightailing it out of there. What happened?

Lahey, sober as a judge, came into some money and invested in a new park called Lahey's Luxury Estates. However, now Julian is back, and he wants to turn his old trailer into a legit business, a garage, employing old friends Ricky, Bubbles, J-Roc and T. He just needs to commit some crimes for some start-up money. And Lahey needs that trailer. The sewage for the new park is going to go right through where it stands....

This setup is all that is needed to bring Lahey back to the liquor, send Randy into a tailspin, and bring Ricky and Julian loads of trouble that they did not ask for, but are going to get anyway.

Highlights of this movie, for me, included:
1. Cameos by Brian Vollmer of Helix (presumably as himself, who the boys seem to recognize from their previous encounter) and Alex Lifeson in drag as an undercover cop.
2. Bubbles' mission to rescue his cats with new friend Jenny.
3. J-Roc, whose career in the rap game takes a surprising turn.
4. Rickyisms hit a brand-new low (which only makes them funnier).
5. Lahey is drunker than ever, and gets his just desserts.

It's not all laughs, however. One major flaw with Countdown To Liquor Day is the near-absence of the supporting cast. J-Roc and T play a substantial role, but Barb Lahey, and of course Corey and Trevor as well, are nowhere to be found. There are also no Corey & Trevor substitutes or "jail cover" which was crucial to the humour of previous episodes. Lucy and Sarah play no important role, and neither does Trinity who appears all grown up and gothed out. Basically, the cast has been reduced to the three Boys, plus J-Roc and T, vs. Randy and Lahey and that is it. For a show that was originally supported by a large cast and supporting characters, this did not feel like classic TPB.

Having said that, TPB is a decent movie. It's just not the movie I wanted the Boys to go out on. To me, season 7 was a much more suitable goodbye. While all loose ends are indeed tied up (it is quite clear by the ending that this will be the last documented adventure of the TPB), it is not the happy ending that season 7 was. Perhaps only Bubbles ends up in a better place than he was. And Lahey? He got what he deserved!

The DVD for this movie is excellent, with a great alternate ending that has aspects that should have been incorporated into the film. While the film's original ending had brief cameos by Sam Losco and officers Green & Johnson, the alternate ending is expanded to include those plus Cyrus, Terry and Dennis. Since Terry and Dennis hadn't been seen since season 5, that was very cool. However why was "Say Goodnight To The Bad Guys" not included? It is a direct prequel to this film, and is completely unavailable on any DVD of any kind.

I recommend Countdown To Liquor Day to all Trailer Park Boys fans who don't mind change. Because in this trailer park, the times they are a changin'.

5 stars.

While it is bitter sweet to say goodbye to our favourite trailer park residents; "Countdown To Liquor Day" does just that in grand, Trailer Park Boys style. Well written, funny and just d@mn good; "Countdown" does not let the true TPB fan down. Not only was this a fantastic movie, with good writing, acting and cinematography; the story stayed true to what makes Trailer Park Boys great. This was not a high priced Hollywood-esque version of our beloved Sunnyvale Trailer Park residents; it was just Trailer Park Boys at its best. The extras on this disk are fantastic; including the charming, funny and dead-on commentary by 3 fans of the show that I have the privilege of knowing through the greatest Trailer Park Boys fansite in cyberspace. ([...]) I enjoyed some of the edited scenes so much that I wish they could have been included in the movie!
No one can call themselves a true fan without adding this movie to their TPB collection. So for now, I raise my glass and wish the boys the best of luck with their new series coming out this fall and for continuing success for ALL the talented, warm and funny cast of "Trailer Park Boys". Thank you for the laughs; all of you! Now in the words of Cyrus; f' off, I've got work to do.