Vince Russo's The Brand

*Warning: Spoilers Ahead*

It’s that time again for me to review another episode of the brilliantly hilarious and entertaining hit Canadian mockumentary series Trailer Park Boys and the episode we’re going to be looking at is called Closer to the Heart.

Some of you may recognize that the title of the episode is also the same name as a song by legendary Canadian rock band Rush. That’s because this episode marks the first time that a major guest star appears on the show in the form of Alex Lifeson who is the guitar player for Rush. Just what kind of involvement does he have on this episode? Let’s go find out.

We start the episode with Bubbles showing up at Ricky’s car asking for a favor and Ricky thinks Bubbles is looking for dope. Bubbles replies that he isn’t looking for dope and that he needs Ricky to go buy him Rush tickets while he takes one of his kitties to the vet. Bubbles is worried that the show will sell out but Ricky just shrugs it off and starts talking to the camera crew about how Rush isn’t as good as one of his favorite bands called Helix and reminisces about how much dope he sold at their show and how Helix does things at their shows that are more fun than Rush while clearly demonstrating he doesn’t grasp Rush’s music. Bubbles tries to talk Ricky into getting the rest of the guys to go but Ricky’s not interested cause he doesn’t have any dope to sell. Bubbles though tries to tell him that it’s not about dope but about Rush’s music and then proceeds to do a very funny impersonation of a Neil Peart drum solo. Ricky promises to buy a ticket for Bubbles and will try to find dope so he himself will have a reason to go. The two of them then clear off Ricky’s car to then go grab Julian as we go to the opening credits.

Brandon’s Take: A great way to kick off the show. Good comedy and lays out the direction for the rest of the episode. And I always enjoy watching scenes of Ricky clearing off his car, one of the better running gags throughout the show.

When we come back, we see Lahey and Randy packing for a trip as a garbage truck starts dumping off trash in front of their trailer. Barb arrives with a letter saying she’s getting fined for there being recyclables found in the trash collected from the park and mentions that she could fire him for not doing his job. Lahey and Randy start talking to the camera crew about how Barb and Lahey used to be married and how they have to listen to her cause she owns the park. Back outside, Lahey mentions that him and Randy have had their trip planned for a long time and promises to sort the trash and recyclables when they return. The boys drive up and Ricky starts chastising Lahey and tries to get him in trouble with Barb who tells Lahey that there will be no trip for him and Randy until the garbage is sorted. Bubbles then starts yelling at Lahey to get the garbage out of the way and Ricky just plows through it with his car.

Brandon’s Take: A nice reminder of the relationship between Lahey, Randy, and Barb as well as setting up the motivation for Lahey and Randy to make things difficult for the boys later on in the episode.

In the next scene, Ricky and Julian drop Bubbles and his kitty off at the vet after promising to go straight to the box office to buy his Rush ticket. Corey and Trevor show up and offer to sell dope for them at the Rush concert, saying they could double the cruise money they’re sitting on. However, in a way that only Ricky can, he explains that no one in town has dope. After thinking for a bit, Julian gives Corey and Trevor money and tells them to buy all the boys Rush tickets and tells Ricky he thinks he can get some dope to sell at the show. Ricky asks where Julian would be able to get the dope and the scene cuts to the boys meeting some crooked police officers in a parking garage to buy it from them. Ricky complains about the price and as he tries to leave, ends up scraping his fender against a pillar in the garage.

Brandon’s Take: Now we have all of the pieces in place and everyone’s motivations clearly defined. And I can’t stress enough how important to good writing it is for them to keep mentioning the boys working toward the cruise in each episode this season so that new viewers would know why they’re doing what they’re doing.

We then see Lahey and Randy sorting through the trash and listening to the radio where the DJ is at the venue where Rush will be playing and ends up doing a brief interview with Corey and Trevor. The two of them tell the DJ they’re there for tickets and after that the DJ mentions an upcoming ultimate Rush fan contest for later on. Lahey decides that in retaliation for the boys screwing up his and Randy’s camping trip, he’s going to mess up their plans to get to the Rush show. Ricky and Julian arrive at the venue around the same time that Lahey and Randy do. Randy starts provoking Ricky which starts a brawl between the two of them and everyone in line runs toward them to watch which gives Lahey the opportunity to jump to the front of the line and purchase the remaining tickets. With their objective completed, Lahey calls off Randy as Bubbles arrives and wonders what’s going on and where his ticket is to which Lahey rubs it in his face that he bought all of them and says the only way they’ll get tickets is if they help Lahey and Randy clean up the garbage. As Randy and Lahey leave, Bubbles goes off on Ricky for failing to keep his promise to get him a ticket and sums up the situation in one word-“C***s**ker!”

Brandon’s Take: This scene pretty much sums up the core of the show in my opinion in which one side does something and the other reacts and it goes back and forth until it devolves into a big horror show which culminates at the end of the season. Although I did think Bubbles was a little harsh on Ricky considering it really wasn’t entirely his fault.

When we come back, the boys are in front of Lahey and Randy’s trailer sorting through the garbage and complaining about having to do that work. Julian tries to keep their morale up by mentioning all the money they’ll make selling dope at the show. Bubbles gets offended by that statement, saying that Rush isn’t about making money but about the music and brings up the Rush concert they went to in 1987 and how good it was. Ricky agrees that the show was great and mentions they got kicked out during a song called “I Like to Rock” and wrecking the ferry they traveled on. Bubbles is quick to remind Ricky he’s thinking of the wrong band and concert. The DJ then announces it’s time for the ultimate Rush fan contest with the prize being the winner getting to be Alex Lifeson’s guitar tech. To win someone has to call in and answer the question of “What is Alex Lifeson’s real last name?” Being a lifelong Rush fan, Bubbles announces to everyone that he knows the answer and even mentions it before running home to his phone to try and call in to win. Once home, he turns on his radio and starts dialing the number and in the middle of that, they hear that Randy had called in first and gives the correct answer that he heard from Bubbles, stealing the prize from him, much to the anger of the boys. The DJ then tells Randy he gets to bring a friend with him as part of the prize package. Dejected, Bubbles returns to Lahey and Randy’s trailer, throwing himself at the mercy of Lahey and begging him to sell him a ticket. Even Julian asks Lahey to stop being a prick and sell them tickets to which Lahey proudly declares that he is a prick and tells the boys to get back to work. However the boys blow him off and leave but not before Ricky throws full garbage bags at Lahey and Randy while they’re trying to barbecue and squirts Randy with mustard.

Brandon’s Take: A very good and hilarious scene that combined great comedy as well as showing how low Randy and Lahey are willing to go to screw over the boys for their own benefit. Ricky in particular here was great and the actors did a very good job staying true to the characters they portray.

As the boys are leaving, they’re approached by Corey and Trevor who tell them that they know how they can sneak in to the venue. Ricky and Julian get upset at them for withholding that information from them while they were sorting through garbage and Corey replies that they were only doing it cause they saw Julian, Ricky, and Bubbles doing it too. They then explain how they snuck in through a tunnel for shows in the past which leads to the back of the stadium. They then also state they have to go through the sewer to get to the tunnel. Ricky hates the idea and heads off to solve the situation himself with Julian warning him not to do anything stupid to which Bubbles bets he probably will. We then see Ricky arriving at a hotel with a guitar and duffel bag, claiming to be Alex Lifeson’s guitar tech. The concierge falls for it and gives him the key to Alex’s room.

Brandon’s Take: Knowing the Ricky character, this can only lead to entertainment gold.

Ricky then makes it to Alex’s room and finds him in the bathroom shaving as this starts to share a separate scene where Ricky is talking to the camera crew about how rock starts are supposed to be approachable and easy to talk to and Alex wasn’t. However it’s easy to see why Alex was difficult to him when the first words out of Ricky’s mouth were a demand for tickets as well as saying they can do things the easy way or the hard way. During this, Alex is actually trying to be polite toward Ricky even though he barged into his hotel room demanding tickets and threatening him. Ricky again talks to the camera crew about how Alex was acting like a snooty rock star while Alex is being the complete opposite as we see Ricky pull out a roll of duct tape. Ricky then starts leading a taped up Alex out of the hotel, while he still has shaving cream on his face, and tells him that if the police are called, he’ll tell the police that Alex sexually assaulted him. As they reach the lobby, the concierge arrives and Ricky tells her that Alex is drunk and on drugs as well as a male prostitute. There’s a quick scene of Bubbles explaining to the camera crew that’s a cover that Ricky likes to use a lot while Ricky tells the camera crew that Alex may have indeed been a male prostitute and Ricky just guessed correctly. He also mentions that Alex pissed him off cause he was telling everyone in the lobby Ricky was kidnapping him so Ricky felt calling him a male prostitute was justified.

Brandon’s Take: I loved how this scene captured one of the cornerstones of the Ricky character when it comes to passing the buck and not accepting any responsibility for his actions. Even when he does accept responsibility he still finds some crazy screwed up way to justify it in his own mind and claim he did nothing wrong when he was clearly the one in the wrong. And also Alex still having shaving cream on his face as Ricky is pretty much dragging him through the hotel lobby was a great touch.

Back at the trailer park, Bubbles is helping Corey and Trevor get trashbags taped on them so that none of their clothes underneath them get wet down in the sewer. Julian comes out of his trailer while Corey and Trevor mention they should get an extra set of clothes just in case they do happen to get wet although Julian is confident it won’t be necessary. Ricky and Alex arrive at the trailer park as Ricky tries to explain that what he’s doing is not kidnapping but rather “borrowing” Alex to play a private show in the park to which Alex is not happy about but Ricky goes off on him telling him he should be used to this by now being a big rock star. Alex then proceeds to tell Ricky he’s a mental case and Ricky retorts that it’s not his fault Alex is this big rock star he wanted to borrow for a private show which Ricky tries to call a ‘rehearsal’ for the show later that evening and Ricky says he’ll take him back to his ‘dream world’ once he’s done.

Brandon’s Take: I can’t say enough good things about the banter between Alex and Ricky. This is really hilarious stuff.

With the rest of the boys, Bubbles and Julian finish getting Corey and Trevor ready to sneak into the concert while explaining the plan to them and giving them the dope to sell as well as change of clothes for all of them. When Julian goes back inside his trailer, he’s stunned to see Ricky there and even more shocked to see a duct taped Alex Lifeson sitting on his couch. Once Julian sits down, Ricky tells Alex to play “I Like to Rock” which is the song he referenced earlier in the show and Alex is quick to tell him that he’s thinking of the wrong band again. This just irritates Ricky who tells him to play that “Diane Sawyer” song or something since that’s why he brought him to the park. Julian asks what Alex is doing there and Ricky replies that he “borrowed” Alex for a couple of hours to play a show for Bubbles. Julian quickly points out that what Ricky did was kidnapping and that there’s no such thing as borrowing people while Alex stares at Ricky with an “I told you so” look on his face. Ricky isn’t bothered by that though, lying and saying that him and Alex worked things out and it’s cool. Julian then offers to untie Alex if he won’t call the cops and tries to explain that Ricky is just a big Rush fan and apologizes for Ricky’s actions. Alex agrees that if he’s untied and able to get back to the hotel, then he won’t call the police.

Brandon’s Take: Even though this episode is supposed to be focused on Bubbles, Ricky is really stealing the show with his back and forths with Alex and now Julian getting involved as well trying to smooth things over.

We come back to see Corey and Trevor in the sewer and they found a pipe but they can’t remember if it’s the one they’re supposed to go through. Back at the park, a cab has arrived to take Alex back to the hotel and Ricky throws a handful of change at him to use as cab fare which Julian helps to pick up for Alex while Ricky starts yelling obscenities at Alex. As Alex leaves, him and Ricky flip each other off while Julian jumps Ricky for screwing up and almost going to jail for his actions. Ricky apologizes to Julian and then asks him if he knows a better way of trying to get to the show. We then see Bubbles, Ricky, and Julian covered in trash bags as they’re about to go down into the sewer. Ricky and Bubbles aren’t happy about it but Julian thinks it might be fun and that it’s the only option they have left. They then arrive at the show, coming up through a grate backstage and they see Alex talking with Lahey and Randy. Alex hands Randy a t-shirt, saying he has to wear it when he’s out on stage but Randy refuses, saying he doesn’t wear shirts. Alex tries to appeal to Lahey to get Randy to wear it but he too states that Randy never wears shirts. That’s when Bubbles pops out of where him and the other boys had been hiding at and they all approach Alex, Lahey, and Randy with Bubbles grabbing the shirt and saying if Alex Lifeson tells you to wear a shirt you wear it. Bubbles then tries to force the shirt onto Randy which causes a scuffle between everyone and results in the boys getting thrown out of the venue and dropped back off at the trailer park only to jump down into the sewer and try again.

Brandon’s Take: It’s not very often when a situation arises where they can make use of Randy’s trait of never wearing shirts but this one played out very well.

As they come up through the back of the venue again, we hear a voiceover of Julian alluding to something having gone wrong with Corey and Trevor and the boys get to the bathroom they were supposed to meet them at and find Corey and Trevor wearing clothes that they didn’t bring with them. Julian asks them where they got the clothes and Corey replies they found them in a road case and grabbed some other clothes from it too. Julian demands to know where their clothes and the dope are and Trevor answers that they hid the stuff in a road case which was taken away by a roadie when the two of them left to grab hot dogs and that the case was marked ‘Wardrobe.’ The boys then barge into Alex’s dressing room while he’s practicing and Ricky flips out when he sees Alex wearing his clothes and Alex is upset the boys are wearing his clothes. Before any of this could get resolved, Randy arrives to tell Alex when it’s time to take the stage and sees the boys and runs off to get Lahey. With Randy gone for a bit, they agree to switch clothes but as they’re undressing, Lahey and Randy come back with security to throw the boys out again. As the guards struggle with Ricky and Julian trying to throw them out Bubbles grabs everyone’s attention by playing a loud guitar riff. He starts going off on everyone for making the concert about everything but the music and that he’s the only one of them that actually cares about Rush the band. Lahey does agree with Bubbles that the only thing he cares about is punishing Ricky for ruining his and Randy’s camping trip while Ricky blames Lahey and somehow Alex for that happening. Bubbles apologizes to Alex for everything that’s gone on and calls out Randy and Lahey for being scalpers and this causes Alex to get pissed at those two and tells security to throw them out. Ricky then demands Alex give him his dope to sell and Alex hands him the bag of it which pisses Bubbles off but Alex cools him down. As Ricky holds the dope bag, he notices it feels a bit lighter and yells at Alex, thinking he smoked some of it but Julian cuts him off before he can go further and brings up how Bubbles should have won the contest earlier but Randy stole his answer and Bubbles compliments Alex as the greatest guitar player who ever lived. Alex thanks him but says he has to get ready to go on stage. The boys follow Alex to the curtain while Ricky keeps bugging him about paying for the dope. Julian cuts him off again and tries to convince Alex to let Bubbles be his guitar tech for the show. Alex is skeptical about letting him do it, but Bubbles assures him he can and Alex agrees on the condition he doesn’t have to see Ricky anymore for the rest of the night. Of course Ricky tacks on his own conditions to that, demanding that Alex pays for the dope and Ricky gets to ride in the limo. Bubbles offers to pay for the dope and Alex says he can ride in the limo as the those two head out on stage.

Brandon’s Take: Just so much good stuff going on here. The stupidity of Corey and Trevor leading to the boys barging in to Alex’s dressing room to the involvement of Randy and Lahey and Ricky making accusations and passing blame in a ridiculous manner and then having the nerve to make demands out of Alex after everything he had put him through that day. However the one thing that still confuses me is why Alex would have a hesitation about letting Bubbles be his tech while seemingly not having that same reservation about Randy.

The show begins as Bubbles gives Alex his guitar and pick and they open with “Tom Sawyer” as Bubbles watches on from his spot. There’s a brief scene where Alex gets to talk to the camera crew and puts over Ricky and Julian for going to the lengths they did for Bubbles to make him happy. In between songs, Bubbles hands Alex a different guitar and they compliment each other on their respective performances and Bubbles even gets to appear on one of the big screens. All four of them return to the trailer park and exit the limo as Ricky apologizes for what happened while also claiming it wasn’t his fault and Alex kind of nods knowing that’s probably the best he’s going to get out of him and tells him not to worry about it. Once that’s done, Bubbles asks Alex if he can show him some guitar chords to which Alex readily agrees. They each have their guitars and Bubbles mentions he’s having trouble trying to do the intro to “Closer to the Heart” and Alex shows him the mistake he was making and Bubbles gets excited as he figures it out and the two of them start playing it together. Bubbles stops playing and asks if one of them could sing it to which Alex asks who he had in mind to which Bubbles himself begins singing as the two of them start playing together again and eventually the actual track starts playing over them as we go to credits.

Brandon’s Take: Not much in the way of comedy here outside of Ricky’s usual game of deflecting blame, but this was all about giving Bubbles a big moment and they really delivered here by letting him get a good rub off of Alex Lifeson.

Final Thoughts: 10/10 Overall a fantastic show. The comedy was brilliant with no shortage of laughs and any interaction between Alex and Ricky was absolute gold. They’ve been firing on all cylinders this season and really taking off. As I watch this the day after another horrible Raw episode, I can’t help but think that their creative staff could really learn a lesson from watching this show and seeing how they write for the characters. Thanks for reading and I’ll be back next week with episode six of season three titled “Where in the F*** is Randy’s Barbecue?