"The Week the Women Went": Dumb TV Not Relegated to the U.S.
Posted on 05. Mar, 2009 by Brian Reid in at-home dads, reality tv
Very few of you probably remember “Meet Mr. Mom,” an ill-fated, summer-fill-in reality show from NBC a few year’s back that was built around a spectacularly dumb concept: fathers forced to fend for themselves when mom was suddenly taken away to a spa (or somesuch) by evil television producers. The reason you probably don’t remember it is because it was a colossal failure (giving me hope for my fellow citizens).
But the fine folks north of the border are trying a higher-concept version of the same thing. CBC is now six episodes into the latest installment of ”The Week the Women Went,” which is following the fathers of a Nova Scotia community as they deal with a week of momlessness. This is apparently the second edition of the show, which has done well by viewers and critics. For obvious reasons, I’m not a big CBC watcher, but my Canadian sources tell me that this is not a one-joke show designed to highlight men’s incompetence.
Still, color me unimpressed by the idea of a “social experiement” that is based on the idea that there is something dramatic (or comedic) about guys being pressed into service as fathers. It’s not that I don’t think that anything interesting willing happen — most families are a finely tuned ecosystem that turn topsy-turvy whenever something changes — it’s just that pegging this all to the idea that guys don’t exactly know how to cope is a bit tired. I’m speaking without the benefit of any perspective, though, so I’d love to hear from my Canadian readers …
Writer Dad
05. Mar, 2009
You can use the same box of crayons to color me the same way. Sounds totally totally lame.
Backpacking Dad
05. Mar, 2009
I haven’t seen or heard of the show before. But maybe the point is to document that men DO acquire on-the-job training in parenting and running a household; that it is nothing to be afraid of, even if there are growing pains.
That’s the message I take away from Mr. Mom, overall. (I think I’m unusual in thinking of Mr. Mom as a positive for fathers.) And it would be nice to think that someone is still trying to get that message across.
But, it could just be a slapstick quick-cut show depicting men getting crap on their shirts.
Clint
05. Mar, 2009
I watched a bit last year and was unimpressed with the whole “men are incompetent and will fall apart when the women leave” premise . I watched 2 episodes and gave up.
Leading up to the second season the CBC had this line on the shows website comparing last season to this. “Or…are perhaps all men, regardless of location, basically hopeless at such activities?” Now, that could be comment baiting (I would hope the CBC was a bit more even handed than that) but it is still a sorry starting point for constructive dialogue.