Weird Years

''Weird Years'' is a Canadian family animated sitcom produced by Lenz Entertainment and Mercury Filmworks. Created by Jason Hopley and Jamie Shannon, the show was aired on YTV from November 2006 to June 2007. 26 half-hour episodes of the show were produced. The series follows the Dorkovitch family, who emigrated from the fictional Kryobia in Eastern Europe to Happy Valley, Labrador, Canada, as they tried to get adapted to the life in the New World while trying to keep alive some of the eccentric traditions of their homeland.

Synopsis

''Weird Years'' is an animated sitcom about plumber Donko Dorkovitch and his eccentric family, who come to North America from the fictional Kryobia in Eastern Europe. The show takes a look into the adventures of the Dorkovitch family in the 'new world'. They live in the Labrador town of Happy Valley.

Characters

Main Characters: The Dorkovitches

*Donko Dorkovitch – a master plumber who enjoys singing and dancing as he tries to understand the New World and participate in it. He is very optimistic, lives by old Kryobian sayings, and is rarely seen without a smile on his face. Donko had a sad childhood; he thought that his father was killed by Yuri the Yak Herder and would attack on sight any members of this profession.
*Magda Dorkovitch – a butcher who can't cook anything but can make delicious sandwiches. She has strong opinions and always likes to do things the "right way". She tends to quote Jay Leno, often mistaking him for Buddha.
*Zozo Dorkovitch – the family's strange and mystical link to the Old World. She is thought to have been an assassin in the past and is known for her stubborn and outspoken nature. She believes that a Kryobian person called Drago Merka discovered America. Her husband, Igor, was injected with a deadly poison and she keeps him in an icebox in the basement, awaiting the discovery of a cure. Zozo once owned the most successful restaurant in Kryobia.
*Rasputin the Goat – a smart goat who tries to catch Donko's attention with physical comedy and is described as "a very poofy goat".
*Ivan Dorkovitch – the son of Donko and Magda and twin brother of Nadia, he enjoys modern technology and visiting Bill Tweed, the family's neighbour.
*Nadia Dorkovitch – Ivan's twin sister, she is smart and talented and active in protecting the environment and her family. She loves the modern world but is intrigued by her grandmother's memories of Kryobia. Nadia appears to have inherited her grandmother's cooking ability.

Supporting characters

*Beverly Tweed – the seductive neighbour of the Dorkovitches. She is seen to have been attracted to Donko. Additionally, she is hinted at having once been a drug addict, being shown to attend/counsel a drug rehabilitation clinic Magda was once forced to attend.
*Bill Tweed – Beverly's recently unemployed husband. He was once obsessed with comic books, especially ''Coyote Man'' and its creator, Don Wong. He is known to have kept a sandwich made by Magda and partially eaten by Don Wong in a display case in the center of his living room. Although seemingly negligent, he loves Beverly and remembers every detail of their first date, which he claims was the best day of his life. He was once an avid curler.
*Annabelle and Belle – two old women who live across the street from the Dorkovitches, in a large old house. They dress in an early 20th-century fashion with bonnets, dresses, and handbags, and enjoy spying on their neighbours and gossiping.
*Danny Jeng – A wealthy neighbour, seemingly of Asian descent with an obnoxious attitude and laugh.

Kryobia

Kryobia is the Dorkovitches's native country. Its tourism slogan is "Kryobia: Our People Are Always Revolting". Its flag is oddly similar to that of Romania, with purple-yellow-red stripes instead of blue-yellow-red.

Some Notable events in Kryobia's oral history:
*Circa 330 B.C. – Kryobia was attacked by Alexander The Great. Following the "way of the Kryobians", all the people fled.
*At an unknown time Kryobia was plagued by the Goat Flu which was said to have killed all Kryobians but two, who became the progenitors of modern Kryobia.
*Circa 1965 – Reign of Yuri the Yak Herder – see below

The infamous Yuri, The Yak Herder, former Kryobian dictator, is said to have sent Kryobia back into the Dark Ages by replacing all blue hats with red hats. Donko's father, Igor Dorkovitch, claimed that red hats clashed with the Kryobians "surly complexion" and overthrew Yuri, causing a revolution, but was ironically trampled by a herd of yaks.

Though not specified, the Kryobian government subsequently appears to be a democracy, and Donko's Uncle Rouple apparently ran for office as a neo-conservative.

Features of Kryobia include Mount Kryobia, a tall, sharp mountain (it erupted), Unnamed Desert, a desert that the Donkey of Death allegedly takes the Kryobian elderly across, and Lake of Crocodiles, the last stop on the route of the donkey of death, the watery grave of many men and women.

Kryobia has an extensive range of fauna, from horses to crocodiles. The country appears to be in Eastern Europe as goats are common pets. Of all the animals in Kryobia the most feared are probably crocodiles and donkeys, associated with the legend that when the elderly become too old, they are strapped onto a donkey, called the Donkey Of Death, pushed off a cliff and eaten by crocodiles.

Chicken is the national dish of Kryobia in all its forms: wings, thighs, legs and breasts. Kryobia's first fast food restaurant, Kackleberries, backed by the country's lawyers, sold mutated chicken enriched with growth hormones, which resulted in an entire generation becoming allergic to chicken. As a result, all Kryobian lawyers were exiled to Connecticut.

In the episode "Lawn and Order", it is revealed that Kryobian antiques are rare in the New World. A single Kryobian wind chime was sold for $35,000, although Donko bought 30 for $5 in the old country.

Episodes

Season 1

1 – Requiem for a Screen – The family intervenes when Ivan becomes seriously addicted to videogames.

2 – Wingnut 5000 – Magda can't get the rest of her family to listen to her and do things properly. When she's given a test robot to follow her orders at works, she decides to try it out on her family.

3 – Zozo's False Teeth – Zozo's false teeth foretell that the Donkey of Death is coming for her. Donko finds himself having to decide if he should put her in a retirement home.

4 – Silence of the Goats – An outbreak of Calpine fever has created a world-wide cull of goats, putting Rasputin at risk. The Dorkovitch family rallies to defend its weirdest member.

5 – Best of Friends -

6 – Death of a Mailman – When Zozo accidentally causes the local mailman's death, she makes the ridiculous claim he is "secret police" and subsequent events seem to bear her out.

7 – Goat Stew – Magda takes a routine medical exam to increase her benefits at Foodies and rid Ivan of the curse of the Dorkovitch tooth. However, the test results threaten the whole family's future.

8 – The Last Donko – Ivan and Nadia become suspicious that their parents belong to the Mafia, and Ivan becomes determined to be a son worthy of the next Kryobian Don.

9 – Autopia – Magda wants to get rid of the family's decrepit car and buy a new one, but Donko is opposed due to all the good memories he associates with it.

10 – Lawn and Order – Greed takes hold of the Dorkovitch family; Zozo has to take matters into her own hands to set things right.

11 – Weekend Retreat – Magda's absence is felt when she goes to a corporate retreat, where she is unexpectedly joined by Donko and Zozo, causing a commotion.

12 – Zozo Stewart – A food critic discovers Zozo's magnificent cooking and she is catapulted into unwanted celebrity with her own restaurant and cooking show.

13 – The Truth about Truth – Nadia purposefully flunks a test and tells Zozo that she doesn't believe Captain Drago Merka discovered America. Zozo digs a grave and climbs in, refusing to leave until Nadia believes.

14 – Home for the Holidays – It's the Dorkovitch's favourite holiday. Zozo has it all planned out, cooking with Nadia at her side. Everyone else just has to be back in time for the dinner, which is more difficult than it seems.

15 – The Bears and The Bees – Zozo is trying to make Rasputin make "pump-pump" with a she-goat, but he won't. Meanwhile, Ivan is invited to a girls house and thinks she wants to have sex with him; Donko's attempts to explain sex worsen the situation.

16 – The Pipes – Much to Ivan's horror, Donko has taken him under his wing to teach him the plumbing trade.

17 – Infoodelity – Donko secretly eats some of Granny Jang's delicious food, knowing it is a betrayal of Zozo.

18 – A Band Apart – Nadia starts a rock band, and Donko tries to lend a hand.

19 – Drive Me Insane – Ivan forgets to mail Magda's driver's license renewal and she has to retake her driver's test, exposing to the kids to her extreme phobia about tests.

20 - Home on the Driving Range -

21 - The Big Thaw - Zozo's husband Igor Dorkovitch returns.

22 - Donko Stormy Night - Scary movies, ghosts in the basement, and annoying old friends make for an interview night in the Dorkovitch home.

23 - Best Before - Beverly Tweed comes on to Danilo, but he tries to focus her attention on her husband.

24 - The Sausaginator - Magda and Donko invent a unique sausage making machine.

25 - Dirty Laundry - Zozo points out that it is the time of the shooting stars.

26 - Plumber on the Roof - Donko is discouraged after losing the Plumber of the Year Award for a fifth year.

Production

''Weird Years'' is the first animated series by Lenz Entertainment, coproduced by animation studio Mercury Filmworks in association with YTV, which ordered 26 episodes of the half-hour series. Corus Entertainment's Peter Moss served as creative producer with story editor Larry Mirkin and directors Clint Eland and Jerry Popowich. The series was created by comedy improvisers and puppeteers Jason Hopley and Jamie Shannon.

Release

The series premiered on YTV on 6 November 2006.

References

External links

{{Former YTV original series

2000s Canadian animated television series
2006 Canadian television series debuts
2007 Canadian television series endings
Animated television series about families
Canadian children's animated comedy television series
English-language television shows
YTV (Canadian TV channel) original programming
Television shows set in Newfoundland and Labrador