BubbleCAN Review: Ben’s City episode 1

Posted on August 21, 2013April 20, 2017 by Lloyd Toronto

Spoilers Below

In the premier episode, Ben awakens to two problems with his brand new refrigerator: it’s leaking and it is adorned with Dear John letters on post-it notes from his girlfriend, Sophie.

Besides devising a plan to win back his love, he also has to worry about saving his boss’ ass, Henry Wallet, for taking bribes as Quebec’s Minister of Environment.

There’s also Ben’s best friend, Scott, a womanizing, chain-smoking, know-it-all, who is quick to give Ben, or anybody else for that matter, advice, before hearing them out.

The animation is relieving, considering the trend in lazy homegrown flash productions as of late, but the voices could use a tweak or two – although all voices are provided by one actor; Rick Jones.

Perhaps the most interesting thing your old buddy Lloyd found in the introductory episode, is the cluster of pop culture references, like Gloria Gaynor’s “I Will Survive” and the priceless quote, “You sound like a guy who just got a Justin Bieber CD at a gift exchange.” – I would like to personally apologize to all of Bubble Blabber’s American readers, on behalf of The Great White North, for this beautiful country producing such an atrocity as Justin Bieber.

And speaking of immature audiences (one more Bieber joke and my hate mail may quickly change to death threats), the maturity bar is set somewhat low. But Ben’s City should appeal to viewers of all ages considering there are a few mature quips regarding transsexuals, homosexuals, pornography and Brazilian waxing… to name a few PG-13 gags.

As the latest animated web series from the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Ben’s City scores higher than previous attempts, such as The Animated Adventures of Bob & Doug McKenzie (they’re so much better live-action). Originally titled Pérusse Cité, after the series creator, comedian François Pérusse, the series was later translated to English. A second season has come into fruition as of May 2013, but has not yet been featured on cbc.ca for Anglophone Canadians.