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"Corner Gas" ended its celebrated six-year run Monday with a plot that saw humble hero Brent Leroy reaffirm his small-town roots and cleverly riffed off series creator Brent Butt's own rise to TV sitcom stardom.
In the final episode, the inhabitants of Dog River, Sask., discover that Brent has been sneaking into the city each week to perform stand-up comedy. And the jokes he tells? They're all about the group of oddball friends and family that live in his sleepy community, where he runs a gas station.
Not everyone is immediately impressed.
"This is weird, nobody's ignoring him," exclaims Wanda, the retail assistant played by Butt's real-life wife, Nancy Robertson, as she watches a confident Brent crack jokes before an appreciative audience.
"They're all listening to him, or something. Maybe I should have paid more attention to Bret."
"It's Brent," corrects an equally astounded Lacey, who runs The Ruby cafe and is played by Gabrielle Miller.
For longtime fans of the show, it was a satisfying nod to the origins of what's been billed as Canada's most successful sitcom.
Butt started his stand-up career at a Saskatoon comedy club, where it's said that he showed up for amateur night in 1988 armed with jokes he'd honed at the coffee shop in his hometown of Tisdale, Sask.
In 2004, he spun his Prairie-oriented comedy into a Gemini Award-winning sitcom for CTV that earned critical and commercial praise for its folksy charm and broad reach.
Each member of the ensemble cast earned dedicated followings for their portrayals of the outlandish characters, among them acting veterans Eric Peterson and Janet Wright as Brent's bickering parents Oscar and Emma Leroy, and Fred Ewanuick as the dim-witted best friend, Hank.
Meanwhile, Lorne Cardinal and Tara Spencer-Nairn epitomized Prairie law enforcement with their sweet-natured take on officers Davis and Karen.
Along the way, big names from the worlds of politics, music and acting found their way to fictional Dog River. Cameos over the years included appearances by Prime Minister Stephen Harper, jazz crooner Michael Buble and "24" star Kiefer Sutherland.
There was no such big splash for the final instalment, though, which managed to both celebrate the show's warm but humble comic sensibilities while hoisting a toast to the end of a charmed run. Literally.
After 106 episodes, the finale hurrah culminated with Brent assuring the residents of Dog River that his newfound stardom at the comedy club would not lure him out of his hometown.
"Why would I go anywhere when everything I like is right here?" Brent says simply.
"To Brent - not doing anything, not going anywhere!" says Lacey.
Dog River forever, Brent
Saskatchewan fans said so long Monday night to "Corner Gas," the popular TV sitcom that brought their quirky prairie lives to the rest of the world.
"I'm really sad that it's over," Shelley Schafer of Saskatoon said as credits of the show's final episode rolled on a large flat screen TV. Schafer and her two children were among 40 fans gathered at The Granary restaurant for a farewell party hosted by a local radio station.
"Corner Gas," wrapping after six seasons, is widely regarded as the most popular Canadian TV show ever. It chronicles the goings-on in the fictional town of Dog River, Sask.
"It's very Saskatchewan humour and very much part of the fabric of Saskatchewan," said Theresa Kirkpatrick. "This has been part of my Monday nights for a long time."
Across the street at the Saskatchewan Made store, manager Karen Parenteau said "Corner Gas" T-shirts, caps and air fresheners have been selling fast.
"People are getting a last grab at the stuff," said Parenteau, a fan of the show herself.
"It's going to leave a big hole in the Monday night programming."
"Corner Gas" was shot on location in the tiny town of Rouleau, southwest of Regina, where tens of thousands of fans have flocked since its debut in 2004.
Mayor Allen Kuhlmann said dozens more fans were walking around town Monday snapping photos of the non-functioning gas station and adjoining Ruby Cafe, scenic mainstays of the show.
"It is bittersweet," he said."We knew that it had to end someday. I just guess we wished it hadn't stopped quite this quick."
The show has injected about $1 million into the economy of the town, population 400.
Kuhlmann said a regular town council meeting prevented him from catching the last episode, but he plans to buy the final season on DVD to add to his collection.
"That was one of the things that we really liked about the show - it was good clean fun and you could laugh out loud several times in a half an hour. It's not everyday you can find a program like that to watch," he said.
Celebrities and politicians, including Prime Minister Stephen Harper, have made cameos on the show.
"Corner Gas has kept Canadian families, including my own, laughing for the last six seasons," Harper said in a news release.
Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall, who also made a guest appearance, said the show managed to capture the spirit of the province.
Broadcast in over two dozen countries, "Corner Gas" has been as popular with city slickers as rural folks.
A public autograph session with the show's stars in downtown Toronto drew about two hundred fans on Monday afternoon.
"It reminds me of where I live, too," said Tony Savoia of Thorold, Ont., clutching a DVD set of the first season signed by cast members.
"Everyone can relate to the show, I think. Whether you live in Toronto or whether you live in a tiny town."
His friend, Nicole Burr, said they had a routine of rehashing each episode every Tuesday morning.
"We call each other up. 'Did you see 'Corner Gas' last night? Wasn't it so funny when this happened?"' she said.
"We won't be able to do that anymore."
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