Son of a Critch

Son of a Critch
Genre	Sitcom
Created by	Mark Critch Tim McAuliffe
Based on	Son of a Critch by Mark Critch
Starring	Benjamin Evan Ainsworth Mark Critch Claire Rankin Colton Gobbo Sophia Powers Mark Rivera Malcolm McDowell
Narrated by	Mark Critch
Country of origin	Canada
No. of seasons	3
No. of episodes	39
Production
Executive producer	Andrew Barnsley
Producer	Andrew Barnsley
Production location	St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador
Production companies	Project 10 Productions Take the Shot Productions Hawco Productions The Gary Breakfast Corporation Lionsgate Television
Original release
Network	CBC Television
Release	January 4, 2022 (2022-01-04) – present (present)

Son of a Critch is a Canadian comedy television series, created by Mark Critch and Tim McAuliffe, that premiered on January 4, 2022 on CBC Television. Based on the memoir of the same name by Critch, the semi-autobiographical series follows an adolescent Mark as he grows up in the 1980s in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador.

Premise

The series is a coming of age story based on the childhood and adolescence of Canadian comedian Mark Critch. At the start of the series, 11-year-old Mark is growing up in 1980s Newfoundland, where he navigates starting junior high school (at St.Brigit's), making friends, and connecting with the small group of people in his limited world.

Cast

Main

• Benjamin Evan Ainsworth as Mark Critch, who is starting junior high school in the first season
• Mark Critch as Mike Critch, Mark's father, a news reporter for radio station VOCM
  • Mark Critch narrates the series as his adult self
• Claire Rankin as Mary Critch, Mark's mother
• Malcolm McDowell as Patrick "Pop" Critch, Mark's grandfather
• Colton Gobbo as Mike Critch Jr., Mark's older brother
• Sophia Powers as Jennifer Fox, called "Fox" and in Mark's class, whose family are bullies. She has a crush on Mark, but hides it by bullying him.
• Mark Rivera as Ritchie Perez, Mark's best friend, and a Filipino-Canadian who is the only person of color at St. Brigit's school
• Richard Clarkin as Dick Dunphy, Mike's coworker at VOCM

Supporting

• Nora McLellan as Sister Rose, the Principal of Mark's school
• Lawrence Barry as Mr. Chafe, the Vice-Principal of Mark's school
• Petrina Bromley as Sister Margaret, and later Ms Fowler, Mark's homeroom teacher (seasons 1 & 2)
• Pete Soucy as Officer Butt, the local constable
• Rodrigo Fernandez-Stoll as Father Garcia
• Stephen Payette and Teigan Follett as Silver Fox and Middle Fox, Jennifer Fox's older brothers
• Nicole Underhay as Suzanne, Fox's mother
• Steve O'Connell as Fox's father
• Nate Penney as the youngest Fox sibling
• Daisy Harris as Tina, a student in Mark's class
• Caroline Mangosing as Mrs Perez, Ritchie's mom
• Eugene Sampang as Mr. Perez, Ritchie's dad
• Rory Lambert as Mr Byrne, the gym teacher
• Kate Corbett as Sister Perpetua, Mark's homeroom teacher (season 3)
• Mack Barfoot as Mr. Murphy, owner of VOCM
• Susan Kelsey as Gertie, secretary at VOCM

Guest stars

• Greg Malone as Father Moore
• Richard Waugh as Brendan Critch, Mark's uncle
• Dana Puddicombe as Mary's hospital nurse
• Mark McKinney as The Unfathomable Hudaro
• Alice Krige as Millicent Hearn, old friend of Pop
• Jay Baruchel as Scott Howell, rival radio station owner (VOAQ)
• Sherry Miller as Johanna Clarke, Mary's mother
• Peter Keleghan as Bill, the Reach for the Top quizmaster
• Robert Joy as Poppy Bell, Mary's father

Development

Conception

In 2018, Critch published a memoir about his childhood in Newfoundland. Following its release, McAuliffe suggested developing the book into a television series, which led to him and Critch creating scripts to pitch to various networks. In June 2021, CBC announced they had ordered Son of a Critch to series.

Production and distribution

The series made its Canadian broadcast premiere on CBC Television on January 4, 2022, as well as CBC's streaming platform, CBC Gem.

Production companies involved with the series include Project 10 Productions, and Take the Shot Productions. Lionsgate distributes the series outside Canada. On February 28, 2022, CBC renewed the series for a second season.

On March 23, 2023, the series was renewed for a third season, with The CW joining CBC and Lionsgate to co-produce.

On May 23, 2024, the series was renewed for a fourth season; it will air in Winter 2024.

Episodes

Season	Episodes		Originally aired
			First aired	Last aired
1	13		January 4, 2022 (2022-01-04)	April 12, 2022 (2022-04-12)
2	13		January 3, 2023 (2023-01-03)	March 28, 2023 (2023-03-28)
3	13		January 9, 2024 (2024-01-09)	April 2, 2024 (2024-04-02)
4	13		January 7, 2025 (2025-01-07)	TBA

Season 1 (2022)

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date	Canadian viewers
1	1	"Old Soul, New School"	Renuka Jeyapalan	Mark Critch & Tim McAuliffe	January 4, 2022 (2022-01-04)	941,000
11-year-old Mark goes to junior high in 1986 St. John's, Newfoundland. Mark meets Ritchie, a Filipino Canadian, and the only visible minority student at the school. Mark also meets a female bully named Fox, who comes from a family of bullies that all share the same nickname due to their red hair. Mark eventually defeats his bully with words rather than physical force.
2	2	"Lordy, Lordy, Look Who's Dead"	Renuka Jeyapalan	Mark Critch & Tim McAuliffe	January 11, 2022 (2022-01-11)	836,000
While at a funeral parlour, Mark meets Tina, a classmate. They hit it off and Tina kisses him on the cheek. She later calls him to meet at the park. Mark's friend Ritchie tags along, helping Mark use the bus system. Fox is on the bus and decides to tag along as well. At the park, Mark and Tina hold hands again and Tina again kisses Mark. Later that night, Tina calls Mark to break up with him, at the instigation of Fox, who is standing outside Tina's house, threatening to punch Tina.
3	3	"Cello, I Must Be Going"	Renuka Jeyapalan	Mark Critch & Tim McAuliffe	January 18, 2022 (2022-01-18)	906,000
4	4	"Cucumber Slumber"	Renuka Jeyapalan	Mark Critch & Tim McAuliffe	January 25, 2022 (2022-01-25)	N/A
The episode is based on the cucumber greenhouse fiasco in Newfoundland. Unfortunately, no one knows what to do with the cucumbers.
5	5	"Royal Visit"	Deanne Foley	Mark Critch & Tim McAuliffe	February 1, 2022 (2022-02-01)	710,000
This episode is based on the visit of Princess Diana and Prince Charles to Newfoundland in 1983. Mark is chosen by his Monarchist society to present a bouquet to Diana and Dick Dunphy flirts with Mary (raising Mike Sr.'s ire.)
6	6	"Candyland"	Deanne Foley	Anita Kapila	February 22, 2022 (2022-02-22)	N/A
Mark and Ritchie have an unusually eventful night of Halloween trick-or-treating.
7	7	"Father Critch"	Deanne Foley	Mark Critch & Tim McAuliffe	March 1, 2022 (2022-03-01)	N/A
This episode's theme is about protecting Mark, whom is preparing for his confirmation, from learning about the Mount Cashel Orphanage abuse scandal and the Catholic Church's role in it.
8	8	"Merry Critch-mas"	Deanne Foley	Heidi Brander	March 8, 2022 (2022-03-08)	N/A
Mark's estranged uncle Brendan makes an unexpected Christmas visit.
9	9	"Acting Normal"	Jay Baruchel	Anita Kapila	March 15, 2022 (2022-03-15)	N/A
Mark and Mike Sr bond over the school's upcoming Easter play and Pop has trouble with the CRA because has been collecting his dead wife's pension.
10	10	"Misty"	Jay Baruchel	Nadiya Chettiar	March 22, 2022 (2022-03-22)	N/A
Mary goes into the hospital for minor surgery and the Critch men promptly fall apart.
11	11	"Particip-action"	Anthony Farrell	Cathryn Naiker	March 29, 2022 (2022-03-29)	N/A
Fox sets her sights on the gym teacher's long standing St.Brigit's Sports Day record for first place ribbons.
12	12	"Circus"	Anthony Farrell	Romeo Candido	April 5, 2022 (2022-04-05)	N/A
Ritchie is conflicted by his heritage (Filipino-Canadian or Newfoundlander?), and Mark and Fox go on a "non-date" at a traveling carnival.
13	13	"Save the Last Dance for Me"	John Vatcher	Anita Kapila	April 12, 2022 (2022-04-12)	N/A
As the school year ends, Mark plans to ask Fox to the school dance, but is confused when he sees Ritchie spending time with her; he only later finds out that Ritchie was helping Fox study math so she can pass the grade. Mary is upset when she discovers Mike Jr. wants to move away to attend the University of New Brunswick, but eventually supports his plan. Mike Sr. worries for his job after Dick tells him that the station would be introducing an all-music format, but it turns out the format is for VOCM's new FM station.

Season 2 (2023)

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date
14	1	"Growing Apart"	Renuka Jeyapalan	Mark Critch & Tim McAuliffe	January 3, 2023 (2023-01-03)
Mark is shocked when Fox returns to school with an older boyfriend who can drive.
15	2	"You're Dead After School"	Renuka Jeyapalan	Mark Critch & Tim McAuliffe	January 10, 2023 (2023-01-10)
Mark is fated to fight Fox's boyfriend, but gets some unexpected reinforcements, and Fox saves the day.
16	3	"Feast or Famine"	Renuka Jeyapalan	Perry Chafe	January 17, 2023 (2023-01-17)
St. Bridget's school holds a fast and sleep over for Lent, in part due to the famine in Ethiopia, and in an effort to win a bike (for selling the most boxes of chocolate covered almonds) Mark fashions himself as Live Aid organizer Bob Geldof.
17	4	"Beer Necessities"	Renuka Jeyapalan	Mark Critch & Tim McAuliffe	January 24, 2023 (2023-01-24)
Mark faces peer pressure to try his first beer during the great Newfoundland Beer Strike.
18	5	"Family Tree"	Deanne Foley	Mark Critch & Tim McAuliffe	January 31, 2023 (2023-01-31)
Mark, with the help of Fox and Ritchie, discovers a dark secret of his family tree.
19	6	"Who Dares Dare Hudaro?"	Deanne Foley	Nadiya Chettiar	February 7, 2023 (2023-02-07)
Mark falls under the spell of a Vegas hypnotist.
20	7	"The Perfect Storm"	Deanne Foley	Heidi Brander	February 14, 2023 (2023-02-14)
This episode is based on the historic ice storm of 1984. Mike and Mary miss their 20th wedding anniversary dinner, and Mike Jr mans the phone lines, on air, alone at VOCM.
21	8	"Spirit Week"	Deanne Foley	Amanda Joy	February 21, 2023 (2023-02-21)
The kids are allowed to wear jeans at school for Spirit week, but Mark does not own a pair.
22	9	"European Vacation"	John Vatcher	Mark Critch & Tim McAuliffe	February 28, 2023 (2023-02-28)
Mark's class goes on a field trip to Saint Pierre and Miquelon, with Pop Critch as a chaperone.
23	10	"Old Friends, New Friends"	John Vatcher	Heidi Brander & Justin Rawana	March 7, 2023 (2023-03-07)
Mark and Ritchie make new friends, girls who are Protestant.
24	11	"Pope Visit"	John Vatcher	Amanda Joy	March 14, 2023 (2023-03-14)
This episode revolves around Pope John Paul II's visit to Newfoundland in September 1984. Fox has to do a reading from the Bible for the Pope and is worried she will mess it up, and a rival radio station tries to lure both Mike and Mike Jr. from VOCM.
25	12	"Details are Scanty"	Vanessa Matsui	Anita Kapila	March 21, 2023 (2023-03-21)
Mike Critch Sr. gets an Edward R. Murrow Award for ethics in journalism, but also faces an ethical dilemma, and the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary gets (and loses) guns for the first time.
26	13	"Halley's Comet"	Renuka Jeyapalan	Mark Critch & Tim McAuliffe	March 28, 2023 (2023-03-28)
Mark is fascinated by Halley's Comet but frightened by Ronald Reagan and nuclear war, Fox may move away, and a drive-thru Ches's Fish and Chips is being built next door to the Critch home.

Season 3 (2024)

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date
27	1	"That Was Me in Grade Nine"	Renuka Jeyapalan	Mark Critch & Tim McAuliffe	January 9, 2024 (2024-01-09)
Mark begins his last year of middle school only to discover he needs glasses, and Mike Jr works full-time at VOCM.
28	2	"Reach for the Top"	Renuka Jeyapalan	Mark Critch & Tim McAuliffe	January 16, 2024 (2024-01-16)
Mark competes on the iconic Canadian academic high school quiz show: Reach for the Top. Mike Jr is out late, broadcasting from a bar.
29	3	"You're Full of It"	Deanne Foley	Mark Critch & Tim McAuliffe	January 23, 2024 (2024-01-23)
Mark needs to pee desperately, but every toilet is broken or unavailable. Mary calls her father, a plumber, to fix their toilet and he and Mike Sr have never gotten along. Fox finds herself parenting her 2 brothers.
30	4	"Growing Pains"	Renuka Jeyapalan	Story by : Tim McAuliffe Teleplay by : Mark Critch	January 30, 2024 (2024-01-30)
With all his friends playing arcade video games, Mark sells his comic book collection. Pop needs a hearing aide, and the Critch household gets a new, modern telephone.
31	5	"Bonfire Night"	Renuka Jeyapalan	Mark Critch	February 6, 2024 (2024-02-06)
32	6	"My Funny Valentine"	Deanne Foley	Perry Chafe	February 13, 2024 (2024-02-13)
33	7	"Go into the Light"	Deanne Foley	Amanda Joy	February 20, 2024 (2024-02-20)
34	8	"Thanksgiving"	Deanne Foley	Mark Critch	February 27, 2024 (2024-02-27)
35	9	"The Ghosts of Christmas Presents"	Vanessa Matsui	Kerri MacDonald	March 5, 2024 (2024-03-05)
36	10	"How to Succeed in Business"	Vanessa Matsui	Justin Rawana	March 12, 2024 (2024-03-12)
37	11	"Airing Out"	John Vatcher	Anita Kapila	March 19, 2024 (2024-03-19)
38	12	"Cabaret"	John Vatcher	Heidi Brander	March 26, 2024 (2024-03-26)
39	13	"Forever Young"	John Vatcher	Mark Critch	April 2, 2024 (2024-04-02)

Season 4

No. overall	No. in season	Title	Directed by	Written by	Original air date
40	1	"Groove Is in the Heart"	TBA	TBA	January 7, 2025 (2025-01-07)
41	2	"Field Party"	TBA	TBA	January 14, 2025 (2025-01-14)

Reception

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, the first season has an approval rating of 100% based on six critic reviews.

Son of a Critch was watched by an average of 941,000 viewers on its January 4, 2022 Canadian debut, and was the 28th most-watched program in Canada that week.

In 2023 at the 11th Canadian Screen Awards Son of a Critch was nominated for 4 awards and 1 audience award. The show was nominated for 7 awards at the 12th Canadian Screen Awards in 2024 and won the Cogeco Fund Audience Choice.

Accolades

Award	Category	Recipient(s)	Result	Ref.
11th Canadian Screen Awards	Best Supporting Performance in a Comedy Series	Malcolm McDowell	Nominated
	Performance in a guest role in a comedy series	Rodrigo Fernandez-Stoll	Nominated
	Hair	Norma Richard, "Save the Last Dance for Me"	Nominated
	Best Original Music, Comedy	Alan Doyle and Keith Power	Nominated
	Audience Choice		Nominated
12th Canadian Screen Awards	Canadian Screen Award for Best Comedy Series		Nominated
	Lead performance, comedy	Benjamin Evan Ainsworth	Nominated
		Mark Critch	Nominated
	Performance in a guest role in a comedy series	Jay Baruchel	Nominated
	Best Original Music, Comedy	Alan Doyle and Keith Power, "Halley's Comet"	Nominated
	Hair	Norma Richard, "Who Dares Dare Hudaro?"	Nominated
	Casting, Fiction	Jenny Lewis (casting director) and Sara Kay	Nominated
	Cogeco Fund Audience Choice		Won

International broadcast

Paramount+ acquired streaming rights to the series in the British Isles in 2022.

In the United States, the series premiered on July 24, 2023, on The CW (although some US markets near the Canadian border who receive CBC Television are ahead in episodes). Season two premiered on October 26, 2023. Season three premiered on January 25, 2024.

External links

• Son of a Critch at IMDb