When asked last year how he felt about his show’s chances in the Gemini’s best comedy series or program category, Trailer Park Boys actor Mike (Bubbles) Smith was not optimistic.

‘We’re not on the good end of the political setup,’ he said. ‘Historically, a lot of CBC shows get four out of five nominations and usually win, and they’ll probably win this year, too.’

He was partially right. Despite the fact CBC had only one nominee in This Hour Has 22 Minutes, the series won its sixth best comedy program or series Gemini, besting Showcase’s Trailer Park Boys, Comedy Network’s Puppets Who Kill and The Gavin Crawford Show, and VisionTV’s Lord Have Mercy. The win kept CBC’s streak alive – the pubcaster has walked away with the prize every year since the first Gemini Awards in 1986.

This year, 22 Minutes is up again, along with returning contenders Trailer Park Boys and Puppets Who Kill, two other CBC shows – The Red Green Show and The Newsroom – and CTV’s smash hit Corner Gas. The Newsroom and Corner Gas are also both nominated for International Emmys, to be decided Nov. 22.

If Gemini history has proven anything, it is that Academy voters love their satire. 22 Minutes, with its particular brand of mockery often aimed at Ottawa – has taken home the best comedy Gemini most years since 1995, save when the equally biting Made In Canada won (1999 and 2001), and in 2002, when An American in Canada took the prize.

‘Comedy is something we do that has a unique voice,’ says Slawko Klymkiw, executive director of network programming at CBC, which will once again broadcast the Gemini Awards Gala, on Dec. 13. ‘What we are best at and what we continually try to do is sketch comedy that has a certain level of political satire. Political satire in some ways fuels the genre. We do more of it than anyone else.’

Klymkiw says that nominees Red Green and The Newsroom are also satirical in their own ways, dealing more with relationships than politics and current events. He also says 22 Minutes will not lose a beat despite the departure of cast member Mary Walsh, much beloved for characters such as Marg the Warrior Princess. Klimkiw says the cast turnover actually helps the show in ‘keeping up with the times and the changing tastes of the audience.’

Some argue that CBC’s dominance of the comedy category has to do with how many Academy members are employed at CBC, but Klymkiw doesn’t buy it.

‘We do 10 times more Canadian TV than anybody else,’ he argues. ‘And I’m not saying that critically. Private broadcasters have to do what private broadcasters have to do, but our job is to do Canadian, and for that reason we’re going to get some nominations.’

Although Klymkiw will not go on record with a prediction for this year’s Gemini outcome, he does applaud the other nominees, going so far as to call Corner Gas a ‘phenomenon,’ and saying this year’s race could have a photo finish.

Others aren’t so sure.

‘They have to give [the Academy voters] a urine test if Corner Gas doesn’t win,’ says Sun Media TV critic Bill Brioux. ‘It was the Canadian success story of the year. Any right-thinking person would want it to win.’

According to Corner Gas executive producer Virginia Thompson, she and her team are grateful for the Gemini and Emmy noms, but the real measure of the show’s success is the acclaim from critics and viewers, who have taken to the series like no other Canadian comedy in recent memory.

‘Last week we had 1.64 million viewers watching,’ says Thompson. ‘We’ve really hit on something. It would be great to win the Gemini, but at the end of the day, whether we win or it goes to another great show, we’re being embraced by the audience and critics, and that provides a great deal of validation.’

Thompson shoots down a popular rumor that CBC passed on Gas when it was offered to them.

‘CTV was our first choice, and it backed us in a huge way,’ she says. ‘I can’t speak highly enough of CTV and its support of this series.’

Also in the CTV fold, Comedy’s sleeper nominee Puppets Who Kill has received its second best comedy series nom. Last year, producer/writer John Pattison walked away with the best writing in a comedy series trophy.

Pattison received this year’s news while shooting Puppets’ third season.

‘It’s very flattering, obviously,’ he says. ‘It’s an offbeat show, and when you’re doing it you never know whether it will peak people’s interest. It’s nice to know we’re accepted and that we’re on the map in some way.’

And then there is Trailer Park Boys, which executive producer Mike Volpe calls ‘the Susan Lucci of Canadian television,’ after the American soap opera star who didn’t win an Emmy until her 19th nomination. Although he and the Boys are pleased about the four nominations the show has received this year – especially in the writing and direction categories – awards, he says, aren’t what drive the popular series.

‘I think the Geminis is the only award show we enter,’ says Volpe. ‘For us, it’s really about the fans and whether they’re digging the show. We appreciate being nominated, but it’s not a major focus for us.’

As far as Volpe is concerned, Smith won the only Gemini that really mattered last year – the Viewer’s Choice Award for best comedic performance – and says a little-known fact about that particular prize is that Smith’s fellow Trailer Park Boy, Robb (Ricky) Wells, placed second in the voting.

Playback predicts:
* Corner Gas SD, MD, IE
* Trailer Park Boys LB, PV
* The Newsroom MH