New shows are continuing to pay off for CBC, which saw solid debuts for its comedies Sophie and jPod this week, while Little Mosque on the Prairie also experienced a slight upswing in ratings.

Sophie, the English-language version of the hit Quebec sitcom Les hauts et les bas de Sophie Paquin, premiered to a sound 630,000 viewers on Wednesday at 8:30 p.m., following the midseason debut of Mosque. The antics of the residents of Mercy, SK drew 804,000 viewers, up from the second season debut of 750,000. (All times Eastern, all ratings 2+ unless noted.)

jPod, based on Douglas Coupland’s bestselling novel, trailed with 472,000 on Tuesday at 9 p.m., the timeslot formerly held by The Tudors. The one-hour office comedy centers on five video-game developers in Vancouver, and stars David Kopp, Emilie Ullerup, and Alan Thicke. Its debut is the softest so far among CBC’s midseason dramas, which launched on Monday when 710,000 tuned in to the debut of the action drama The Border.

‘It’s a great start, we look forward to watching it grow,’ says CBC programming head Kirstine Layfield of jPod, pointing out that it attracted 293,000 viewers in the 25-54 demographic.

CBC will roll out the hockey-wives soap MVP, starring Dillon Casey (The Best Years), Kristin Booth (Prairie Giant) and Lucas Bryant (Playing House), on Friday.

Other domestic shows due next week include the premiere of Steve and Chris, a daytime hour that starts on CBC on Monday, and Degrassi: The Next Generation, which returns with its seventh season to CTV, also on Monday at 7:30 p.m.