The Yard (2011 TV series)


The Yard is a Canadian mockumentary comedy series that originally aired on HBO Canada in 2011. Set in a schoolyard, the series depicts the interactions of two rival gangs of elementary school students, with the plot of each episode serving as a parody of an adult-oriented crime drama series such as The Sopranos or The Wire. In the United States, it is available for online streaming exclusively on Hulu in both "censored" and "uncensored" versions and for 1080p HD digital download on the iTunes Store.

Cast

The Good Guys

The series is seen by an unseen documentarian, voiced by Paul Gross, at Parker Elementary School in Canada. Providing both behind-the-scenes footage and interviews with the kids intercut with the main drama.

Episodes

  1. "The Economy" - A new trading card game hits the yard and a financial crisis starts. The correlative adult issues include the global financial crisis.
  2. "Girls vs. Boys" - Johnny is kicked in the testicles by Patti. Nick tries to find out why Johnny was kicked and how to deal with it. The correlative adult issues include sexual harassment and varieties of feminism.
  3. "The Territories" - North African students would love to play soccer, but Frankie and his crew won't let them use his field and war starts. The correlative adult issues include terrorism, religion, and property rights.
  4. "The Catcher " - Frankie and his crew work the peanut butter and jelly sandwich racket. Johnny is talked into the black market by Patti as a catcher and becomes indebted to Frankie. The correlative adult issue include the War on Drugs and Cannabis in the United States.
  5. "The Great Compromise" - Nick is overworked. But time off makes more trouble and chaos in The Yard.
  6. "Big Business " - Stink bombs are big business in the Yard and Frankie and his crew are at the top. But Mary Miladic starts to complain, Nick works out a plan for the stink bombs. Frankie employs The Mole/Beth to make a new type of failsafe bomb under the sandbox, but it fails on picture day.

    Reception

Bill Harris of the Toronto Sun called The Yard "kiddie ‘Sopranos’". The Grid called it "The Wire Babies".