This Is The Best Episode Of Trailer Park Boys Ever, According To IMDb
Trailer Park Boys is the sort of show that breeds die-hards, fans who have kept the candle burning for the series for 20 years. In return, the audience has been rewarded with consistency across its 12 seasons. You can swing a dead cat in every season and hit an episode that viewers hold in high regard, but one particular dispatch from the Eastern Canadian trailer park stands out above the rest.
The fifth episode of season 3, "Closer To The Heart," is the best-rated episode in the entire series per IMDB. It's earned a stellar 9.3 rating from the fan-voted database, indicating near-universal acclaim. Its place in the canon makes an easy sort of sense: Not only is it one of the most elaborate and madcap plots of the entire series, but it also just might be the single most Canadian piece of television ever filmed.
What happens in 'Closer to the Heart?'
The episode revolves around a Rush concert in Halifax. The denizens of the trailer park hatch various schemes to either make money at the concert, scam each other, or sneak into the show without paying. Bubbles proves to be the biggest fan of the Rock and Roll Hall of Famers, and other characters exploit this genuine desire to see Rush to their own ends.
After several unsuccessful attempts to score tickets to the show, Ricky kidnaps Rush guitarist Alex Lifeson (playing himself) after pretending to be a contest-winning guitar tech. The other members of the park manage to sneak into the show through the sewer system and are tossed from the venue several times. Ultimately, Julian steps in and fulfills his role as the clear head of the trailer park, convincing Lifeson to let Bubbles be his guitar tech. The guitarist gives Bubbles a ride back to the park while they talk about playing guitar, and events culminate in a jam session to the Rush song from which the episode takes its name.
Another Trailer Park Boys contender emerges
Only one other episode has matched "Closer to the Heart" in the enthusiasm of its user reviews, and we're not sure if it counts. The closing episode of the live-action series, "F***in' F***ed Out Of Our F***in' Minds" also has a 9.3 rating. Given that it's the final episode (for now) of the much-loved show, its score could be inflated by a bit of fan enthusiasm and nostalgia.
That's not to take anything away from the truly hilarious episode, which follows a dual bachelor party for Julian and Ricky. The turn from wild party to misty-eyed remembrance and back to farce once the cops show up is truly masterful, a perfect encapsulation of what it is Trailer Park Boys does. We do have to wonder, however, if the numbers are gassed up because of its position in the timeline, and if they'll hold for as long as those of "Closer To The Heart" have.
Fans who love Trailer Park Boys can still get new stories from the characters, of course; just in a different form. The second season of the show's animated spin-off is on Netflix now.