It may be spring, but it’s still cold out there. If it’s warmth you’re after, it may seem counterintuitive to look to the north. But look not to your temperature, but to your soul. Next stop: Ice Cove, Nunavut—the setting of new series North of North! Where whatever it lacks in Celsius, it makes up for in warmth of character and quality storytelling.
Siaja (Anna Lambe) is a modern Inuk woman, “whatever that means” as she states in the opening scene of the pilot. In the Great Canadian North, Siaja is on the cusp of admitting to herself that the little life others have carved out for her just isn’t working. As she stumbles through a rough patch in her life, she exclaims: “It’s not a patch. It’s my life.”
When we meet her, she’s on the verge of finally taking the risks necessary to change her life for the better. Siaja does this through direct action, and aside from her incredible charm, beauty and intelligence, her resourcefulness and compassion is what makes her so special and engaging. Not every action is, er, sharp or beneficial for her. But nothing Siaja does is passive. She is bold in her choices, even when it literally leads to a dumpster fire (see Episode Three). She is earnest, but not to a fault. It is all these things together that make her strong enough to carry a series. She also needs that perseverance to face the pushback she gets at first. Her mother Neevee (Miaka Harper) hilariously reminds her that she is “acting like a white girl with options.” But she pushes on, and you’ll love her for it.
Over eight delightful, generous, and very funny episodes, we see failure and growth from a protagonist who learns that she wants more for herself and, in turn, for her community. At one point, a southern character calls Ice Cove a “blank slate”—but Siaja can see the potential to build on the foundation set by herself, her mother and her ancestors.
After a series of disappointments, a near-death experience, and a dissing from the spirit sea goddess Nuliajuk, our girl is on a runaway Skidoo and riding a fine line between destruction and greatness. The show is doing the same; it is bucking traditions to embrace new or neglected ones. It’s leaving the arbitrary behind and bringing light to things that have always been there. As Siaja says, “My love language isn’t compliments. It’s being listened to.” The Arctic and its people are ancient and beautiful, but is anyone hearing them, or what they need, or what they have to contribute with regards to knowledge and culture?
North of North has a noble agenda: to highlight an often ignored place by showing all the things that are unique to it—but in the context of themes that we can all relate to. We gain the necessary knowledge and can connect to it ourselves. We might be listening to Dua Lipa’s “Levitating,” but it’s Riit’s Inuktitut cover of it we hear in our head. The characters play baseball, but with a walrus’s…err…appendage. There are things that we learn here, too, like salt on ice can harm sealskin kamiks (boots) . There are reminders that generational trauma can sneak up on people and cause pain, like to Neeve, her related sobriety, and the damage of colonizers to Indigenous peoples. None of these things are forced or cheaply dealt with. They are presented in a way that reveals them as meaningful, cool or even funny. Even when the show goes deep, it’s able to return to levity seamlessly.
Falling in love with a small town, with its quirky folk and quirkier traditions, is nothing new to TV. There have been several communities that have made their stamp of excellence in the history of the medium, from Stars Hollow to Pawnee to Schitt’s Creek. But not since Northern Exposure’s Cicely, Alaska, have we had the opportunity to visit a place so steeped in tradition and culture, and this time with authenticity. It’s a place which is both hilarious yet grown-up. No matter the trajectory of our lead, the show always comes back to the central theme of community. Siaja is no Joel Fleischman, because she is brave and not trying to run away from her problems like he was,. She is trying to build something and be someone she and her people can be proud of. The things she wants are important to her, and they are contagious.
Every show’s first season has that episode. The one that brings everything together and tells you the show’s overall identity. Episode Four, titled “Joy to the Effing World,” is the point where, after three very good episodes, we tip over into great. It focuses on Siaja’s running of an elders’ night and her attempts to improve it. There are hijinks, many laughs, and losses; but, then there is a scene that gives us the privilege of hearing the Inuktitut language for an extended moment. It is entirely moving and encompassing and will have you wishing it could have lasted longer. The episode’s halfway mark prepares you for the second part of the series, too. And by the time you reach the finale, you’ll be as committed to this show as the creators were in making it. You’ll be engrossed by the beloved characters as they wrestle with their historical colonial trauma, but equally by the humourous tone you’ve now become familiar with. It’s truly impressive how skillfully the series has persuaded to really listen. It’s expert storytelling on the part of episode writers Althea Arnaquq-Baril and Linsey Stewart.
Canadian viewers will feel a sense of pride throughout, though the show is not particularly nationalistic. That feelings will come from knowing that the show is being made on this land, specifically Iqaluit, by people who are from here. It is being made with style, too, from the gorgeous costumes designed by Debra Hanson to the incredible music by the Chan brothers. It turns out that the heart of the country is not in the middle, but at the top. And a little to the right.
The series is truly a comforting and refreshing experience—one you will want to gate-keep to enjoy on your own, like a warm blanket, or crow to your friends about so much that they finally give in and watch (We’re looking at you, Fleabag stans). If it’s the latter, they won’t regret it for a minute. In fact, tell everyone about North of North, because it is a production that deserves to be recognized and loved.
North of North is now streaming in Canada on Netflix, CBC Gem, and APTN Lumi.
