My Hometown: Give the Guy a Chance

My Hometown is a place "where the police wave hello and the trees have names," which may be why it occasionally seems kind of like Mayberry, R.F.D.: stuck in a time warp. Chronicling the trials and tribulations of the Thompson family (focusing on son Thomas, an 8th-grader), this Canadian produced television series is now in its second season with 13 new episodes. Give the Guy a Chance follows Thomas' battle with Eddie, a kid from school who taunts Thomas about his paper route and calls his father "Toaster Man" (Mr. Thompson does occasional electrical repair work in addition to his job at the plant). How Thomas deals with the feelings of peer pressure, shame over his father's good-hearted role as a village handyman, and his own newfound drive to strive for a more visible position with the newspaper is the subject of this half-hour drama. A pristine production (the tech aspects as well as the acting are top-notch), Give the Guy a Chance suffers a bit from being exactly what it is--a TV production--meaning: treacly music laid on the soundtrack, a predictable storyline, and a certain amount of sacrifice of realism for formula. Libraries with flush budgets may want to consider this well-intentioned, very handsomely produced title and series. Others will no doubt find $139 a bit much for a TV episode. Optional. Aud: I, P. (R. Pitman)