peak_photo_ian_01This Week on Peak Season: Episode Three

Canada’s newest docu-drama series, Peak Season, aired it’s third episode Monday night, and the second showing of this action-packed show followed in the premiere’s steps, that is, the sporadic and unpredictable steps of the entertaining cast the show is based upon.

What happens:

Matt and Elle : the Australian who likes to get (self-proclaimed)“loose” and his visiting girlfriend.

After Matt mistakenly ditches Elle at the bar, he resolves to make it up to her. Whistler-fashion, of course. This groveling style consists of romantic dogsled rides, champagne and a hotel room at the Westine Resort and Spa for the night. After an excessively long make-up scene in the hot tub, it’s fairly simple to come to the conclusion that Matt has officially been forgiven for his sloven ways.

Lauren: the rowdy girl with a mind of her own.

Lauren is on the hunt after losing her job at a local Whistler pub, and eventually comes to the conclusion that she is better off working for herself. She decides that now is the perfect time to start the promotions company she has been envisioning, and it’s time to put her party-girl reputation to a good cause (as so eloquently stated by her best friend, Stephanie Weber). Over cheese, sausage and wine, it is decided that Fabia, an already-established promoter, will team up with Lauren for a promotion event a premiere party as a trial run. After reinforcing the importance of staying AWAY from shots, we are treated to a wonderful array of shot-taking skills, as represented by Lauren. Traditional shots, shots without hands, shots from her cleavage- essentially any form of shots you’ve ever imagined, they’ve been done in a Whistler bar.

After discovering that a girl, Jenelle, is bad mouthing her, Lauren takes matters into her own (very capable) hands. After actively seeking her out in the bar, confrontation ensues. Talking turns to shouting, shouting leads to pushing, and pushing leads to a mini-lecture from a slightly intoxicated Fabia. After breathing in some fresh Whistler air, it appears that Lauren takes the heartfelt advice seriously, and won’t let this little bump on the road slow her down.

Dre: the talented Whistler local/DJ/Snowboarder.

Dre is freshly single, but when you live in Whistler, bumping into your ex is unavoidable, and Amanda makes it crystal clear that she is not impressed with his abundance of female attention.

It’s apparent that Dre, on the other hand, is enjoying his bachelorhood, and preferably, in flashy one-piece snowsuits and neon-pink sunglasses. Him and his crew rep 90’s outfits, bare chests, and fluorescent shades while managing to pick up stray girls willing to try an unidentifiable drink (guess what) at break time. While this behaviour seems appropriate, apparently the line is drawn at sitting on Dre’s lap, whereupon the mother brood descends and pulls the thirsty blonde away.

What was especially poignant about this scene was the way it was simultaneously contrasted with a scene of the lovely Amanda, trudging home all by her lonesome.

Ian: in his own words, “witty, outgoing and spontaneous.” The singleton who lives for everything Whistler.

Though there is not much of Ian this episode, there is a humorous scene of him and Scoot (Lauren’s ex) working out at the gym. Guys in the weight room are like girls at the salon: they discuss their appearance, their friends and the opposite sex. Oh, and how cool the mirrors are.

Amanda: the brunette socialite, still reeling from her break-up with Dre.

We find out in this episode that Amanda works for Dre’s mom. Subsequently, she is corralled into an awkward relationship talk with the boss/mom, and told that her hours have been significantly cut. Is this convenient timing, or rather, a strong sense of family allegiance? After confronting Dre later at the Savage Beagle, emotions get heated, and she leaves that night with (perhaps) a slightly bruised ego.

Best Lines

“When I get drunk, I forget that I have my girlfriend.”
- Matt

“We don’t have many unfit friends, which is dope.”
“Most of our friends are good looking and in shape”
“We probably should be.. not fat.. but bigger.”
-Ian (who is alarmingly preoccupied by his crew’s esthetic appeal)

“We actually have to cut you down to two days a week [...] Can I give you a hug?”   -Dre’s mom to Amanda after the breakup

“Well.. I was having fun until you showed up.”
-Dre to Amanda at the Savage Beagle

andPOP Insider Interview with Ian Ross

Ian, the wise-cracking bachelor behind some fairly unique analogies, weighs in on Peak Season thus far.

What do you think of the show so far?

I’m super stoked on it, I’ve heard really good reviews from people so far. I was kind of worried, the first episode, and how I was going to be portrayed. But I think people understand that a lot of the time I’m not saying things to be mean to people, it’s just sort of to get a reaction out of someone. It’s not me being an asshole at all, it’s just getting a reaction.

What led you to Whistler?

I was born in Halifax, Nova Scotia. I moved here in 2004, on a contract with the Four Seasons Hotel. But, I actually came in Grade Seven on a family trip, and I was like ‘I am going to live here.’ I love the environment, I love the atmosphere and the people. I’m extremely happy here now, there’s no reason to leave, I have good friends, an awesome job and really good surroundings, so there’s no negatives right now so I’ll stay.

Has it changed your daily routine in Whistler at all?

Other than being on Twitter like 400 times a day, as well as Facebook and my Hotmail, everything is pretty much the exact same. It’s just more or less keeping up with the technology side of it, especially giving replies to people. I’ve had close to 300 friend requests since the show aired, it’s insane.

There’s a lot of talk about your analogy of city girls being like a container of milk. After that episode aired, did you receive any heat for that?

It’s not all city girls, there’s a class of them that we look for when we say that sort of thing. There’s that pretentious girl that we kind of throw into that category. I’ve had no negative reactions at all, more people just joking and quoting what I’ve been saying, which I have absolutely no problem with at all. As long as people keep
tuning in and watching, that’s great, I guess I’m doing my job, keeping their attention.

Keeping that in mind, how would you describe Whistler girls?

I would describe Whistler girls as laid-back, they’re here because they don’t have to impress anybody, and they’re here just for the snowboarding side of it. They’re not here to dress up and go out, and wear a skirt and high heels. They don’t have to do that. People move to Whistler for the atmosphere, and the laid-back side of it. Even if I see a girl dressed up, it doesn’t impress me. I’d rather see a girl who’s wearing a pair of Ugg’s and some lululemons, to me that’s hot.

Do you ever get tired of the constant drama that has been ongoing in the show?

Not really, because it’s almost like a day-to-day thing. Especially since we’re all on the bar scene so much, you get used to it, it’s like a high school bubble. I’ve kind of learned to tune most of it out and to avoid most of it, but I’ll still stay in that bubble enough to know what’s going on. I always have an open ear, and I like to know what’s going on in the circle. You can never avoid it in a town of 10,000 people, it keeps things interesting.

Best and worst quality of Whistler?

The best thing about Whistler is knowing you can go out any night of the week, and go to any club or any bar, and know somebody. You can even go by yourself and not feel left out, because you’re always going to bump into somebody else who is doing the same thing. It’s a really good surrounding to go out and relax with your friends, you’re always loved somewhere. The worst quality is on those days that you really want to escape, you really can not do it. We call Whistler ‘the bubble.’ You can’t go anywhere, you can’t avoid it, you can’t hide from it, you’re always in that bubble somehow.

What can we look forward to seeing in the show in regard to your life?

Definitely a lot of more witty comments. I have a little, small relationship with a girl on the show. Everybody kind of pours out to me because I’m that guy that gives them the truth, and I don’t lie about anything on the show, so I always give the honest opinion and people kind of turn to me in that sense.

Overall:

The show is still in it’s first stages, but so far, I like what I see. The essential thing that is making this show different is the raw feel to it. The way they talk, the new Whistler traditions that we’re being introduced to (did I mention the shots) and the intermittent shots of the slopes are causing this irritating itch drop the books and head west for the winter. Time will only tell, but so far I give it four florescent sunglasses out of four cleavage shots. You can interpret that however you wish.

To Recap:

Matt and Elle are back on good terms once again. Apparently, dogsled rides are the path to a girls heart. In contrast, Dre and Amanda have officially called it quits, and are in the bickering post-breakup stage. Lauren is starting a new promotions business, and managed to pull off a successful trial night through occasionally clouded judgement. Ian and Scoot are not fat. All in all, a well-rounded episode for Peak Season. It’s still in it’s tottering baby steps, but soon it will be leaps and bounds for this series that features snow-capped Hills, a pleasant and novel change from the corporate labyrinth referred to as American reality television.






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