Make some noise for our monster comedians!

Showbiz, especially the comedy world, is crawling with self-centered, manipulative, fame-hungry people addicted to power.

Rising or shooting, these stars of the star-system are also drugged with something other than the love of the public, we agree on that, sniff, sniff, cough, cough, move on to the next one.

It is in this universe of excess and skids that immerses us in the ferocious miniseries High demolition from the Séries Plus channel, very faithful to the novel by Jean-Philippe Baril-Guérard, published in 2021.

If you have devoured the book, you will find in the six one-hour episodes the same grating and modern tone, which cuts the universe of Quebec comedians to pieces.

If you haven’t opened the book, you’ll find that the stories of (yes, that canceled comedian) and (right, that other acrobat) don’t come out of a loot box.

Pro tip: Record episodes the good old way on Séries Plus, Thursdays at 9 p.m., starting March 16. Because catching up with them later or trying to watch them in a rush will prove impossible, Mononcle Hugo kindly warns you.

SO, High demolitiondirected by Christian Laurence (wildlife handbook), recounts the rise – and fall – of a cohort of graduates from the National School of Humor. In this comic barnyard, two young roosters clash. There’s Sam Bouvier (Guillaume Gauthier), a spunky, super-confident up-and-coming comedian and son of a famous actor.

And there’s Raph Massicotte (very fitting Étienne Galloy), a more talented, but less pretty and less popular apprentice plumber, who was bullied in high school and channeled all of his trauma into improv.

Like the cork of a shaken bottle of champagne, Sam’s career takes off, he fills the Olympia and his pockets, while Raph vegetates and becomes jealous of his former classmate.

The trend is reversed the evening when Raph, performing at the Tarmac (wink at the Terminal), meets Laurie Blais (Léane Labrèche-Dor), right arm of the influential and very superficial boss of a management company, Michel Forand (Éric Bernier, very funny).

Laurie, 32, is overflowing with talent and she finds in Raph, 23, an outlet to express her repressed creativity. Together, Laurie and Raph are writing solid material for both TikTok and TV, which catapults Raph into the same major league as his “rival friend” Sam.

The sequences where Raph delivers chronicles to the morning show On your marks, coffee!, heated by the dapper Marie-Josée (Hélène Bourgeois-Leclerc), are hilarious. Same for all stand-up numbers included in High demolition : they are super well written with very current references to Jack & Jones clothes, to eye of the stormcryptocurrency and jeggings.

Of course things are messing up between Laurie and Raph. Their announced breakup sucks Raph down the barrel. He freezes, gets drunk, sabotages his budding career and repeats the problematic behavior of his colleague Sam, who also collects conquests.

By applause, do you think there will be denunciations? Yes, friends.

I really liked what I saw High demolition. The character of Laurie (Léane Labrèche-Dor) has been deepened and fleshed out in comparison to her version in the book. The cast also features some lesser-known faces and that’s refreshing.

Of the lot, remember the name of Carolanne Foucher. This actress plays comedian Elena in High demolition and she has an unbeatable sense of punch. On an empty stomach, too!

The future of The emperor

Worried emails are piling up about The emperor, of which Noovo relayed the grand finale on Wednesday evening. Will the charming and disgusting Christian Savard (excellent Jean-Philippe Perras) finally pay for his heinous actions?

Will we have the sadistic pleasure of seeing this attacker suffer in the sequel to this miniseries laid by Michelle Allen (Runaway, For Sara)? The answer to your questions reads as follows: yes, Noovo is planning a second chapter to The emperor. The official green light has recently been given, confirms the Noovo chain.

However, no release date has been announced. We assume, at the earliest, a time slot in the winter of 2024.

The second part of The emperor will focus on the consequences that the dangerous and disgusting Christian will suffer after a 10-year reign of sexual violence. Will he rot in jail? How will his trial go? Will the victims recant?

The goal of The emperor was to show the making of a monster, to see how an aggressor operates in a devious way, by installing gently, and with great suavity, a toxic climate. And with that, mission accomplished.

Wednesday night, we all screamed, when Christian attacked his own niece, look at the damn maniac! The abrupt end of this final episode still came full circle, I think. Christian’s first victim, Manuela (Noé Lira), filed a complaint with the police and broke a cycle that has repeated itself too often.

The (new) clothes of this emperor were chic and tasteful. They won’t be of much use when justice falls. Or not.