North of North (2025) appeared without warning on my Netflix list: a woman feels stifled in her tiny village in the Artic. I can relate to that, so let's go.
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Scene 1: While showering (only shoulders visible), a young woman named Siaja explains that she's from as far north as you've ever been. I think that's Calgary in the Western Hemisphere, and maybe Oslo in Europe. Then much farther north than that: Ice Cove, Nunavut.
A quirky Canadian small town and Inuit culture? I'm there.
Siaja has achieved the Canadian Dream, with a husband and child. Only now husband Ting (Kelly William, top photo) is the Golden Boy of the town, and she's only known as his wife.
First up: he gets to drive the car to the Spring Festival, while she has to haul the supplies on a lame Ski-Doo (snowmobile).
Scene 2: She drops in at Mom's very nice house -- lots of windows -- and announces that because it's a new year, she's going to apply for a job. Mom dispproves: you're a wife and mother.
Mom opens the store next door, which sells artisanal soap and miscellaneous stuff. Suddenly her hookup from last night walks in, shirtless. Siaja asks where he was in 1998 -- he could be her father! He scrams.
Mom criticizes her for scaring all of her hookups away. How many hookups could she get in a town of about 2,000 with no tourist trade and the nearest neighbor 300 miles away?
Left: I think the Handsome Man is played by Jeff Roup. who shows his d*ck or a prosthetic here.
A blond woman named Helen, apparently the town mayor, comes in complaining about the 14-hour days that supervising the festival takes, while other town business just sits there. Siaja butters her up with coffee and suggests other cultural activities spread through the year. Didn't you just hear her? And she wants to be hired as a full-time cultural manager.
"Nope. You have zero work experience and no leadership skills."
"But I see life and beauty in everything!" At that moment, a guy walks in, wanting to know where to put the fish heads.
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Scene 4: While Radio Announcer Colin (Bailey Poching) and a purple-haired woman are discussing how much partying to do tonight, Siaja comes into their office and screams. Helen didn't even look at her job proposal.
Left: Bailey Poching is gay in real life.
"Why do you want a job anyway?"
"To make our community a better place...ok, I want something of my own."
"But Inuit culture is all about community. Your own needs are irrelevant."
When Helen comes in to order the others to get back to work, Siaja asks for a chance. Couldn't you get a job, like, somewhere else? Ok, a petition to prove that the town wants a cultural director. 500 signatures -- but that's a quarter of the town! -- by tonight!
More after the break
Scene 5: Out at the festival, they're doing a three-legged race, a five-legged ski race, and a snowmobile race. Siaja passes out coffee, and gets some signatures, but not nearly 500.
A cute long-haired guy, Kuuk (Braeden Clarke), approaches and asks for a macchiato. "You're not Down South anymore, Toto," Siaja sneers. They flirt; the guy signs her petition, and gives his phone number, "In case..."
Suddenly husband Ting shoves him out of the way: one of the seal hunters dropped out, so they need Siaja. "But I'm working." Doesn't matter; what the husband says, goes. He drags her away, leaving the petition. Kuuk shrugs and takes over for her.
Scene 6: Time for the seal hunt. Helen keeps butting in and trying to appropriate Inuit culture.
The participants rush onto their boats. Nice location shots of the icy mountains.
As they float around, looking for seals, Siaja wants to discuss her application for a job at the town center: "I need to do something in my life other than being your wife."
Nope, she can't get a job now, because: "We're having another baby!" His cousin is pregnant, and he agreed to adopt her baby. Without asking Siaja?
As they are arguing, Siaja sights a seal. Ting shoots it, and then zooms over to pick it up -- but Siaja falls off the boat! She struggles underwater, and sees Nuliajuk, the Water Goddess, a woman with long very long hair.
Scene 7: On shore, Siaja is examined by a cute EMT (Daniel Niego). "Your body is in shock, but you'll be fine. But Helen tells her that their insurance can't handle a volunteer injury, so she's fired.
Left: Daniel Niego-Akavak is an actor from Iqaluit, the capital of Nunavuk. He has also appeared in The Grizzlies (2018), about an Inuit lacrosse team.
Instead of comforting her, husband Ting tells her "You made me look like a jerk. You're an embarrassment." Geeze, what an a*hole. Dump him!
DJ Colin comes over with coffee. He gives her a ride to her Mom's house.
Scene 8: Siaja under a quilt, with coffee. Husband keeps calling, but she doesn't want to talk to him. Mom objects: He's Inuk. It's our culture.
She goes out to the tundra to more texts: "Babe, I miss you. What you making for dinner?" Say what? She throws her cell phone away, screams, and shoves her face underwater, where she sees the Water Goddess again.
Scene 9: Siaja decides to go to the festival party tonight -- she hasn't been in seven years -- so she asks DJ Colin to help her pick out an outfit. Hot pink room -- he's a gay bff. She mentions that she saw Nuliajuk while underwater,. Colin is stunned and wants to hear more, but she's already headed into the party.
Scene 10: Siaja asks about the Silver Fox. He's Alisdair (Jay Ryan), an environmental consultant from Down South. She'll save him for later; first she, Colin, and Purple-Hair chat with Kuuk, the long-haired guy from earlier.
Faux-pas: when Siaja tells the group that she saw Nuliajuk, the Water Goddess, they're all impressed and think she might be a shaman -- except Kuuk, who laughs: "That's the most native shit I've ever heard." The Inuks are offended, but Siaja continues to flirt: "So, are you into shamans?"
Nope: "I'm flattered, but your husband's overprotective, and I don't want to cause problems here." Now she gets offended, and rushes off.
Scene 11: Later, she runs into Alisdair outside the party. They smoke, drink, and flirt. To prove that she's not a "quiet little nobody," she kisses him. A lot. Kuuk interrupts them with the petition from earlier; he completed the 500 signatures, sos she can have the cultural manager job!
Scene 12: Siaja rushes to Award Ceremony and tells Helen that she has the 500 signatures, but Helen dismisses her. Time for the award for the best bum-hopper (hopping on your butt while holding your legs in the air).
Husband Ting finds her in the crowd and asks what her problem is. "You should go home!"
"You don't get to tell me what to do!"
As they are arguing, Helen announces the King and Queen of the festival. Yep, it's Ting and Siaja. But Siaja she refuses to go to the stage: "No! I'm done!"
Everyone boos -- you don't break up with your husband in Inuk culture. But she yells "Screw y'all!" and rushes out.. into Alistair!
Mom, following her, sees him and yells: "You said you would never come back!" Uh-oh, she just kisssed her dad! The end.
Beefcake: A lot of hot guys, but only one takes his shirt off.
Gay Characters: Colin, probably. Nothing is specified. In Episode 2, Mom runs into Alistair and Kuuk in their hotel room, wearing towels, and recoils in homophobic disgust, but they explain that there's nothing going on; they just had to share the room. Purple-Hair picks up a woman in Episode 6.
Inuit Culture: Many Inukitut words, some cultural and spiritual tropes, and the various activities at the festival.
My Grade: First episodes usually set up the situation, but here we jump right in to Siaja seeing the Water Goddess, dumping her husband, and kissing her dad (weird plot twist). There's not much time for other characters, who remain stock: the authoritarian husband, the gay best friend, the micromanaging boss. But the Inuit culture makes up for it. B+
Bonus: Inuk guy from the Northwest Territory.
See also: Run the Burbs: A queer daughter, a gay jerk, and the guy from "Kim's Convenience"
Kyle Hawk: Gay or gay-ally wrestler, with a n*de Native American bonus
My Fake Boyfriend: Entitled guy in a gay mecca can't find a boyfriend
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