#patrick dixon

“I would rather work with five people who really believe in what they are doing … than five hundred who can’t see the point.” —Patrick Dixon, business consultant.

If Season 31 of The Patrick Dixon Show hasn't lived up to expectations thus far, it hasn't been due to a lack of ingenuity from the show's creators. Last night's fall finale, "November," concluded with Patrick loafing around his parents' house for what seemed like the hundredth time this season.

As far as the showrunners are concerned, everything is going according to plan.

Since it was announced following Season 30 that the show would be making necessary budget cutbacks, co-creators Alek Zirkovic and Julie Winnam have reportedly been scrambling to work their real-world monetary constraints into the show's storyline.

"We knew we wouldn't be able to travel as much this season, so we needed reasons to keep Patrick at home for...well, most of the time," says Winnam.

As a result, Patrick's credit card debt has become an integral plot point, hogging an inordinate amount of screen time at the expense of the main storyline 

"Given our current situation, we're happy about the direction we've taken with the show this season," says Zirkovic. 

"We sort of overreached ourselves with that Disney episode last season and now we've got to take a more frugal approach this time around. That being said, we definitely want to do Disney again."

If frugality is indeed the tone of the season, then "November" captures it perfectly. The episode hops from bar, to restaurant, to apartment, back to bar in what seems like an endless, furious loop. The pacing is solid and the dialogue is some of the best we've seen all season – Leslie Reagan's Mario Kart bit was particularly delightful – but one can't help but be bogged down by the cavalcade of painfully familiar set pieces. For a show that has spent the last few seasons filming in cities like London, Amsterdam, Copenhagen and Orlando, unremarkable locales like Richmond Hill just aren't going to cut it.

Tedious as "November" can be at times, the episode boasts enough star power to keep the fall finale from descending into the previously uncharted realms of mediocrity. Fan-favourites Katie (Tina Cahill) and Miguel (Isaac Ruiz) make their first appearance since the "August" episode, comedian Jake McKinney continues his guest stint as quirky trivia host Russel Harder, and Jessika Soto, star of NBC's Lou, rounds out the lineup with her customary scenery-chewing aplomb.

At one pivotal point during the episode, Patrick's career appeared to be headed in an exciting new direction. Ultimately, however, the character took a pay raise and stayed firmly put.

"We were going to move Patrick to a new job, but we couldn't get the sets built in time. So for now he's sticking with the weight loss company. It is a decision that Patrick's character would probably make anyhow," says Winnam.

So what's in store for the second half of Season 31?

Zirkovic and Winnam wouldn't drop any hints, but according to sources the show spent several weeks filming in the Domincan Republic. 

It should be a welcome change of scenery for a show that has been cooped up for far too long.