Thumb and Hammer Forum » Television

1. 

   ThumbandHammer
   Admin

   Monday night, the title of Canada's Worst Handyman will be awarded to one of the four remaining participants on the Discovery Channel show. For what it's worth, here is my assessment:

   Johnnie Bachusky: He has a real phobia when it comes to DIY, and his projects on the show have been, in his words, total abominations.

   Brian McDonald: He is a master of unfinished projects as evidenced by the lack of a working shower and non-working toilet in his own bathroom at home. He tends to find himself in over his head with most projects.

   Eric Thibeault: Here is someone who likes tools, but lacks the knowledge to use them properly. He is by far the most competent person on the program, but he does not like to follow instructions and, when things don't work out, he has a bit of a temper to boot.

   Angie Budgell: She is not afraid of DIY-- she just does things without thinking or planning. Plumbing with a sledgehammer is never a good idea. She is probably the most improved handyman on the show.

   Brian Pugh: Until he was asked to leave the show for unspecified reasons (something he said that could not be repeated on air), he had my vote for the worst of the worst. But he is now out of the running.

   My prediction: Johnnie seems to be a show favourite for worst handyman each week, and will likely take home the title. However, I don't believe this is fair since he never set out to be a handyman in the first place. If his wife is more comfortable taking on DIY projects at home, I say that he should let her. Not everyone needs to be a handyman.

   Eric has knowledge and ability. He just needs to read instructions (and control his temper). He is not the worst.

   Angie is, in my humble opinion, the most improved. She needs to work on planning, instead of just plowing ahead without thinking. She is no longer the worst but I would still hide any tools from her. Especially the sledgehammer.

   That leaves Brian M. I know the show's premise is that anyone can learn DIY. However, I still believe that there is no shame in calling in professionals when the going gets tough. No doubt Brian can learn to DIY, but he still has a long way to go.

   MOST IMPROVED: Angie
   WORST HANDYMAN: Should be Brian, but will likely be Johnnie.

   What is your opinion?

   Posted 1 year ago #
2. 

   Anonymous
   Unregistered

   Unless something fatally terrible happens in the final episode, there's no doubt that Brian M will be crowned Canada's Worst Handyman. Brian has the fatal flaw that a lot of people do in that he just can't seem to absorb what's said to him. Is it age? Maybe a bit? Too many drugs in the hayday of youth? Could be. Bottom line is that it doesn't matter. If you can't remember moment to moment what the instructions were, failing is inevitable.

   Johnnie can calm down - you can't make Brian listen.

   Eric, I think, had the shortest distance to go. All the boy needed to do was leave his house and read some directions and he was set.

   I'm with you - Angie gets most improved - doesn't mean I'm hiring her to do any work on my house but I'm fairly sure she won't injure anyone in hers anytime soon.

   Posted 1 year ago #
3. 

   ThumbandHammer
   Admin

   Well, the results are in, and I was astonishingly accurate. Johnnie was voted worst with Brian M a very close second. I still stand by my assertion that Johnnie was not trying to be a handyman in the first place, which makes him far less dangerous than the other three. Not everyone is handy and some people should leave handiwork to those who know what they are doing. When in doubt, hire it out. To say that Johnnie is the worst handyman is the same as saying I am the worst mechanic. If you were to ask me to change the brake pads on my car, I would fail miserably which is why I don't try to be a mechanic in the first place.

   Johnnie knows he isn't a handyman. I think even Brian M realizes that he is not equipped to be a handyman either. I would like to know what Brian Pugh said to get kicked off the show because I still believe that he was the most legitimate candidate for the title of the worst....

   Posted 1 year ago #
4. 

   Anonymous
   Unregistered

   Brian M did seem pretty shocked not to be named the worst - and, as stated earlier, I think he truly earned that distinction. As you said last night, it really came down to the male expert caving to the whim of the host and the female expert and why? Probably because Johnnie is more likable in a minorly iconic way. The terrible singing. The "abomination." I would have liked to have seen the most improved named and it was a surprise that someone wasn't.

   Posted 1 year ago #
5. 

   ThumbandHammer
   Admin

   Yeah, I liked the way they just dismissed Angie and Eric by saying "you're not the worst." It almost seemed to imply that they were given the green light to go ahead and do handyman stuff when, in reality, neither one is quite ready yet. All I know is that there are five houses out there across the country and the only one that hasn't been heavily damaged is Johnnie's. The other four will take a lot of repair work. And if any of them should go on the market, buyer beware!

   Posted 1 year ago #
6. 

   mimimi
   Member

   well... as a matter of fact- I am Erics neighbour. And he is doing great. I am a general contractor and a few times he has come to question me about some of his "handyman jobs". Bang up of a job taboot! He even built his teepee....believe it or not!!!

   Posted 11 months ago #
7. 

   ThumbandHammer
   Admin

   It's good to hear that Eric is asking for feedback or advice on his projects. As I said, he was the best of the lot. His temper was rather scary on the show, but then, the show deliberately placed the nominees in extremely stressful situations (witness Brian Pugh's alleged threats that got him kicked off the show). I'd be interested in following up on some of Eric's projects now....

   Side note: Apologies to SWMBO: I accidentally deleted your account when deleting spam registrations, which is why your posts show up as anonymous. You are most welcome to re-register.

   Posted 11 months ago #
8. 

   chipguy
   Member

   hey mimimi, did you ever happen to hear from eric what Brian P said specifically that got him booted from the show? I'd really like to know!

   Posted 11 months ago #
9. 

   ThumbandHammer
   Admin

   That's the million dollar question, so to speak. Johnnie did write about it in an article for the Red Deer Express but it seems to have disappeared from the website. In it, he mentioned that he thought there would have been cause to pursue criminal charges although that did not happen for reasons he wasn't privy to. He did say that had Brian P. not been expelled from the show, he and his wife would have left. And he quoted Angie saying that she felt unsafe working near Brian.

   Exactly what was said is probably protected by some sort of confidentiality clause (I'm guessing), since at this point it is one of Canada's best kept secrets. Now, if Eric (or Angie or Johnnie) are able to spill the beans, they are most welcome to do it on this forum. But honestly, I don't expect that to happen. Doing so would probably open up a huge can of worms (civil and criminal) that is best left alone.

   Posted 11 months ago #
10. 

    angie budgell
    Member

    Indeed I did quote to Johnnie that I was afraid to work again with Brian P. Brian P was expelled and your right to just leave it alone at that. I enjoy watching the comments and all the guessing and to tell you the truth nor I or Eric know who was most improved as they did not tell us either. It truly was an experience I will never forget...am I glad I did it....you betcha!

    Posted 8 months ago #

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