tv on dvd

I used to love the old Tracey Ullman show, but I don’t think even she, goddess of comedy, quite approached the astonishing range of ingenious characters the way that her heir apparent, Catherine Tate, does.

Half deeply disturbing and ooky, half goofy and cheesy in the most deliciously pulpy way, this is TV of a caliber that we rarely get to enjoy on American television…

Hey, it turns out that lesbians aren’t just people too, lesbians are women too. Who knew?

The attempts at humor are obvious, simplistic, and riddled with stereotypes — “dykes” hate men, gays are obsessed with physical appearance, and so on and so, tediously, on.

Ah, this is period drama like it’s supposed to be: not stuffy or stodgy but powerful, passionate, and alive with love and sex and tenderness.

What’s really astonishing is Mayall’s comedic brutality: he latches like a bulldog onto B’Stard’s malevolence and wrings it dry. Oh so dry.

The list of guest stars is literally legendary… but the real fun… is how the Muppet characters really come into their own…

I never watched it as a kid, though, and my first exposure to it on this new DVD set will gladly be my last.

This is what talk shows should look and sound like: no holds barred and no bullshit.