Metal Theater Monday Madness

"I should have learned to play the guitar. I should have learned to play them drums. Man, we would have had some fun." Mark Knopfler
Mr Metal Theater offers his views once again and he is most very welcome. - ed. GGBlog
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It seems like Monday nights is the only reason for watching TV. First off we have SBS News at 630P. Not exciting, not interesting, not remotely funny, but at least you can find out what's going on in the world. Put up with this for half an hour (and resist the temptation to flick across to see Naomi in her last 10 minutes of fame) and you'll then be able to reward yourself with Futurama.

For some bizarre reason our network programming executives in all their glory decided to re-run (for about the fourth time) the first episode of Futurama last night. Either an exercise in pedantry or just a "suck on this" message to the viewers, it really doesn't matter because it's all still pretty funny.

Viewers of the Simpsons often don't like or appreciate Futurama as much. It took me a while to get into the idea, but thanks to my old housemate James, I fully appreciate it for what it is. The humour is a lot sillier than the Simpsons and often a lot better - and the plots are a zillion times more interesting and better thought out (yes, it's a real number, look it up). This makes the show a lot more well-rounded than later series of the Simpsons. Catch it while you can.

Newsflash - according to Cityseach, Channel Ten (in all their wisdom) have decided to go back to the Simpsons at 7P. Just what we need, another bunch of Simpsons re-runs! “You guys, you so clever.” Next thing we'll be seeing Seinfeld again. (Well not for the moment thanks to Michael Richard's comments at a recent stand-up gig.)

Now it's time for TV enjoyment of the week : Mythbusters. This show has been around for quite a while and is surprisingly the Discovery Channel's most successful show. The two hosts, Adam and Jamie, mesh together quite badly, having completely different personalities. That's fun to watch - but so is the show.

Because it's been going for so long they've quickly run out of myths to bust. But these guys know how extend the life of a TV show well; they've started investigating anything. Movie myths, physics myths, even dumb stories written in by viewers. They've now had to recruit a second "team" of presenters to help pad out the show. While these guys obviously know their stuff (Grant seems capable of building anything) - they seem to lack any personality. Kari fell into the role by default (she helped out the guys beforehand) and is ok, but Grant seems to be lacking any kind of presentation skills. Tory is about the same. Jamie and Adam have a unique skill in being able to make any myth tested be fascinating viewing - the other guys seem to suck the life out it. But that's a small point really. The show is still great.

Moving onto 830P you can enjoy some great rude humour from South Park. It never really lost it's edge and is still pretty funny. Last week was the 'Michael Jackson' episode - and while the writers couldn't have picked an easier target they deliberately played with viewers expectations and made a very funny episode. Worth a revisit if you used to enjoy the show.

And then following up from the rear is "Drawn Together". In what seems like a great premise (cartoon characters from different periods living together a-la big brother) - the show is a disappointment. Trying to "out crude" American Dad and Family Guy is a recipe that's never going to work - and this one falls flat on its face. While treating a taboo subject lightly can sometimes be a source of amusement (if done well and with care) - these guys take it to extremes. It doesn't quite work and is often painful watching. Don't bother.

And if you're feeling a bit night-owlish, you can stay up and watch Drew Carey's "Whose Line Is It Anyway?". Apart from the grammatically incorrect title there's not a lot wrong with this show. The improvisational standards are extremely high and often leave me thinking that perhaps Carey has slipped the actors a bit of advance warning over what some of the situations might be. But mostly the show seems completely un-scripted and childishly fun. Recommended.

Metal Theater does Comedy

Dear Faithful Readers, due to TV Tasty Knows extensive (paid) work commitments we have a very special treat for you this week in lieu of his regular report. Metal Theater himself has provided his own review of the current crop of comedies on our TV screens and we thank him for that. – editor GGBlog
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American Comedies
There's been a bit of hype about Julia Louis-Dreyfus new show "The new adventures of old Christine". Unfortunately it's terrible. All I need to give you is two words : "Laugh Track". Ergh, I feel so dirty. Avoid this rubbish like the plague.
While we're on the topic of Seinfeld, Larry David's show "Curb Your Enthusiasm" features the old Seinfeld jokes, performed by Larry doing his best Woody Allen impersonation ... without a laugh track. The script is (at best) uninspired with the same old jokes that we've seen and heard hundreds of times before. It's sort of like Seinfeld but without any of the funny bits or good comedy acting. Avoid.
In the same vein, Charlie Sheen shows how low he can stoop in "Two and a half men", playing a hideously unsympathetic sexist character making jokes which are all followed by a laugh track. I'd love to see these shows performed in front of a live audience - they would die a terrible death.
The American version of "The Office" is still quite good. Not anywhere near as squirmingly bad as the UK version, but still worth a laugh or three.
Futurama (7P 10), quickly replaced "Yasmine's getting married". Futurama never had the same following as the Simpsons (which would be very difficult), but it's still quite good. Watch a couple of episodes before writing it off.

Australian Comedies
Flying across the globe from America to Australia, we have our own cultural icons Kath & Kim, who are still going strong and are still pretty funny. If you can put up with the accents and the antics, Glenn Robbins and Peter Rowsthorn are always funny.
"Chasers War on Everything" is almost starting to get a little bit tired, but these guys are pretty inventive and often come up with new ideas. Not a bad show.
On the downside, "Comedy Inc" is being aimed at 14 year old boys. Avoid unless you're in that demographic.

UK Comedies
The English don't do much very well, but what they are world leaders at is comedy. The old classic "Men Behaving Badly" (ABC 130P) is worth setting the VCR for.
"Absolute Power" is Steven Fry's new comedy, which is not bad, but I've found it to be slightly too light, and to contain too many references to current events in the UK. Not to mention people. This left me in the dark when it came to a lot of the jokes. Still, not a bad show, but it didn't really travel across the Atlantic very well.
Which leaves us with our finale, "Extras", by Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant. I happened to glimpse a few "advanced screenings" of this series and I can assure you that it is gut-wrenchingly funny. I would even go as far as saying funnier than "The Office". I know that's a big call, but I'll stick by it for the moment. Do not miss this show.

Lachlan

Friend, keen GG follower, fellow-blogger and Mr Metal Theater himself, Lachlan, is getting married on Saturday. All the best big guy ! It will be another nice day for a white wedding.