DVD Pick Of the Week – Big Train: Seasons 1 & 2
Big Train: Seasons 1 & 2
Though still too steeped in DIY shows and reruns of Benny Hill to be completely relevant, BBC America has improved slightly in the last couple of years by airing quality British comedies such as Black Books and The Mighty Boosh. And it’s not helping things to release certain shows straight to video without a cable premiere; although, we’ll forgive them in the case of Big Train, which is hands down the funniest sketch comedy show you’ve never seen…and now you can!
The brainchild of Father Ted creators Graham Linehan and Arthur Matthews, it’s a hilariously surreal skit program whose board of fare includes everything from lavish historical parodies to daft animal hijinks reminiscent of the best of The Far Side, and also numerous hilarious sketches of office humor – including one with Christ and Satan at odds in the workplace.
Years before making a big-screen splash in Hot Fuzz and Shaun of the Dead, and even before his brilliant sitcom Spaced (still, sadly, not available on Region 1 DVD), Simon Pegg was a key member of the talented cast of Big Train, honing his crack comic timing alongside Mark Heap (later of Spaced and Green Wing) and Kevin Eldon (whose impression of Beatles producer George Martin anchors one of the most piss-yourself hilarious sketches on either of the show’s two seasons.) The ladies on the show swapped out between series; season one’s dynamic duo of Julia Davis (of Nighty Night fame) and Amelia Bullmore (of I’m Alan Partridge and more) are ever so slightly better, but series two’s ladies (including the now-famous Catherine Tate) are no slouches either.
Part of the show’s sly charm is that despite a laugh track, it’s played completely straight and yet the writing is scarcely less than wacko brilliance. Best bits include a wild west showdown between the Bee Gees and Chaka Khan (!), a most unladylike Florence Nightingale complaining to her boss, Heap showing us a mundane Sunday afternoon in the life of Ming the Merciless, and an inspired group of disgruntled office workers complaining at their boss’s edict that they’re no longer allowed to masturbate on the job. (“Remember that time we didn’t wank for a week, for charity? We virtually folded!”)
The two-disc set includes deleted sketches, cast and crew commentaries (Episodes three through six of the first year including Eldon, Heap and Pegg are practically as funny as the show itself), and other goodies. A must-see for fans of UK comedy.
Other recommended titles for May 22nd: The Closer: Season 2; The Andy Griffith Show: The Complete Series; The Lost Language of Cranes; Shanghai Express
—Nicole Campos
