The Flight of the Conchords Rises From the Ashes of The Mighty Boosh

January 25, 2008 at 11:53 am (Uncategorized) (, , , , , , , )

It is very important from the outset that you do not think I am drawing any comparisons between the comedy ‘The Mighty Boosh’ and the comedy ‘The Flight of the Conchords’. Apart from them being both primarily focused on a duo and a use of music within the programmes (much more in ‘TFotC’), they are completely different comedies.

The only reason I have given this post such a title is because I felt bad leaving you with a rather negative review of the third series of The Mighty Boosh and thought it was only right I give you something else to watch. And, in my humble opinion, I am giving you something that is absolutely incredible! I am a legend. You’re welcome.

Okay, so while The Mighty Boosh lies on BBC Three, The Flight of the Conchords was aired about five months ago on BBC Four, as well as being played on HBO (arguably USA’s most respected television channel in terms of quality) . It is based on a band called Flight of The Conchords, which consists of two men from New Zealand (Bret and Jermaine), who have travelled to the USA to make it big. With an incompetent manager, called Murray, who also works in the tiny building that is the New Zealand Consulate, and only one disturbing fan, called Mel, each episode focuses on both their attempts to succeed as  a band and their own lives.

I’m not going to go too much into what happens in each episode and so forth, as I find that nothing ruins comedy more than an actual essay about it! However, each episode contains brilliant storylines that cover the awkward, slightly bizarre lives of these few characters in New York. The humour ranges from intelligent, subtle insights into the idiosyncratic nature of everyday life to fantastic surreal images and concepts.

Furthermore, every episode is capped off with at least two songs interwoven within the plot that are hilarious, but also very good songs! There is no doubt that with serious lyrics they would be great tracks. They achieve a great balance that will have you laughing when you hear them (and see the brilliant music videos!) and have you singing them later on as you walk down the street. I warn you though, singing these songs will make you look quite weird to passers by as you sing about mermaids, songs in french, and lines like, ‘oh pretty prince of parties, where’d you get your clothes? They’re made of snow!’

This comedy achieves the perfect balance of restrained moments that display great insight into everyday life and the sense of surreal that can be found within the mundane. The directing is superb and the whole comedy achieves aural and visual originality.

Whether you are a fan of the humour in The Office, The Mighty Boosh, The IT Crowd, The Peep Show or whatever other cutting edge comedies have existed over the past ten years, you are bound to find something you love in The Flight of the Conchords. I would even go far to say you end up preferring it to the great array of comedies it arises from.

While The Office and Extras end and The Mighty Boosh and The Peep show grow stagnant, the rise of The Flight of the Conchords ensures there is still a comedy out there for everyone to love.

The DVD of their first series is available to buy along with all of their music. The songs from the series can also be viewed on YouTube, so you can see how right I am first and then buy the DVD!

1 Comment

  1. gareth said,

    i might check it out. i’m glad you’ve mentioned peep show, as i’ve just watched the entire backlog of episodes on the internet over the last week, and it truly is amazing. However, i’ve found out that apparently only 1 million people ever tuned, which is fucking ridiculous when compared to the amount of idiots that watch little britain. so while a great original and hilarious comedy is pushed to the wayside, comedies that rely on tried and tested techniques are much more commercial.

    Shame.

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