Year: 2016
Director: Created by Michelle & Robert King
In two months time the United States will have to choose its president from the two most disliked candidates ever to run for the office. In the past year the tone and themes of the discourse have ranged from the nonsensical to the nonsensical and scary. A campaign which has placed front and centre conspiracy theories about Ted Cruz’s father’s involvement in the JFK assassination, Hillary Clinton spending most of her time off camera in a wheelchair because of Parkinson’s Disease and the incumbent President – a closet Muslim – being involved in the machinations of ISIS, is almost beyond satire. The nuttiness of these interesting times might explain why the creators of acclaimed Emmy-magnet The Good Wife have written a show about the consequence of a government takeover by mind controlling extraterrestrial insects. What sounds like The Thick Of It meets Invasion Of The Body Snatchers – a political satire/ sci fi hybrid – largely retains a lot of the soapy character interest for which its creators are known; it’s about as satirical as the film “Eat The Rich” and about as sci fi as Holmes And YoYo. In fact, it’s much closer to something like the daft-premised but witty and engaging I Zombie.
As with I Zombie, some of the characters in Braindead act like they are in a drama, some like they are in a comedy and some just gleefully chew the scenery, but this is not a bad thing. Every episode (bar the first) opens delightfully with house minstrel Jonathan Coulson recapping last week’s events in song (which might occasion a warm glow to those who remember Oh No! It’s Selwyn Froggitt. Who? Oh, never mind). There is more gentle jabbing (at easy targets and your funny bone) than barbs or belly laughs, although laughs there are – Michael Moore’s cameo is much funnier than those three words would suggest -and the “enhanced interrogation” episode is strong stuff for a light entertainment show.
Verdict: I wouldn’t skip Silicon Valley for this, but if you have time for both…..?
Might appeal to people who enjoyed:
Better Off Ted, I Zombie, The Neighbors, that sort of thing…
Sewer Robot says
This “previously” song gives a taste sans spoilers:
Lodestone of Wrongness says
Might possibly, just possibly, be the best TV series ever?
Kaisfatdad says
Nice work Sewer, You’ve got me interested. Great review.
The minstrel is a nice touch.
So many shows out there, it’s very useful to have reviews like this to know what might be worth taking a look at.