Man Stroke Woman: The Complete Series (2005/MPI Home Video DVD Set)
Picture:
C- Sound: C Extras: C+ Episodes: B-
It seems
that every time us Yanks bother to check out what the British are watching on
the BBC, we discover some new gem. This latest
discovery is Man Stroke Woman, a
sketch comedy show headlined by a cast of six comedians including Nick Frost.
This release contains the entirety of the series, two seasons of six episodes,
each season on its own disc.
The
comedy of Man Stroke Woman is
awkward, quirky, and if perhaps not raucously hilarious, it does have moments
of satiric incisiveness. Each season has
a reel of recurring gags, sketches that get repeated with variation again and
again, almost like sketch comedy jazz. These sketches in season two don’t quite
maintain the same level of brilliance they had in season one, but all twelve
episodes are certainly worth watching.
The
picture still has a hint of the BBC’s trademark washed-out gray look to it, but
it does look much better than much of what we see from England. Because of the show’s awkward fumbling style,
most of the dialogue is recorded on location and it’s audible in the audio
quality. The show is presented in an
anamorphically enhanced 1.78:1 widescreen aspect ratio and Dolby Digital 2.0
Stereo audio.
Each
season has it’s own set of extra features including gag reels, commentary
tracks, behind the scenes, credits, cast biographies and favorite sketches, and
info on the music featured on the show.
Man Stroke Woman is certainly not for everyone,
but if nothing else it’s proof that Americans need to broaden their scope in
their search for funny, quality television.
- Matthew Carrick
