We Are Klang

I recently found this series on youtube an must say, i loved it. There are references to the Goodies, but since i never saw the Goodies i cannot comment on that. This show is an excuse for silly one-liners, bad puns and TV-violence like we've seen in Bottom.

The story line is just an excuse as a set up for short sketches, or skits, as they were called on Monty Python. The actors take up several recurring roles and in true British comedy tradition dress up as women.

Not the intelligent banter from Blackadder or a bit of Fry and Laurie but more in the line of the young ones, Bottom. It will appeal more to the younger generation but as an adult I did laugh several times while watching,

There's no humour anymore, no comedians. Try this for size!

Surreal. Brilliant. Wonderful.

Im going to be honest, I love We Are Klang so much because it holds a nostalgic place in my heart. It reminds me of going on holiday and watching it with my family on BBC 3.

However, I enjoyed it for what it is also. Granted it's no Extras or Frasier but its style of humour is completely different. This is more along the lines of Bottom.

The characters are cooky , the music is quirky and the plots are fun for every episode. Ainsley Harriott even appears as a gun wielding version of himself.

Greg Davies , Steve Hall and Marek Larwood work well as a trio and the cast of supporting characters really fit into the world and fictional town of Klangbury.

This series definitely deserves a DVD release, especially when you see the other junk they put on discs. There is a petition on change.org asking for a DVD so feel free to give it a sign if you are a fan.

All in all I would give We Are Klang a solid 10/10.

I fear for the beeb sometimes. They cancelled Peter Serafinowicz and Pulling, didn't let Adam Buxtons MeeBox get past a pilot and turned Live At The Apollo to *shudders* Michael Macintyres Comedy Roadshow. It's hard to forget though that in the last 10 years they've given us The Royle Family, The Office, Broken News, The Thick Of It, The League Of Gentlemen, Stewart Lee's Comedy Vehicle, Gavin & Stacey, Getting On, Mock The Week and continued to supply Have I Got News For You and Buzzcocks.

Reading that you'd rightly think I'm a BBC fan (I am, it still makes some of the finest television in the world) but you might have also noticed only 3 of the shows I mentioned (Gavin & Stacey, Pulling *cancelled*and MeeBox *pilot only*) were BBC 3 productions and while my summary might sound like I like this show it's worth remembering that BBC 3 made about 9 series of 2 pints of lager and let the creators of that monstrosity make another series (the terrible Coming Of Age) as well as the so awful you'll tear your hair out, Grown Ups.

This isn't quite that bad but it's basically Chucklevision with ruder jokes. They leave a lot of mistakes/corpsing in and break the fourth wall (perhaps because they're not massively comfortable with the change of format from stage to television) but it's not cleverly done as it has been in shows like Garth Merenghi's Darkplace. I personally think the jokes they make at the expense of one characters mental disability aren't very sophisticated and there's a lot of hamming it up and shouting punchlines, which hurts the material more than it helps.

It's not a total disaster and I can imagine it would appeal to the sort of people who thought Little Britain and The Mighty Boosh were funny (they're certainly marketing it as though Klang are the new comedy troupe to watch). All that said I found the odd joke funny (If you're having facial spasms I feel bad for you son, I've got 99 problems but a twitch ain't one) but if you're looking for really good British comedy BBC 2, BBC 4 and occasionally Channel 4 are still your best bets.

Halfway through the first episode I was questioning my own sanity about watching this nonsensical show, but the thing is I was enjoying it!

We are Klang are three comedians who have been "klanging" on radio and on stage before breaking into TV. I hadn't actually heard of them although I did recognise Greg from Mock the Week.

They are council workers in a fictional town. Greg is deputy mayor and a buffoon, Steve is health and safety and is verbally abrasive, and Marek is minister without a portfolio and is, well, just slightly odd that you don't know if you should be laughing at him or calling social services. There is also the audience ministry deliciously breaking the 4th wall as the camera pans to the audience clapping.

This is a surreal comedy and utter nonsense but it is so funny. The cast members know exactly what you are probably thinking and they pre-empt it themselves. Greg is constantly being ridiculed for either being a fat Rik Mayall, or (my personal favourite) a fat Giles from Buffy. In the first episode Greg says "You know what i've just realised?" and Steve jumps in with "That this is a poor imitation of The Goodies?"

The cast play other characters as and when they are needed but to be honest it is when they are all in the office together that it is at its best.

This won't be for everyone, it is very odd and childish in a grown up kind of way, but I would urge you to at least give it a go. I'm really glad I did