Noel Fielding's Luxury Comedy

What a talent, Noel's ideas are fabulous, funny, clever, stupid and most of all original. His art and model making is incredible. It all adds together for a surreal, beautiful romp in a make believe world. "It's all bleedin coming together"

I've heard that if you take LSD seven times or more, you can be declared legally insane. I imagine that the same rule applies for the number of episodes you've watched of Noel Fielding's Luxury Comedy. The series does indeed seem like a very colorful and crazy acid trip. The use of strange costumes and animated backgrounds add to the surreal ambiance. As weird and bizarre as it is though, television actually needs more original and imaginative shows like this one. This series breaks the mold of formulaic comedies and predictable characters that have overtaken modern television. Noel Fielding brings you back to your childhood when your imagination roamed free. Although this certainly is not a show for children, it does have that unselfconscious and carefree attitude that kids have, living in their own world with no fear of judgment. When I viewed the first episode, I thought I would hate the series, but it is shockingly addictive and fun. No, you will not laugh out loud like you might with some comedy shows, but you will be curious to see what comes next. Fielding's creativity and unbounded daring will provide you with a viewing experience like no other. He also manages to completely change the format between season 1 and season 2 without destroying any of the show's magic. If you have an open mind and like things that go against the grain, give this show a chance. Once you've watched Luxury Comedy, I guarantee you'll find "normal" television shows boring and dull.

I have to admit, when I watched the first episode of Luxury Comedy (Pele), I was stunned at how bad the show seemed. It was painful to watch. I can sure understand how some of the more negative impressions here have come to be. I almost logged in and left similarly negative feedback. It took me few episodes to become a fan of The Might Boosh, but, after the 1st episode, I could not imagine ever becoming a fan of Luxury Comedy, or even watching it again for that matter.

However, I persevered. A week later, I watched the 2nd episode (The Jelly Fox). Hmm, that was less painful. The lion in the cage was bizarre but the end of the sketch was almost funny - almost a chuckle there. OK, hmm, lets try another episode. A week later, and I watched the 3rd episode (King Tutta), found it better again. Now, all of a sudden, the show didn't seem anywhere near as bad as it first seemed, and it certainly was starting to "grow on me".

I have just finished watching the first three episodes again, and I can say that I'm starting to like Luxury Comedy - quite a lot in fact. Some parts are quite funny. It's actually becoming a pleasure to watch. I'm looking forward to the next episode.

What I recommend to others is to hold off making up your mind about this, or commenting here, until you have given the show a good chance. Keep an open mind. Leave a week between episodes to give yourself time to digest what you have seen - because you will certainly be seeing some crazy and bizarre stuff - and see how you go. At this early stage (only 3 episodes x 2 viewings), I'll assume that the show's appeal will keep on increasing. As such, I'm giving Luxury Comedy a review score of 9 / 10.

This is not The Mighty Boosh. Analogously quoting Andy Warhol in episode 2: "I'm not The Mighty Boosh, I'm Noel Fielding's Luxury Comedy". Don't expect punchline humour here. Prepare for an experience instead. This one is not about punchlines and neither about funny skits, instead it's about psychic as well as physical hardship (i.e. pain) as well as pain in general. plus it's surrealist comedy dealing with everyday (media) stereotypes and other phenomena (where the hell does Daddy Push come from?). The cultural references in their abundance (blatant clues all over the place) aren't always easy to catch for someone continental, but they're just the icing on a psychedelic fruit cake. Everything is so garish, so absurd and at the same time so painful and intimate (yes, intimate!). Imagine Ren and Stimpy combined with Flying Circuses's awkwardest moments. I can do without further comparison here. Watch and behold, suffer and rejoice, and don't be ashamed of any of your reactions. Especially when watching the Dondylion sketches you may as well cry a little bit. It's appropriate. Appreciate what you got. It's the work of one crafty Noel Fielding, the Offshore European Surrealist. Why just 8/10? Well, Dolly Wells might be the gorgeousest version of herself ever (I mean it, ever. Cigar!) in this cock-and-bull (watch the pinnacle of kinkiness in the "alien sketch" in episode 4) and Mike Fielding is as always the relieable bone dry sidekick, but some of the sketches are quite naff, like fillers that don't really tie the show together.

tl;dr It's new, it's unique, but it tends to wear off.

PS: E1 has one of the worst Michael Caine impersonations ever.

Luxury Comedy is definitely the work of Noel Fielding. It's overflowing with much of the same surrealism we've seen in The Mighty Boosh, as well as his stand-up. We've heard him talk about himself in absurd terms. We've seen his wistful creations. Every time we've seen his works, we've seen flashes of a bubbling caldera of surreal, outlandish creativity, but always somewhat suppressed, somewhat mired in the interests of making his humour palatable. Luxury Comedy is what happens when the caldera explodes. This is Noel unchained. The show is a sea of glam, paint, and insane creations. This is not just Noel talking about how is unique mind works, this is him showing you, and it's... it's weird.

It's very weird. It's definitely the weirdest show I've ever watched. It subverts, deliberately, just about every convention it can get its finger paint-stained hands on. These conventions, of course, are comforting and are usually there for a reason, and when all of them are stripped so unceremoniously from the show, it can feel genuinely uncomfortable. The humour billed in the show's title is inexpressibly bizarre, typically staying well clear of punchlines, or anything else to make you laugh out loud. Instead, there's generally a haze of amusement that pervades the show. Some sketches in the show, such as the incomparable Jelly Fox sketch, hold our attention for their sheer hypnotic brilliance, even if they're not particularly humorous.

Naturally, it doesn't always work, on the level of art or entertainment, but it never feels forced. It is hypnotic, addictive, and surprisingly more-ish once you give it a generous chance. If you have an above-average tolerance for surrealism, I recommend you give it a go.