Family Tree

Chris O'Dowd is an extremely lovable actor and simply perfect for the role of Tom. He carries each episode well, being charming to almost everyone, even when embarrassed. He shows enthusiasm for each new branch discovered and participates willingly in all family activities. The scene stealer, however, is Monk, the constant puppet companion of Tom's eccentric sister, Bea. Nina Conti is delightful. I also enjoyed Tom Bennett as his daft best friend, Pete. The show gently mocks the "Who am I?" documentaries, plus other genres via characters' televisions. The script-less format means there is some miss, but mainly it works well. The actors are creative and are having fun with each other. The relationships between everyone, especially Tom and Bea, are touching. I hope this can get renewed.

Christopher Guest is a legend in the world of mockumentaries beginning with the sublime 'This is Spinal Tap' and it continued with movies such as 'Best in Show.'

Not everyone gets the joke in this genre of comedy and some of it is rather subtle.

It helps that Guest has a bank of actors that he can rely on.

So with great fanfare the BBC unveiled Family Tree. A mockumentary of genealogy shows such as 'Who do you think you are?' which has been successful for the Beeb.

Chris O'Dowd plays Tom very charmingly. He embarks on a search for his roots which takes place both in the UK and the USA.

The USA segment gives us the chance to encounter the Guest regulars such as Ed Begley Jr and Fred Willard.

The oddest character is his sister, Bea who carries with her Monk, a puppet monkey which allows her to state her feelings. Tom's best friend Pete accompanies him in his search and he can best be described as a pillock.

Another Guest regular, Michael McKean plays Keith Chadwick, Tom's father who loves old British situation comedies and they are gently parodied in the early editions of the show.

McKean and the comedies he watches are the real scene stealers in the programme. In a way he parodies the characters in sitcoms such as The Royle Family.

What is amazing is that McKean looks like a stalwart of British comedy and drama. An actor whose face is familiar but you cannot put the name to it.

So it was a shock when I told people that he is an American actor who has appeared in films such as 1941 and shows like Star Trek: Voyager.

The problem with Family Tree it was just not that funny and when Tom's father was missing it lost a vital spark.

The USA segment did not work and made the show less funny. At times it was a humour free zone.

Good show. It's like a celebration of director Christopher Guest's style of mockumenting people who shouldn't be documented being they're so mundane. The secret sauce here is Nina Conti with her Monkey puppet. Like on the series Soap, the dummy says all the politically incorrect things a human can't, and she's drop dead hilarious. More than a reason to watch this series. The lead character's best friend Tom Bennett sucks the life out of main character Chris O'Dowd and the rest of the family that is discovered. All in all, it's Monkey's ride.

Stumbled onto HBO's half-hour comedy "Family Tree" and watched the first three (of 8 ordered so far) on demand last night. VERY funny, especially 1 & 2. 3 slipped just a bit. Am looking forward to 4 later tonight. I believe they are showing all shows to date tomorrow. Catch up. May not be your cup of tea, but o man, if it is you are in for a treat. In some ways this may be pure comedy but I suspect it is a takeoff on the couple of genealogy shows that were popular the last couple of years. The humor is the usual Brit TV humor but given an original boost by reminding us how convoluted our current life is by having us go along on the journey as "facts" about our ancestry are uncovered leading first one direction and then abruptly swinging away at 90 degrees or 180 degrees leaving us no more informed about the "reality" of our past but thoroughly amused by the commingling of what is, what might be and what might have been. Highly recommended for anyone but especially those engaged in ancestry study at any level.

Just finished watching this on Amazon and thought it was great! Very funny dry humor and exceedingly watchable acting from loads of familiar faces from the Christopher Guest pool of talent. In particular ventriloquist/actor Nina Conti is impressively hilarious.

The show has a nice quietude to it which is akin to the vibe in other Guest productions but also never loses it's comedic steam. It's got a lot of mockumentary style cringe-humor through word-play, cross-cultural fire and general quirkiness. And there is even a fairly compelling romance which takes a back seat to the main character's genealogical quest but is still a warm element of the show.

Here's hoping that HBO gets off their fat arses and makes Season 2!