Steve Coogan: The Man Who Thinks He's It

Like Steve Coogan's previous live video, Live 'n' Lewd, The Man Who Thinks He's It shies away from Coogan's earlier impression-based stand-up, and instead showcases a number of comic characters: smutty shop girl Pauline Calf; nervous comedian Duncan Thickett; Portuguese pop sensation Tony Ferrino; unemployable drunkard Paul Calf; blunt, oblivious chat show host Alan Partridge; and the self-absorbed comedian Steve Coogan.

At the beginning of The Man, in one of its many faux-interviews with Steve Coogan in pretentious actor mode, Coogan vows that this show will be "different from all those other live videos." This promise is somewhat upheld, but at a loss for the viewers at home.

By 1998, Coogan's The Man characters were all fairly well-established, having had their own series, shorts, or at least previous video appearances. For Alan Partridge, this meant having a well-known catchphrase and the expectation that he would get down to some chat, but for the other characters as well, a formula seemed to have developed for their stage performances. Pauline Calf, as she did in Live 'n' Lewd, crassly discusses her wanton lifestyle, and then reads an excerpt from her newest book. Duncan Thickett botches his attempts at the latest fads in comedy (including some meta "character comedy"). Tony Ferrino deplores matrimony, and then sings some songs winking at infidelity. Paul Calf drunkenly mumbles about unemployment and females. Alan Partridge has a chat and then sings a "medley" from a female vocalist's oeuvre (this time Kate Bush). This is quite a variety of very different performances, but for anyone familiar with Coogan's work, it's no surprise. A first-time viewer might giggle at the fact that crude Pauline Calf has written a book; a Coogan aficionado is just waiting to hear the name of her newest Mary-Sue character. Someone unfamiliar with Thickett might cackle at the fact that someone so out-of-touch is even attempting to do observational comedy; the well-versed viewer just wants to see what embarrassing bit of personal information he will give away in his attempts to relate with the audience. The characters themselves – much like Tony Ferrino's song selection – have become variations on a theme. Who will Paul Calf insult? Who will Alan Partridge awkwardly interview? These are humorous routines, but for a Coogan enthusiast, they are comfortable comedy, as comfy and familiar as sports casual clothing; nothing new or exciting here.

In order to fulfill that above-mentioned promise to be unlike other live shows, The Man Who Thinks He's It features many cut-aways to "Steve the Comedian," as well as bits with his fellow performers Julia Davis and Simon Pegg. The inclusion of co-performers is a key change from Live 'n' Lewd, and The Man depends heavily on them for its laughs. Julia Davis plays Pauline Calf's homely best friend, Tony Ferrino's soon-to-be-late wife, a feminist singer Paul Calf mistakenly invites to play a song, Alan Partridge's depressed, bulimic guest, and herself. Though Julia Davis is always a funny presence, rather than refresh Coogan's characters with some on-stage banter, her roles seem to just interrupt the sketches, and then drag them on without many actual jokes written for this interaction. With Paul Calf, Julia Davis performs a quintessential man-hating tune, and Paul just lazily dances around in the background. With these other characters to rely on, the center of the show – Coogan's creations – seem underwritten. The aforementioned same-old formula is used with a new friend in lieu of new jokes.

In their interview interstitials, Davis and Pegg paint a portrait of Coogan as a very self-obsessed, but desperate man. In one moment, overhearing Simon receiving big laughs while emceeing, Steve asks Simon not to tell that joke next time. This is a humorous poke at the egotism that comes with success, but it is also the only time we get to see Pegg in his emceeing role, unlike John Thomson as Bernard Righton in Live 'n' Lewd. With these frequent cutaways to documentary segments, once even interrupting Tony Ferrino mid-song, The Man Who Thinks He's It definitely does not feel like any other live show: it doesn't feel like a live show at all. The lampooning of the Comic Steve Coogan has become one of Coogan's funniest devices (in The Trip, Cock & Bull, Coffee & Cigarettes, etc.), but here, it's used almost too much. Like the addition of co-performers, the frequency of these documentary interstitials stops seeming refreshing and new, and starts to feel like a crutch to distract from an otherwise lackluster bill of performances.

In The Man Who Thinks He's It, Coogan is of course funny, but his characters (including "Steve Coogan" himself) have all had more hilarious, fresh, and enthusiastic performances. The Man showcases consistent, comfortable comedy, but you'll find nothing brilliant here.

Wonderful comedy from Coogan, who seems to revel in his multi-personality skits much more than his tired Partridge formula.

Paul and Pauline Calf are as hilarious as ever, whilst Duncan Thickett's terrible stand up is a joy in itself (complete with a top notch heckling Steven Hawking impression). Nice to see Simon Pegg and Julia Davis given a bit of freedom as supporting cast too, back in the days when they were unknowns.

Oh yeah, and Tony Ferrino is one of the greatest comic creations of the past century by far. "I want to sing you a song right now - it's called Man Sandwich. Butter me up....."

Steve Coogan's comedy in general is difficult to put into words if you're explaining it to somebody who has never experienced it before. He is not an everyday comedian, nor does he do live shows or TV series that have one big laugh and nothing much in between. Throughout his whole career he has produced amazing, side-splitting comedy which never lets up.

Throughout this show he takes comedy to another level. The Alan Partridge act at the end is obviously magnificent but with Coogan there rarely is a highlight to anything he does. It's all one big, bright shining light that's in your face! The whole comical package stuffed into this show will make you laugh until you think you can't laugh anymore. A lot of people who watch stand-up comedy alone may chuckle to themselves or simply find it amusing but not express it by laughing, however this show will bring your laughter out. It will make you laugh out loud when you're the only one sat in your living room watching it. It will show you a completely different approach to stand-up comedy and make you think twice about comedy in general.

The Kate Bush Medley at the end of the show by Partridge tops it off very nicely because Coogan is so good at singing badly! It's totally hilarious! I am a massive Steve Coogan fan and always have been. This man is quite simply a showbusiness phenomenon and is the sole reason why I myself am now pursuing a career in alternative comedy acting and script writing. I am also due to attend the exact same university as he went to in Manchester where he grew up just like me.

Thankyou Steve for yet another fantastic piece of alternative comedy and thank-you for being the main inspiration behind me pursuing a career in this field. I simply would not be able to produce the work I do if it wasn't for seeing all of your work and appreciating it with a vast amount of enthusiasm. You are a true legend.

Possibly the funniest show I have ever seen. All characters are great and there isn't A moment when when you aren't laughing

This is, in short a masterpiece of British comedy - An absolute must for any Coogan fan, or any true fan of comedy.

The concept of this video is brilliant! How many people do you know, specially artists, who don't take themselves seriously, who make fun of themselves? Here, Steve Coogan, probably knowing how good a comedian he is, makes fun of himself, portraying himself as an assh*le whom no one likes. I can't find the right words to describe this, but it makes Coogan a very sympathetic person.

Amazing how fast he can speak! That alone is a big gift, but he is also very natural, and Alan Partridge is just the funniest character I have ever seen! I have watched this many times, and every time I almost died of laughter. What a gifted comedian he is, so young in this video, but already so professional!