Customer Reviews

Complete Kathy & Mo Show - Parallel & The Dark Side

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

The comedy team of Kathy and Mo consisted of Kathy Najimy and Mo Gaffney who first came onto the scene in the early 80s entertaining audiences in their hometown of San Diego, California. They went on to achieve much success in Off Broadway with their two-woman show which consisted mainly of skits featuring hilarious characters with strong views on feminism, gay rights, religion and abortion rights. "Parallel Lives" (1991) and "The Dark Side" (1995) became HBO specials. Both women went on seperately to achieve success in films and television.

This 2 disc dvd set contains both shows as well as video outtakes from some of their earlier shows. Also featured are two skits that Kathy and Mo did in 2004 when they briefly reunited. I find "Parallel Lives" to be much funnier and more satisfying than "The Dark Side." The former features the hilarious characters of Madeline Samuels and Sylvia Dunlevy, two elderly women who are broading their horizons by taking women's studies courses as a local junior college (these characters appear again in "The Dark Side"). And my favorite, the unforgettable Hank (Najimy) and Karen Sue (Gaffney), a drunk with a cigarette constantly dangling from his mouth and a young woman in a western bar, absolutely hysterical! The dvd features a commentary by Najimy and Gaffney.

I'm glad I bought this DVD set. I've shown it to lots of friends and family members (my Da, in particular, enjoyed Mo's miming of a woman's typical morning, while my Mum thought Mo and Kathy's imitation of older students taking a women's studies course was hysterically accurate). My favorite line from Parallel Lives comes from the characters of the little-old-lady Women's Studies students, visiting a museum for a luncheon. One remarks on the appetizing appearance of something she presumes is a display for lunch, and the other, realizing it is an exhibit, says "No, no, my dear. (pats her hand) That's a [...] on a plate."
This is a MUST have set for mothers, daughters, Women's Studies enthusiasts, liberals, gays, ex-Catholics, current Catholics, feminists, activists, people who think outside the box, and those that love all of the above.

I have been in love with Kathy Najimy and Mo Gaffney ever since their groundbreaking arrival heralded by their HBO special PARALLEL LIVES. Through the years I had heard rumors of a sequel or second part on HBO that I was never able to catch. FINALLY, I have seen it. I can't say that is was worth the wait.

If THE DARK SIDE had been the first one released, it would have been amusing and fun to watch, but not one for the record books. Unfortunately PARALLEL LIVES came out first and blew the doors off, leaving quite large shoes to fill the second time around. The intuitive nature and rapport that exalted any exchange between the two of them during PARALLEL in its entirety does not spark and was not present in THE DARK SIDE.

A Glimmer of the bond between the two was intermittent in the extras and outtakes. With no great production quality demonstrated in this bonus feature the old routines are charming and give us some insight to the Kathy and Mo we now know and adore, but nothing to write home about.

A MUST BUY and well worth the money for PARALLEL LIVES ALONE, the second feature of THE DARK SIDE is not necessarily a plus. My suggestion is watch DARK SIDE first then PARALLEL LIVES for maximum enjoyment.

I have admired their work separately. Kathy N. with her devil-may-care humor and wandering eye and Mo showing up in unexpected places (like Ab Fab). Together their first show is a riot... the majority of it is. If you never saw the specials on HBO (I think that's the genesis of the first recording, at least) it is worth the time and effort... some laughs, some touching moments.

The Dark Side is that and bogged down a bit, yet with a few bright moments. Sketch comedy is not for the faint of heart and- especially in the first show - their timing is remarkable.

The 'bonus' material is hard to follow - basically because they have the quality of transferred home movies - grainy and poor sound quality. I don't have a stereo TV so I was disappointed when I flipped to their running commentary that I could only hear Kathy speak - Mo was faintly in the background.

I would recommend this for anyone who would like to see Kathy pre 'Sister Act' and Mo before her ill fated talk show and guest spots. They were a hoot!

The first time I saw The Kathy and Mo Show was in 1992. I laughed until tears rolled. From the brilliant opening act of the two angels discussing how human beings should be created, to the genious of the characters they create, this collection is wonderful. Maddie and Syvie, Sister Woman Sister, Hank and Karen Sue, and the ingenious Angels "inventing" humans...all of these acts were hilarious. Kathy Najimy is a comedic genious. The productions filmed by audience members aren't the best quality (Dark Side=3 stars), but, the stage productions filmed professionally (Parallel Lives=5 stars!) are fine. Buy this and watch it any time you need a big lift!

I've been waiting for years for the landmark HBO special featuring Kathy Najimi and No Gaffney to come out on DVD. I don't know what took so long, but it was well worth the wait. The sketches range from hilariously funny to movingly poignant, often in the same sketch. This should put to rest the belief that feminists have no sense of humor. "The Dark Side" disc, however, was an unnecessary addition. With its amateur video and sound, it simply detracts from the overall quality. A masterpiece like "Parallel Lives" needs no additional material.

Kathy & Mo are hysterical!
A blast from the past!
Women of all ages will laugh in Sisterhood!

I was very excited to find the Kathy & Mo Show DVD and equally disappointed at its quality. The beginning was terrible - both audio and visual. The quality improved through the video, but first impressions are important. This product was not represented as poor quality.

I thought it would just be the Kathy& Moe show as shown on HBO.It had a lot of really ametur stuff done in small places with bad sound.Was really only about 20 mins of what I was looking for.I take some responsiblity,maybe I didn`t read the discription well enough.Not the sellers fault.

Two VERY talented women at their peak! They ROCK. "You look very,very pretty tonight"