"The Goodies" is barely known Stateside despite being a wildly popular comedy series in Britain for 10 years. This is largely due the series complete unavailability here since (apparently) '70s PBS airings. Well, now this DVD is available so people who are interested in British humor can check it out. Will they be disappointed? I don't think so. For those hoping for another "Monty Python," take caution when approaching this show and keep an open mind. "Python" was decidely more adult and satirical in tone, whereas "The Goodies" is lighter and more whimsical. It relies more on outrageous cartoon-like visual gags rather than the aggressive, surreal wordplay of "Python." In tone, it reminds me of the U.S.'s "The Monkees" or the zany, speeded-up filmed pieces in your typical "Benny Hill Show" (minus the smutty innuendo jokes). The three stars and writers of the show - Tim Brooke-Taylor, Graeme Garden, & Bill Oddie - all came from the same pool of Cambridge-raised talent as Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Eric Idle, and others. Indeed, all three starred with Cleese on the popular pre-Python radio series "I'm Sorry, I'll Read That Again" and Brooke-Taylor headlined the pre-Python sketch show "At Last the 1948 Show" (out soon on DVD) with Chapman, Cleese, & Marty Feldman. Brooke-Taylor can also be seen as one of the sketch performers with Cleese, Chapman, & Michael Palin in "How To Irritate People." Tim, Graeme, & Bill created this show in 1970, a year after Python, and continued long after Python vanished from the BBC. Most significantly, the show is very funny, VERY '60s, and VERY British. Some less versed in English culture and comedy may enjoy it less than those who are but it has a lot of appeal (especially for kids, I'm sure). The series centers around the group who will "do anything, anytime, and anywhere," from opening a vet clinic, a safari park filled with celebs, or becoming vigilante boy scouts (in the three episodes included here). Save for "Kitten Kong," these episodes are apparently not the absolute cream of the series' crop (a better selection can be found on the British DVDs), but for us Yanks, this is all were likely to see. Anyone interested in British Comedy should give it a shot! Funny and charming stuff!
