I just watched several episodes of a TV show called Wonder Showzen. I don’t think this isn’t actually screening in NZ yet, on any of the standard or sky channels. It’s on MTV2 in the US, and I don’t think we get that. I haven’t watched non-C4/Juice broadcast television in literally months, so I wouldn’t really know. ANYWAY, if you want to see it, you’ll need the awesome power of BitTorrent. Remember, with this great power comes great responsibility, and that the MPAA and the RIAA are a cowardly, superstitious lot.
In the same way that “Look Around You” is a comedy show that makes with the funny by using the conventions of (depending on season) 1970s educational films, or of 1980s science shows, Wonder Showzen plays with the tropes and stylistic cues of “The Electric Company” and “Sesame Street” and sundry other educational shows featuring puppets and small children. Only Wonder Showzen is puppets and small children and utterly irreverent absurd black comedy. Watching the foam puppet letter “N” spiral into a pit of self-loathing, despair and debasement at the hands of a sleazy letter “S” (including an extended multiple position sex scene) is a highlight of my week, so far.
And what post-modern comedy show would be missing a smidge of self-reference? Not Wonder Showzen, that’s for sure! In one show there’s a song about celebrating diversity which is quite offensive, mentioning “Ching-Chong Chinamen” and “OogaBooga African Tribesmen” and then directly after is a very small child (maybe 5 or 6) who says “Ohhh, I get it .. your racism is ironic!”
HAW!
This sort of stuff is the style of comedy that hits me 100% square on – Wonder Showzen makes me laugh out loud even more frequently than Look Around You did.
Highly Recommend. I shall be purchasing this on DVD as soon as it’s out.