"Maybe the spear's broken..." - Daisy Haggard as a terrible pool player
Man Stroke Woman: The Complete First Series DVD Review
By A.J. Carson
What would you get if you mated Saturday Night Live (back when it was funny) with the original British version of the cheeky sex comedy Coupling? Chances are, the lovechild would be something similar to Man Stroke Woman: The Complete First Series, a daffy, hilarious sketch comedy that takes on modern romance. Five zany Brits and one American-sounding Canadian fill multiple roles in this goofball look at love, life, and sex.
Unlike Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In or Saturday Night Live, the ensemble cast of Man Stroke Woman is often filmed on location, grounding the series in reality even as it treads outrageous ground. There is also no laugh track, allowing viewers to decide for themselves exactly what's funny in the sketches that run anywhere from a few seconds to a few minutes.
And no doubt about it, many of these sketches are extremely funny. Like SNL in its heyday, each episode features recurring characters and skits that just get funnier as the season progresses. One sketch focuses on the world's most incompetent father who manages to lose his toddler son, Josh, in each episode. Josh is erroneously placed in the recycling bin, kicked through the rugby goalposts, and buried in lieu of the family's dead cat. Each time, the sketch ends with Josh's perplexed mother asking, "Where's Josh?". Another sketch features an inconsolable dumpee who is so thrown by the end of his relationship that he is virtually incomprehensible. His friends, neighbors, and even a potential boss while their time away trying to decipher what he's squeaking out in the midst of his sobs. A hapless married fellow is constantly faced with his wife asking his opinion of her dubious fashion choices-a hat that floats a foot above her head, a dress that blinks "WHORE" in lights, and even muttonchop sideburns. He always gives his honest opinion, to which she always responds, "You can never just say I look nice, can you?". Finally, each episode concludes with the rude staff of a makeup counter at a major department store. They torture their customers, making fun of them and their requests, all the while laughing hysterically. The great thing about each of these sketches is that the humor in them never grows old. Each variation-no matter how slight-brings forth gales of laughter.
In addition to the recurring characters and sketches, each episode also features stand- alone skits that bank heavily on life's unpredictability and the essential differences between men and women. A man who does not follow his wife's instructions for feeding their new dog is surprised by the unforeseen consequences. A videogame playing zombie is unable to comprehend that his girlfriend is breaking up with him because he can't put the controller down long enough to engage with her. A burglar is so distracted by the porn playing in his victim's house that he sits down and watches, too. A woman who broke up with her loser boyfriend three years ago discovers that he is now the King of Spain. A man awakens from a night of hard drinking to discover that he's in bed with the world's ugliest woman. Later, he discovers she's his wife. And a pair of friends play the most frustrating game of "Shag, Marry, or Kill" ever seen.
The writing is razor sharp, but the considerable talents of the ensemble cast really sell the series. U.S. viewers may recognize Nick Frost from recent crossover hits like Shaun of the Dead and Hot Fuzz. The rest of the cast-including Nicholas Burns, Daisy Haggard, Amanda Abbington, Ben Crompton, and Meredith MacNeill-may be lesser known, but are equally talented. The women especially excel with the material. Haggard and MacNeill, in particular, can go from perfectly normal to totally unhinged and back again in space of one line.
The six episodes that make up Man Stroke Woman: The Complete First Series are presented on a single disc. A standard keepcase slides into a cardboard sleeve, which features a group shot of the cast.
The menus, which mimic the opening title sequence, are easy to navigate. The episodes are divided into chapters, but there is no scene selection menu.
