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And like many things, sadly, it was a show that, to me at least, got less interesting the longer it aired. I'm not quite sure what exactly it was. Thinking about it, it was probably the format of the show. I didn't mind long intros before the opening titles or credits halfway through the show, but the thing I like most about the show was its "variety" theme. I've always been fond of Variety Shows, and it seemed there were more full-episode skits later on; especially in the third and fourth seasons. It stayed just as witty and spontaneous all throughout, but the latter episodes just had something missing. True, John Cleese (who initially was my favorite Python) was absent in the fourth season, but I don't really think that was it. Though Cleese's skits were hilarious, good Python skits could be done without him.
Another thought that has occurred to me is that there was a different sort of nonsense prevalent in the latter episodes. I suppose in a sense this is merely reiterating my point on full-episode skits, but the sense of oddity prevalent tended to be less random in relation to the skit itself, and more like a single element of the skit, or even the subject of the skit itself, was the random element. Let's have a "For Instance", shall we?
In the skit "Self Defense Against Fresh Fruit", the essential punch-line is that when the instructor tells his students to attack him with fruits, he retaliates by shooting them with a gun to "disarm" them. However, he doesn't use a gun on the last student, instead pulling a lever which releases, of all things, a tiger. The sheer spontaneity of it all is what made the punch line, naturally.
Now take the skit "Mr. Neutron Arrives", which was more a full episode with brief interruptions than it was a skit. Though odd and random, the whole nonsense of it all seemed to boil down to the calm and ironic life of Mr. Neutron, who was said to have the power to destroy the universe. There were no internal punchlines really, just back-references to the overarching plot which was, itself, the punchline.
It seems rather odd for such a brilliant show to shift its focus in such a way. Perhaps it is merely the perspective I am viewing it through, but the show seemed to get less enjoyable when there was actually a plot. It's the same reason I can no longer watch Holy Grail without getting bored. It's the sort of humor that, for me at least, works best in a variety setting. Adversely, one thing I do love is a running gag, of which Monty Python has plenty. (Lemon Curry?) Maybe the way I am explaining myself is redundant, but the fact remains that the show seemed to be less fun to watch the further into the series I went.
Anyway, now that I've FINALLY seen it all, here's a list of my favorite sketches:
Children's Story
Nudge Nudge
Self-Defense Against Fresh Fruit
Secret Service Dentists
Confuse-a-Cat
Literary Football Discussion
Ministry of Silly Walks
The Spanish Inquisition/Court Scene (Charades)
Exploding Penguin on a TV Set
Gumby Flower-Arranging
The Man Who Says Things In a Very Roundabout Way
Mrs. Niggerbaiter Explodes
Argument Clinic
Biggles Dictates a Letter
Woody and Tinny Words
So horray and hurrah, let's discuss us some Python!
english humour sucks!
It makes me sad when people say that. Tay-Tay loves British humor.
