Thirty Helens agree: the Toronto-based, Emmy-nominated comedy troupe The Kids in the Hall are brilliantly, subversively funny, and while they may not ultimately rank in the Monty Python/SCTV/SNL pantheon, the Kids--Dave Foley, Scott Thompson, Mark McKinney, Kevin McDonald, and Bruce McCulloch--do enjoy a fervent cult following. Taking their name from the aspiring comedy writers who used to pitch their jokes to Jack Benny, the Kids are something of an acquired taste as their conceptual comedy can be too hip for the room. Take those Thirty Helens, for instance, a recurring bit in episode two: 30 matronly women (usually, as with Python, it is the lads who assume the female roles) stand in a field and issue such apropos-of-nothing bromides as “love hurts.” Also in episode two, we find an intentionally overplayed 1940s comedy-team spoof that devolves into a plea on behalf of mountain gorillas. But the Kids could be silly with the best of them (there's the sketch about the guy whose speech impediment makes him sound sarcastic, not to mention the bloke with the cabbage head) and edgy as well (witness the bit in which McCulloch is revealed to be the cause of cancer). This amply-endowed four-disc set includes all 20 first season (1989-1990) episodes as well as rare (albeit poorly filmed) early live performances, best-of compilations, audio commentary, and an entertaining oral history. Highly recommended. (D. Liebenson)
The Kids in the Hall: Complete Season 1
A&E, 4 discs, 500 min., not rated, DVD: $59.95 Volume 19, Issue 4
The Kids in the Hall: Complete Season 1
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