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thanks Vault Master!
WARNING: THIS CAPSULE REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS!
Sketch comedy has been around for decades and is probably one of the most difficult types of television
programs to put together. I mean, think about it: Writers and actors have less than a week to come up with enough jokes and
sketches to fill out at least half-an-hour, then there's rehearsals, further rewrites, and finally the show itself, which is
usually filmed before a live audience. But the biggest task of all is making sure that everything is actually funny!
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Boris Seafood Squid Sticks: Monstrous Flavor from Monstrous Squid! | ..
Sadly it would seem that the days of sketch comedy programs are numbered, especially if you take a good look at the two main
shows that are still running on TV these days, namely Saturday Night Live and MAD TV. Both have gone through
major cast changes over the years (something that is unavoidable, especially if the more talented stars go on to bigger and
better things), and the writing has gotten pretty lousy. Both shows are really grasping at straws and need to make some major
changes in order to survive.
But fear not, for sketch humor is not dead, it has only relocated itself to the internet! If you search
through the web, especially Youtube, you'll find an entire universe of homemade shows and programs
that put today's television lineups to shame. Amongst the crowd of voices screaming for attention, you may or may not have
stumbled across the adventures of a certain group of misfit ghouls called "The Ghouligans."
This ragtag band of monsters is made of up Count Farnham, a washed up vampire count, Void, a moronic and lonely zombie, Boris,
a clumsy Frankensteinian construct, Wolfgang, the drunken cousin of Michael J. Fox's Teen Wolf,
and Krill Gill, a surfer-dude version of the Creature of the Black Lagoon.
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Boris prepares a gore-met Irish dinner. | ..
As far as I can tell, these guys found a modicum of fame with their short sketches on Youtube, which most likely prompted
writer Mike Koscik and director Sean King to brainstorm on putting together an actual show. The result of their efforts is
The Ghouligans! Super Show!, a fun, forty-minute sketch comedy show
featuring the aforementioned characters, plus luchadors, a trio of cute go-go girls, and various other monsters.
The Ghouligans! Super Show!
starts off like every other sketch comedy
show ever conceived, with a quick roundup of the cast, followed by the
ritualistic "greeting of the audience." (Or in this case, the "greeting
of the laugh-track.") Then things get quickly underway with a variety
of humorous sketches, where just about anything can, and does, happen.
While some of them fall a bit flat (e.g. "Blood and Guts Gore-met
Cooking with Boris"), the majority of the sketches are pretty funny.
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"HADDOCK: FISHING IN ACTION III!" | ..
The one sketch that stuck out amongst the others, for me, was the trailer for "Haddock: Fishing in Action III." This faux
teaser trailer features Krill Gill running rampant with a machine gun and American flag, and has some of the cheesiest
narration and one-liners I've heard in some time. ("They hooked me, now I'm gonna hook them back!") Plus, I just find it
wonderfully absurd that anyone would ever take the time to parody "Braddock: Missing in Action III." Hell, who even
remembers that flick?!
Another of my favorites, is the sketch where Void (Sean King) falls in
love with the skeletal remains of a suicide victim! Upon seeing
the swinging bag of bones, little skeletal cupids fly around the love
struck zombie who then hangs himself to be next to his "gal!"
Void then uses various pick-up lines ("So... uh... do you kill yourself
here often?") to woo his love interest, and asks her
out on a date. ("So, uh, I was wondering if I can get your plot number.
Maybe we could go to a dinner and a funeral some night?")
Unfortunately for Void, his future skeletal bride falls from the tree
limb and shatters on the ground, along with his hopes of finding true
love.
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Void trying to fill the "void" in his heart. | ..
There are several other sketches that are worth noting, but I think I've told you enough to give you some idea of what to
expect with this show. The Ghouligans! Super Show! is a fun watch
and runs at just the right length of time, so it never becomes boring. Along with impressive set designs and costumes, hot
go-go girls, and a colorful assortment of characters, this comedic show is a definite winner in my book.
But there is always room for improvement, and one thing that grated on my nerves during my viewing of The Ghouligans! Super Show!
was the music. The main theme isn't too bad, but later on, during the sketch where Void is romancing the skeleton, there's
this horrid music that loops at five-second intervals, for what seems like an eternity. Also, there are a lot of other
monsters that hang out in the background during the show; it'd be nice if they could get in on the action and interact more
with the main Ghouligans characters.
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An evil Carrot Top and a mummy making sand pyramids at the beach?!
This show has everything! | ..
Furthermore, I think these guys should make a Ghouligans movie, just to
explain where each of the characters came from and how they ended
up living together in the same castle. And in regards to the show, why
not have Count Farnham and the gang trying to make
it in contemporary society. I think it'd be a blast to see the
Ghouligans trying to get real jobs, or just attempting to
do an everyday thing, like shopping for groceries. The possibilities
are endless.
The Ghouligans! Super Show! is a great start for Sean King and Mike Koscik,
and I hope to see more of their work in the future. For rising above obvious budget constraints and giving me a few good
laughs, I am happy to award this independent production with:
- THREE 'RADS' -
5:01 PM
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