The final instalment of this bitterly disappointing series (that could have revitalized Little Britain, but chose to just replicate everything in a different country) is admittedly its best episode. The reason is simple: after five episodes spent regurgitating the same characters, doing the same jokes, episode 6 at least tweaks our expectations on several occasions. It's a common thing that sketch shows to do (especially ones that are so character and catchphrase orientated), but it nevertheless does help. A sketch-by-sketch:Ellie Grace: The diminutive potty-mouth is dropped off at a friend's sleepover by her mother, although the twist is that mom's anxiety over Ellie Grace's bad language leads to her becoming socially embarrassed. I really hate these characters, which must rank as the most idiotic creations from Matt Lucas and David Walliams ever, but the twist helped the sketch achieve a half-decent punchline.
Senator David White: Another press conference, with the dignified senator trying to explain how he was caught having gay sex in a toilet. The same old thing, but the unbelievable description of events was mildly amusing.
Carol: Strangely, this character seems to work well with an American audience. The studio audience seem to be in hysterics, and I'll admit that the elderly gent (making his way painfully slowly into the hospital, to speak to receptionist Carol about seeing a cardiologist) was somehow very funny without doing much.
George & Sandra: I quite like these two, but this airport sketch was underwhelming – and why was the word c*nt bleeped? Was that a BBC decision, or was it censored on HBO, too? And why did I just censor it?
Bing Gordyn: The best US character, by far. This week, the eighth man on the moon is interviewed in his home by an author. However, the author (brilliantly played by Lucas) is researching a book about how the moon landings were faked. Nice idea, quite well done.
Mark & Tom: Awful characters, hawking the same thin joke every week. Funny if you think seeing a penis shaped like a shoelace, and a vagina, are funny.
Vicky Pollard: A very overrated character to begin with, but lost in a malaise of terrible sketches for this series. However, this last one was the episode's best – with Vicky hospitalized and only able to speak through a computerized voice-machine, which she controls by blinking. Very funny seeing her hectic blinks, and hearing Vicky's dialogue spoken through a HAL-like computer. Good stuff.
Marjorie Dawes: Just terrible. The character has been involved in every possible iteration of a Weight Watcher's-style meeting, and things are now getting desperate. It's just tedious: she can't understand the foreign lady, she's rude to the fat people, she won't admit to being fat herself, she sometimes lurches into strange accents, etc. Har-har.
Emily Howard: Another duff sketch, with bad transvestite Emily surprising her male blind date at a restaurant. The whole thing was needlessly extended so we could see her date driving her home, too. Poor.
Daffyd: Another character who was very under served in this US series, oddly. Here, he is disturbed by two lesbians having sex next door in his dorm. Of course, he won't accept they’re lesbians because he's "the only gay on campus". The only positive is how Matt Lucas refuses to be embarrassed about his body, and regularly uses it to comic effect very well.
Harvey: The US relatives of breast-feeding Harvey actually start to show some personality -- but it's too little, too late. The punchline (that man-child Harvey also has his bottom wiped by his father) was okay, but nothing that hilarious.
Andy & Lou: This sketch felt weirdly truncated – which is a shame, as the idea was good and these characters have the potential to tug at your heart. Here, Andy gets a motorized scooter and drives away up the road, leaving Lou behind because he doesn't need him anymore. Like I said, it almost worked very well, but just felt rushed. I also don't think these characters had much of an ongoing storyline in the series to earn an emotional response.
