Crushing Cabbage Heads: Kids in the Hall Season 5

(Updated on December 18, 2020)

When I had announced that I would be live blogging the Kids back in January, I never realized how much fun it would be - much better than the usual British science-fiction show. Writing about the fifth season is a little tough for me, for some obvious personal reasons.

However, I am happy to say that although it's much spottier than previous seasons, Series 5 is actually pretty darn good, and the Kids happened to leave on a relatively high note.

Much of it is that the Kids themselves acknowledge the end is coming in various ways - the opening credits include past opening footage; incidental music moves from the surf-punk of Shadowy Men From a Shadowy Planet to an Eastern drone; and "plot points" for several of their major characters are, in a way, wrapped up. In fact, although there is a slight sense of fatigue, there's also a go-for-broke spirit that just makes this seem all the more victorious.

And the final episode? Some flat-out brilliant touches - Chris Robinson of the Black Crowes essentially telling Armada they'll never make it; Buddy Cole torching his bar; and of course, the classic take on the stuff-we-couldn't-show-you episode, featuring the classic "Hitler BLANKS a Donkey. Or, take it away, Kevin:

Not the best starting place for a newbie, but unlike some comedy series (*cough* Red Dwarf *cough*), doesn't overstay its welcome - it leaves at just the right time.

(And quite frankly, this has been the most pleasant live blog to do - there is rarely, if ever, a totally bad moment, and I've yet to regret watching the end of a run. Unlike, say, Red Dwarf, which didn't quite end well....Ok, the last five minutes of Only the Good, but that's it)

Highly Recommended

Crushing Cabbage Heads: Kids in The Hall Season 4

To be honest, I wasn't expecting (upon watching this again) to like it as much as I did.

When season four first began, I had trepidations - after all, it was moving from the censor-light HBO to the slightly more restrictive CBS in an abortive attempt to create a late night line up. It often meant that the KITH were on in the wee early hours of the morning (if at all), and blasted commercials kept interrupting the show.

In fact, I was also worried that they had lost their edge.

On some levels, there is a slightly more "mainstream" approach to the Kids' writing...but in all honesty, one of the highlights of this season in particular is how the KITH will go from a slightly more wacky, less-than-edgy (or, to paraphrase one of their skits, "just like The Sonny & Cher Show) to sharp, biting, almost pitch black humor....within the same sketch.

Good example - Simon Milligan & Hecubus engage in a "vocational exchange" program - a slightly less-than-adult premise. The kind of innocuous premise one might see in a less-than-stellar sketch show. However, the sketch soon delves into drug use, some hints of inappropriate sexual behavior, and modern dentistry. It manages to not only have the Kids' darker edge...but I'm sure that the executive in charge of Standards and Practices had a field day attempting to have the sketch "edited" for mass appeal.

(I know, it's late night, who's watching, but still...)

Season 4 isn't the Kids' strongest season - there are a couple of sketches that don't work. However, it's still much stronger than its primary competition, In Living Color (which seems to have not dated well). However, I'm greatly surprised at how consistent the Kids have been....and that fourteen years later, this material still holds up.

Now, next month means season five...and the season where I attended a taping. This has been the most fun I've had blogging.

Crushing Cabbage Heads: Kids in the Hall Season 3

(Updated December 18, 2020)

In many ways, Season 3 of Kids in the Hall is their best season - not because by now, they had mastered the art of television comedy. What makes it work is that, in many ways, the Kids seem to hit their stride, making the act of writing cutting edge, funny sketch comedy look easy.

In many ways, this is where the Kids begin to gain some level of pop culture radar, with many "guest appearances", some Canadian-level hip; others being amazingly prescient. In fact, you could say that the Kids' younger brothers arrived under their tutelage - the Vacant Lot (which included Mark McKinney's younger brother Nick) made frequent appearances in the background (and took on secondary roles in some sketches). Although this resulted in an all-too-brief series of their own, this did show that the Kids were beginning to get some sense of their own power.

Perhaps it was that the CBC was lessening its censorship of the show (or that they knew they were leaving HBO), but there's a casual sense of fun and freedom about this season. Granted, some characters are 'retired' (Cabbage Head gets referred two but never performed in two sketches; in another, the Headcrusher becomes the Resumeupdater - perhaps causing Lorne Michaels some consternation), but this is a season where the Kids seemingly come into their own. It's as if, to use a then-current metaphor, they were the Nirvana of sketch comedy - thrust headlong into notoriety, and the only thing they could do was make jokes about it. And the culture around them.

Or, I could just be full of myself.

But this season does contain one of my favorite sketches, set in a pizzeria. Not just because it contains a very young Neve Campbell, but the subtext - about grown men and inappropriate behavior towards younger women - is just plain funny. I never laugh as hard as when I hear Kevin say, "Actually, in some cultures..."

...or when Mark casually states, "Call me uncle pizza man."

It's that kind of casual attitude of making fun of taboo and undisclosed impulses that make the Kids' humor work. And season three is a clear example.

Crushing Cabbage Heads: Kids in the Hall Season 2

(Updated December 18, 2020)

Now this is more like it....

Even after the relative success of season one, this second season of Kids in the Hall looks and feels much more confident, more polished, more professional. You might be tempted to think that it was years between the two series...but it wasn't.

This is where the Kids begin to hit their stride. The first episode opens with a mordant monologue from Scott which seems to say, "We're ba-a-a-ck!". Followed by a four-person skit which not only skirts the line of propriety, but puts its hand up that skirt, and we know...the Kids are coming into their down.

This was the season that introduced some of the Kids more popular characters, including Gavin, Derrill, and of course, Simon Milligan and Hecubus. But what makes the series truly come alive - what gives it a unique genius - are three key elements that very few sketch comedy shows (if any) share.

First is a willingness to take on sexual mores, stereotypes, and dynamics - it's smart that the Kids work in drag isn't over the top. It's not used as a comedy device in and of itself (like Milton Berle) - it's used to say things about men and women (both straight and gay) that men and women would be uncomfortable performing on stage.

Secondly is the idea of a "shared universe" of characters - much like comics, many characters begin appearing in multiple sketches, often times running into each other. It then becomes almost fodder for fanfiction (which I have engaged in myself...back in my younger days. Nothing like writing Gavin/Derrill mashups in your youth).

But ultimately, there begins a sense of extended narrative - of mashup and "comedic arcs" being used to develop characters, most notably cabbage head. We have some sense with Simon and Hecubus (although the promise will not be fulfilled until later seasons), but it's not in the beat-it-into-the-ground sense that smacks of Lorne Michaels. It's treating these characters as characters, and giving them a sense of scope, that makes them seem all the more fresh and interesting. They're not just punch line machines; they're people we care about.

Even without these innovations, season two would still be groundbreaking. The best is yet to come...but the current stuff? Still impressive.

Very highly recommended.

Coming Soon

Crushing Cabbage Heads: KITH Pilot/Season One

(Updated on 12/18/2020 with a side note: A&E released the Kids in the Hall pilot as a separate disc due to rights issues; you can find it included in Mill Creek's best of package, which includes the later Death Comes to Town)

It's hard to believe, in a world where South Park has raised the bar on shocking, satirical comedy, that the Kids were considered groundbreaking in their content. They were initially sold as mocking "the surburbs", but beneath their comedy was an incisive look at relationships, sexual politics, and an exploration of the darker areas of existence. Later series will see them developing the idea of "arcs" within their sketches for their characters...but it all began with a group of five improv stage veterans putting together a television show.

I first watched the pilot episode after reading a piece in Rolling Stone, and for years, it was considered a "lost" treasure, half of it being released as a "best-of" compilation. (The pilot is available through another company in its entirety, and the compilation on the Season One Boxed Set through A & E Home Video). In a way, although I can recommend watching the full video, admittedly, one or two sketches don't really hold up...but overall, there are some sketches that really need to be seen. (And by "need to be seen", I mean, "Naked for Jesus"). We see the first appearances of Buddy Cole (or, as Scott Thompson has called him, an "alpha fag"), Mr. Tizik (or the infamous "head crusher") and Cabbage Head (a man with, well, a cabbage for a head). It is, admittedly, a little stage-y (remember, the Kids had spent five years honing their skills at the Rivoli in Toronto - they weren't the hardened tv writers that Monty Python were at a similar point), but quite frankly, it shows a lot of promise....

...which begins to be fulfilled in Season One. There is still an unevenness in the sketches, but that actually works to their advantage. The Kids were beginning to find their footing, and it's really cool to watch a troupe eventually find their voice. When we get towards the end, with sketches like Running Faggot and Dr. Seuss Bible, the Kids' sketches seem much more comfortable, and they appear much more comfortable in their writing and performances.

If you're a fan, you're probably going to agree with everything I say - for those new, I suggest the season one boxed set, and the pilot only if you're curious. You'll get half the pilot in the boxed set anyway, and unless someone posts "Naked for Jesus" on YouTube (unlikely), there's not much you will be missing.

Kids in the Hall: Pilot - Recommended
Kids in the Hall: Season One - Very Highly Recommended

Next Month: Season Two!