Review of Green Wing: Series 1

Introduction

Now I know what Christians the world-over feel like. Whilst their long held belief that one day Jesus will return from the dead has tested their faith for almost two thousand years, fans (myself included) of Channel 4`s `Green Wing` were put through their paces since the show completed its original airing back in October 2004.

In an age when DVDs are very often churned out as soon as the show has finished being broadcast, 4DVD`s decision to release the `Wing to coincide with the Tele advent of series 2 seemed somewhat taunting. However, whatever qualms we may have had, let us pray silence children, as `Green Wing` hath been delivered to us from above and, 18 months after being on TV, is safely here on our beloved format.

The show follows the capers, love lives and sheer stupidity of a number of Doctors and hospital staff, as they trundle through both the wards and everyday life in an almost always wee-inducing fashion. There are no obvious main characters as such, but more of an ensemble of brilliant comic and acting talent brought together under the roof of our magnificent National Health Service.

The series begins when Dr Caroline Todd (Tamsin Greig) starts her new job as part of Dr Macartney`s (or `Mac`, as played by Julian Rhind-Tutt) surgical team. Their Anaesthetist, Dr Guy Secretan (Stephen Mangan, whose previously greatest star turn was as `Dan!` in `I`m Alan Partridge`), is on hand to provide sedation and seduction, despite looking like `the donkey from Shrek`, and trainee Doctor Martin Dear is the object of much of Guy`s bullying.

Elsewhere in the hospital, Mark Heap`s - `ode to Fawlty` - Dr Alan Statham, Consultant Radiologist, splits his time between sparring with ladies man and student `Boyce` (The Office`s Oliver Chris), and trying to maintain a hold on his illicit affair with Joanna Clore (played by Mrs Brittas AKA Pippa Heywood), the head of human resources.

Chuck in cameos from Kevin Eldon and Stephen Merchant, the sublime Staff Liaison Officer Sue White (played by Mrs Jack Davenport, Michelle Gomez), and Caroline`s self-obsessed flatmate Dr. Angela Hunter (Sarah Alexander playing exactly the same character as she did in the exceptional `Coupling`), and you`re laughing. No, make that howling.

Taking a few notes from Channel 4`s also fantastic `Teachers` and `Spaced`, and then producing something nobody could ever hope to imagine, let alone watch on their screens, `Green Wing` is the culmination of everything that good British comedy has been leading up to over the last decade. A healthy dollop of soap opera-like blossoming storylines mixed with inane Tom-Foolery and magical scripting makes this something very special indeed.

Video

The most obvious thing about `Green Wing` is the way that scenes are sped up and slowed down throughout, a technique that has never been used to such a full extent before. Whereas this can be a little confusing at first, after a while it is revealed as yet another weapon in the show`s bulging arsenal; by speeding the scene up, you can edit over the cock ups and take the most naturally funny parts of a take, ensuring that the very best nuances and tones are left well away from the cutting room floor.

The other massively impressive point about `Green Wing` is that it is filmed in two real working hospitals, not on a soundstage between blocks of `Harry Potter` films and a new BBC drama about a Criminal `wot done a murder`. This acts so as to make the jokes even jokier, and the idiocy even more ideal - after all, it really does look like it is ACTUALLY HAPPENING. Believe me, once you`ve watched Green Wing, the smart studio finesse of `Scrubs` and the other, lesser, medical dramas just doesn`t cut it.

Audio

The soundtrack includes classics by the likes of Queen, Elton John, Soft Cell (noticing any sort of pattern yet?) and others, but these tried and tested tunes are just as a small compliment to the music composed for the series. I think you`re by now probably aware that `experimentalism` and `boundary pushing` are top of the agenda, and the audio element to `Green Wing`s already blooming plumage is no exception.

The original soundtrack to the series was produced by Mr Jonathan Whitehead, who also worked on the GW cast-sharing shows `Black Books`, `Nathan Barley`, `Smack the Pony` and `Brass Eye`. The eclectic mix of breakbeat, electronica and warped melodica balladry accompanies the movement of the scenes perfectly, and befits such a visually stunning work.

Features

We get: A short behind the scenes documentary (10 mins), Deleted scenes, Cast and crew biogs AND audio commentaries on episodes 1,2, 5 and 9.

The short `behind the scenes` doc is more teasing than it is interesting, and really acts to make you want to see the whole series again. Similarly, the deleted scenes are worth watching, but don`t add any value to the overall DVD package.

This is the first time I`ve ever said this but `thank GOD for the commentaries`! In particular, Episode 5`s walkthrough by Mac, Caroline and Guy (as they appear in the show) is one of the greatest I have ever had the pleasure to watch. Besides coming across as genuinely amiable people, the actors also sound just as glad to have been involved in the series as you will be to have watched it. By all accounts, a `must see` special feature

Conclusion

I could wax lyrical about the merits of this set for thousands and thousands of words, but I wont waste any time when there are chases to be cutting to. Essentially, the first series of `Green Wing` has ably made the transition from greatest TV show of 2004 to the greatest DVD of 2006. It may only be a quarter of the way into the year, but so mirthful is the program, that supplanting it is a task that our most skilled writers and comedians are just not up to. Yet.

You see, everything about the show is so very nearly perfect; the personas of the characters, the relationships, the look, the sound, the feel, the gags. We mustn`t forget the gags. After all, `Green Wing` is above everything else, a comedy, and arguably the best this country has seen in, err, well, in its existence. The whole cast and crew have elevated to a new artistic level, well above the heavens, and `Green Wing` looks down upon the angels … and points out that they`ve got a flaky scalp.

Where was that chase I was looking to cut to? Oh yes, here it is - you simply cannot purchase a better TV show on DVD. It is of a superior quality previously unseen anywhere else, and the scores below reflect this. I don`t envisage ever watching a better three DVDs in my life time - this is the stuff that legends are made of.

In fact, its brilliance is unmitigated to the point that I do not intend to continue my quest for a better 450 minutes worth of entertainment. I have discovered the Holy Grail - I need never write another DVD review again. I bow before you and, under the eyes of god, retreat from this arena, safe in the knowledge that I have found what I was looking for.

These truly are the wings of a dove.