Review of Black Books: Series Two

Introduction

It`s been a long time coming. The anticipation to watch series 2 again after so long since it was on Channel 4 is almost unbearable, especially considering that series 3 is finally upon us. Like the first series, we get six episodes with commentaries. The Black Books 1 DVD was sublime with its brilliant writing and great audio commentary so a follow-up won`t have been easy to conceive. We`ve got the same characters and the same setting so it`s going to take some creativity to come up with something new. Unfortunately Black Books 2 is a little hit-and-miss.

Video

Presented with a 1.78:1 widescreen enhanced video transfer, Black Books 2 looks good with minimal amounts of grain. Colours are well balanced and detail looks good. I couldn`t spot any problems with the transfer.

Audio

Sound is presented with Dolby Digital 2.0 only. There`s little expectation for anything else since it`s a dialogue driven sitcom. The sound here is well balanced and works well enough.

Features

• Audio Commentary - Dylan Moran, Bill Bailey and Tamsin Greig are together once again and if you`ve enjoyed the commentary from series 1, then you`ll know what to expect from this. It`s the same level of silliness throughout and very entertaining.

• Stills Gallery (1:31) - As it says, lots of stills of cast with crew on set.

• Black Dolls (subtitled) (5:12) - How about a puppet version of Black Books? The cast voice the puppets and all I can say is that this isn`t a puppet show for children...it is funny though!

• Outtakes (11:19) - People fluffing lines and general messing about.

• Trailer (1:01) - A-ha! This looks like a trailer for series 3 because I`ve not seen any of this before. Looks interesting, but then trailers are like that...

Black Books 2 has English subtitles and comes packaged in a standard DVD keep case.

Conclusion

Just after 2-years since Black Books 1 came to DVD we finally get the follow up and this ties in with series 3 about to start on Channel 4. The bookshop is the same, it`s a mess, and the characters are pretty much the same, except that Fran has sold her shop and spends a lot of time with the boys. The belligerent shop owner Bernard is as chaotic and mad, as always, while his faithful servant, Manny, is Manny.

The writing of the comedy however isn`t as sharp or witty as series 1 and this is noticeable from episode 1 onwards. The laughter track can irritate a bit as there are some things, such as blatant slapstick, that just doesn`t seem to work. I still like Black Books 2, but it`s not taken the sitcom any further and hasn`t made me laugh as much. There are lots of great pieces like Manny`s piano playing spoons in episode 1 or Fran`s job where she hasn`t a clue what she`s doing.

The cast are still very good, and Bill Bailey, for me, remains the centrepiece of the show. He`s always a joy to watch. There are some nice extras here, with the best being the compelling audio commentary. Overall I think it`s worth getting if you`re a Black Books fan as there is some enjoyment to be had. Series 3 is said to be the final series so here`s hoping that it`s good!