Review for Maid Marian And Her Merry Men: Series 1 - 4 Special Edition Box Set (8 Discs)

Introduction

I loved Asterix books as a child; I still do actually, which goes to show just how broad an audience they appeal to. There's the comic book action for kids, there's satire and wit, there's slapstick and idiocy, and there's a sly subversive edge to them as well. When I found out that there were animated Asterix movies, I pounced like a menhir deliveryman pounces on wild boar, only to find that the movies were nothing like the books. They were dull, plodding, and shorn of everything except the elements that appealed to children alone. They were sanitised and disappointing. And then in 1989 came a television series from the BBC, a reinvention of the Robin Hood myth, penned by Tony Robinson of Blackadder fame, aimed directly at children, but fast paced, funny, sly and subversive, satirical and witty, basically all the things that I love Asterix for. I was sixteen, already out of the show's target demographic, although Maid Marian and Her Merry Men soon picked up a pre-Blockbusters student following. For the next four years, my teatime viewing was sorted. There hasn't been anything as good on children's television since. Now, twenty years later, Eureka Entertainment are re-releasing the series in one mega DVD boxset, and I get to see if Maid Marian and Her Merry Men have something new to say to me today.


History as we know it is a lie. Yes, King Richard went on the Crusades, leaving his kingdom in the charge of his younger brother John, and yes the people were taxed and terrorised into submission, especially the people of Worksop, who were unfortunate enough to live near King John's Nottingham castle. They were terrorised by the king's guards, who were in turn terrorised by the Sheriff of Nottingham who himself bore the brunt of the king's ire. And who was the one person who stood up to all this tyranny? Why it was Maid Marian, who through no fault of her own, tried selling her pet tadpole Edwina in the wrong place at the wrong time, and wound up outwitting the Sheriff and his men. Caught up in the mayhem was the unwitting, and indeed witless tailor, Robin of Kensington, y-front-ier to the king, and who somehow wound up getting all the credit. And the Merry Men, they were actually the rapping minstrel Barrington, the miniature tower of strength Little Ron, and the idiot Rabies. Don't believe everything you see in a Kevin Costner movie!


Maid Marian and Her Merry Men ran for four years, and Eureka Entertainment are re-releasing the complete series boxset, this time in slimline packaging and at a lower R.R.P. Each series was split across two discs, so we get eight discs in total.

Series 1: Where the band gets together, where King John comes up with a plan to trap the nefarious bandit, where the Sheriff becomes the King's PR department, where you can hear the tale of a legendary hot water bottle, where the Sheriff goes undercover as a Merry Man, and Rabies has an existential crisis, and where Robin wonders if everything would be better if King Richard were there.

Disc 1
1. How The Band Got Together
2. Robert The Incredible Chicken
3. A Game Called John
Disc 2
4. The Miracle of Saint Charlene
5. The Sharp End of a Cow
6. The White Knight


Series 2: Where the Merry Men are less merry after being displaced by an outlaw from down under, where the people of Worksop learn about the birds and the bees, particularly the chickens, where King John's annoying nephew Guy comes to visit, on Brown Nose day of all days, where the King comes up with a stellar idea to get his annoying nephew married off, and where the mediaeval equivalent of Friends Reunited could lead to the end of the band.

Disc 1
1. The Beast of Bolsover
2. The Worksop Egg-Fairy
3. Little Brown Noses
Disc 2
4. Rabies in Love
5. Rotten Rose: Part 1
6. Rotten Rose: Part 2


Series 3: Where the king dresses up in a party crown and demands a Bloopy present, where Rotten Rose hosts the Song for Worksop Song Contest, so everyone cheats, where Marian's mum pays a visit to her daughter, convinced that she works as a dental receptionist, where the Sheriff finally taxes the clothes off the people's backs, where Robin becomes the boy who cried Chow Mein, and where the King finally runs out of stuff to tax, so he announces a few redundancies.

Disc 1
1. The Big Baby
2. Driving Ambition
3. Keeping Mum
Disc 2
4. They Came From Outer Space
5. Robin and His Beansprout
6. The Great Mud Harvest


Series 4: Where Robin and the gang play Dungeons and Dragons, where Marian quits the band and goes solo as a conservatory salesperson, where Worksop is struck with the plague, so everyone goes on vacation, where Robin's raves keep everyone up all night, where Robin turns evil and the Sheriff turns good, where the band have a royal houseguest, and where an assault on the Royal Navy rips a hole in the space time continuum.

Disc 1
1. Tunnel Vision
2. Bouncy Sheriff
3. Raining Forks
4. The Wise Woman of Worksop
Disc 2
5. Robin the Bad
6. The nice Sumatran
7. Voyage to the Bottom of the Forest

Picture

Maid Marian and Her Merry Men gets a 4:3 regular transfer. It's a show from the late eighties and early nineties, so that means a whole lot of videotape, and the issues inherent with the format. The image is a little soft, and bright lights do cause a little screen burn from time to time. But by and large it is more than acceptable. That's aside from a few frames on Season 4: Disc 1, where the screen briefly turns blue tinted for some reason.

This was one of the highest budgeted children's programmes of its time, and that certainly shows on screen, rich with colour and imagination, wonderful set designs, imaginative props, great costumes and make up. It's also worth using the freeze frame on occasion, as there are plenty of in-jokes littered on the screen that just fly by in normal playback.

Sound

The audio comes in basic DD 2.0 English flavour, with optional English subtitles, not that you need that, as the dialogue is clear throughout. Music plays a big part in Maid Marian, and practically every episode devotes a few minutes of its runtime to a musical number. I must admit that in the earlier episodes, it's more cheesy than rhythmic, with Barrington's rapping particularly suspect. He's obviously been taking lessons from John Barnes. But by the time the third series comes around, not only are the songs catchier, but also the production values on the music have gone up considerably.

Extras

I received the discs, no packaging, so I can't tell if the set will contain the mini-comics that previously came with the series. But I can tell you what is on the discs…

Series 1 has all the extras on Disc 1, presented with animated menus with slightly annoying long transitions.

You get the trailer for the series, in high quality VHS, you get a couple of segments of German Dubbed Marian, just to see how the rest of the world experienced the show. There's some Lute Karaoke to help you sing along to the theme, there's a multiple choice quiz, but most substantial is the audio commentary on disc 1, which has creator, and Sheriff Tony Robinson have a bit of a retrospective on the show. It's nice to listen to, but a bit gappy. There's also an Easter Egg on this disc, which will fill you in on how some of the characters got their names.


Series 2 has its extras on its Disc 1 as well, with a bellowing King John sat amidst a CG castle and some CG chickens for its menus.

You get the 7-minute BBC Internal Trailer for the series, which is quite funny in itself, there's a little Hunt The Chicken remote control game, and there are two commentaries. The commentary on episode 1 has Tony Robinson with Maggie Chappelhow (Costume Designer), Chrissie Powers (Make-up), and series director David Bell, and they get a little more technical about the show in this track. Much lighter is the audio commentary for episode 3, which sees David Bell return with actors, Mike Edmonds (Little Ron), Howard Lew Lewis (Rabies), and David Lloyd (Graeme), and this is more of a reminiscence track.


Series 3 spreads its extras around a bit, and its animated menus screens take us into a Worksop hovel to click on various bits of detritus.

Disc 1 kicks off with an audio commentary on episode 3, with Tony Robinson, Howard Lew Lewis (Rabies), Kate Lonergan (Marian), and Alison Law (Associate Producer), giving a fairly rounded recollection of the process of making an episode. I did find that the episode audio conflicted with the commentary audio here, and I had to strain to hear things.

Tony Robinson, Mark Billingham (Gary), and David Lloyd (Graeme) share a sofa, and chat about the writing process on Maid Marian. It's interesting as Marian was a watershed moment in three careers. Tony Robinson was bringing all that he had learned on Blackadder to this series, while the experience of writing on Marian would herald a serial drama writing career for David Lloyd, and a career as crime novelist for Mark Billingham. This lasts 10 minutes

Finally, there is a 3½-minute slideshow photo gallery offering behind the scenes glimpses of the cast and crew.

Disc 2 only has the one extra, but it is the Christmas Special Episode, Much, The Mini Mart Manager's Son. This lasts 49 minutes, and sees Marian distracted by the new convenience stall running heartthrob in town, so much so that it could be that the band's freedom fighting days are over.


Series 4 also spreads its extras around, while its animated menus take you into the Maze of Mystery.

Disc 1 has an audio commentary on episode one, with the director David Bell joining, Kate Lonergan (Marian), Forbes Collins (King John), and Mark Billingham (Gary) for a chat.

The improvised sketches by the cast last 6 minutes, and sees the actors reunited at the time of recording the DVD extras, having a bit of a laugh.

Maid Marian Cartoons - Tony Robinson talks to Paul Cemmick lasts 5 minutes, and takes a look at the set of eight graphic novels that were released to coincide with the series. Ironically, they didn't enjoy the same level of success as the Asterix novels I alluded to earlier.

Disc 2 has one final audio commentary on episode 5, and this time it's Kate Lonergan (Marian), Mike Edmonds (Little Ron), Tony Robinson (Sheriff), and Danny John Jules (Barrington) that supply the comments.

A New Series of Maid Marian? lasts 3 minutes, and has the cast come up with ideas for new episodes.


The extras are a mixed bag. Early on, they appear to be aimed at younger audiences, particularly with a couple of rather unimpressive DVD games, but when it comes to the audio commentaries and the interviews, it's very clear that they are aimed at the original audience, and are a little more grown up in content.

Conclusion

I had a little head-rush watching Maid Marian and Her Merry Men again after some two decades, because I got to experience a feeling that is all too rare these days. I found something from my youth that has stood up to the test of time. Rose tinted spectacles are not required as Maid Marian is just as spectacularly funny and entertaining now as it was when I was a college student. In fact, it's even funnier, as I now get the jokes that went over my head the last time. It turns it that not only was Maid Marian written for children of all ages, but it was written for adults too, and there are sly winks, satirical references, and in-jokes that resonate with everyone. It is genuine family entertainment in the truest sense of the word.


It's a delightful parody, which turns the Robin Hood myth on its head, and inserts every anachronism that you can imagine, creating a mediaeval society which is just like our own, except in the accoutrements and the technology. It allows for a Rastafarian minstrel in a band of outlaws led by a freedom fighter dreaming of women's lib and a better world, although hindered by the ultimate metrosexual male in Robin of Kensington. It allows for a king with a punk style, and jokes and quips and references to all sorts of modernity, like supermarkets, the NHS, the buses, the police. It also makes reference to cultural zeitgeist of the early nineties, the UFO craze that begat the X-Files, a wonderful parody of the Crystal Maze, the Eurovision Song Contest, and Noel's House Party.


It doesn't hurt any that the cast is so good. Kate Lonergan is perfect as the feisty dreamer Marian, working through larceny for a better world, and trying to improve the outlook of her band of outlaws, with varying success. The counterpoint between her and Robin is priceless, with Wayne Morris creating the ultimate fashionista who is more concerned with his hair than he is bettering the lot of his fellow man. Tony Robinson, who also created the series, is cast in the role of Sheriff, and in a way he graduates to a Blackadder role. The Sheriff is always conniving, scheming, and trying to eke out a measure of success in his life, only to be constantly thwarted by his nemesis, Marian. But while he is smart and cunning, indeed so smart that he usually outsmarts himself, he needs a dogsbody to push around, a Baldrick for want of a better word. He has two in this show, the gormless palace guards, Gary and Graeme, who have to a share a brain cell. But, if this is a partial redress of Blackadder, it's Blackadder III, as while that incarnation had Prince George to deal with, and constantly frustrate him, here the Sheriff has to be the loyal servant of King John, a bellowing despot of a ruler, whose tyranny is only tempered by his own whims. He wants to be fed, he wants to be pampered, he wants Robin Hood's head on a plate, and when he gets none of these things, he makes the Sheriff aware of his displeasure, at a hundred decibels directly into the ear.


It's a classic sitcom set up where everyone exists to frustrate everyone else. Circumstances will always act to foil the best laid plans, and everyone, including the good guys will get their comeuppances at some point. It's why the second season sees the introduction of Guy of Gisbourne, who at the time I dismissed as a soppy annoying wretch of a character that soaked up valuable screen time. He still is a soppy annoying wretch, but it turns out he's a brilliant creation of camp whimsy, a child trapped in a man's body whose sole purpose it is to serve as a hindrance and constant pestilence to the King of England. Even the king needs a constant frustration in this sitcom, and where he can threaten everyone else with execution and various tortures, he has to play nice when it comes to his nephew, and more importantly his voluminous purse that keeps Nottingham Castle in racks and thumbscrews.


The battlefield for these two sets of characters, the heroic band of freedom fighters and the despotic king and his minions, turn out to be the simple people of Worksop, perhaps the most stupid community around, whose grand produce amounts to mud and various mud spin-offs. Who in other shows would have been simple extras became a constant presence on this show, providing a sense of continuity and permanence to the sets and locations, typified by the two leading lights of the village, the wise woman Gladys, and the distinctive Snooker. It's hard for the King and the Sheriff to terrorise the villagers into submission when they have nothing left to tax, and they are too stupid to realise when they are being terrorised. On the other hand it's hard for Marian and her band to make a better world for these people, when they hang onto their quaint traditions and primitive beliefs, and passion for mud.


It's the writing that is so lush in this show; it's smart, witty, and constantly funny. Best of all, it's dense, each episode is filled to the brim with funny, one liners and gags, rich narrative and entertaining stories, and always the characters remain at the forefront. It isn't perfect by any means. In the commentaries on some of the episodes, Tony Robinson is self-critical, and he is the first to note that it can be over-written at times. Certainly some characters will use ten times as many words as is necessary to get their points across, and continue after the punchline has landed. Someone also quipped in a commentary that Tony Robinson would use 18 words just to avoid saying "I have a cunning plan."


Maid Marian also starts out as great television, but unlike many other shows, it actually gets better and better with each season, and with season 4 it really does go out on a high. That's except for the final episode. Season 4 is the only one to have 7 episodes instead of six in its regular run, and I get the feeling that the BBC probably said, 'that's enough Maid Marian now, but you can have one extra episode as compensation'. As a result, Voyage to the Bottom of the Forest goes for the full Monty (Python), resulting in probably the most surreal episode of them all. I'm not a fan of dream episodes at the best of times, and this one does go out of its way to play with the weird. It is entertaining, but comparatively it is a little disappointing a note to go out on.


One comparative misstep isn't much to complain about, especially as the rest of the show is so brilliant. That I loved it even more now than I did when I first watched it is saying something, and I hope it's not saying something about my mental age. On the contrary, this is a show that has actually got better with age. You know that a satirical comedy is good when its satire still works in modern society, and much of what Maid Marian has to say still resonates with what is going on in the world now. Maid Marian and Her Merry Men is to my mind the best children's television show ever made. It's brilliant television full stop actually.