Review of Complete Thin Blue Line, The

Introduction

Comedy is a strange animal. How programmes like My Family keep getting renewed I`ll never understand. Why people laugh at Frank Spencer, now there`s another puzzler. Comedy is in the eye of the beholder, and as such, the programmes that I usually find hilarious, are the ones that get cancelled after a series or two. I guess that says more about my sense of humour than anything else. Take Rowan Atkinson for instance, star of one of the seminal comedies of the eighties, the classic Blackadder, but what is he best known for, Bean. It`s almost criminal in its injustice. Nevertheless, he and Ben Elton did reunite in the mid nineties for another bite at the alternative situation comedy cherry, and two series of The Thin Blue Line were made, a light-hearted look at a small town police force and the tribulations within.

This is the Complete Thin Blue Line presented over two discs.

Disc One

Rag Week: With students on the rampage for charity, CID are run ragged, Inspector Fowler on the other hand tries to find the time to go to the bank. When he gets there he has to deal with some masked miscreants with his customary tolerance.

The Queen`s Birthday Present: Confusion ensues when Fowler and Sgt Patricia Dawkins` anniversary coincides with the monarch`s birthday.

Night Shift: It`s a busy night at Gasforth police station as Inspector Fowler has to deal with the riff-raff and Grimm has to deal with nefarious car thieves. In the meantime, Raymond and Patricia`s relationship goes from bad to worse.

Honey Trap: Gasforth Constabulary`s pub quiz team is on the verge of a historic victory when their star player is seconded to the CID for a morally dubious operation.

Fire And Terror: Constable Habib falls for a hunky fire fighter raising a tinge of jealousy in Constable Goody. Meanwhile a hoaxer is plaguing Inspector Fowler as CID faces the threat of terrorism.

Kids Today: When asked to contribute to a police conference, Fowler decides to present an initiative on juvenile delinquency. It`s time to gather the criminals of the future an take them on a rousing camping trip.

Yuletide Spirit: It`s the season of goodwill and all eyes are on the starring role at the Gasforth panto. But carol singers are on the rampage, and a pregnant couple find that there`s no room at the nick.

Disc 2

Court In The Act: Gasforth`s finest finally captures Gasforth`s biggest drug-dealer. But CID may have gone a step too far and been a little eager in their desire to make an arrest.

Ism Ism Ism: The Mayoress urges that to improve public relations, Gasforth Police must institute an anti-racism initiative. Meanwhile, when the Freemasons decline Grimm`s application, he decides to join the noble order of the Todgers.

Fly On The Wall: Gasforth Police Station is chosen to be the subject of a BBC television documentary, and everyone seizes his or her chance at fifteen minutes of fame.

Alternative Culture: The war of the sexes flares up as the women`s toilets are out of commission meaning everyone must share. Maggie`s puritanical sister visits and develops a wild side and CID exercise a perk with some late night boozing.

Come On You Blues: With the aid of a dodgy burger van, Gasforth FC have made it to the third round of the FA Cup, and the police have their hands full policing a match against a premiership team.

Road Rage: A planned bypass for Gasforth raises passions in the Police Station, especially as Sgt Dawkins is spending her holiday with a group of anti road protestors.

The Green Eyed Monster: Promotion time approaches and Raymond is convinced that being married may improve his chances. However his idea of a romantic proposal leaves a lot to be desired.

Video

Both series of The Thin Blue Line are presented in the 4:3 picture format of the time. Series 1 has a rather grainy and low-resolution picture, a lot like other BBC comedies of yore. Series 2 has a greatly improved picture, with little or no grain and is markedly sharper and crisper than the image on the first disc.

Audio

Both discs are given straightforward DD 2.0 stereo soundtracks in English. Perhaps one of the reasons that The Thin Blue Line lacked in longevity was the absolutely dismal theme tune (Strangely catchy though). Series 2 gets an updated theme tune, but it still sounds naff. The most important thing in the comedy is the dialogue, and this is reproduced satisfactorily.

Features

Not even any subtitles. Criminal

Conclusion

The Thin Blue Line sees Ben Elton at his most self-indulgent. The angry young writer responsible for the ground breaking and reactionary Blackadder has settled into middle age and rather than fighting the forces of capitalism, he is firmly part of the establishment. His next collaboration with Rowan Atkinson is more like a comfortable pair of slippers and a pipe. By 1995, John Major was in Number 10, and his emphasis on family values hardly inspired the biting satire that Margaret Thatcher`s decade of greed had done. So while political correctness still abounds in the scripts, and the characters are still inclined to lengthy diatribes on whatever subject takes their fancies, compared to the sharp-toothed wit of Blackadder, these are just gentle japes.

Still, while the wit of Ben Elton has been substantially blunted, his scripts are just as hilarious as ever, if not more so, not in the least helped by a great ensemble cast of characters. Actually they are more caricatures and subverted stereotypes rather than characters, but they fit together like an intricate jigsaw. Rowan Atkinson is Inspector Raymond Fowler. He comes across as a rather pompous fuddy-duddy who looks back fondly on simpler times, tending to wax lyrical about how things should be. He is rather prudish and undemonstrative, which is a matter of some frustration to Patricia Dawkins as played by Serena Evans, desk sergeant and also his girlfriend. Rounding off Gasforth`s uniformed constabulary are Constables Habib, Gladstone and Goody. Maggie Habib played by Mina Anwar is political correctness embodied, often to the consternation of the old fashioned Inspector. James Dreyfus is Kevin Goody, the world`s campest heterosexual, who has a massive crush on Habib and rarely lifts his mind from the gutter. Finally Rudolph Walker is Frank Gladstone, a veteran policeman from Trinidad who is none too bright and is always ready with a pointless anecdote. To keep tensions high in the station, CID rivals the uniformed constabulary in their efforts to keep the peace. They are led by Det. Insp Derek Grimm, an unreconstructed male played by David Haig, who aspires to the heights of the Professionals and has the tendency to rant interminably at the drop of a hat. Aiding him is Detective Constable Robert Cray as played by Kevin Allen who has a weakness for fast food and crass remarks.

While the stereotypes and the familiar jokes may not do much to make this a classic comedy, what makes The Thin Blue Line a cut above the rest is that it is wholly and relentlessly hilarious, engendering belly laugh after guffaw after tearful chuckle. It does this by simple virtue of paying homage to one of the best British comedies ever made, Dad`s Army. In structure and character it is very similar, with Fowler`s Mainwaring and his uniformed bumblers rivalling Grimm`s ARP warden, yet both fighting the good fight against the Germans, or in this case crime. In the station, Fowler`s relationship with his underlings is akin to that of a schoolteacher to his pupils and he runs the police station as a classroom, and that merely adds to the amusement.

However, I should add the proviso that my assessment really only applies to the first series. The seven episodes on disc one, closely approach sit-com perfection, especially in episodes like Kids Today, which is unremittingly funny, but also manages to make valid social comment. This is despite the fact that it has the worst bigot in Britain. I mean worst as in he`s not very good at it. The sheer reluctance and embarrassment that oozes from the actor as he utters racist abuse just had me feeling sorry for the poor mite.

Series 2 on the other hand shows that the rot has begun to set in and it`s understandable why no third series was made. DC Gary Boyle played by Mark Addy, who is more of a subversive character than before, has replaced Cray. An unnecessary addition is that of Mayoress Wickham as an added romantic distraction for Fowler, or as I like to think of her, Ben Elton`s last swipe at Maggie Thatcher. Each episode is slightly longer than before to make room for a Dixon Of Dock Green type prologue from Fowler, but the characters have slipped even further towards caricature and the stories are less interesting. Fowler is less reflective and `cuddly`, and displays a greater penchant for sarcasm, in other words, a tame Blackadder. Grimm`s rants now feel as if they are contractually obliged and are more often tedious than funny. That said, Series 2 is still more often funny than not and the set pieces are still riotous.

On the whole, The Thin Blue Line shows the Police as I would want them to be, bumbling, incompetent but with their hearts in the right place. It also helps that the criminals aren`t the brightest tools in the shed, and no one has a shred of malice. It shows a Middle England that doesn`t exist anymore and perhaps never did, but can`t help sparking feelings of nostalgia.

Finally the marks of the South London Jury. 9 points for series one and 7 for the less impressive second series average out to a still worthy 8. The vast improvement in image quality over the two series also deserves a middling mark, and the stereo sound is perfectly adequate. I wish that I could confer negative marks for the lack of subtitles, but marks aside. I paid less than nine pounds for over seven hours of sidesplitting comedy and I am more than satisfied.