Review of Green Green Grass, The: Series 1

Introduction

From one spin off (I`ve just reviewed Swiss Toni) to another.

The Green Green Grass is John Sullivan`s spin off born from the now defunct Only Fools and Horses.

In case you`ve been living under a rock, or have never turned on a television set on Christmas Day, this was one of the most popular BBC series ever, featuring the antics of Del Boy and Rodney. They also had a friend called Boycie, a second hand car dealer from Peckham, who always saw himself as above the rest of his East End mates.

The premise for this show is simple. Boycie is on the run from the Driscoll brothers, some nasty East End villains who turned up as a useful plot device during Fools and Horses. In order to escape their clutches, he uproots Marlene and their son to live a new life in the countryside, as "gentlemen farmer Boyce".

Cue easy jokes about simple country folk who pull the wool over the eyes of the sophisticated townie. Etc. Etc.

The show stars John Challis and Sue Holderness in their familiar roles of Boycie and Marlene, and also features David Ross (the original Kryten from Red Dwarf) as the farm manager. This DVD set features the first series plus the Christmas special (it seems to be in John Sullivan`s contract to write a Christmas special for the BBC).

Video

A pretty standard 1.78:1 anamorphic widescreen transfer, as first broadcast, and as you would expect from a modern TV show. Nothing wrong from a technical point of view, all looks ok.

Audio

A DD2.0 stereo soundtrack, again as first broadcast, and again perfectly fine technically.

Features

A small number of extras. Some interview footage of the main protagonists (Challis, Holderness and Sullivan) is interspersed with footage from the show as well as some from Fools and Horses. The interviews are interesting to watch (although the sound is a bit weak, as if the microphone was a bit rubbish), but the footage is all too familiar if you`ve just watched the show. There is also a small selection of out-takes (very funny) and a brief feature on the only gay bull in the world.

Conclusion

A tricky one this. How do you follow the enormous success of Only Fools and Horses? How do you make your next show seem something more than just Fools and Horses lite? Well, John Sullivan had a go, and I think he both succeeded and failed.

The 2 central characters are well developed enough already to carry the show, and uprooting them should present enough ideas to keep it fresh. But the whole "country bumpkins who are cleverer than they let on" line just feels a bit jaded in this day and age. There are a few classic Fools and Horses style storylines, notably the one featured in the Christmas special, and a few slightly newer storylines too. And with the shadow of the Driscoll brothers constantly looming, there`s always an easy way to get a new episode going.

But in the end it`s all a bit too familiar. This is probably why it was reasonably well received when first broadcast. Something similar, something not too challenging. And it`s certainly ideal Christmas special material, as it`s simple enough for everyone to enjoy for a little while. But it`s not something I would tune into every week.

This DVD set is good enough, with everything looking and sounding fine, and just a smattering of extras to suit the target audience. It will probably sell well in the run up to Christmas, and it will make a good present for a Fools and Horses fan. Just don`t expect anything too ground-breaking, and your hopes won`t be dashed.