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Title: Blackadder: The Whole Damn Dynasty 1485-1917 by Richard Curtis, Ben Elton, Rowan Atkinson ISBN: 0-14-029608-5 Publisher: Penguin USA (Paper) Pub. Date: 05 September, 2000 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $16.00 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.92 (13 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: A must-have for any fan of the Black Adder!
Comment: 1983 saw the airing of a hilariously funny new British television show, Blackadder. This show had four separate seasons that chronicled the lives of four members of the Blackadder family: Edmund Blackadder in 1484, son of Richard, Duke of York; Edmund Blackadder, favorite of Queen Elizabeth I; Edmund Blackadder, butler to Prince George, son of King George III; and, finally, Edmund Blackadder, Army captain during World War I. This book is a companion to that wonderful series, filling in the holes left in English history, giving all sort of useful information drawn from the Blackadder family archives, and the full scripts of each of the shows!
This is a great book, and a must-have for any fan of the Black Adder. The scripts are great to have, and the other information demonstrates the same great humor as the show. Having been created in 1998, the book does not contain any information on the Y2K special, Blackadder Back & Forth, which makes sense. What doesn't make sense is that it completely ignores the 1988 Christmas Special! But, that said, this is a nice book, one that I highly recommend to every Blackadder fan!
Rating: 5
Summary: VERY CLEVER, EXTREMELY FUNNY & COMPLETELY AMUSING!!!!
Comment: Even if you are NOT a die-hard fan of The Black Adder--you WILL be after reading this book. It consists of all the scripts from the television show and reads very well. In fact, for those who have never even seen the television show, this book is easy to follow, extremely witty, and absolutely hilarious and will make you want to run out and buy the series on video!!! It translates very well in book format--I can hardly say enough good things. Profits from the sale go to Comic Relief--also, as an added bonus, the book features Black Adder's "greatest insults" and lots of other "fun stuff" from the Dark Ages, including most effective torture devices, best cures for skin diseases and deformities, etc. etc. very tongue-in-cheek. Loved it! Go out and buy this book! Highly recommend and you will laugh out loud!!
Rating: 5
Summary: Not your typical dynasty...
Comment: The Blackadder series, begun in the 1980s, was a comedic masterpiece set forth by Rowan Atkinson and his comrades. From start to finish, the first series was a masterstroke of wit, irony and comedic styling that fits both the contemporary and medieval situations perfectly. The combination of slapstick and intellectual humour blended well, and the literary types will not miss the occasional credit of William Shakespeare as a collaborating writer on some episodes -- this might well be the kind of comedy Shakespeare would have produced today.
The first series was set in the pre-Tudor royal family, projecting that Richard III won at Bosworth Field, and Richard IV succeeded him, until after many adventures, the entire royal family was done in, and Henry Tudor reworte history thereafter. The first series starred Brian Blessed and Elspet Gray as the King and Queen, and Robert East as their eldest son, the Prince of Wales. Rowan Atkinson played the second son, who with companions Percy and Baldrick (Tim McInnerny and Tony Robinson) create most of the comic scenes. BlackAdder variously becomes the Archbishop of Canterbury, the betrothed of the Spanish Infanta, a witch on trial, and finally, however briefly, King of England.
The second series sees Percy and Baldrick following a descendent of Blackadder in Elizabethan times; as befits the period, the characters are more vibrant and saucy, particularly Blackadder, who still seeks his fortune as one of the Queen's suitors. Here he variously becomes the royal executioner, a sea-faring discoverer, a bankrupt noble, and finally a traitor to the crown, albeit not without a sense of humour. Miranda Richardson puts in a spectacular performance as Queen Elizabeth, with Stephen Fry and Patsy Byrne in attendance. Stephen Fry will recur throughout the series.
In the third series, Blackadder is still close to the crown, as the butler of the Prince Regent, a despised position to a despised person. Baldrick is still around, and the Prince is played by Hugh Laurie, who will recur in the final series. Done almost as a period comedy, the very titles and situations pay hommage to the day of the Scarlet Pimpernel, Dr. Johnson's dictionary, and the conflict with France. Through an interesting set of circumstances, butler and prince trade places, and the Blackadder finally becomes his intended goal, albeit in the name of someone else.
In the fourth and final series, Blackadder has fallen from a great height, and is an officer in the trenches of World War I. Baldrick is still there, and Percy and the Prince have transformed into fellow field officers, with Stephen Fry playing a bellicose general here as he did Wellington in the third series. The main device of this series is the effort by Blackadder to escape the trenches, by variously becoming an artist, a theatre producer, a chef, but to no avail finally, producing a sombre end to the dynasty.
The book is a fabulous companion piece to the series, as the BBC is known to do with television series of success. The six episodes of each of the four seasons is laid out in script-narrative form, with a generous collection of side offerings, such as the Blackadder family tree, the menu of Mrs. Miggins' pie shoppe, and other pieces of interest related to but not found in the actual series. The cast is included at the beginning of each series section. The book concludes with a partial collection of some of Blackadder's best insults.
This book was printed in aid of Comic Relief, who give a brief outline of their history of funding good causes in the last few pages.
This is a must-have for any Blackadder fan. Regretably, it does not contain the addition special features (such as the Victorian Christmas of Blackadder), but for any devotee of the series, this is a requirement.
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Title:Black Adder - The Complete Collector's Set ASIN: B00005A1SX Publisher: BBC Video Pub. Date: 26 June, 2001 List Price(USD): $119.98 Comparison N/A, buy it from Amazon for $101.99 |
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Title: Cunning: The Blackadder Programme Guide by Chris Howarth, Steve Lyons ISBN: 0753504472 Publisher: Virgin Publishing Pub. Date: January, 2002 List Price(USD): $8.95 |
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Title:Black Adder's Christmas Carol ASIN: B00004WG4U Publisher: BBC Video Pub. Date: 08 October, 2002 List Price(USD): $9.95 Comparison N/A, buy it from Amazon for $9.95 |
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Title: ROWAN ATKINSON by Bruce Dessau ISBN: 0752833804 Publisher: Trafalgar Square Pub. Date: September, 2000 List Price(USD): $9.95 |
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Title: The Complete Fawlty Towers by John Cleese, Connie Booth ISBN: 0306810727 Publisher: DaCapo Press Pub. Date: 23 October, 2001 List Price(USD): $18.00 |
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