The ninety-seventh TV show: #501 The Fast Show
I know we're ahead on comedies, but this worked as a great show over the Christmas break and our other options was a bit less workable after going through our random draw options. While I am still lacking in many shows to compare it to, it feels like (as the name implies) this show focuses on the faster pace of sketches and cuts, not sticking around for longer than is needed. While the show was focused on Paul Whitehouse - and he still appears more than the other performers - it feels like an ensemble show and becomes it more as time goes on. It means the later seasons work better, as they've figured out more what characters work. While there are some less interesting sketches, most of them still hold up quite well and there's some decent pay offs to jokes - it's unfortunate the first season sometimes spends more time setting them up in the early episodes without as much pay off, but it's worth powering through them.