Posted on: September 29, 2007 Posted by: James McQuiston Comments: 0

TV Party – The Crusades Show / 2006 MVD / 58 Minutes / http://www.mvdb2b.com / http://www.brink.com /

For those individuals that have had a chance to see “The Time & Makeup Show”, “The Crusades Show” is a year and a half later. Things have changed. If one event could be chosen as being the most momentous between 1979 and 1981, it would have to be the election of Ronald Reagan to the Presidency of the United States.

The episode of TV Party came out mere weeks after President Reagan took the oath of office, and TV Party seems to have a darker outlook on life than it had during previous episodes of its show. This episode of TV Party meshes well with the work that was happening on the other side of the United States by bands like the Dead Kennedys; the same acerbic sense of humor is strung through out both groups. There are some ties between this episode and the “Time & Makeup Show”, with bonus sections in both dealing heavily with drug discussion. The send up of religion and the American faith that seemed to be tied to Reagan being swept into office still reverberates well in the current period, especially with situations that are at least as dire as they were previously. This DVD should be watched beside the previous two shows that were released by Brinkfilm, topped off by the documentary. By doing all of this, one will have a good idea of what the show tried to do over twenty years ago. I know that I would like seasons of TV Party released at a semi-regular basis, if the archives could hold out for three or four releases in this vein.

If that is possible, individuals will undoubtedly pay the money needed to purchase the discs. As with the other volumes for first-hand material (the episodes themselves), there is just not enough material present on this DVD to merit the price of the video. While I understand the rights to the videos might have cost a hefty chunk, there needs to be more material present to make this a must-purchase DVD. The video and audio are great for the era, and the presentation of this DVD fills in the holes that individuals had for what was a counter-culture institution in early eighties New York. Brinkfilm should release videos from the extreme end of the show’s run (the 1982 year). There are at least 76 more episodes for Brinkfilm to release, so I sincerely hope that they start cranking those out in the new year. A blend of music, satire, politics and drama that has not been seen often since the end of TV Party, “The Crusades Show” is a cohesive episode that should be used as a template for anyone working in the current period. I have little doubt in my mind that individuals that were working on Mr. Show or The Office were those that saw at least one of the episodes of TV Party, as the same type of humor with a biting satirical edge presents itself in spades.

Rating: 6.8/10

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