Why the Boosh is Mighty

Over the past two and a half weeks I have been binging on 'The Mighty Boosh'. I have now seen all the adventures of Howard TJ Moon and Vince Noir from Zoouniverse to Nabootique and everything in between.

After hearing so much about it and seeing Noel Fielding's (one half of the Boosh) stints on 'Nevermind the Buzzcocks' it seemed worth casting an eye over at the very least.

For people who have never seen the show I can only describe it as is a surreal comic concoction with some pretty funky music. But it is difficult to describe the phenomenon that is The Mighty Boosh. In each episode the main characters Vince and Howard embark on a strange adventure be it ending up on a desert island and being abused by coconuts or defeating a demon dressed as a sweet old lady. It all sounds very bizarre, I know.

You may be wondering why I would watch the series so obsessively. Apart from the fact that the internet is a wonderful thing and gives immediate access to shows no longer being broadcasted, the Boosh makes for compulsive viewing. If I was still a student I would have probably had a 10 hour Boosh-a-thon. Sadly, since those have long since gone and I rationed myself to a couple of half hour episodes a night.

Unlike most comedy shows, the programme doesn't even pretend that it is set in our world. There is black magic, beige magic, a man made of cheese, shamans, talking gorillas, and so much more. The different places Vince and Howard visit and the quirky characters they meet in each episode provide perfect escapist fantasy. Nothing in the Boosh realm is questioned it is just accepted and rightly so. We do not need to know why a creature made of Shammy cloths has disco balls for balls or why the Hitcher has polo over one eye (he has minty vision). And to try to figure out why the humour works would unravel it. It works because it does.

Which brings me unseamlessly to the visual and musical elements of the show.

All the episodes are richly textured and each time you watch an episode you are likely to spot something new. The costumes, sets and props are intentionally Blue Peter style-sticky back plastic-toilet roll creations, made with the same love and attention as a papier-mâché Tracy Island. You know the sandpaper man who just can't find love is just Julian Barratt with scraps of sandpaper stuck on him but it doesn't matter. All that matters is accepting the characters as they are.

The use of animation and music reminded me of Monty Python, which the Boosh have cited as an influence of theirs. In some ways I feel that the Boosh is the new Python. Both share a similar fan appeal and to some small extent style. (You would be just as likely to see Vince slapping Howard around the face with a fish as you did Michael Palin to John Cleese in 'Monty Python's Flying Circus'). However, the Boosh seems to have penetrated the national consciousness even further than Python did with a diverse fan base including adults and children, emo and chavs alike.

I love the music for its mish mash and the way in which it crosses-genres. In my humble opinion Julian Barratt is genius, his songs are wonderfully catchy. He does not restrict himself one genre and succeeds in whichever kind of music he decides to write a song in. 'Future Sailors' is a personal favourite.

Then there is crimping which has been described by some as 'the new poetic form'. I can only explain it is as bizarre singing rhymes with corresponding moves – it is one of those things you have to see. Crimps are just as catchy as the songs and part of the originality of the show. According to Fielding once you remember a crimp you never forget it, so much so that Sugar Puffs decided a crimp would be a lucrative advertising tool. Surely, if a big food company wanted to steal the crimp there must be something to it and these are not completely the rantings of Boosh fan?

Watching the Boosh for me is like walking into a sweet shop for your eyes and your ears and being allowed to try a little bit of everything. The humour is simple and surreal. The collision of a multitude of genres keeps it fresh and may be one of the reasons that I think the show could go on and on without getting stale.

So go with Vince and Howard on a journey through time and space to the world The Mighty Boosh…