I thought I'd do an update to my article of last week about 'Hey Hey' and 'Hungry Beast'. I watched both of these shows again this week and here are some general thoughts.

'Hey Hey It's Saturday'

• Obviously the whole blackface 'Red Faces' thing has been all over the press, even making it's way onto 'The View' in the U.S. I don't want to comment on the skit too much, though when I saw it, my main thought was "What the hell were they thinking?". I was surprised that the producers of the show hadn't picked up on the potential that the skit had to cause offense.
• The show is pretty daggy. I mean, even the sets are the same as they were ten years ago. That's part of the appeal I suppose, but it's not really a step forward. A lot of the jokes are quite lame, but then, I was keeping in mind that it's a family show so it's aiming for all ages.
  
• The pacing of the show is quite slow and the graphics and titles are pretty raw, particularly compared to shows such as 'Rove'. This is not necessarily a bad thing, but it certainly is bucking the contemporary trend.
• Daryl is a very competent host but he's also quite annoying.
  
• The presence of Ossie Ostrich was excellent, a real highlight. I love the way Ossie just makes these quiet, subversive but very witty comments off to the side.

I definitely think a show like 'Hey Hey' has a place in the contemporary Australian television landscape. The main reason that I think it works is because it has a really wide cast who all contribute in some way. The people that make up the show aren't just people either, they're characters and they are all different. This keeps the show moving along, it's consistently quite funny mainly because at any moment any one of Ossie, Dickie Knee, John Blackman, Red, Wilbur, Russell Gilbert or the many others can chime in with a joke. The audience never knows where or when the next joke will come from and the fact that it's live means that anything can happen. Add to that the regular segments such as 'Red Faces', 'Plucka Duck' and 'Molly's Melodrama' and the show has a real structure that can be played with.

It's an excellent model for a variety show and it's the reason that the show can consistently provide two hours of entertainment regularly. However, there are aspects that are a little tired, 'Hey Hey' can't go on forever. Perhaps we need a new show that kind of combines the formats of 'Hey Hey' and 'Rove'. 'Rove' could definitely be longer, it would give it more room to breathe. 'Rove' would also work better if there were more people involved that had defined roles, that could provide jokes so as to support and also subvert the host (like Ossie Ostrich or Dickie Knee, though not necessarily a puppet). I guess one of the big things that came out of watching 'Hey Hey' is that a show tends to work better if the host isn't the one and only thing that the show revolves around. For instance, 'Hey Hey' is hosted by Daryl Somers but it's definitely not 'The Daryl Somers Show'. 'Rove' would benefit from this kind of approach.

'Hungry Beast'

This show just doesn't really work. Why?

• Way too many hosts. 19? What the hell. They all just kind of blur into each other and their personalities don't really shine through. Some of them are genuinely quite charismatic though, such as Dan Ilic.
• It feels like the television version of a uni newspaper. I read this description on Twitter somewhere and it pinpointed exactly what I was feeling about it. It's just a little too earnest, dare I say a little too tryhard.
• It's not consistent. It's very hard to get a grasp on the show because the hosts and segments vary constantly. A comedy sketch followed by a piece to camera followed by an interview with a grieving widow followed by some graphics about... who cares?
• Yeah, the graphics. Not a very interesting or effective device to link the segments.
• I keep drawing comparisons with 'Race Around The World'. The reason that 'Race' worked was because it had a structure. There would be the video made by a racer and then some judging. Was the judging necessary? Probably not, but it gave the show structure. It's the same reason that Tom Gleisner has a presence on 'Thank God You're Here'. He gives the show structure. Structure is really lacking in 'Hungry Beast'. You need a unifying presence.
  

I'm quite disappointed with it overall. Mainly because the concept is great but the execution is so average. I think it basically comes down to a lack of structure and cohesion. Without that, the show looks like a bunch of random clips strung together. I was initially reluctant to criticise 'Hungry Beast' because I reckon there should be more shows giving newcomers in the media industry a chance. But, as a show, I'm really struggling with it. It could just be a classic case of too many cooks in the kitchen.