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.

So they're bringing 'Hey Hey' back. I used to love 'Hey Hey'. There's not enough live TV on these days and that's probably the reason that I usually find myself watching 'Rove' each week. It's not that I really like watching it, it's just that I'm starved of live TV, particularly live comedy. The problem is, I watch it and I always think that it doesn't quite work, they haven't quite nailed the format. Here's my top 5 ways to improve 'Rove'.

1. Get rid of the people hanging around on the couch.
This always makes me feel awkward, they just sit there doing nothing apart from occasionally offering a witty remark. It's like being at a party and knowing that off in the corner, out of your field of vision is some dude not talking to anyone, pretending to text someone. It's awkward. In the case of 'Rove', it's also a waste of talent. They could surely get these guys doing something, perhaps they could even be backstage in the green room with the occasional cross. They need a defined role.

2. Get rid of Rove's monologue at the start of the show.
There are already a lot of news based joke segments in the show with 'Petespace' and the 'News Desk' stuff. This means there's a bit of an overlap in content and style, covering a lot of familiar ground. Of the three, the monologue is perhaps the weakest and we already see a lot of Rove in the show. I would make the opening either more creative or more classic, perhaps a Letterman style voice-over guy could introduce Rove.

3. Bring back 'Roving With Rove'.
Or something similar. Rove is at his best when he is interacting with the average joe. His best stuff on the show comes when he is naturally just talking to the audience and bouncing off them. Similarly, 'Roving With Rove' allowed Rove to be naturally funny and really instilled in the audience the qualities that make him so likeable. It also takes him out of the studio environment, giving the show a a real sense of freshness.

4. More sketches and written bits.
'News Desk' is by far the best thing on the show. Similarly, 'Kevin Rudd P.M.' is usually worth a few laughs. They need to do more stuff in the show that allows the writers to write jokes. This stuff feels tighter than the casual banter between Rove, Pete and co. For instance, the scripted sketch with Rove and wrestler Jeff Jarrett a few weeks ago worked great.

5. Bring back Ryan Shelton.
For me, Ryan Shelton's segments on 'Rove' were some recent Australian comedy highlights. Sure, they didn't always work and they were obviously heavily influenced by Armando Iannucci's stuff, but the main thing was that these sketches provided a new and different comedy voice on 'Rove'. 'Rove' needs more of this kind of thing, it needs to provide a voice for young, fresh comedians to come through. It's the kind of format that really lends itself well to sketches, even brief ones that lead into other segments.

So that's my top 5 ways to improve 'Rove' for now. 'Rove' isn't bad, it's just with the lack of live comedy on Australian TV at the moment, I reckon what we have should be as good as possible.