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I Am Not An Animal

Smoothly

15:38 / 20.05.04

'I Am Not An Animal' is the new animated comedy series from the Baby Cow stable/shed (Marion & Geoff, Human Remains, Cruise of the Gods, Nighty Night...), written by Peter Baynham (The Day Today, Brass Eye, Jam, Alan Partridge...) and voiced by Steve Coogan, Julia Davis, Arthur Matthews, Kevin Eldon and Simon Pegg. It's really very funny, has been given an accessible 10pm slot on Monday nights by BBC2, but nobody seems to be watching it. Or if they are, then they're not talking about it. Or if they are talking about it, they're not talking about it near me.

For the uninitiated, it's about about "the only six talking animals in the world, whose cosseted existence in a vivisection unit is turned upside down when they are liberated by animal rights activists". It's brilliantly grey, the characters are instantly recognisable and the animation has a strangely disconcerting live-action feel to it. If you're not watching it, please do. And if you are, do tell.

Mike Modular

19:11 / 20.05.04

I'm watching it! Well, not right this minute, but I've seen it and I liked it. Although I can't seem to remember very much other than the 'confusing' image of Claire the Rat's thong... The animation is great, and yes quite 'live' looking - I love the real human eyes they have - though reminds me a bit of Rathergood, in that cut & paste way.

Oh, yes, it's all coming back now: "Check the box that says 'enable cookies'"

■

20:51 / 20.05.04

The scripts are superb!
"Calm down! It's only snails rutting!"
"Shut up you top-half-the-same-as-your-bottom-half TWAT"

Smoothly

22:07 / 20.05.04

Yeah, it's got lines in it that I still chuckle at days later...

[A high speed train misses them by inches]
Winona the dog: What's that?
Phillip the horse: The Internet!

I love it.

Pan Paniscus

11:21 / 21.05.04

Yeah - and nice to see Baynham getting his own series, after so long hanging around in the background making other people's stuff better.

It's still (understandably) being sold as a Steve Coogan/Julia Davis show though.

It's a bit of 'a grower' I think, from what people I know have said about it - lots seem to recoil instinctively at the 'talking animals' premise, or shy away from the animation, or refuse to accept there's any sort of satirical content. But once you click into the stlye and the characters, you're hooked.

Mrs Chimp, for example, thought it sounded rubbish when I described it, and took the piss out me for liking it, but she loved the second episode.

Future cult classic, I reckon

rizla mission

14:23 / 21.05.04

I saw this last week and thought it was really funny.

Which is odd, cos you know what a miserable bastard I am when it comes to primetime TV comedy type nonsense..

Steve Coogan as the horse is particularly superb.

Made me laugh quite a lot.

Eloi Tsabaoth

14:48 / 21.05.04

I'm warming to this. The first episode was brilliantly written but didn't make me laugh a great deal. The second was better, especially the convoluted set of circumstances which led to our heroes appearing to be normal animals (strip board game, squeaky fear 'who's a pretty boy?'...lovely).However it still doesn't engage me as much as it should, or even as much as Peter Baynham's other work.

Smoothly

10:21 / 24.05.04

Bumping in the hope more people will tune in tonight.

Barbelith claims 'I Am Not An Animal' etc.

10:16 / 25.05.04

Really really love it. Pretty spoilt this year really - first Nighty Night now this.

Anyway, I can't be arsed going into details here, except to say that it has that special something I haven't seen since Brass Eye, or The Day Today, in that every episode is just packed with lovely touches - the sharp dialogue, the charming animation (ooh, so much to spot in the background), the songs(!), the black/ cruel humour. It owes a debt to Watership Down and Animal Farm, but is more than happy to give a nod in that direction, and be a little serious when it matters. Right, I'll shut up now, just go watch it...

Regrettable Juvenilia

10:30 / 25.05.04

"I've read most of The Fog by James Herbert!"

"Where do you think meat comes from? The tap? The drawer? The meat-drawer?"

Followed by:

"Where is the money? Is it in the drawer, with the meat?"

Superb.

Ganesh

12:04 / 25.05.04

Saw the first episode and qui-i-ite liked it. Missed the second. Caught the third, and found it laugh-out-loud funny.

Surely an 'Animal Farm' satire on the balsamic vinegar-snorting, pilates-pushing, Sunday supplement-reading British middle classes?

(Oh yeah, and who voices each animal? They all sound like Steve Coogan to me...)

Smoothly

15:23 / 25.05.04

Oh yeah, and who voices each animal?

I think I've got this right:

Phillip Masterson-Bowie (the horse) - Steve Coogan
Winona Matthews (the dog) - Amelia Bullmore
Mark Andrews (the bird) - Steve Coogan
Claire Frenchetti (the rat) - Julia Davis
Hugh Gape (the monkey) - Kevin Eldon
Niall (the rabbit) - Arthur Matthews

Happily, episode three assuaged any fears I had that this might go downhill once the central conceit had been established. I worried that it might all be over bar the catchphrases once they'd arrived in London. But they way it's turning out bodes well for the rest of the series I think.

It's odd though in that I find it hard to explain why some of the lines that make me laugh most have their effect. Last night I think I guffawed loudest at Phillip's plea for a 'Fuse baaar'.

Regrettable Juvenilia

17:03 / 25.05.04

I was sure the monkey made an LCD Soundsystem joke last night. "I was theeerrrrre..." It sounds implausible but seeing as the main target of the satire are trendy Londoners, maybe it's not so unlikely...

Warewullf

17:49 / 25.05.04

"I'm no' a monkey..." says the monkey in the shop.

Great stuff. Thanks for recommending this, I really liked it!

rizla mission

09:50 / 26.05.04

"It's like some space-age folder... with a WIRE!"

That cracked me up.

And all the stuff with the meat / cannibalism was spectacularly twisted.

It's great to finally see another comedy show on primetime TV that doesn't just hammer home the obvious cynical gags again and again but instead goes for situations and characters which are.. just really odd and sort of nice and likable, but still quietly demented and sinister.

■

17:58 / 27.05.04

I have claimed the phrase "I am not an underclass: I have read most of The Fog by James Heerbeert." as mine.

Chubby P

08:33 / 08.06.04

Why do you reject me,
Is it because I'm full of diseases?
Quattro Fromage,
Is a pizza with four cheeses!

Warewullf

18:46 / 10.06.04

And all the stuff with the meat / cannibalism was spectacularly twisted.

I was in awe of that. Amazing. I want to watch it again because of how...odd and uncomfortable it made me feel.

Quantum

13:27 / 05.07.05

Watched the series all in one, funny as anything I've seen.

'Biscuits for cheese, bitch!' (Mark the megalomaniac sparrer)

Essential Dazzler

15:09 / 05.07.05

Oooh! Is this out on DVD now then?

Oh yes.

Buy it here

This is apparently getting its US premiere tonight on the Sundance Channel. Which I have not got.

Quantum

13:31 / 06.10.05

I wonder how it will go down in the states? Some of it is peculiarly British.

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