Manchild - Series One

To put this series in the same category as Sex and the City may be a bit of a stretch, but there are comparisons between the two, be they only slight. Whereas the US series looks at the lives of four New York single women in their 30s, Manchild looks at the lives of four single London men in their 50s, well three are single anyway. This BBC series contains some wonderful characters and oozes quality. Very British in many ways, particularly in the humour stakes, it tackles taboo subjects head on, from impotence to death to dating models.

"Do these pants make my arse look big?"

The four main characters here are affluent men who have all recently turned 50. They have been close friends since school and now spend much of their time together. Terry (Nigel Havers) is the main character, talking directly with the camera on many occasions, much in the way that Carrie Bradshaw does on Sex and the City. Terry is a stockbroker who has a good relationship with his ex-wife, but struggles to build one with his son and never seen daughter. James (Anthony Buffy Head) is a former dentist, Patrick (Don Warrington) an art dealer and Gary (Ray Burdis) the most common of all four has made his money in decking. Gary is the only one to remain married, but fits well into this group of yuppie wannabes.

Morning Charlie!

The first series contains seven episodes with a running time of approximately 28 minutes each. The supporting music used is a collection of recognisable hits that suit the storyline well and will have many a toe tapping. Here is a brief synopsis of each episode.

Episode 1
The first episode is predominantly to introduce the characters. It shows their friendship, why they are friends and their lifestyles. It also covers how they all became so wealthy and why the majority of them are now single. James is also struggling with his manhood and seeks medical advice. It quickly establishes the theme of the series and demonstrates the humour. Basically, if you don’t get a giggle from the first episode then you may struggle to get into the series, but give it a chance.

Episode 2
James decides to buy a painting and asks Patrick for his expertise in choosing the best piece to increase in value. Terry starts dating yet another model and gives an insight into why men in their 50s are so desirable to women half their age.

Episode 3
Through boredom mainly, Patrick decides to buy a stretch of river and the required fishing equipment, even though he has no interest in fishing. Terry takes up dancing with more interest in the dancing instructor than dancing itself. After a night on the town and Gary continually stating how married life is better than what the other guys enjoy, he quickly changes his mind when he receives a lap dance at a local men’s club.

Episode 4
Patrick faces the unbearable problem of whether to end his terminally ill mother’s life by turning off the ventilator, Terry’s wife begins dating a fashion designer and James is still enduring performance anxiety. Terry also discovers who his ex-girlfriend is now dating and struggles to deal with his inner jealousy.

Episode 5
Terry and his ex-wife call in a designer to help plan their daughter's second wedding. Patrick goes into depression and causes worry amongst the guys as they struggle for the best way to help him through his tough time.

Episode 6
The guys spend some time smoking cigars at a club and James decides to invest in a pipe. Patrick tries to introduce change to the others by treating them to a grass shake and also looks at women to be prospective mothers to his yet to be born children. When their sex life has become routine, Gary suggest to his wife that they investigate swingers, but to his dismay she is keener than he expects and he quickly backs out.

Episode 7
Man is the hunter and this final episode in the series sees the guys go on a weekend away in the country. The plan is to get away from the womenfolk, do some male bonding and kill things. After buying an elaborate new hunting outfit, Patrick struggles to find the right thing to kill that will match the outfit. James is trying to do some killing in his flat while away, the victim being a mouse that is eating away at his electrics.

This is a wonderful series with endearing characters. Many would think that four very rich men struggling with trivial matters would quickly turn the viewer against them, but these guys are great. The acting is superb and the storyline is both entertaining and well paced. The interaction between the four is the highlight and this provides many subtle laughs. The BBC have produced yet another fine and innovative series that continues the fine tradition they have established. Well worth taking a look and hopefully there will be many a series to follow.

Considering the recent quality transfers of BBC series to DVD, there has become an expected standard and this series meets that easily. It is presented in an aspect ratio of 1.78:1 and is 16:9 enhanced. Picture is sharp throughout with only the odd minor instance of grain or other nasties. The only real problem is quite a bit of aliasing. Colours are natural, blacks are deep and detail is excellent. Subtitles are supplied in the default English for the Hearing Impaired and these are accurate to what occurs on screen.

Audio is supplied in English Dolby Digital 2.0 stereo and being a dialogue-driven series, this handles the requirement admirably. Dialogue is clear at all times with no synch problems. Music is a key to this series and the collection of hit songs used throughout are both well suited to the scenes they are used in and are also songs that many will know very well and enjoy hearing once again.

Nada in the extras kitty I’m afraid.

Having only seen snippets of this series when it aired on television I was unsure whether it would be worth watching or not. Having sat through the series I cannot recommend it highly enough. It is captivating and entertaining and fans of BBC series' such as Linda Green will love this. The video and audio are very strong, but sadly there are no extras. This is a truly refreshing change from much of the tripe that is churned out of the US, so do yourself the proverbial and check it out.