The obligatory Christmas special it seems is something that every British sitcom has to do at least once in it's run and none managed it quite as well as this. Four incarnations of Blackadder are present: Elizabethan, Regency, Victorian and Space-Age versions. It's the third of those on whom we focus.
"Mr Ebenezer Blackadder is the nicest man in England," says the narrator (Hugh Laurie) and immediately we know there's something wrong. Don't panic though, Rowan Atkinson still give us a man as sarcastic and cynical as we'd hope for. This time round he's merely not nasty. He is rather gullible though, something for which advantage is taken of him repeatedly and orphans, goddaughters and monarchs all cheat him out of cash, food and presents. Other Blackadders would listen to Baldrick's (Sir Tony Robinson) advice not to give in to them but this one is too kind to refuse them.
Robbie Coltrane as the spirit of Christmas is an incredible piece of casting by the production team and his character shows up over night to tell Blackadder to keep up the good work, congratulating him for not being like his ancestors.
Cue some classic Blackadder II, via flashback, as Lord Edmund cheats Melchett (Stephen Fry) and Queenie (Miranda Richardson) into signing an execution order for Melchett. All the regulars of series two are present, sadly minus Tim Mcinnerney, and revisiting the Elizabethan court is a delight.
Next it's on to Blackadder The Third as Edmund cheats the Prince out of his Christmas presents with one of the finest cunning plans we'll see in the whole series. This leads to one of the greatest twists you'll ever see in a TV show. I won't ruin it for you, since it's a reveal everyone deserves to experience at least once spoiler-free.
So, what if Ebenezer became bad? The spirit is unwilling to reveal it, but he eventually does as Blackadder sees a descendant become ruler of the universe if he becomes bad or be a half-naked slave if he becomes good. It's a no-brainer: Bad guys have all the fun!
The future segment is done with a deliberate level of cheesy effects and music - think oldschool Dr Who and you're almost there - and to see this new Blackadder is an incredible moment. I'll always welcome a new incarnation of the title character and if we ever do get Blackadder V this should be the setting for it.
In short, this is an excellent addition to the Blackadder series and is actually better than many of the "main" episodes serving as a nice substitute for pathetically wet christmassy television and a great entry point for new fans to meet Blackadder for the first time. It's a shame IMDb only let's you give ratings up to ten because this deserves to get 11/10. Not to be missed.
"Mr Ebenezer Blackadder is the nicest man in England," says the narrator (Hugh Laurie) and immediately we know there's something wrong. Don't panic though, Rowan Atkinson still give us a man as sarcastic and cynical as we'd hope for. This time round he's merely not nasty. He is rather gullible though, something for which advantage is taken of him repeatedly and orphans, goddaughters and monarchs all cheat him out of cash, food and presents. Other Blackadders would listen to Baldrick's (Sir Tony Robinson) advice not to give in to them but this one is too kind to refuse them.
Robbie Coltrane as the spirit of Christmas is an incredible piece of casting by the production team and his character shows up over night to tell Blackadder to keep up the good work, congratulating him for not being like his ancestors.
Cue some classic Blackadder II, via flashback, as Lord Edmund cheats Melchett (Stephen Fry) and Queenie (Miranda Richardson) into signing an execution order for Melchett. All the regulars of series two are present, sadly minus Tim Mcinnerney, and revisiting the Elizabethan court is a delight.
Next it's on to Blackadder The Third as Edmund cheats the Prince out of his Christmas presents with one of the finest cunning plans we'll see in the whole series. This leads to one of the greatest twists you'll ever see in a TV show. I won't ruin it for you, since it's a reveal everyone deserves to experience at least once spoiler-free.
So, what if Ebenezer became bad? The spirit is unwilling to reveal it, but he eventually does as Blackadder sees a descendant become ruler of the universe if he becomes bad or be a half-naked slave if he becomes good. It's a no-brainer: Bad guys have all the fun!
The future segment is done with a deliberate level of cheesy effects and music - think oldschool Dr Who and you're almost there - and to see this new Blackadder is an incredible moment. I'll always welcome a new incarnation of the title character and if we ever do get Blackadder V this should be the setting for it.
In short, this is an excellent addition to the Blackadder series and is actually better than many of the "main" episodes serving as a nice substitute for pathetically wet christmassy television and a great entry point for new fans to meet Blackadder for the first time. It's a shame IMDb only let's you give ratings up to ten because this deserves to get 11/10. Not to be missed.